My team and I spent month 8 in Linden, South Africa. Our experience in Linden was like no other month we have experienced on the race. The only negative about our time there was that it was cut short because of PVT (sorry Mom).
We served with a church called GK Linden, and got to be a part of the countless ministries that they either have or support. Our ministry throughout the month included youth, evangelism, soup kitchens, orphan care, and painting.
I believe the best part of this experience is that we were their first world race team. Pastor Hendrik has been praying for a team for five years… FIVE. And the fact that God chose us to be their first is the greatest honor I’ve been given or will be given on this eleven month journey.
Literally every night we were hosted by a family from the church for dinner. Yes, the food was amazing, but it was nothing compared to their ability to make us feel welcome. I promise you, these people are second to none when it comes to hospitality. They love and serve with so much joy, and God’s presence is evident in every single home.
I’m not going to mention names because there are too many to write down from this month, and I do not want to leave any of these beautiful people out. But our ministry host, the church staff, and the church members absolutely rocked our world. They taught us so much about living life on mission and what the church should look like. They showed us what true servant leadership looks like. They also showed us that there is always something to learn and somebody to learn from.
I had the priveledge of getting to spend one on one time with one of the pastors a couple of times. I’ll just say that spending two hours with him would fill up four pages of my journal. I’ve never related to anybody like I did Willem. He poured in to my life and helped me learn so much about myself and just like everybody else, he did it with a full heart.
Linden, South Africa and GK Linden will forever hold a special place in my heart. Whether it be one more time, multiple times, or permanently I will always have the desire to go back. God has given me a love for these people and this part of the world, and I am excited for everything that is to come.
If any of my Linden family reads this blog: I love you and I can’t wait to see you again. Until next time…
