I’m sure you’ve had that slightly awkward Thanksgiving day conversation that starts out “Everyone say one thing they are thankful for…”
I’ve always heard that practicing thankfulness is healthy and good. The advice is pretty common. Counselors sometimes advise people to write down three things that they are thankful for each day.
However, though the advice is common, the actual practice is rare. Complaint is much more common than thanksgiving. Don’t believe me?
Listen to your own thoughts for an hour. How many times do you point out what could or should be, what’s lacking, instead of giving thanks for what is?
Listen to those around you. Do you hear more gratitude, or grumbling? More appreciation, or bellyaching?

A story.
This past week we were traveling back to Hawane from Bulembu. The Bulembu road is notoriously unfriendly: 18 kilometers of unpaved dirt and rock carved into Swaziland’s most mountainous region makes for slow, uncomfortable travel. At times, we drove slower than walking, navigating the ditches and bumps, trying to minimize the bruises to our backsides. On this particular drive, our van was overloaded and four of us crowded onto the middle bench. I sat on the outside, one cheek on, one cheek off. As we bumped along the road, I held on, trying not to slam into the door with each bump. The one cheek on was getting quite sore.

Finally, our painful journey ended as the dirt road gave way to pavement. Not for the first time, I complained silently about having only this single vehicle for our group. “A 4-wheel drive vehicle sure would be nice right about now.”
As our wheels contacted pavement driving into Pigg’s Peak, we passed by several ladies walking towards Bulembu with bags of groceries. I hadn’t noticed any homesteads, so it’s likely that some of them will walk several miles to get home. I silently swallowed my complaint. Our drive was just 45 minutes, with my own bags stowed conveniently in the trunk. But these ladies will walk for an hour or more carrying heavy bags of groceries. And they make that trek every week. I asked God to forgive me for my attitude and I thanked Him for providing us with a vehicle, even if it does wear out my one cheek on the Bulembu road.
Why does my heart default to complaining?
Owning a vehicle is rare here in Swaziland, and is a sure sign of wealth. Not only are they expensive to purchase, but they are incredibly expensive to maintain. One of the ladies on the farm shared that half of her living expenses go towards gas for her truck. Half.
A lady from the UK who helps manage the orphan care at Bulembu did not have a car for her first three years in Swaziland. She had to ask for rides and send her grocery lists with others, hoping that they brought back the right items. She was sometimes unable to catch a ride for weeks at a time, able only to travel as far as her two feet could carry her. She said that time helped her to identify with the Swazis she worked with, to better understand their way of living.
In a place where vehicles are so rare and valuable, surely I would be thankful that we have a vehicle rather than complaining. Without the van that we have, we would not be able to do many of the things on our schedule. Surely I would start off with gratitude.
But like many of you in the West who will read this, my heart has been trained to want. It’s the lifeline of our advertising, our entertainment, and our materialism. It’s a message I have heard hundreds of times a day, every day, for many years. More is the heartbeat of our economy. And it runs in my veins, as well as yours.
What I am learning now is that I already have more. I have much more. More to be thankful for than I ever realized.
Elizabeth and I have our own room. We even have our own bathroom. Many people here share a room, if they even have a roof over their heads.
We have electricity, most days, to take a hot shower, even as the winter approaches. Many homesteads are without electricity or running water. They will carry water from a water pump to be heated over a fire in order to bathe.
I have a laptop that I can write this blog post on. Computers, like cars, are a rare sign of wealth. Most people do not have them.
When I mentally recall just the stuff that I packed to bring with me to Swaziland, not even counting what we left behind in storage, I am struck by how much more I have, and how much I have to be thankful for.
But my thankfulness shouldn’t stop with mere stuff.

