What is normal?
I have been asking myself that question for the last 2 days since I
landed in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Immediately, I was thrown into the chaos of last year, not knowing why
my ride wasn’t at the airport and having to use skype to contact him. I loved it and the rush of adrenaline
that took over as I began the task of getting in touch with him felt so normal
to me. Shortly, after Sabelo
arrived we headed to my friends, the Gooch’s house. We shared a meal and time of fellowship and it was great to
catch up and hear what God is doing.
Amazing how it had been 6 months, but yet it felt so normal to sit
around their table, share some time together and then say goodbye until next
time.
That evening I settled in a nice bed and awoke the next
morning to board an all day van ride to Nsoko, Swaziland. Funny part was 
the nice hotel didn’t
feel normal, but being in a van for 9 hours did. I talked, read, and caught up on sleep as we drove through
the African countryside. Why that
feels so normal and comfortable is kind of crazy to me, but it is. We arrived and spent time getting to
know each other and settling into our rooms for the next couple of nights.
Total normalcy hit this morning though when we headed to the
Nsoko Project run by Pastor Gift.
It is pretty phenomenal what God is doing in this place through the
faithful service of this one obedient man and his family. This community is overrun with AIDS and
Tuberculosis, but 
Pastor Gift is set on instilling hope in this place and sharing
the love of Christ. They have
established 8 Carepoints in the area that are feeding and educating
children. A Carepoint that is
fully sponsored consists of 2 meals a day for the children, basic education,
health care and other activities.
An unsponsored carepoint provides food when by the grace of God it
becomes available. Four of the
Eight Carepoints in this area are sponsored, but as always in Africa, there is
still so much need. If you are
interested in learning more about sponsoring children, let me know and I will
put you in touch with the right people.
It is $34/month to sponsor a child at one of the Swaziland Carepoints.
out front of my thatch
cabin today. It wasn’t because of the South African Brie I had this evening and thebeautiful smiling waitresses. It
was because my only job today was to love and hold orphans. We laughed and played and spun around. They sung songs and did dances and we
attempted to teach other slap games.
We sat under a tree and asked questions about their families through a
translator and then we prayed for them and gave them some rice and beans. We saw a simplicity of life that I long
for and have so quickly forgotten since returning from the World Race. It is so easy in America to get
distracted and forget that life is about loving God and loving others. Normal is waking up and meeting with my
Savior and then spending my day loving and getting to know the people He has
put in my path for that day. I
can’t believe He loves me enough to take me halfway around the world and remind
me of that. Whatever you’re doing
today, slow down, close your email, turn off your cell phone and go love the
person who is next to you. It
doesn’t have to be an orphan, it can just be whoever is next to you.
