This month my team, Sound of Strength, and one other team, Ruach are both working with Beacon of Hope – Africa. Beacon of Hope is a ministry for boys run by an amazing woman of God named Angie. She came to Mozambique from America 11 years ago and hasn’t looked back since. While she was still living in America the Lord gave her a vision of a logo, which developed into a name – Beacon of Hope, but she had no clue what the logo or the name were for. During her first couple years in Mozambique she was a medical missionary. While she was serving as a nurse and leading a youth group, Angie got a vision of a house with a garden. The fruit of those two visions finally turned out to be Beacon of Hope – Africa, where Angie finds boys who don’t have Jesus, or any hope for a future, and she gives them both. Just like her garden in the backyard, she works hard with these boys, plants seeds, waters them, and watches them grow into strong and successful men of God.
Every year in January Angie takes in a maximum of 10 boys. The program for each boy is 3 years long and after that, if they are successful, they may enter a trade school. Angie does not hand out that opportunity lightly; the boys must show that they have a lot of commitment and hard work. Throughout their 3 years at Beacon of Hope, the boys learn how to be a child of God. They learn who Jesus is and how to have a relationship, on top of regular schooling up until the 10th grade. They also learn the tools they need for a trade school as well as how to express, feel and dream. Angie’s goal is to create multiplication. She desires to build these boys up to be men who will go out with the hope, skills, and passions that have been nurtured in them and multiply that into others. Angie is only one woman, but through these young men, she can impact the entire nation of Mozambique.
In 9 years Angie has had 8 graduates. As I mentioned, Angie is not just giving “hand outs”. There are rules and expectations that must be met and many of the boys don’t end up staying for the full 3 years. Every year around November when the boys are done with school, Angie has them go back home to their families before the new school year starts in January. So our job for our month here is to help Angie, her adopted son Po Po
(the very first graduate and now Vice President of Beacon of Hope) and the rest of her staff of men who have completed her program, prepare for the new year. We are living on site with Angie and her family, working on the garden, lesson planning, office assistance, small construction projects, painting and we will also get to go visit the boys in their homes – many of which are in the Bush. The word Angie shared with us today is what I believe is our number one task, encourage. We are here to encourage Angie, her family, and her staff in all that they are already doing here in Mozambique. We are here to encourage them in their walks with Christ, encourage them in their ministry, and encourage them in their own personal lives. Through these amazing relationships that we will all be building there will be a beautiful exchange of giving and receiving between us all. I am excited for the encouragement I will be receiving this month as I pour out.