A few years ago, a man named Ermi from Ethiopia stayed overnight at my apartment in North Carolina. He grew up on the streets of Addis, the capital city, and God rescued him from street living. He now runs a home for homeless boys to help them transition off of the streets. He begins each day at 4:30 in the morning with a time of prayer. The night he stayed at my apartment, he asked if I would like to join him for prayer in the morning. I agreed, though I was thankful that there would only be one morning of waking up at that hour!
The next morning, at 4:30am sharp we sat in my living room, and as I struggled to keep my eyes open, he began praying.
“God, thank you for waking me up this morning. Thank your for my breath.”
He paused. He breathed in and out deeply a few times. A minute or so passed. It hit me that he was truly thankful to God for his very breath, and he was experiencing it the way one might enjoy a beautiful sunset. Wow.
Are you breathing right now? As you read this, are you thankful that God woke you up this morning? That you have breath in your lungs?
Ermi continued praying, thanking God for his heart, the blood coursing in his veins, ears that allowed him to hear, eyes that allowed him to see.
This man who had spent many of his years homeless, sitting in a cozy apartment in America, was deeply thankful for even his breath. When I asked Ermi later what he thought of America, he gave me an almost pained smile. “It was very kind of people to fly us over here, but I’m ready to be home. I’m ready to be with my boys.”
Ermi knew where he was meant to be.
What I’m learning, in countless ways, small and large, every day, is that thankfulness is a choice, not a feeling. It’s an attitude of the heart that I must choose. Trained as I am in a culture of more, if I don’t consciously choose thankfulness, my heart will complain.
May you know that you already have more, and may you be willing to be slightly awkward as you choose thankfulness.

-Jess

“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” – 1 Thess. 5:18

At home in North Carolina, there are a lot of trees. Tall trees. As a result, we don’t get a lot of what I call long views. Views that stretch for miles and miles. Views where you can see the sun sitting right on the horizon. Views across valleys and hilltops, fields and houses. Views like the one we now enjoy out our back window every morning. Views like along the MR3 as we drive into Mbabane from our house in Hawane. Long views.

Since arriving in Swaziland, I’ve noticed a funny thing. My eyes are adjusting to the long views. I can see more than I could see when we had first arrived. I can pick out a group of men crossing a field a half mile or so away. I can spot a herd of cattle, grazing on the other side of a valley. I can see detail in rock formations topping a hill several miles away, or a tree atop a ridge in relief against the blue sky. My vision for the long view is adjusting, improving.
Moving to a new country is requiring a lot of adjustments, often in ways that I didn’t expect. One of the things I’m learning here in Swaziland is how to take the long view. Real change, whether in nations, in families, or in us, calls for taking the long view.


Poverty
Poverty will not be wiped out in a single year. Poverty is not simply a lack of material wealth. It is cultural attitudes, oppression and exploitation, and societal sins like greed, fear, and hatred. Coming from the West, the lack of material wealth is the most apparent problem to and so appears easiest to address. However, even solving for the lack of material wealth in isolation is futile.
One of the things that I’m starting to be able to see through experiences here in Swaziland is that everything has an upkeep cost. The law of entropy is blind, punishing the possessions of the impoverished and the wealthy. Physicists tell us everything is falling apart. “Creation is passing away,” as the Bible says. The difference in America is that when it breaks we just buy a new one. Even if we can’t afford it right now, we put it on the credit card and pay for it later.
You might think that you can help solve for the lack of material wealth by giving some of our stuff to those who are living in poverty. But the infrastructure is not present for a gift to be well-used and maintained. Does it require batteries? A pack of batteries cost as much as several days worth of food. What happens when it breaks? There are no repair shops except for the most common and basic items, and even then parts are scarce and repairs are expensive. Every day that I walk down to work in the garden, I walk past a broken-down tractor, and then spend the rest of the afternoon hoeing and planting with a hoe by hand. Part of what sustains the material wealth in the West is the ubiquity of Wal-Mart and Amazon.com. Anything you need, you can have it shipped to you in mere days. Not so in countries dominated by poverty.
And lack of material wealth is the easy and obvious part of the problem of poverty. It’s important to see that material wealth is just a surface symptom, a red herring, an effect rather than a cause. Truly addressing the complex roots of poverty requires thinking long-term. When you commit to working to end poverty, you need to take the long view often, realizing that every day is an investment in a future that you may not even see.

