Africa: Oh Happy Day!

So I’m not even sure to where to begin to tell about today…  There really just aren’t words to do it justice...  And yet, I think I could sum it up in one word…  JOY!!!  Pure, utter, JOY!!!  The pictures will show you what I mean!  (I have so many awesome photos of our team, but I need to ask their permission first, before I post them, because most of them are under 18...  But there's still A LOT I could post!)

I can’t possibly hit every detail, so I’ll just try and give you some highlights…  We went to 2 homesteads.  One was the grandparents and 12 (yep, TWELVE!) children!  The second one was 2 grandparents and 3 children.

At the first home (the larger one), we sat down and talked with them for a few minutes (we had a translator with us all day.)  We learned that the children are basically getting one meal a day.  Growing children…  One meal a day! 

So we planted them a garden!  I started with my gloves, but then I noticed that the gogo (grandmother) wasn’t wearing any gloves, so I took mine off.  If they can dig in the dirt with their bare hands, so can I!  I am so stinkin’ spoiled by my luxuries!

After we finished planting, we played (for a long time!)!!  Bubbles, beach ball, we just hung out with them…  And then we started to fit them with their new TOM’S shoes!!  How fun to watch 12 children get new shoes…  How AMAZING to watch high school kids, Mackenzie included, get down in the dirt and just love these children.  And they loved the gogo and the makulu (grandfather) just as well!

After new shoes, new t-shirts, new socks and beanies, M, one of the high school students got out his guitar…  What a moment to sit on grass mats and worship with this family!  Most of the family didn’t speak English but the grandfather did.  As M sat playing and singing, I heard a sound off to the side…  The grandfather was quietly singing along…  “Oh happy day…  happy day…he washed my sins away…  oh happy day…  happy day…  I will never be the same.”

But the blessings didn’t end there…  We went to the next homestead and met another amazing family!  But it was the little girl there that stole our hearts!  She was the ultimate expression of joy!  Mackenzie was completely taken with her!

Two groups of people from thousands of miles apart brought together in Africa…  Our greatest bond, we share a love for Jesus and a deep gratitude for what He did for us…  Oh Happy Day!

Africa: Just Plain Tired!!

Today was a sweet day...  It was our day on Project Canaan and I was surprised by the impact it made on me being back there.  We started our work day with a tour.  I was amazed once again at the progress they continue to make...

As we drove around the property, I was hit over and over with memories...  The soap stone cross hanging in the chapel, I was there when Janine picked it up, I was there for the dedication of the chapel...  The hill where I stood last year to photograph the arrival of 3500 children for a of worship...  The cross with the baby handprints, now hanging on the completed El Roi Baby Home.  That cross once stood on a hill, the home just a God given vision.  So much has been accomplished in such a short period of time and now 9 babies call Project Canaan their home...  Babies who had been discarded in a pit latrine, a ditch...  One little girl, less than a year old, left by her mother for a week at the time...  But now they have a home and someone to love them!  El Roi...  The God who sees...

Today was a work day for us...  And all of the teams worked hard!  Our team painted the roof of the baby home and Mackenzie climbed right up there and painted most of the day!  You go girl!!

Tomorrow we're off to spend the day with 2 families...  I think we need to be prepared to have our hearts touched in a way like maybe never before.

Africa: Over The Moon!

We are finally in Swaziland!!  That moment, when I step across the border is one I always look forward to and it never disappoints…  Just as much as it tears at my heart when I step across it the other way to leave…  But that is a week away, so I don’t have to think about that right now!

Tonight, we found out what we’re going to be doing for the week and I am over the moon with excitement!  Tomorrow is a work day at Project Canaan (Heart For Africa’s 2500 acre development).  We get to meet the babies at the El Roi Baby Home and each team has a special work project.

And as excited as I am for Friday, to get back to the rural church I always serve at, I am SO excited for Wednesday!  Wednesday we get to spend the day with 2 different families in the community surrounding Project Canaan.  We will plant a garden with each family, give their children TOM’S shoes and also take them clothing and food packs.  WOW, a half day with each family just to love on them, play with them and work alongside them! 

Thursday is an ‘off’ day…  We get to go on a safari and to a very special market.  And then Friday!  Friday we spend our first day in our community!  We garden with them, play with them and if I know Pastor M…  we’ll be doing some really awesome worship (with dancing!)!! 

Saturday we spend the entire day fitting the children in the community with TOM’S shoes!  THAT is going to be an AMAZING experience!  So far one church had over 300+ children show up and another had 500+ children…  We’ll fit them, play with them, sing with them, just love on them!  This is also the day that we will get to give out the dresses I have from Dress A Girl Around the World!

Then Sunday… Sunday we actually give the children their shoes, a food pack and it’s an entire day of worship with our church! 

I can’t even begin to tell you how God is already answering prayer!  Here’s a fun one…  I’ve always wanted someone on my team who could play guitar.  Today a young man got on the bus with his guitar and I thought, “I am so jealous of the team that will have him.”  Well, he’s on my team and I hear he’s quite talented!!

