My mind is a swirl of emotions and experiences right now. My first week and a half in South Africa has been difficult, refreshing, painful, and life-giving. Sometimes walking with Jesus can look like that. Giving up things that give you comfort and peace can be hard, but no one said this life should always be comfortable. In fact, Jesus will constantly lead you to uncomfortable places. But through this, He provides in ways that are indescribable – ways that can change and bless you, if you let them.
Here are some of the highlights of my first week and a half of ministry, and I’m hoping they’ll help put context to my all-over-the-place feelings.
Poverty is hard to see. The first day we went into one of the squatter camps, I was shaken to my core. Growing up in an upper-class Western culture, poverty is something you hear about a lot. But, in my case, you try not to think about it because it is too painful. In my experience, it is something you are removed from – always donating, hearing about it at church, and other such things – but never actually seeing it and really getting to talk to and spend time with the people who are living through it everyday. As we drove through Diepsloot (one of the camps we work in) on my first day, I could feel tears coming. At the same time, I felt strangely numb. No one should have to live in these conditions – and it almost made me upset with God. However, throughout the week working in these camps through kids programs and community outreach, I knew I would never have all the answers as to why. God has put me here to serve and love, and that is what I am going to do. After getting over these questions, I found that the numbness had left me, and I was able to fully immerse myself and connect in both Diepsloot and Zandspreit – two communities full of beautiful and incredible people who do not let their circumstances define them. This is what we have been doing with Impact Africa in these communities:
1. Community Outreach
This is one of my favorite ministries we get to be a part of. Basically, we go door to door and see if people need help with anything or need any prayer. This has led to some incredible conversations and moments. My favorite moment so far has been with a young woman named Miriam. She is my age, and has a husband and four-month-old child. She is soft-spoken and has one of the most beautiful smiles I have ever seen. Last Wednesday, my team and I spent a whole afternoon with her, talking about life, faith, and her family. Her love and hunger for Jesus was apparent all throughout the afternoon. As we began sharing some of our favorite passages from Scripture and how the Lord spoke to us through them, one of my friends asked her if she had a Bible and she said she did not. I had mine out, and another friend quietly asked me if I would ever give my Bible away. My initial though was no – it’s mine. But almost immediately, I knew that was not what God wanted from me at that moment, and I knew I was supposed to give my Bible to Miriam. So I did. And I have NEVER seen that much joy come from a simple act of giving. For the rest of the afternoon, Miriam was smiling more than ever and kept looking through it as we talked. Any small act matters, and God showed me that during that afternoon. That night, I prayed that I would get to see Miriam again. And I did the next day, twice!
2. Jabulani Kids
This is a ministry we do on Friday afternoons, and it is also one of my favorites. It is led by Bethany, one of the women who lives and works on Impact Africa’s base with her husband. We go to two different areas of Diepsloot and dance, play games, and tell stories with local children. So much lightness and joy comes out of these afternoons, and I have only done it twice so far! There is nothing better than dancing and playing with children and showing them how loved they are. I cannot wait to continue doing this ministry every single Friday, it truly fills my heart and is indescribable.
3. Impact Kids
We did this for the first time this past Friday morning, and will continue to do it every Friday morning. Impact Africa has a preschool in Diepsloot and we help the teachers out in the classrooms. If you ever happen to visit this school, you’ll immediately see why the teachers need help. Being so young, the kids are very hard to control at times and need individual or smaller-group attention. Last Friday, I was with the 2 and 3-year-olds. I got to teach a craft in the classroom, which was my favorite part. The children loved it. Instead of doing it for them, I wanted to show them how to do it and then have them complete it themselves. They learned so fast! I loved seeing their hunger to learn new things, it gave me so much peace and hope. We also got to play with the kids at recess and help with lunch. This was a chaotic but life-giving time.
4. Impact Africa’s other ministries…
This week, we will get to work with Impact Baby Rescue. I am SUPER excited. I love babies. Baby abandonment is a problem in Johannesburg and Impact Africa is working to fight that every day. We will get to go into one of the clinics and help out – I am not sure exactly what we are doing there yet but we will learn this week beforehand and updates will come. We will also be working in Impact Student at some point, helping out in classrooms with 8th and 9th graders.
Some other things I have learned in my first week and a half…
You can find family anywhere through the goodness of Christ. Yesterday, I woke up feeling homesick for the first time. It finally hit me that I won’t be back in the United States until NEXT JULY. We went to the local church in Zandspreit, my first experience at an African church. The welcome we received there counteracted all those feelings of homesickness. Pastor Sipho was so happy to welcome us and referred to us as brothers and sisters. We danced, sang, and prayed together. It was so beautiful to see people from all different backgrounds, nationalities, and ethnicities come together to worship and love Christ. On the way out, I gave Pastor Sipho a big hug and told him how much his church helped me with my homesickness. I truly felt like I belonged there and was part of the family that morning.
South African food is dang good. In my opinion, it is a fact that hole-in-the-wall restaurants have the best food ever. Last week, we went to a place in Zandspreit that served pop and chakalaka, a traditional South African meal. Pop is sort of like mashed potatoes, and chakalaka is a mixture of rice, spices, and some other things that I honestly don’t know. There was also amazing chicken and beef. Put it all together and you have a bomb meal.
I have found lifelong friends here. After training camp, I was surprised at how fast my squad and I bonded. This has happened even more so since getting to Africa. I don’t feel like I am just friends with these amazing people I am doing life with, but actual family. I am so grateful for each of these people. Without them and Jesus, I don’t know if I would feel the sense of peace and purpose I have here. I can see these friendships lasting for life and I can’t wait. We spend our time on the base playing games, hammocking, having campfires, and just getting to know each other. We’ve also gotten to go play with baby lion cubs, go on a mini safari, and are planning a trip to Cape Town for the end of the month. So basically, bonding is inevitable.
Overall, the main thing I have learned since being here is that this is life. Life comes with amazing days – days where you’re beyond grateful. It also comes with hard days where you question God and feel uncertain. I have experienced both of these types of days since being here. And you know what? That’s life! I’m just going through normal life, but it happens to be on a different continent. Putting that into perspective has really helped me adjust. I know this year will bring growth, and that growth will come from both incredible experiences and painful experiences. And by surrendering it all to God, that is something that am ready for.
