I could start this blog by listing off the “works” we have done since we arrived at Hawane Farm. I have come to find that it brings me a small satisfaction and relief to list out before you, my readers and supporters the things we have ” done” here. Mainly because we have been brainwashed into thinking that life and our successes in life (according to what we see in our own lives and subsequently what others see as well) are determined by the amount of good things we do. Even as Christians we fall into this trap. And coming here this year, wanting to do good things for the people, it is not a bad thing. God has really allowed us to come in and do some amazing things. But I am learning in these situations that it is easy to approach missions with a savior complex. How many work projects can I do, or how many children can I save from the depths of depravity?
I have learned first off, that we are a far cry from actually making a dent as short-term missionaries. In a way, I have come to despise the “short term-ness” of our times in these countries because we don’t even scratch the surface of the needs and the joys of the people we are surrounded with. I remember spending four months in Kenya and at the end of that barely even starting to see glimpses into the inner depths of the Kenyans. Any long term missionary will tell you that.
So what I am learning this year is that coming into a place like Swaziland or Mexico or Peru or Moazmbique is entering into something much bigger than ourselves. Coming into a culture, I immediately become a student. This is something I have preached up and down this year, but has become a constant challenge for me to put into practice. And I continually see and feel that trap I talked about before. And the way to combat that is not to share with you the little piddly things we have accomplished in our time these past couple of weeks but to tell you instead about this fabulous ministry that is already taking place! And while I come in with my little three week goals, they are working on 25-35 year goals.
It truly is an incredible thing to behold. Kevin Ward is a man with a vision. He turned his life around out of probably becoming one of the most wealthiest men in Swaziland to care for hurting children. Hawane Farm was started only ten years ago, funded by Teen Challenge in the UK, and it is saving lives. If I went into all the details, this blog would become annoyingly long! So I will just give you a peek into what this place is like. There are 37 previously orphaned or taken out of their homesteads that were physically or verbally abusive and brought into a new family here on the farm.
There are six homes here that house 6-15 children. They each have their own Swazi mother that cooks and cares for them. They go to school every day, and get special attention at the clinic here on the farm. Their chores include planting and harvesting their own vegetables that they grow on the grounds to eat in their homes. They also fish out of a catfish pond so they are getting good nutrition. They also are being taught practical life skills so that they can get a good job as an adult. There is a preschool and church on ground with 30 or more precious ones. And there are men and women to come work at the property every day that are honest, hard working and God loving people.
Some of the children came to the farms nearly dead and you would never be able to tell. They look healthy and beautiful and strong now. The thing I probably love the most about this place is that they are being raised with their culture in tact. They are taught traditional Swazi culture, but taught the God of the Universe over ancestral worship and the Bible and prayer over witchcraft. Everything else remains in tact and they will live life to the fullest on a strong Biblical foundation. The farm could take in hundreds, but as means of being more intimate they focus on 37. They are discipled, loved and given affection, and are truly known in their hurts and deep feelings of rejection and pain. They turn into 37 healthy, strong (emotionally and physically) followers of Jesus Christ and Swazi people. In turn, they will have healthy families and children and grandchildren. And THIS will turn the nation around. I am amazed at this place and these people and the passion they have to see Swaziland come out of the devastation and into a marvelous light. Pray for THEM as they continue to do this job unto the Lord!