But the icing on the cake is that the whole team is amazing… Of course there’s Mackenzie, her sweet gentle spirit, her smile will be a blessing to everyone and God has also blessed us with 4 other clearly amazing young people from a private school in Georgia.  Just from dinner I can already tell they are a special group of young people!  And then the icing on the icing is we also have their Bible teacher and their economics teacher!  They are funny, you can see their love for Jesus shining right through and I have no doubt they are going to immerse themselves in this week!  It’s clear from the way their students interact with them, they really are special!

God is up to something and I can’t wait to see all that He has in store for us this week!  And here’s one to close with…  If you read my post last night, I was left wondering, is it enough to come each year just for the purpose of loving and encouraging…  Tonight, as orientation opened, Jimmie (who is the stateside director of HFA) said, “We are not here to fix anything, we are just here to bring hope.”  Maybe that really is enough…  Maybe that’s all the why I need!  But I’ll keep praying and watching!

Africa: Searching For My Why!

We just arrived in Johannesburg!  Tomorrow we drive to Swaziland (CAN’T WAIT), but we have a little time before dinner.  I initially picked up my Ipod and thought a mindless game of Bejewelled Blitz might be nice…  We’ve travelled for over 24 hours and I’m tired, but I had to ask myself, is that really how I want to spend this time?!

I decided not…  I think I need to ponder a question!  On the flight, I watched a great movie called Machine Gun Preacher about a really hard man who became a Christian and went to Africa.  On his trip, he asked a soldier to take him to Sudan, right into the midst of the fighting. 

As he saw the horrors of what was happening, the soldier asked him, “Why are you here?  Is it just to get your pictures and your stories?”  There’s nothing wrong with stories or pictures, but if that’s all there is, then really…  what’s the point?  The man went on to build an orphanage right in the middle of the war torn area…  it was an inspiring story but a very realistic view of the life of the children there…  It was heart wrenching!

Well, this is my 6^th trip to Swaziland and I have some great pictures and stories, but is that all there is?  It’s time to give that some serious thought!  Is it enough to come here for 10 days each year, love the people, encourage them and then leave?  What about the other 355 days? 

That’s the question I’ll be looking to answer while I’m here.  Maybe showing up and consistently loving them is enough…  Maybe encouraging them to run the race well and persevere through unimaginable struggles is exactly what my part is…  Maybe it’s an answer that’s still developing and I won’t know after this trip or even the next one…  But it’s time to open my heart and really consider why I’m here!  Stay tuned!!

AFRICA!!! It's Almost Time!!!

It’s almost time!!  Mackenzie and I are just days away from leaving for Swaziland AND I can’t wait!!  I was just thinking about what makes me smile, thinking about Swaziland….

1.      Our friend Enoch…  He was my mother’s guide in 2005, but now he’s my friend too!  He can sing…  WOW can he sing…  Amazing Grace…  Reign Jesus Reign…  I love that he let’s me ask all the questions I want, he helps me understand a culture that is so different than the one I live in!!

2.       My friend Mary Jane…  I love her utter amazement that God loves her enough to keep sending a friend back to see her…  She is SO special!!

3.      Pastor Maseko…  Unconditional love!!  I’ve led two teams to work at his church, I’m about to lead a third and I ALWAYS mess something up!  I don’t understand their culture…  I tend to be way too protective (of my stomach) and yet he never stops loving us!

4.      HFA friends…  Heart For Africa is who I travel with and WOW are there some special people!  They make me laugh… they make me smile…  they inspire me to want to give more of myself in service to the Kingdom!  They are a picture of a living sacrifice!

5.      Ultimately…  DANCE!!  I CAN’T wait to dance with my precious friends in Hlane (pronounced SH-Lan-E) They know how to worship!  They taught me how to step outside my box and just dance…  I wish I could be the me, I am in Swaziland, all of the time at home!  For 10 days I get to live as the me HE created me to be! 

I can’t WAIT to go to Swaziland!!  I can’t wait for the moment we step across the border between Johannesburg and Swaziland!  I can’t wait to see the ladies in the African Queen…  I can’t wait to see the drivers of the combis we ride in every day…  the cooks at the hotel…  the AWESOME porters at the hotel (people in Swaziland don't tend to job hop so I get to see the same people year after year and I've gotten to know some of the incredible staff where we stay.  I have fun stories about them that just make me smile!)…  our friend Enoch…  Mary Jane…  Pastor Maseko…  My friends at Heart For Africa…  I have learned not to wish my life away…  and yet, somewhere in the quiet recesses of my heart…  I long for 10 days every year…  10 days that will take me to the friends that Jesus has born an inexplicable love for in my heart!! 