Family Patterns
Nations aren’t the only ones to struggle with poverty. Often our families are impoverished in one way or another, and the roots are no less complex than a nation bound by poverty. I’m starting to see more clearly that the weaknesses in our families are rooted not just in our parents, but in our parents’ parents’ parents. A pattern was set many generations ago, be it a way of speaking to one another, a strategy for disciplining children, or a way to handle money. That pattern is either a blessing or a curse to the generations that follow.

For a long time I misunderstood the concept of blessings and curses. When the Bible talks about blessing nations and cursing people, I had in my mind some sort of spell or supernatural punishment from God. What I’m coming to realize is that God is way more sophisticated and powerful than simple miracles. God designed the world, and He knows how it works, not just it’s physical laws, but also the psychological and emotional laws that govern it. When God warns about curses that befall people, He isn’t saying “don’t make me angry or I’ll strike you down.” Rather, He is saying “my child, trust me, I know what’s best for you. If you get involved with those things I call sin, I know the irreparable damage they will cause to you and to all those around you, including your children and your children’s children.”
God designed the world to work a certain way, which He reveals throughout the Bible. And the crazy thing is that those blessings and curses show up in people’s lives regardless of whether they acknowledge Him as the creator. “For He makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust,” it says in Matthew. I’m starting to see how every day I’m establishing patterns which will either bless or curse those around me and those blessings or curses will live long after I’m gone.
Taking the long view in our families means asking ourselves every day, “is the pattern that I’m establishing today a blessing or a curse to my family?” This is a critical question to ask, because it’s not just our spouse or our children that will be effected, but the generations to follow. That’s a weighty responsibility. But that’s what it means to take the long view.
I love the views in Swaziland. Staring across the beautiful landscapes with rolling hills fills me with peace. And I love the way that God is opening not only my physical eyes, but also my spiritual eyes, to see things in a way that I’ve never seen before. Each day, I wake with expectancy, knowing that He has something to show me today. And that is truly a blessing.

-Jess

Bulembu is a small town in Swaziland with a heart and a vision. Today it is redefining and rebuilding itself. Abandoned by the mining industry in 2001 the future looked bleak. The people were left with nothing and driven out. As AIDS ravaged Swaziland, children and babies were abandoned daily, but a team of entrepreneurs and social developers saw the potential in Bulembu’s spirit. Today Bulembu has a vision to create a totally self- sustaining transformed community providing health, orphan care, education, comers, and hope.”

This weekend we had the opportunity to spend time in the community of Bulembu. The road to Bulembu was rough… VERY rough. We bounced around, swerving from side to side attempting to avoid the big ditches the rain water had created. As we entered the community the road smoothed out and the feeling of hope engulfed us. Abandoned by the mines, Bulembu was left with no hope, but Bulembu ministries had a vision. A vision filled with hope. They saw the few resources God blessed them with and used them to overcome the disasters of the past. They have a water plant, a bakery (which is delicious!), and a honey factory (bees and all) as well as around 300 orphaned children. Bulembu Ministries has renovated pre- existing buildings, using them to meet their current needs. They are currently in the process of renovating a kitchen where only 5 workers feed nearly 300 children 3 meals a day. Lining the mountainside as you enter the community are colorful, old row houses previously occupied by the mineworkers. The ministry is renovating them now to house the quickly growing number of orphans they take care of. The stories of the children (especially in the baby homes) grip your heart, making you want to promise the rest of your life to serving them and loving them.

Saturday morning Warriors for Christ held a large youth event in Bulembu with Potter’s Wheel Church, CLC (the kids from Hawane Farm), Bulembu, and a few other neighboring youth groups. The vision for the day was to just see a new outpouring of Christ, to experience him in new ways, unlike past years. For the first while we just played games with the kids, having fun and getting to know them. After lunch, over 300 youth gathered in the cinema for praise and worship. As we worshiped we got to experience how different youth groups worshiped. There was dancing and clapping and stomping, I was getting nervous the old wood floor of the cinema was going to break through. As the worship progressed one of the W4C leaders got up and spoke to the children, encouraging them to not let the mountains in their life block their view of their Father. As the kids felt the Holy Spirit moving them they began coming down front for prayer. There was so many kids coming down front they began to not only fill the alter area but the isles. One by one we prayed with the kids. As we prayed for one, another would get up out of their seat and join the group down front. As the children laid their fears at the feet of Jesus and left them there, you could feel their renewed spirits, exactly what the vision for the day was. The Holy Spirit was mending them in unthinkable ways. His presence was unmistakable.

