My team and I arrived in Port Elizabeth after a long couple travel days last Tuesday. We hung out in Port Elizabeth for a few days because we weren't able to move in to the lodging provided by our ministry until Saturday because there was another World Race team serving until then. On Friday we were able to meet Cora, one of our contacts, as well as the other World Race team. It was an all-girls team and they are on month six. It was wonderful to meet them and hear their stories and the low-down on the ministry.
Port Elizabeth is a beautiful place. Actually, South Africa as a whole is a beautiful place. It is lush and green and the ocean certainly helps. It's a little strange here as well. It's hard to explain but it's weird to have first world and third world aspects only 15 minutes apart from each other. You can be in predominantly middle/upper class area and drive to a "township" (what we would probably call a slum) in as little as five minutes. It's super strange to see the contrast. It's causing a little bit of reverse culture shock in some people.
Anyway, about our ministry – we are working with Lighthouse Family Church through Andrew and Cora Pearce. Andrew is British but was born and raised in South Africa. His wife, Cora, is from Holland and moved here and married Andrew recently. They are wonderful, spirit-led people who love the Lord and all the people of South Africa. We will be partnering with them this month to work with high school kids in their church. We will also be working at an outreach that they support called The Human Dignity Center. The HDC is located in the Walmer Township in Port Elizabeth. We'll be doing some preparation for school as the kids are currently on holiday. After the kids return, we'll be helping out with the schooling. The HDC provides schooling for kids from the Township from preschool to grade three.
Today we went to the HDC and was given a tour. They have a holiday club going on right now so we were able to interact with some of the kids from the township. It's quite a cool operation they have going. They are able to minister to children from the township during this holiday program that they wouldn't normally be able to minister to during school time.
We leave tomorrow for Jeffreys Bay where we'll be joining Firehouse, Lighthouse's high school ministry, for a youth camp. I am super excited about going to camp with these kids! They are awesome kids who love the Lord entirely and are eager and excited to learn about and spend time with Him. I know it's going to be a time filled with great worship, fellowship, and fun times!
We'll be there until Friday before we head back to PE. I can't wait to tell you about it once it's over. Please pray for the success of the camp. Pray that kids that don't believe in Jesus have a change in their hearts and can learn to love and follow Him. Pray that life-changing events and signs and wonders take place there. Pray that the Holy Spirit would fill that place, even now, before we get there. Pray that God will use the six of us to impact the lives of these students while we have time with them.
