Our first team was AWESOME!!! Since we arrived in Swaziland, we have been “training” and shadowing with other team leaders. One of our many jobs here is that we host teams that visit from the states. These teams are a vital part of our ministry and the relationships formed through sponsorship of the kids are priceless. From short-term mission trips to hosting teams in country, we have had the unique opportunity...
It is amazing to see how the Lord works and how He puts events in place to accomplish His plan. I was scheduled to meet a group of World Racers and their parents at a nearby care point. The World Race is a program through Adventures in Missions where 18-25 year old young adults visit 11 countries in 11 months while doing mission work. Admittedly, I wasn’t real excited about going because I had a lot I needed to acco...
Imagine this is your kitchen... Imagine this is where you sit and chat with your visitors... Imagine this is your house... This is reality for some families in Swaziland. Last week our Manzini staff worked together to visit 116 "struggling" homesteads. We had the priviledge of visiting with 12 of these homes. This was not what our Christmas blog was going to look like, but after these visits, ...
Thanksgiving season is a time of reflection. To think about this past year blows our mind. Over and over again, God has reminded us that He is in control of our lives. In the past year, we have lived with my brother, Kenneth, Greg’s mom, an apartment and a rental house…on two different continents! That is a lot of moving around! We were amazed at God’s timing as he orchestrated our move into a wonderful rental hou...
It has felt really strange to say “Merry Christmas” hundreds of time each week this month! Once schools dismiss in Swaziland for a long break at the beginning of December, very little happens anywhere. The country of Swaziland literally takes a “break” until January. So, in order to have Christmas parties at all of our nineteen Manzini care points, we have to start early. Christmas parties are held on We...
Here is a glimpse at what God is doing at one of our care points… Kay is the chairperson at the care point. Her name is not really Kay, but I cannot pronounce her name and I definitely cannot spell itJ So, we will just call her Kay. Kay had prayed for five years. Many times over this period, she thought to herself, “Does God hear my prayers?” She was thankful that several years ago, a care point was establishe...
August 8th was our first day of home school high school! We committed this school year to God and Psalm 37:5 is our motto, “Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.” As we began to unpack and start to make a schedule, I realized that God has been preparing me for “such a time as this” for a long time. I went to a non-traditional Christian school. Grades 7-12 at my high scho...
Baby dolls, balls and toy trucks may look a little different in Swaziland, but these kids love to play! They learn to use their imaginations and resourcefulness to "make" these toys. As we have observed their ingenuity over the past few weeks, our hearts have been blessed as they run, laugh and play at the care points. This little girl has made a baby doll. Her head is a garbage bag and the dress is made of s...
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come; the old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV We realize that this Scripture is referring to new believers in Christ. However, upon reading it this week, we definitely relate to the latter part of the verse…the old has gone, the new is here. You can say that again! Everything is new to us in Swaziland: new culture, new town, new apartment, ...
We wanted to post these pictures in the last blog but we could not get the pictures to upload. This is the building our apartment is in. We are on the top floor, first two windows that are open, the two small windows and the next two bigger windows to the left. The apartment is fully furnished with everything that we need. We have cooked several times and we are settling in. The parking lot is gated and...