Sanibonani! (Sah-nee-bo-NAH-nee):  Hey y’all!

A brief update on our gardening efforts and the constant highlight of my week:

Around the farm—the 1000+ little seedling plants we worked so diligently with Sherri to plant last month are finally huge and ready for harvest!   Bitter spinach (like mustard greens), Swiss chard, broccoli, and cabbages are all being harvested and taken to the local supermarket called Pic-N-Pay, where most people do most of their grocery shopping (including us).

The garden plots that belong to each of the kids’ houses here at Hawane farm are also doing quite well.  All the homes at Hawane get a small garden plot to tend to, and then once produce is ready to harvest, it gets put together and divided up evenly among the homes for the moms (bomake—boh-MAH-geh) to use in preparing meals for the kids in their house. I must say the house that I call “mine” (because theirs is the home I visit weekly, sometimes for dinner but most often to share friendship), is one of the best. Make Nomvula (prounounced MAH-geh nom-VOO-lah, meaning Mama Nomvula) and her girls’ garden is one of the biggest and most productive of all the Makes’ gardens.  J I’m so proud of them.

Aside from their great gardening (which takes a LOT of dedicated work- all done by hand, and without chemicals, machinery, or pesticides, mind you), I can also say they are one of the best homes because of their collective spirit.  On any given night, though I usually visit on Thursdays, I can find them together around their oval wooden table eating dinner.  Some are quiet like Anele (age 9) or Nothando (age 12), others tired from a long day at school like Ncamile (age 15) or Lindo (age 17, and head prefect –aka-top girl in the high school and thus responsible for setting a good example and keeping order in the whole school, Monday – Saturday), but it is usually only a matter of seconds before Celiwe (age 16), Setsabile (age 14), or even Make herself have everyone cracking up and nearly rolling with laughter, all the way down to little Phiwa (age 5).  After a dinner of rice, beans, and sometimes mincemeat (ground beef) or chicken pieces, someone clears dishes, and someone else begins to wash them, while we might play a game together (last week I brought/taught them UNO) do some Swazi singing and dancing, tell jokes, talk about the real facts about HIV/AIDS, or work on homework until 8pm.  Then we take turns reading the daily selection from a devotional book that they read once in the morning and once in the evening, give a brief synopsis of what we read with some take home points, and then pray together, African-style—all together, out loud, all at one time.  After devotions, if Phiwa hasn’t already collapsed on the couch, she goes to bed and the rest of the girls continue with homework, or if they are finished, they study for a while before bed.  Sometime in there between clearing dishes and forcing myself out the door, I manage to collect about 43 hugs, a few braids in my hair, and more love than I thought possible from 8 of the coolest women in the world.   It just so happens that March 29^th this year, my birthday, was on a Thursday.  I can’t tell you how delighted I was to not only have Antje and Jessica (great friends from home) visiting IN PERSON and bearing tangible gifts and cards from people at home who love us, but also to get to be doing our regularly scheduled activities for a Thursday, which included visiting Make Nomvula and the girls J Salanikahle! (Sah-LAH-nee-GAH-hle): Stay well, y’all!

One of my favorite Southern African phrases is “Are you winning?” The locals use it to check your status on a project. For example, I was building a fire for an evening of marshmallows and chatting around the fire. I didn’t have fire starter or decent wood – so I spent a good hour feeding paper, cardboard into damp wood the refused to flame. Sonelli, our security guard, passed me a couple time during my frustrating hour, finally calling out “Are you winning?”   – At the time, I was not but I finally got the reluctant wood to yield.

