We’ve fairly well completed our time in Africa, nothing more than rebuilding ourselves spiritually, physically, and mentally…oh, and getting our India Visas. It’s been a long but quick road through Africa, and today I decided to take a trip down memory lane.
Our first month here, we traveled around nearly every 2-3 days. We started off in the small village of Backdoor, South Africa. We helped out with their daily feeding program there that feeds about 150-300 kids daily (depending on school).
From there, we took a whirlwind trip to Vilanculos, Mozambique. It was an absolutely wonderful trip, despite the travel getting there. We helped out with a missionary there named Jaco who has a heart to share the gospel in the African bush, which is exactly what we started off doing. We headed into the bush and showed the Jesus film and did some setup work for another Real Life team (another program offered by Adventures in Missions) which showed up a month later. We also stayed at an orphanage that he manages for a night and learned of the life the orphans live day in and day out. That night became one of my largest memories of the race to date. We learned of the orphan’s struggle for simple tasks like getting water from the community well.
A trip back to Backdoor, and a few days of travel mixed in there, and we were quickly off to our next destination of Nsoko, Swaziland. I can’t believe how that month changed my life as well. We spent the month with G-42 Carepoints, helping the teachers and Gogo’s (Siswati for Grandma) who help cook meals daily for the children. It was heart wrenching to see the poverty and hardships, the oppression every day.
Then our last month was spent in Durban, South Africa. We worked rather hard this last month and built 45 beds for an orphanage. While we worked real hard physically building the beds and helping out Missions Ablaze, for me it was slightly easier for me as it was more in my comfort zone, it was something I felt like I was good at.
Looking back I see where my growth has come from…it’s stepping out of my comfort zone. Working with kids in my middle school classroom was taxing on me at times, but I see where it was God preparing me. I came upon more poverty these past 6 months than i ever thought possible. But there’s complete joy in what I’m doing this year. God’s working on me. I’m reforming my world. I am seeing results in the work we’ve been doing.
The orphanage in Mozambique was in a rather desprate situation. If you didn’t see my previous blog and video about it, see The Orphanage Experience. Just today I found out that they have received 101,000 Rand (a little over $13,000 USD) which is enough to install the well, storage tanks, and solar panels to operate the well! This brought great joy to me as I see where our time of praying for financial favor on the orphanage and praying for clean water for the kids was heard and listened to. Next step for them: raise money for the building and bathrooms!
Praise God. I look ahead at the mere weeks left before my year on The World Race draws on. 4 more months…and it’s all over. It’s a time where I realize that I need to press in more than ever. Before I know it this year will be a memory, and I have to wonder what’s next. I can’t wish it away by counting down the days or anything like that (which many of you at KMS know that I was the master counter of days till the end of the school year…starting with Day 1 : 179 school days to go) instead I need to press into the friendships I’ve made, and the relationship with God I’ve formed.
