The children of El-Shaddai are all ages and all kinds of beautiful.
This blog will not do this month justice, but it was such a gift from God that it’s worth me at least trying.
Sweet Maria
After a rough midnight ride in a pick-up truck up the flooded out, foggy mountainside, we arrived at the El-Shaddai Children’s Home of Swaziland and my heart, mind, body , and soul were so grateful.
The first morning, on the walk to the kitchen, I was taken back by one of the most amazing views of the Race/my life. Coming from South Africa, I thought I had seen the most beautiful place in the world, but this was a different kind of beautiful. South Africa was pristine and polished, this was rugged terrain. There were no beaches in sight, rather we were resting in the clouds with cattle and goats and shepherd boys.
The view every morning
Stories from this Month
One night, he Lord told me to go hang out around the children’s home and so I went. I teased them and hugged them and asked them lots of questions like an annoying older sister would. After about an hour, I headed back to our kitchen and I heard God clearly say, “Let yourself love them” and I knew exactly what He was talking about. I came into this month guarded like every other month and I knew that in a matter of weeks, I was going to have to say goodbye and it was going to hurt, so I had opened my heart to love them, but only so much. However, after God said that, I engraved their names and faces into my heart and I promised to love them well and it changed my month.
Beautiful Essie
On Wednesdays, we had worship nights in the chapel and on the second worship night, we had headlamps on and our journals and Bibles in hand and there were different stations set up around the room. There were opportunities to dance, to pray for the nation of Swaziland, to write encouraging notes to each other, the kids, or staff, and more. The music played from the speaker and there was a beautiful sense of freedom that began to seep into our veins.
At one point of the night, my teammate Jenny came over to pray for me and somewhere in those few moments, the Lord showed up in a big way. He spoke clearly to my heart, “You are enough,” and although I had heard the words before, this time, I believed them and my heart ruptured in two different directions. I was laughing because finally I was walking in the truth and joy that God had offered all along, but I was crying because I was letting go of the sorrow of years of living in that lie.
***
On the last day of chapel, Team Wet Soles presented the last part of the gospel and told the kids about the cross and redemption and offered them the invitation to turn their lives towards God or to stay in rebellion. Then, they had an opportunity to ask us Racers any questions that they might have and so they did.
I sat with a girl about 12 years old who did not completely understand the end of the gospel. She was like many of the girls that I’ve talked to in Young Life back home. She understood that God was perfect and that He made the world perfect and we messed it up, but she was struggling to grasp that in His love, He crossed heaven and earth in a masterful plan to save the ones He loved. She did not understand who removed the wall of sin and death and she did not understand why.
So as tears filled my eyes, I explained to her the love of the Father and how it has changed each an every Racer who was there at El-Shaddai and that that is why we travel around the world. We have to tell people that they can live eternally with the God who loves them in freedom and acceptance no matter what they do. And she looked at me and asked, “How do I do that? How do I get that?”
And I began to cry and asked her if she wanted to pray to receive the gift that was freely given to all and she said yes.
After we prayed, now she started crying and I believe that like me during that worship night, she was about to walk in the sweet truth and joy that God offered all along and that she was letting go of the sorrow of years lived in a lie.
The birthday boy
On the last day before we left, I asked one of the aunties (the older women who ran the place) if we could my favorite songs and she said yes. So one of the older girls, Essie, began singing in Siswati the beautiful words that say “Thank You Jesus for all the days of my life” and then at the end in English, the song says, “I thank You Jesus for saving my soul, I thank You Jesus, oh yes, I thank you Lord for the days of my life.” And that song will keep ringing in my soul for months and years to come. I thank God for saving each and everyone of those kids and bringing to the refuge that is El-Shaddai and I thank God that I had the privilege to be with them for a month.
Auntie Jabu
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