The last few months have been a lot more difficult than I anticipated. Not being able to get a scone or any other pastry with my morning tea, when it is clearly stated on the restaurant menu, has been the least of the difficulty. (Sorry still venting from my T.I.A blog post) In Hebrews it says [there are witness of our faith surrounding us, therefore put aside all distractions and sins that easily ensnare us and run the race with endurance that lies ahead, keeping your eyes on Jesus, the perfecter of our faith...] Heb 12:1 What I have realized is that I’m further behind in the “race” than I thought before I got here. I thought, ” hey, I haven’t killed anyone, I’m (generally) a nice guy, and I’m flying 10,000 miles to work with orphans and widows.” I can’t be that bad but God has been exposing some dark truths about Dwayne that will take some time to clean up. The team and I joke that we don’t get the luxury of cutting off obvious sin issues like adultery, or murder but now God has been cutting us open and excavating parasites like pride or self-righteousness. Going back to Hebrews, right before the verses I quoted, the author lists example after example of people throughout the bible that were willing to endure hardship and fully commit to God’s purpose for them. They put aside their wealth, safety, comfort, pride, etc to allow God to do a complete work within them. (Jam. 1:4)

I pray and ask for your prayers that I would remove those distractions and sins that would take my eyes off Jesus and allow God to continue doing the hard work of perfecting my faith.

As we began doing ministry; praying with people, sharing the Gospel, teaching the students, etc. I felt an overwhelming fear of being not properly equipped. I thought that I didn’t know enough scripture, or have enough life experience to speak into these people’s lives. But God has been revealing that it’s really pride that holds be back from trusting him in those situations. I find myself thinking I don’t know enough because I’m scared of being bad at something. I’m scared of being wrong or saying that wrong thing. (It’s self-preservation that hinders me from fulfilling God’s calling) As God molds me and trains me I’m learning to trust God in those situations. Salvation doesn’t come through me but it’s only by God’s grace.

Are you winning? I love that question. I don’t think I am but I think in this race I will never win. I think this race is about learning, growing, enduring. “Some men were tortured, not accepting release, so they might gain a better resurrection, and others experienced mocking and scourging, were stoned, they were sawed in two, they died by the sword, they wandered about … destitute, afflicted, and mistreated.” (Heb. 11:35-37) I don’t think my current difficulties are anything like what the disciples were put through but I think this verse does highlight is following God’s plan for your life will not be easy. So I thank God for a tough year ahead and I pray for strength.
Dwayne

“for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and took Me in; I was naked and clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me. Then righteous will answer Him, saying, Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You? And the King will answer and say to them, Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren you did it to Me.”
– Matthew 25:35-40

In the month of March, I saw the Lord at work in my life, in the lives of team members and the people that we have been ministering too. Just as from the above passage, the Lord has been reminding me that it is not all about me and it is all about Him and His Kingdom.

There is a day that we went for the Hospital visitation, it was great day because many of the sick people were giving there lives to Christ. As we go by the patients beds, they are very happy for us to pray together with them. As I approached the second last bed, this old lady who was being visited by her daughter told us she did not need prayers. The reason was simply she was with her daughter, at that moment I wished that the ground could open and I be swallowed up, I was embarrassed. We had no other option but to proceed to the next patient who welcomed us and we encourage her and she encouraged us and we prayed together with her. Being that it was the last bed we had to wait for the other team members who were finishing up. Just before me I saw the Lord working in the life the old lady who had refused us to pray together with her. She went to this lady that we had just prayed with her and begun asking what we were telling her. This other lady talked to her and later on they called me so that I could give her a tract of the gospel.

This has remained me that it is not about me, but that I am doing it for my Lord Jesus Christ

Well well well. I’m here in Swaziland. It’s been a long journey to get here but as we settle into our routine I’m getting really excited about all the ministries we are going to be involved in. Before I give a full update I needed to get some dirty work out of the way. There is good news and bad news.

The bad news first . . .

I had to cut my dreads off. I’ll explain. The pastor for Teen Challenge Ministries on Hawane farm sent me an email a few weeks ago asking if I would consider cutting my dreads off. He explained that here in Swaziland dreadlocks are always associated with criminals, drug users, and all those other people your parent’s tell you not to associate with. We will be working in the many rural communities and I didn’t want it to become an issue or offend any of the Swazi people. So. . . As I said in the last post, God has been asking me to follow Him and each step has been more difficult than the last but I’m trusting him. I must admit I’m really sad about it but I can’t ask God to change my heart if I’m not willing to change the thing on the outside.

