After two days of training sessions and sweet moments with our families who came to Launch, D Squad departed the Atlanta airport at 7:30pm on Sunday, January 11, 2016. We arrived in Johannesburg, South Africa 13.5 hours later, two hours earlier than expected thanks to a tailwind. Once we found our packs, thankful they all made it, we waited for a bus to take us to a hostel four hours away. We were back on the bus four hours later to travel the remaining 3.5 hours to Maputo (“Ma-pu-toe”), Mozambique.
I expected there to be a noticeable change in the economic landscape between South Africa and Mozambique, as South Africa is one of the more wealthy countries here. Bustling store fronts, busy roads, and houses that looked like they’d been plucked from New Mexico turned into roadside markets, foot traffic, and huts made of straw and mud with tin roofs. However, I wasn’t expecting the drastic change in physical landscape. South Africa’s countryside was green and mountainous where Mozambique’s is brown and flat. It was like going from the Pacific Northwest to a southern Texas desert as soon as we crossed the border. The landscape of Mozambique changed as we drove through different regions, but I will never forget how drastic that first change of scenery was. It was definitely a moment that confirmed “I’m really in Africa now.”
Our time in Maputo was brief but refreshing. Two of our teams are working with a ministry there this month, and their host was unbelievably gracious. She arranged for the bus from the airport to her place. She fed all 35 of us breakfast and packed lunches for the three teams who still had traveling to do. She also helped these teams acquire transportation from her place to our respective ministry sites – Team Rivers would have yet another four-hour bus ride to Chókwé (“Shock-weigh”). Please pray blessings for Angie; may she and her ministry continue to be a Beacon of Hope in Maputo.
In total, we traveled for two days, spending 13.5 hours in a plane and 11.5 hours in a bus, before reaching our ministry site.
Once in Chókwé, we met up with Sybil, our ministry host. She is an amazing woman with a seemingly endless supply of energy. She runs a school for kids up through Grade 4, hosts summer school-like classes in her garage Tuesdays-Fridays for kids who are at risk of falling behind, organizes and leads Youth Club for area high school students and a separate Bible study for college kids who are home for the summer, currently provides a loving home for her adopted son and four college-aged daughters, and takes college courses “just to keep [her]self busy,” among other things.
Our main ministry this month is repainting and decorating classrooms while students are on summer break. We also participate in the weekly Youth Club meetings; we alternate leading games and speaking to the group with Sybil. We’ve been invited to attend and speak at a weekly intercessory prayer meeting, we’ve attended a community prayer meeting for rain, and we’ve also participated in an all-day fast that was followed by an all-night prayer vigil for the upcoming school year. Personally, my favorite “ministry” this month is the weekly Bible study for college students. I’ve enjoyed getting to know them through conversation and glean from them as we dive into the book of Romans together.
