If there was such a thing as having a “perfect” month on the race, August was definitely one. As I reflect on my time in Lesotho, the people we have met and encountered stick out the most. I’ll share a little bit about them and what I learned from them.
We arrived at the Lesotho border much later on our first evening than expected. As we were walking through the gate from South Africa to Lesotho, on the other side we found one of the ministry contacts was waiting; it happened to be ours! The sweet young lady who was there to meet us was named Mpho (pronounced Mmm-po). We were still waiting on the rest of the squad to come through so we striked up conversation and learned she had been waiting there most of the day for us! It didn’t seem to bother her much and I could see the love and patience she had immediately. When the rest of the squad made it through the border, we drove to a nearby mall, sorted through our bags and went on our separate ways from the other teams. Our team, Kintsu, was partnered with another this month so we piled 17 people on a 16 passenger van with our big packs on a trailer in tow and headed up and around the mountains to the Malealea Valley where we were staying. We arrived around 1am where we were greeted by a man who showed us where we were sleeping, the long drop (toilets, latrines, outhouse, whatever you want to call it), and left us to rest for the night. I don’t recall when I actually learned his name because I was so tired but this was Pieter (Peter) who we’ve come to learn is a phenomenal ministry host.
Mpho and Pieter are just two of the many people on our base who greatly impacted our time in Malealea. It is evident by his actions and reasons behind those actions that Pieter loves the Lord. He and his family (Wife, Keila and sons, Jon and Jaime) are from South Africa and moved here a few years ago to build the base and develop the Lesotho branch of “Africa for Jesus” in the Malealea Valley. With the help of those they disciple & employ, they’ve built homes for themselves and the other workers, a church, a preschool, shower & toilet facilities, and a beautiful new kitchen which was built during our time there. Keila is an amazing cook! We were blessed with delicious dinners by her on Sunday’s after church. The boys, Jon and Jaime, are helpful, kind, and well-mannered. They attended ministry with us and helped daily with chores or any other odd bits of information we request from them.
Other base employees include: Matemello – our daily breakfast and dinner cook (breakfast is porridge or oats, lunches are PB&J or other sandwiches, and dinner is a variety of pasta bakes, stews, pop & veggies, and more) and her adorable little girl who is under 2 years old but so independent. Shemani & Rinsing – the other teams village translators & assisted with afternoon chores. Shemani loves sharing scripture with us and Rinsing has so much energy! He would effortlessly hop through the mountains on our hikes and is always dancing. Teboho, Conaoway, and Zehola – translators for our team in the village. Teboho leads bible studies around the villages (including the one we hiking 2.5 hrs to), and I’ve been blessed to learn his testimony on walks to and from ministry. Conaoway is soft spoken but so kind – the boys pick on her like a little sister and she has sacrificed a lot to leave her family and be there. Zehola also helped us in the afternoons, is friendly, and we always recognize his whistling. Mohkethi – the base builder. He worked hard and long days completing the kitchen in the month we were there. He even started on another room which was almost halfway complete before we left! I really hope I can return some day to see how the ministry has continued to flourish due to these lovely people’s dedication and hard work.
Ministry used to look like door to door evangelizing. But Pieter realized a lot of locals will just tell you what they know you want to hear, “Yes, I know Jesus. Yes, I am saved. Yes, I am Christian…etc.” So he decided we’d try a new method which was going into the villages and developing relationships, then allowing that to expand into biblical conversations. It felt extremely awkward in the beginning. On the first day, the first house we approached said we could help them make traditional beer! What a task for our first day of ministry.
Toward the end, they welcomed prayer and conversation. I was standing off to the side a little bit, and noticed a young lady close by who was not there the entire time. We started talking and her English was great! This was a relief because I could talk with her while others used our translator. Her name is Jenatte. She told me she knows Jesus, she knows He loves her, and she loves Him very much. The way she said it, I knew she meant it and I was so inspired by her faith. I wanted to know more about her. I learned she worked at the shop down the road so I made it my goal to stop by again and again. The next day she said she was very busy and I was a little discouraged. I gave it a few days and was able to spend more time with her. We talked about culture, her family, bible verses and more. She wanted to teach us to cook local food (although it never worked in our schedule), she sang us her favorite gospel songs and we did the same in return. Jenatte is adamant about not selling alcohol or tobacco in her shop because she does not like the way it makes people act. She is very successful and I know the Lord is watching out for her. I left her a note of encouragement and hope we can stay in touch when I leave.
We met many others like those who attend church, families and children up and down the streets we walk, neighbors from the village we belong to, and more. I could go on and on about how these people have touched my heart, but that would make for a really long blog. These are the highlights and I hope I have included details that show the light they’ve brought us.
As I mentioned before, our wifi was limited this month. I miss my friends and family dearly but it has been good to disconnect and attempt to focus where I am presently. Time has flown! I can’t believe I am already checking one country off. It is hard to say what wifi/communication will look like in the next month but I would LOVE messages or notes of encouragement/prayers anytime! Please feel free to write on my wall, send a message, or e-mail whenever you have time to let me know how YOU are doing!
“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” 1 Corinthians 15:58