_________________________

T.I.A or This is Africa is a common phrase here. Some locals are offended by it but I think it is used to just let foreigner knows things are different here in Africa. For example, if you schedule a meeting at 3:30 and you are still waiting for someone to show up at 4:15 Americans would consider that disrespectful but in Africa there are so many variables (bus didn’t come, tea with family ran long, no money in the bank, etc) that waiting is part of the culture. (And nobody is in a hurry)

So over the past month I have encountered several T.I.A moments and I thought I would share a couple with you.

1. There is a blur line between what lives outside and what lives inside. Normally, ants, flies, bees, spiders, etc live outside. Not here, I just took a shower with a spider that could be in the San Diego Zoo. Most times I would risk trying to kill it but I felt like an epic battle like that should be done with good sunlight. He seemed to be cool with me, he didn’t move too much so it was uneventful.

2. When you go to a restaurant the menu is really just a resume of what the chef has the ability to cook. Don’t expect to get anything you want off that menu. The wait staff will very quickly tell you they don’t have the item and not even offer an alternative. They are unapologetic and want to get back to watching the football match on the TV outside the kitchen. So be flexible and never get your mind set on something you got last time because you may never get that item again.

As I said earlier, T.I.A has some negative connotation with some of the locals but I have found that it has some really positive implications. One thing that is really obvious, specially for someone doing ministry, is how close the spiritual realm is to the natural realm. One of my team members is from Kenya and has told me several stories of witch doctors and black magic that he has experienced and that is not uncommon around here. Africans aren’t afraid to attribute normal or abnormal events to God, the Ancestors or whatever their deity may be. I found myself being surprised by how aware people are of what God is doing in their life and how sensitive they are to His Spirit. I look forward to taking down the walls that have restricted God entering all aspects of my life. I feel like I had this idea that God inhabits these spiritual areas of life and everything else the flesh deals with. I know intellectually I didn’t think that but I think that is how I lived. With that said, I ask for your prayers as God breaks me down and builds me back up again. I’m humbled to be in a place with such amazing people that are willing to struggle through life with you and help you learn and grow.

Please email me any prayer requests that you may have. The team and I have been really praying hard for everyone back home but it would be nice to know specific needs.

Finally, all those that planned on supporting me. You can click on the PayPal button below or make the check out to Africa Revolution and send it to the A.R. address at:

Africa Revolution
P.O. Box 27218
Lansing, MI 48909

Blessings,
Dwayne

Yesterday we had this perfect planned out day. We were going to get some things done around the farm in the morning and then head into town to get groceries for our big Sunday night dinner with the team. We all had about a million things we wanted to do in town and clever was finally back with the vehicle (AND CHARLES, the Kenyan on our team!!! YAAAAY!) so we would actually be able get all the things we needed because we wouldn’t have to take public transportation back to the farm. About an hour before we were going to leave we were told we had to stay at the farm and do arts and crafts with the kids. I will admit, at first I was really annoyed that yet again we had made plans that were going to get changed. It seemed like every day we made a plan it got ruined and it was driving me nuts!! I JUST WANTED TO HAVE A PLAN FOR ONE DAY!!

I knew my attitude towards the arts and crafts with the kids was pathetic and I just began praying that God would replace my attitude with one that resembled his. It wasn’t the fact that I didn’t want to hang out with the kids on the farm, I just wanted to follow what we had planned!

…..and THEN, I met Bandeli, and he stole my heart!

Bandeli is 13 years old and suffers from Cerebral palsy. As a child he was neglected and left to fend for himself. Children picked on him and made fun of him (they still do they just get in trouble for it now). He had never attended school or gotten any help for special needs kids until he came to the farm a couple years ago. He is now attending preschool. He can not only walk but he can run! He has one of the biggest, most loving smiles, even when he falls from trying to run. and he is SO smart!

