My squad made it to South Africa a little over 2 weeks ago! We’ve been staying at Global Leadership Academy, a K-12 grade non-profit private Christian school here (reminds me a bit of Rivendell :). I have a little room upstairs that I share with my teammate Emma. The blazing sun shines right through the window next to my bed, waking me up every morning- I have a love/hate relationship with that. We have lovely hosts who spend time with us, feed us well, and encourage us in all the work we’re doing around the school’s campus. This Friday they even gave us the day off from our ministry work and brought us to a watering hole nearby where we cliff-jumped, zip lined, swam and ate yummy burgers! I’m really enjoying my surrounding, my squad, our ministry, and the constant conversation and praise of Jesus.
I knew coming to South Africa would be a very different experience than the last time I was on this continent. Back in 2012 my family visited Uganda for 5 weeks to volunteer at a non-profit, work with a babies home, host VBS’s, and spend time living with and loving the community there. I was 11 year old at the time and expected to love it from the start. However, I found it to be incredibly uncomfortable for me. For the first 3 of the 5 weeks I was in a bad mood (which if you know me, is quite rare). I especially had a really hard time hosting the VBS. Most of the kids who came to the camp were my age and I didn’t know how I was supposed to balance being a friend and a leader. I know that I don’t need to be ashamed for feeling uncomfortable there, but I’ve really struggled with feeling that anyway during the last 7 years. Last fall when I was prayerfully choosing a route to go on for the Race, God told me that he wanted me to return to Africa so He could redeem my experience.
This past Friday-Tuesday our squad worked as volunteer counselors at a high school camp. We were paired up and charged with 9 campers between the ages of 15-19. I was pretty nervous about leading high schoolers because that’s the hardest age for me to connect to and I felt weird leading them as a recent graduate myself. God gave me the eyes to see that I was not responsible for the amount of growth that developed in my campers over the weekend. Instead, anything that changed in their hearts was His doing for His glory and I was a vessel that could help in that process. Over the course of the camp I was so excited to see my campers become freer in worship and gain a greater passion for the Lord and His Word. After the weekend, God reminded me of His promise of restoration in Africa and showed me the clear connection between the 2012 VBS and this weekend’s camp. Both challenged me with leading kids who were my own age, but this recent experience was really healing in the way I learned to trust God instead of relying myself and in the enjoyment I had in leading my group.
The other piece of our Uganda trip that was so challenging for me, was how out of my element I felt. Similarly, going on the Race, we’re told to expect and step into discomfort. It made me feel confused and a little guilty to find myself in a place that feels so comfortable and homey. We also learned this week that my team along with 2 other will be staying in Jeffery’s Bay for the extent of our time in South Africa. At first that news made me disappointed because I wouldn’t get to try something new, go somewhere different and become more uncomfortable. But God stepped in and told me that it’s okay to be comfortable here in Africa. That exactly what I didn’t know I needed to hear. I expected God to redeem my challenging time in Uganda by making it more challenging here so I could grow and learn to live in the discomfort. God’s plans are always better than our own and I’m so excited to live in this wonderful place for the next 2 months. Within 2 weeks of living on this continent, God has provided the healing and redemption He promised. I love seeing Jesus already doing big things in the hearts of people here. Please keep up your prayers over me and know that I am loving being in Africa!
