PVT Swaziland, in the words of my father (Jerry) about my mom (Gwen) and his experience during the five days of April 22-26th.
It’s amazing how much God can move you when you open up to His calling.
We left our Alabama home on a journey to visit with our daughter in Africa for one week and work alongside her in Swaziland. We had never been to Africa and had only seen glimpses of this land from photos and TV over the years. Little did we know that the beauty was not only in the land, but in its people. We arrived after a long flight and had the opportunity along the way to meet some of the parents of other “racers” as we traveled the same trail to this long awaited reunion. By the time the vans arrived at the hostel where we would be staying, Mom’s and Dad’s were about to jump out of the windows to get to their children. My daughter was one of the first people I saw as we drove into the parking lot. Tears of joy filled my soul as I ran to her and held her for a brief moment and shared her with her mother. What a reunion it was! We had no idea what we would be doing or where we would be going. We have been on many mission trips before in the states and we were certain it would be very similar to those trips. Little did we know the difference God would make in our hearts that week.
David Reeves was our leader and chief planner for the week and what a great job he did and what a blessing he was as the week went on. Each day we would have the mornings to ourselves with our “racers” to take short trips or just hang out until we had to be back at the hostel for lunch and then on to our “care points” for our time of fellowship and loving on the future of this country.
I found myself pulled to God’s Word each morning and I would get up before daylight to read and study to prepare each day. I knew God had something for me this week. I had no idea. The first day we went to the “care point” there were around 150 children that arrived before we did and they were in the process of finishing their lunch that had been prepared by dedicated volunteers each day over an open fire and cast iron pots. The area for cooking was outside and covered by a roof of tin with four poles to block the sunlight that would not allow for cooking during the rain. Each day as we exited the vans that brought us there the children would wave and smile as we emptied out and smiled back at them. The first day they were a little reluctant to approach us, but by the second day they were all over us as we arrived. Each day there seemed to be certain children that paired off with each of us. There were too many children for each of us to have only one and that made for a day full of hugs and smiles for us all.
I met a young boy named, Quinelly, and he brightened my day. Each day he would seek me out and every time our eyes met smiles were not far behind. What a special young man he was and as the week went on we got to know each other more and more. The first day I was there he had a small piece of paper in his hand when I arrived and on it were words like, Computer, Facebook, Internet, Google and many other computer based words that he was learning each day while he attended school that had recently been completed for the year. We all assembled inside the carepoint and each day the children would recite the “Lords Prayer” at the beginning of the assembly. They would sing spiritual songs and were very good at it and the instructors were good communicators for the children. I had no idea that everyone there would speak English.
The children had many questions each day. What’s your name, where do you live, do you have any children, how old are you, are you married, how long will you be here? These were repeated many times during the first couple of days, but as the week went on the questions went away and the play and interaction began for us. Each day I tried to find different children to play with and hold and “love on”, as we called it. Something kept drawing me back to this young boy, Quinelly. The second day he touched my heart. He had the same piece of paper that he had with him the first time I saw him and he told me that he had something for me… He handed me the piece of paper and on the other side that had no writing on it the day before was an invitation to his birthday party and it was addressed to JERRY. God is everywhere! This young man just opened up my soul and pricked my heart with a note.
God opened my eyes that day to see that there are not many men involved in the lives of these young children and that men are what they need. Passionately. These kids would sit in my lap and just want to rub my arm to feel what a man feels like. They long for the men that should be there for them and make a difference in their lives. God challenged me that day to see with His eyes. These children are beautiful and it was amazing to see how they cared for each other. At the end of each day the children would grab the hands of their younger siblings and walk out of the gate and down a dirt road to home. Until tomorrow.
The last day we were there Quinelly came up to me and said, “today is your last day isn’t it?” I answered him and we shared a big hug and I told him that we needed to make it the best day of the week. We got to share a lot that day, but more than anything I encouraged him to grow up strong and take care of his family and always put God first. As we said our goodbyes and he walked away he smiled as we shared our last wave. What a blessing he was to ME. I was blessed through HIM.
Each evening we had the opportunity to have a shared worship time with the squad. This was one of the many highlights of the week. Each night we would have music and sing praises to our Lord and after praise time had someone speak and on some of the evenings we would have multiple speakers to share from their hearts. What a blessing each night! Many of the racers spoke along with several of the parents and what a blessing we received.
The one word that I could use to describe this week was “encouraged”. I was encouraged to see so many young adults praising and seeking God. I was encouraged to see men that are on the same journey along with me that want to make a difference and have awakened to new revelations from their Savior. I was encouraged by the love that we showed for one another. I was encouraged by the renewing of my heart through worship and praise of Him. I was encouraged by the words of others and the compassion in their hearts for others. The final service we had at the conclusion of the week was a reminder that we serve one another. John 13:35 – By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another…
I want to conclude by saying that the men of this group met one evening and discussed our thoughts on the week and how God had been working in our lives and the things we saw each day and what it meant to us.
Our conclusion was this: We’re not finished! We have a lot of life and a lot of work left for the kingdom. We can make a difference right where we are and God is not finished with us. Not by a long shot. Men, I challenge you daily in my prayers and I do now, don’t stop seeing with God’s eyes or hearing with God’s ears and be encouraged daily by the renewing of your heart and mind. Keep on keeping on because we’re not finished! Not by a long shot!
In His Hands.
Jerry