Scars

Something has been on my heart for a couple of weeks and I’ve decided it’s time to put it into words…  In John 20:27, after the resurrection, Jesus meets up with Thomas, who is having such a hard time believing that Jesus is alive and this is what happens…  “Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

I can close my eyes and see this…  Thomas must have been a bit tentative to touch.  I can’t imagine the kind of scars that nails…  stakes driven through a hand would leave…  To see them would be hard enough, but to actually touch them…  Something in me would want to recoil, to turn away…  But I know I would force myself to look…  to touch.  Even thinking about it, I can feel the chills on the back of my neck…  an icky feeling in the pit of my stomach…  

But how beautifully intimate that Jesus let him see and touch…  Think about what those scars stood for, at least from the world’s perspective…  In the world’s eyes, they were the scars of humiliation…  The proof that Jesus had suffered the most degrading, humiliating form of punishment and death possible, crucifixion…  the kind of punishment saved for the worst kind of criminal.  It was so awful, the Romans did not allow their own citizens to be crucified.

But in heaven’s view, those scars were signs of a great victory!  Victory over sin and death…  Proof that God is more powerful than anything the world, than evil, can dish out!  They were proof that beauty can come from ashes…  joy from mourning…  hope from despair…  life from death!

And here’s what hit me the last couple of weeks…  Do I feel that way about my own scars in my life?  Maybe they’re not physical scars, but what about the emotional scars that we all carry from living in a fallen world…  True, some scars are worse than others…  But we all have scars!

So how do you see your scars?  Are they reminders of humiliation?  Do you hide them and keep them secret?  Or are they reminders of victory?  Of redemption and restoration?  Of God’s great power, grace and love?

And just as importantly, are we willing to let others see and touch our scars?  Are we willing to share our stories?  Think about what overcame Thomas’ doubt…  It was seeing and touching the scars of Jesus…  It was being able to step into Jesus’ story for a moment and experience the victory that He had experienced!  What great hope that must have given him!!

Yes, there may be things about your story that cause others to recoil…to want to turn away…to maybe even judge you…  BUT, what if letting someone else see our scars, even just one person, could help them overcome their doubts about Jesus?  Would it be worth opening up our hearts and lives and saying to the world, “See my scars…  see what Jesus has done…  see what is possible in a relationship with Him…  stop doubting and believe!”

I am so thankful for the scars of Jesus…  I am overwhelmed at all they tell me…  A story of the greatest sacrifice anyone could ever imagine…  A grace that is truly amazing…  Mercy that is limitless…  Love that is unfathomable…  Victory that is unimaginable!  The story, the truth, behind those scars is transforming…  But maybe God would use your story…  your scars to transform a life too…

But here's the thing...  You have to let Him heal your wounds first...  You have to let Him work victory, redemption and restoration in your own life!  Have you experienced the promises of Isaiah 61:1-4?  Have you let Him bring beauty from the ashes in your own life?  If not, say yes to that journey...  Find someone who is willing to share their scars and let them walk with you on that journey...  (You can e-mail me if you'd like).

But if God has done, or is doing, a great work in your life...  Then let's be willing to let others 'see and touch' our scars!

"Now's My Chance!"

I haven’t written in a while, just no time, but I’ve learned something that is worth writing about!  On Sunday, our pastor preached the most outstanding sermon on loving your enemies and he left us with a challenge to remind ourselves of 3 simple words when conflict arises with other people…

The phrase…  “Now’s my chance…”  My chance to  love…to show mercy and grace…to be kind, instead of condemning, forgiving instead of judgmental or critical…  and wow, the results have been cool.

Without giving too many details, there has been a person in my life who has been causing me SO much turmoil, mainly because it involves one of my children (mama bear on the loose!)…  But I decided to live out “Now’s my chance” and I’ve reached out with encouragement and kindness, instead of pouring verbal acid all over the person, like I wanted to do.  And the coolest thing, the person has responded back with kindness and encouragement.

And then just this morning, I received a threatening message from the State Revenue department claiming that I had not filed or paid my sales tax since September of last year…  NOT…  I have a cleared check to prove I did…  I even talked to this person 10 days ago about the very same thing and still he left me a message threatening me with legal action.

I was furious…  But I took a deep breath, whispered the words, “Now’s my chance,” and called him back.  I expressed my frustration, but not in anger, just very matter of fact…  I reminded him that I’ve consistently worked with him… I’ve never avoided his calls…  I’ve worked diligently to make sure everything is current and accurate…  And I told him that I didn’t think it was fair for him to leave me threatening messages.

Sure enough, as he looked into it, he could tell me every month and what I had paid for that month and by the end of the conversation he apologized and admitted that he should have looked into it, before he called me.

In both situations, I had every right to be angry, to even blast the person for their actions…  But I’ve been challenged by our sermons the last two weeks to set aside my rights and just love the person who is infringing on my rights.  I won’t say it’s easy…  I think if I’m really honest, I want the person to pay who’s hurting me…frustrating me…whatever…  But as we approach Easter, how can I not remember that over 2000 years ago, my Heavenly Father chose not to make me pay a debt that was greater than I could ever hope to repay…  Instead, He had His Son pay it for me and today I am forgiven and debt free because of that grace and love and mercy…  How can I even think of not offering that to those who hurt me?!

And interestingly, the more I practice, “Now’s my chance,” (I have a TON of opportunities in just 2 days!) the easier it gets…  I love the results of reconciled relationships…  They are far sweeter than anger, anxiety and unforgiveness.