When you think of a mission trip, many people envision
someone walking down a dirt road with many kids following close behind longing
to be held and loved on. That’s exactly the life here in Swaziland.
This is what my life looks like this month:
·
Our day revolves around the sun- we go to bed
about 8pm and woke up (on your own) about 6am. Yes, you feel like an old
person!
·
Meals times consist of A LOT of rice with some
veggies on the side cooked over an open fire. Praise the Lord for Swazi women
that cook for us or it would be PB & J every day.
·
Your home is a tent on a dirt floor inside an
unfinished preschool. I never thought I would enjoy living in my tent, but this
is first time on the race I can “be alone”
·
Ministry surrounds you- you walk outside and
there are women serving, men laboring, and children looking for a friend to
play with
·
There is no concept of time- church is supposed
to start at 10, but doesn’t start til 11 and then goes for hours.
·
Electricity means you have some genius men
ghetto rig a cord from the neighboring church so you can all sit around one
outlet waiting for your electronics to charge
·
You walk to the market daily to get food.
Refrigerators are few and far between so we have to get our food to last for a
day and then return. The people at the market begin to know you by name and the
walk becomes a routine full of new adventures.
·
Ministry is all about relationships- so what if
the preschool doesn’t get finished, just love on the people around you and HAVE
FUN doing it
·
Tan lines come back (especially the Chaco tan) thanks
to the hot weather and BLUE skies
·
The night sky is BALLIN! Millions of stars fill
the sky and leave you thanking our God for this great creation
·
After the sun goes to sleep, our only light is a
camp fire in a fire pit that we made our first day. It doesn’t get much better
than team time around a fire singing praise and worship songs with the local
community.
I’m truly blessed this month. We are partnering with Hope
Rises (www.hoperisesafrica.com), and they have such an incredible vision for
this nation. Our contacts are awesome, the people in the community have such
servant hearts, and my team continues to love me like no other! I can’t wait to
see what all God has in store for us in Swaziland.
PS Internet is nonexistent this month (my team leader is
actually posting this for me). I have no idea what next month looks like so
remember NO NEWS IS GOOD NEWS!
