Let’s talk for a moment about dreams.
We all have them, don’t we?
If there’s one gift that our culture in North America has, it’s the ability to dream crazy, big, impossible dreams, right? We are told from practical infancy that we can do anything we set our minds to. “If you dream it, you can do it.” As kids, we often ran amuck, warbling in happy childlike chatter about how someday, when we grew up, we wanted to be astronauts, or dolphin trainers, or dinosaur experts. We went through phases. We changed our minds as we grew. We no longer wanted to be princesses; we wanted to be FBI agents. Then when we got a little older, we wanted to be executive chefs, or professional musicians. Instead of fulfilling our dreams, we became experts at throwing them away.
Even as we enter into adulthood, our dreams can often change. Some of us find ourselves paralyzed with doubt and confusion in college, so we switch majors and decide on new dreams. Some of us are constantly chasing fulfillment through hobbies, but can never seem to find the “one thing” that makes our souls truly shine with a purpose. Some of us still move from place to place, job to job, relationship to relationship endlessly searching for someone or some thing to become our new dream. There is, of course, the exception to every rule. A lot of our friends and neighbors have actually known what they want to do with their lives, and have known ever since they were small. Those people are anomalies, however, in our culture. It’s not normal to pick one thing and stick with it for the rest of your life. Something we’re learning about on the Race is that our culture at home has an invaluable privilege of being able to choose our own paths. We have the immense gift and the overwhelming resources to simply change directions, no matter the cost. We can afford to throw our dreams away, and we can afford to constantly be dreaming up new ones. But what if we couldn’t?
This month, our team is serving in Nsoko, Swaziland, a community riddled by the devastating effect caused by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
It is estimated that 28% of the population is living with HIV or AIDS, however it is considered taboo here to be tested, so the actual percentage is thought to be much, much higher than that.
The average life span in this country is 47. 40% of Swaziland’s population is made up of children 18 and under, with 12% of the population being made up of orphans and at-risk children. It is estimated that the entire population will die out and Swaziland as a nation will cease to exist within the next 50 years.
Here in Swaziland, having an attainable dream is a luxury. Having a series of attainable dreams, that change with every passing season, is unheard of.
But that doesn’t stop people from having dreams, nor should it stop them from dreaming. Arguably, dreams are one of the most important things that this country needs to cultivate in order to keep existing, and beyond existing, to thrive.
So how do we go about encouraging a nation to dream impossible dreams when they can hardly see past their own situations?
Well, our friends at Ambassadors of Hope found themselves asking the same question.
The beautiful thing, is that God already had an answer for them.
Under the umbrella of AIM, Ambassadors of Hope is a relatively new ministry organization based here in Swaziland headed up by energetic locals Tamara and Celimpilo and a few of their close friends.
Their dream is to work alongside college-aged students and encourage them to seek out God’s dreams for their lives and see them come to fruition, because we all know that God is the ultimate dream-giver.
This is exactly what they are striving to put into practice starting next month: A communal home for eight college-aged residents where Tamara and her husband live alongside them, discipling and teaching them about what Jesus culture looks like through promoting outreaches and assisting them in getting internships. This intentional, family-style dynamic encourages vitally important youth to reach beyond their means and to promote true change and a growth in the assurance of Swaziland’s future.
This God-given dream has, according to the riches of His tender mercy, already grown to be 40% funded and Tamara and Celimpilo are confident that the Lord will provide the rest of the income in time for the students to begin moving in next month.
We are so thrilled to be getting to know these amazing individuals who are so obediently following God’s clear call on their lives.
Next week, starting on Monday morning and ending on Tuesday morning, we will be participating in a 24-hour prayer and fasting in support of Ambassadors of Hope and their incredible vision to elevate future dreamers of this country and to simply keep Swaziland.
We encourage you to join us as we petition the Lord to continue blessing their endeavors and to pour out His providence over their immediate needs and over the futures of all the lives that this organization will touch throughout the years to come.
If you are feeling led to learn more about what they’re doing here in Swaziland, or if you are feeling led to support financially, please check out this video to meet Tamara and Celimpilo, https://vimeo.com/209229812
Also, here’s a blog a past racer has written about them:
http://kayceclodfelter.theworldrace.org/post/storytelling-ambassadors-of-hope-interview
All our love,
Team Hidden Valley
