First month into the world race and already sent to live in the bush of Mozambique. We are located 8km away from Chokwe in a village called Guija that is filled with mud huts, cattle and children who run to greet you with the warmest “Heeelllllooooooo.” All the children knew my name by the first week.
Just last month I was snowboarding and the next week I was thrown into temperatures as high as 105° F with a touch of humidity. Umm, “Eww,” to humidity. Mozambique is currently struggling with the worst drought. Making it harder to fight against AIDS, TB and malaria which leads to an increase in infections. Cattle that represent your wealth are dying. No crops, no money, no food.
Men leave their families and move to South Africa to provide them with money. Wives and mothers wait at home hoping that they will come back, but most of them don’t. Women run the village, bear the children, carry water from the public well, and make food from whatever the land can only supply them with. Most of the children grow up without a father figure or an example to look up to.
We’re also surrounded by witches around our base who perform witchcraft every night. At first, it felt eerie but when they start their chanting we pray over them. You can definitely feel how spiritually dark and heavy it is here. One of the witches’ daughters was dying of AIDS and no witch in the village was able to heal her. Our ministry host, Tienie, prayed over her and peace overflowed the daughter when she accepted Christ. All the witches were astonished. After that, they held high respect for the pastor because before that all of them wanted to kick the pastor out of their villages since he was preaching against the witchcraft.
Not going to lie…it’s not easy living in the bush. Early every morning we help the ministry base water the orchard. Watering has never been so exhausting. Pumping water into buckets from the well and then wheel barrowing back to water the trees. Every morning it reminds me over and over of the scripture of John 7v37-38. “On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the scripture has said, “Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” It’s hard work to grow a crop. It takes so much discipline and energy to bear fruit, and only if you won’t give up you will able to see and taste it.”
After chores we have breakfast, devotional and off we go into the different parts of the village. Going from door to door, hearing their stories and praying for healing. There’s a lot of brokenness in this small village. Many are still deeply wounded by the war that ended 20 years ago. They suffer from losing their loved ones, being shot in multiple places with only scars left to show, and orphans all around. So many people in the community that are disabled and unloved. The blind women getting raped, the elderly with no family left to rot in their own feces, grow bed sores and go without food for two weeks. Pastor Tienie is fortunate to get donations from his home church in South Africa to help the village out. My team comes alongside to help his community get back on their feet. Whether that is in prison, hospital or door to door, first and foremost prayer is fundamental to all of it.
Silverton is one of the men that works in Tenie’s ministry. Also brutally affected by the civil war. He was swimming across the river with his wife for their dear life only to get his wife shot and leave him with 12 children. But to this day his hope is in the Heavenly Father; trusting and living a humbled life.
Flora one of the women that also works for the ministry is eager to learn English so she can go to South Africa’s Bible Colleges. Our team felt the need to bless her financially so she may fulfill her dreams. She was diagnosed with epilepsy at age 12. She’s not allowed to get married because of her condition. Her family would take Flora to witch doctors to heal her, but her epilepsy would only get worse. When Tenie first settled into the village she would always follow him as a young girl, knowing that he has something more to offer. Accepting Jesus into her life after hearing the good news, she’s on fire to serve the ministry. Though she’s nervous to enter into a new chapter in her life, she knows faith can will create a ripple effect in Guija, Mozambique.
It’s amazing to see when they accept Jesus into their hearts. So much hope and passion overflows from them. I have a lot to learn from them! They thank God for everything they have which in my eyes is nothing. They live in mud huts, are living through the worst drought, but in their simplicity, they give thanks to God for everything just as it is written in Ephesians 5:20.
I’m beginning to realize how much I complained from my own comforts of home, when I really had nothing to complain about. How dare I complain when I have control over the hot and cold water, take showers as long as I can, and drink pure and good tasting water? You get it, the list is endless. The lesson for myself this month is definitely to be thankful for whatever I have.
The fun part was our ministry host warned about cobras, scorpions and crocodiles! They had five fatalities just last year from the crocodiles. So, we aren’t going anywhere near the almost completely dried river although it would be cool to see one! So far, we’ve had two scorpions on the base and a cobra swimming through the lagoon we were swimming on our off day.
If you don’t know what a chapa is, it’s definitely a must to experience in Africa. It’s a public taxi that will cram in as many people as they can. There’s no personal space in Africa. You’ll learn that pretty quickly. As we were driving back from Xai Xai to Chokwe, one of the passengers brought two live chickens in the chapa with him, one brown one and a white one. Shortly after he got on, the brown one escaped so while everyone was chasing it I noticed that the white one was under my feet… they finally captured the brown chicken and not even two minutes later when we started to head back down the road the white chicken jumped into the lap of my teammate, looked him in the eyes and the flew out of the open window right next to him!! All I was able to see was its body bouncing in the air and feathers everywhere! The driver quickly made a turn and everyone in the chapa ran after it. I loved seeing that strangers were eager to help and catch someone’s dinner! Bahahaha
Thank you for all your prayers! Wifi is limited in Africa. BIG Surprise! Will do my best to post more blogs whenever I have a chance.
