Living in Swaziland was completely off of the grid and the most rural living conditions we have had on the race. We were welcomed by warm spirits , joyful smiles, and the most beautiful children in the world. They ran into our arms with bare feet, tattered clothes and often empty bellies but their hearts always overflowing with an abundance of love. This month was an Awakening.
We lived in a beautiful part of the country in a small town called “Nsoko”. Our life was simple and we shared the land with cows, goats, donkeys, chickens, and turkeys. Many Swazi people walked miles each day to the well we lived near and carried heavy pails of water back to their homes. Some children hiked many miles up and over the large mountains in Nsoko to go to school in South Africa each day.
Swaziland is the epicenter of an HIV/AIDS pandemic and finds itself facing a social disaster. Swaziland’s HIV prevalence rate, 26% among adults ages 15-49, is the highest in the world. The country also suffers from the world’s highest death rate from HIV/AIDS and one of the lowest average life expectancies (48.7 years). A staggering one-third of Swazi children are orphans and vulnerable children. These stats became much more heartbreaking when we were there picking up precious babies and knew that they likely had AIDS or were without parents to care for them.
In additional to manual labor, our ministry this month was working and helping out at “Care points”. Care points are wonderful programs set at specific locations spread out around the villages where the local children come to receive food and love. We put on a small program at each location where we sang, played games, read a story and lesson that shared God’s love, and then food was provided to each child (a large plate of rice and beans). For many of the children it would be their only meal of the day and for some the first in a few days. The food was made in a giant cauldron over a fire and cooked by a “Gogo.” Gogo is the Swazi name for grandmother. Gogo’s donate their time and energy at the care points for free to help feed the children and trust God to provide for their needs – their lifestyle is fueled by faith.
We are forever changed now that we have sat in the red Swaziland soil and shared rice and beans with these children. We are blessed to have been able to laugh and play with them and try our best to speak their language so they could know how much God loves them and has a beautiful plan for their life. God continues to open up our eyes to how many blessings we have. The malnutrition and poor living conditions that the children and adults encounter here are staggering. Seeing the lifestyle of our Swazi friends will make it hard to go back to American culture. If you have running water inside of your home you are among the richest people on the planet. If you have access to eat a meal every day you are blessed beyond others wildest dreams. We often ask ourselves “how can we go back to buying a $5 latte at a coffee shop after seeing how 5 US dollars could feed an entire village and keep children alive?” We came and went, but the locals here will stay in these conditions for the rest of their lives. Pray against the feeling of hopelessness in Swaziland. Pray that more and more provision will be brought to them and that the AIDS epidemic will end. God is moving in that place and there are many people that know him in such a real and powerful way. We were touched by how fervently and passionately they prayed, read the word and truly trusted in their Creator for every need. There are many stories and experiences to share from this place but for now. . . pictures are worth a thousand words.