We made this cross together in arts and crafts and he did all the cutting and gluing by himself, I just had to walk him through directions step by step. If anybody has a reason to have a negative attitude about the cards life dealt them, it is him. The beautiful thing about it though is that he doesn’t. He is so joyful, always laughing. When I was sitting on the floor with Bandeli I started to realize that maybe I needed Bandeli today more than I needed to go to town. God knows what I need, and He knows when I need it. He places people in our lives at the perfect time and takes them out at the perfect time. His timing is everything. I think flexibility is definitely going to be a challenge for me this year. Raised in America, people plan out there day according to time and they follow that timing relatively closely and most days follow the plan. I have learned that here there is no such thing. Plans change and a set time to do something means nothing. If I start seeing joy in every situation like Bandeli does and see Gods work in every instant… I wont get so bent out of shape.

Thank you for blessing my day with Bandeli’s joy.

I just had to share this picture with you guys as well. After the crafts time we played this game with all the kids and a big parachute. We would call things out like “If you are wearing blue run under the parachute” and we would lift the parachute up and all the kids wearing blue would run under the parachute and try and get out the other side before we pull it down and trap them under it. It never failed, Bandeli ran under the parachute EVERY time… even if he wasn’t wearing blue. Sometimes he would try and run so fast as the other kids and he would wipe out… but he would crawl back to his feet, still laughing.

For a very long time I had been praying to God to give me a spirit of patience. Reason being that when things did not go the way I wanted, I used to get frustrated. God answered my prayer by putting me into situations that required me to exercise the fruit of the Spirit found in Galatians 5:22. So I give Him praise for what He has done.
In life we tend to worry what other think about us. For the past months that was me. I was thinking what are the South Africa embassy guys thinking about me? Why is the visa taking so long to come out? Thank God for the book that we are reading as group, it really challenged me. Olson says “If you spend time worrying about what people think of you, you’ll never get anything done”. At one moment I said that am not interested in going to serve God in Swaziland because of the way things were unfolding as per the journey to this nation. Thank God that am here in Swaziland serving HIM in the way that He has purposed for me.

“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure” Philippians 2:12-13. As believers we are all called to work out salvation with fear and trembling. I thank the Lord for giving me this opportunity to put my salvation into action to the people of Swaziland. And I know very well that it is not all about me because it is God who is working in me, so that I can obey His purpose for my life.

So how am I putting my salvation into action with fear and trembling. This is through Hospital visitations whereby one gets to pray with sick people and encourage them through the word of God, not only do you encourage but they too get to minister to you. Always when I go to the Hospital am reminded by God that it is not that I am good but it is because of His grace to me. It is encouraging to hear testimonies of how God is healing the people that we have prayed for in the Hospital. “Who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your disease” Psalms 103:3. Testimonies are coming that He is the one doing it to the people who are sick.
There are a lot of things that am learning as I volunteer. I praise God for all that is taking place for the glory of the name of the Lord. So friends keep on praying for me that I may be faithful to God.

We left Pretoria, South Africa on Friday, Feb 10.
In two vehicles (a big vehicle yet discovered and purchased for our team) and a small trailer, we piled in for the four-hour drive to Hawane Farm just outside Mbabane, Swaziland. Allan drove the borrowed “bakkie” (pick-up truck) hauling the trailer with Jess and Dwayne and their musical instruments riding backwards in the bed of the truck with their bums on a mattress, looking like the true sense of the word: bum. Clever drove the Toyota sedan (borrowed) with Olivia, Sarah, and me as his crew. We picked up Sarah from the airport in Jo-burg on Thursday, as she is another volunteer on the farm, but through a different organization called Teen Challenge Global. Hurtling down the left side of the road through the hilly farmland northeast toward Swaziland and Mozambique, we saw some gorgeous countryside, and even some zebra and hippos when we stopped for lunch. As we drew near the border, we began seeing forests of pine trees, and Clever informed us that timber is a major industry for Swazis. We saw workers heading home in their royal blue coveralls, sharing the side of the road with random, horned cattle and sheep. Eventually we reached the border post and successfully gained entry to the country we’ve long awaited: The Kingdom of SWAZILAND. We were in awe of the beauty of this land as we continued on. Johannesburg sits on a plateau of about 5,000 feet, but as we entered Swaziland, we began to see mountains rising up from below us. We are surrounded by the most beautiful, green hills. It’s summer time! Reaching the farm just 20 min. after crossing the border, our excitement was high, and our hips tired from sitting so much the last few days.

