Hello world! We’ve been in South Africa for about a week and half now. It is crazy to think that I left home 17 days ago. It feels like that was yesterday, and yet so much has happened since leaving that it makes sense that it has been this long already.
Today is a rest day for me and my team, so I wanted to send out a note to all of you to catch you up on how I am doing, and what God has been doing since I left home. The best way that I can summarize it is that God is so very intentional. He uses everything. He moves in all things. He is always present. I just don’t always slow down enough to notice it.
On the way down to Minneapolis for my flight to Atlanta, my parents and I decided to stop in Alexandria to switch out drivers. My dad was tired, and my mom doesn’t like driving in heavy traffic, so I offered to take the wheel. Since I was also tired, my only stipulation was that we stop at Caribou Coffee for some caffeine to keep me alert for the final leg of the journey. This was totally a God thing.
We pulled into the parking lot, and I quickly made my way to the door. My brain was solely on the coffee I was going to order, and very little else entered my mind. As I approached the entrance a woman said “hi,” but I thought she must be talking to someone behind me, so I kept on walking. As I got closer, she looked directly at me and said, “I like your shirt.” I looked down, and realized I was wearing my “HE>I” tank top. I said “thank you,” and she said, “What does it mean.” I explained how it means “He is greater than I,” and she was like “so it’s like a Jesus thing?” and I replied, “yep, that is exactly what it is.” I thought our conversation was done, so I was going back to my coffee thoughts. Before I could start walking again, she continued, “Are you going on a trip?” I was slightly stunned by this question, and hesitantly responded, “Yeah, I am actually. I am leaving the country tomorrow on a mission trip.” She and her friends then all gathered around me and started asking me questions about it. Right as I was stating that I was going on an 11-month mission trip to 12 different countries all around the world, a guy walked up to the group and said, “oh is it kind of like this?” and pointed to the World Race t-shirt he was wearing. At this point my mind melted. If my dad hadn’t gotten tired, if my mom hadn’t put up a little bit of a fight about not wanting to drive, if I had been apathetic and decided to ignore my want for coffee, I would not have met these people. …but God put all the pieces in place for me to meet them. From there, they asked if they could pray for me, and so in the middle of the Caribou Coffee parking lot a group of strangers huddled around me and prayed for peace and blessing over me as I set out on this next 11-months of mission work. After they finished praying, they told me that they were heading to Fargo. I asked them what for, and they said The Burn. After a minute of clarifying, I realized they meant the 24 hours of worship event that my cousins have helped with in the past. These people were likely on their way to spend the next 24 hours worshiping alongside my very own family. How cool is that!? I hugged them, thanked them for their prayers and encouragement, and walked into Caribou feeling so incredibly loved and seen by God.
The next morning, as I hugged my parents goodbye, my dad took me in his arms and said four things that spoke right to my soul, “I’m going to miss you.” “I’m proud of you.” “I love you.” “You are my baby girl. You know you’re my baby girl, right?” Those few phrases left me with a heart full of love and eyes full of tears. While tears streamed down my face, my dad continued to hug me, and prayed God’s protection and care over my life. What a good dad. He loves fiercely and deeply. He is a soft-spoken man, he is gentle and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. He is the best earthly representation of our Heavenly Father that God could have given me. I sat in the car, and kept thinking about how much my dad loves me, and then I heard God gently saying, “if your earthly father loves you this much, think of how much more I love you.” Wow. I have heard Christians say that 1,000 times, and yet it wasn’t until I hugged my dad goodbye, and God whispered it to me that it started to sink in. God’s love is perfect and limitless, and to think that I am a chosen recipient of that love is overwhelming. God isn’t giving me the leftovers of his love. He is intentionally loving me. The same is true for you. You are not getting scraps from the table. He has a feast prepared specifically for you.
After the goodbyes to my parents, sister and brother-in-law, I boarded the plane and flew to Atlanta for Launch (our final few days of training before leaving the country). On Monday the 5th we boarded our first plane to Boston. We spent the next 74 hours in airplanes, airports and on buses. We got a little bit of respite from travel during a 15-hour layover in Boston. That was a blessing too. My squad got to spend the day exploring Boston and being in each other’s presence. By the time my team (Tribe of Judah: Kacie, Carley, Allison, Brandi, Elaina and I) got to Jeffrey’s Bay, and our new home at the Global Leadership Academy, it was around noon on Wednesday the 7th. We were tired, hungry and in need of showers. Our house is amazing a beautiful. It is a little log cabin, next to a school, and only two miles from the beach. What a gift!
Our first ministry site was the second to last checkpoint of the Trans Baavians, the biggest 24-hour mountain bike race in the world. We were there to jot down the times of the bikers as they pulled in, serve them hot soup, sandwiches and beverages, and send them on their merry way. We drove up the steep mountain roads with our new South African friends to the checkpoint location. As we stumbled out of the pickups, we found ourselves in one of the prettiest mountain ranges I have ever seen. It was something straight out of The Sound of Music. I even reenacted “The hills are alive with the Sound of Music” scene as it only seemed fitting, given that my name is Liesl. All I could think that whole weekend was how I felt like I had slept walked into a different world.
Photo: Bergplaas Baviaanskloof
Photo: Part of the team at Bergplaas Baviaanskloof (left to right: Elaina, Allison, Kacie, Carley, AnneMarie, Brandi, me, Ailie, Jacques)
South Africa is a melting pot. It is nothing like Sierra Leone (the only other African country I have been to), but is still completely African. Life moves more slowly here, the people are warm-hearted, and the landscape is beautiful. God’s creation is never dull. I have seen baboons and monkeys crossing the road. I wake up to the sound of roosters every morning. I get to run the road of my compound and admire the African plains and the distant view of the Indian Ocean. I have tasted Ostrich meat, and am convinced that South Africans brew the best cappuccinos. I love it here. I love seeing the world that God made for us.
This past week, my team and I worked with Father’s House, a church in Port Elizabeth. We were helping them prepare for their annual women’s conference. What a blessing. What wonderful people. They oozed hospitality and warmth. I loved every second of getting to know them and working alongside them. My teammate Carley and I partnered up with two women Sammi and Zimmi to get the décor ready for the conference. We nailed boards together, glued grass on to frames, taped and painted hula hoops, etc. Those things may seem simple and small, but nothing is too small for the Kingdom. It is the little things that make up the big things. Every interaction is an opportunity to be a blessing to someone else. The staff, volunteers and interns and Father’s House blessed me beyond measure. I was so incredibly grateful that I got to spend time with them, hearing their thoughts on faith and life, working alongside them to bring their vision for the conference into fruition, and becoming their friend. I am sad that my week of work there is done, but I look onward in anticipation of the next set of people I get to work with this upcoming week.
Photo: My new friend Danni at Father’s House. She was one of the interns I got to spend each day with. I love her greatly!
Photo: Carley and Kacie and I at our first day at Father’s House. Their cappuccino is the bomb.
God is good. He is so intentional in the places he takes us. He speaks to us in the quiet. He uses people and nature to make himself known. He is everywhere and in everything. We just need to slow down enough to see/hear him. I invite you to join me in seeking Him this next week, and in the weeks ahead. To open your eyes are ears to see and hear the ways in which he is loving you.
“Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:12-13).
Sending you my love from South Africa,
Liesl
