Hello all! I haven’t been blogging nearly as much as I’d like to but I wanted to check in and give you a summary of month 2.
We lived in the capital city of Gaborone, Botswana and worked with a church called Kingdomcity. This church has campuses all over the world but the Gaborone location is fairly new. So, we worked at church on Sundays and helped out at the office during the week. Our schedule was pretty laid back and each week looked different. We made phone calls, passed out flyers at the university, visited the homes of new church members, cooked, cleaned, etc. On Friday nights we hung out with the youth and played games, sang karaoke, and got to know each other. We each had a different job on Sundays but I focused on helping with Sunday school.
The kiddos from church were incredible. The only English they knew was from worship songs, but they knew every word. Watching them lift their hands and praise Jesus wholeheartedly was beautiful. Whenever they saw one of our Bibles their faces lit up. You could just tell they were genuinely hungry for more of the Lord. The kids did not have bibles, so, Rachel and I decided to reach out to friends and family for donations. We were able to raise enough for about 150 bibles. I know several of you donated, and I just want to say thank you so much. The kids will treasure those bibles and they will grow so much closer to the Lord because of your donation.
The heat in Botswana is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. It was hard to adjust and I constantly felt like I was going to pass out when I was outside. There was no air conditioning but thankfully our flat had a few fans. I missed almost a week of ministry because of a nasty stomach bug. Being sick in a foreign country is not fun, but I’m lucky to have a great team that rallied around me and did whatever they could to help.
I didn’t really form as strong of a connection with ministry as I did the first month. I tried my best to stay focused but I really missed South Africa. At the end of the month many of the people I had been working with still didn’t know my name and that was awkward. I knew some months I would connect with ministry more than others, so it was ok. I was able to work on some personal things that had been heavy on my heart.
We got to go to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe/Zambia for a night and it was the most fun 24 hours of my life. I bungee jumped off the falls, took a sunset cruise and saw hippos, walked with lions, and ate eggs benedict (my favorite breakfast food) on the edge of the largest waterfall in the world. It was nothing short of magical and it was by far the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen. The only downside was the hundreds of bed bug bites we got from the hostel.
Thanks for reading about month 2 and I hope you’ve had a blessed 2016 so far! I have to raise $2,400 by the end of April in order to stay on the World Race, so please be praying for that. And, please please please let me know of any prayer requests you have! Love you all.
