What the heck I am even doing in Swazi?
Well let me tell you!
This month I am in the beautiful and one of the only remaining kingdoms left in the world, Swaziland. This country is lush; so green, and mountainous and the weather is semi-tropical, as it’s the rainy season prior to the African summer. I’m currently staying at an Adventures in Missions base in Manzini area. My team along with another team from my squad, Team Genesis, are living in a house. WOOT! We have been blessed with the wonderful accommodations of bedrooms, beds, running water, flushing toilets, even an oven to bake cookies!
Our ministry of month 3 consists of 2 services.
First, Carepoint ministry, which consists of serving children in the rural areas. Generally, these neighborhoods are underdeveloped and the children are quite poor. The month of November consists of us hosting “Christmas” parties for the children. We help make a delicious meal of rice, beef, beets and coleslaw (it really is yummy.) We play games with them, watch them dance and sing for us, share Jesus with them. At the end of our day we hand out a gift bag: a package of cookies, a small bag of chips, 3 candies and a lollipop as well as a head of cabbage. It is positively hysterical to watch a 3 year old try to carry a head cabbage home, it’s also sad as they often do walk home alone. But it is a joy to give, as that vegetable will provide extra food, if any, to the rest of their families for the holiday season.
Our second site of ministry is at a Catholic hospital housing unit, called St. Theresa’s. Each housing unit has a patient along with a volunteering caretaker, often the patients are paralyzed, cancer ridden, HIV/AIDS positive, stroke victims etc. Some are on their deathbeds. It’s a difficult place to spend time in but it’s also been wonderful just in the week we’ve been here to pray over them, spend time with them, talk to them. A lot of their physical illness is accompanied by spiritual element. A crippled woman we prayed over showed signs of spiritual oppression when we started to rebuke a spirit of infirmity, she moaned, her body started to jolt and twist, and she writhed in pain. By the end of our prayer with her, though, she said she felt much better and had more mobility. It was amazing.
Also, in a month’s time, I’ll be transitioning to another country China and a whole new continent. More than likely I will have a white Christmas as China right now is in winter season and is FREEZING cold. I am a bit nervous about that, purchasing warm clothes and boots is a necessity.
With love,
Lynette