We received a warm welcome from Lloyd, associate pastor of a church in Mbabane, who recently arrived with his family from Britain. Jess and I were shown our room on the first floor of a large farmhouse, divided in two for Lloyd’s family on one side, and the volunteers (that’s us, plus some) on the other side. So we are on the volunteers’ side, with our room and bathroom on the first floor with the kitchen, dining, and common area, while some of the girl volunteers (up to six, including Olivia and Sarah) have rooms and a bathroom upstairs. We met our housemates who are very kind and hospitable, and began to settle into our concrete, brick, and tile space with ample storage and a window looking out to the mountains surrounding a small lake. With no A/C or heat, the open windows provide a good breeze. Our furnishings are quite basic, but we’ve made it home quickly with photos we brought and even a framed picture! The shared kitchen is large, with plenty of cabinet space below a giant counter. We also share a tiny fridge and one water bottle (the big dispensing kind) among the 7 of us. We are thankful to even have a fridge and clean water! We wash our own dishes (no dishwasher), and we have a tiny front-loading washer about half the size of ones at home. After clothes are washed (which can only be done when no other appliances are being used), we take them to hang outside on the line. If it’s sunny, they’re dry in a few hours. As far as food, we can cook for ourselves on the gas oven/stove, and the grocery store in Mbabane is only 20 min away, with a good selection of most things, including seasonal fruits and vegetables. We do have bugs. There are giant moths as big as your hand, and flies without number, especially if the house isn’t kept spic and span. So we have chore rotations to ensure that we are as bug-free as possible. J

Hawane (pronounced: Ha-WAH-neh) is a really cool place with A LOT going on. It is overseen by Pastor Timothy and his wife, who live on the farm, and are part of the local community. The Potters Wheel Church in Mbabane where Lloyd is associate pastor and is where we attend church most Sundays, is a huge supporter of Teen Challenge Ministries in Swaziland, and thus Hawane as well (Hawane is considered part of Teen Challenge Ministries). The buildings on the farm include the farmhouse (the biggest building) which houses Lloyd’s family and some volunteers from all over, 4 homes for orphans in grade school, complete with a house mom or house parents, a home for girls who are transitioning out of the orphan homes and into life on their own as they have grown up and become young adults (a half-way house), a kitchen, an office, some buildings that are made to represent traditional Swazi architecture, a small library for the kids, a common area for playing games, a medical clinic (called the “hospice”) with a resident nurse from England named Jane, and a dormitory style living facility for older teens who are in a voluntary, 16 month discipleship institute called Teen Challenge Ministries Institute (TCMI). On the grounds of the farm, there are garden plots for each orphan home, which the children tend to, larger garden plots with all kinds of produce sold commercially for profit to feed the kids on the farm, as well as rabbits, chickens, and pigs for raising and selling, again to make profits to be able to support the kids on the farm. There is a small play area with a wooden jungle gym, and a “pitch” for the kids to do their most beloved activity: Play Soccer!

Our week will consist of some time spent on the farm building relationships with the kids and house parents, as well as doing agriculture (under guidance of 3 agricultural missionary ladies who are hilarious!) to keep the farm profitable, and also going into the community to different ministries to help out, like in the women’s shelter, the young men’s rehab program, the local hospital to pray for patients, the rural villages to build relationships with widows and the very needy, and also going at times to the far rural communities to do medical ministry with people from the Potter’s Wheel church who have a ministry called The Luke Commission. We will be called upon to help lead devotions at times on the farm or in the youth group, to help teach classes like computers, sewing, homework club, etc. Or whatever other need may arise.

Internet here is about 15 years behind the rest of the world, and is incredibly slow and expensive. We are sometimes able to connect to wifi at the Potter’s Wheel church for free, so we take advantage when we can of doing the basics like email or a simple Google search. Uploading photos is a challenge at best. Sometimes it doesn’t work. But we will keep trying as we go along! Hope you enjoy!

Remember, you can always email us at jessandelizabeth.com— just be very patient for a reply.