We are officially down to only one week left! I cannot believe that our time here is already coming to a close, it seems like we just got here yesterday. Due to fact that I am running extremely low on internet time this morning, this update will be short (until I can buy more internet minutes). However, I will be filling in details that I have missed as soon as we get back in the States!
This past weekend, we ventured to the Valley of 1000 Hills and got to see the traditional Zulu dancers as they preformed a typical marriage dance/ courting dance. The students really loved it and it was a great way to spend our free Saturday. On Sunday, we all were able to attend our first Zulu church service. Although the services are about 3-4 hours long, and all in Zulu, thanks to individual interpreters we really enjoyed the services and getting to meet members of Anele's church!
This whole week we have been on the Westville campus of the Universtity of Kwa-Zulu Natal. We have spent the week doing outreaches everyday by asking a different question to the campus each day: What is sin? What is grace? What is love? In addition to the outreach, we have been going across campus sharing the gospel with students and discipling students we have met. The Lord has been doing amazing work this week and we have seen several people come to Christ because of His work through us! We have had the opportunity to talk with and share the gospel with Shembe followers, Hindus, Muslims, etc. It has been a trying week but an incredible week! God is so good.
Today, we will be attending the weekly Crusade meeting on campus and discussing the topic "What is love?" Paul Meyer, a staff member with us on our trip, will be speaking to the students about God's love and what it means for those who follow Christ. Please continue to pray for the advancement of the gospel on this campus and the growth of the Crusade movement here!
Friday, July 27, 2012
Friday, July 20, 2012
Durban: Week Three
This week has been one of the craziest weeks we have had here so far! Since it was our last week in the communities, our schedule has been very busy but very productive. This past weekend, we ventured to Isinkwe for a all-day safari on Saturday. We spent 12 hours travelling around and viewing God's creation including a cheetah, rhinos, a hippo, lions, elephants, zebras, giraffes, and more! It was an incredible day and we were so thankful that the animals decided to come out.
On Monday, we spent the day working along side a church that works with the Isaiah House (orphanage). The boys spent the day helping construct a new building, while the girls spent the morning prayer-walking around some of the occult meeting sites that were near by (will explain more in coming posts). In the afternoon, most of the team went to the local daycare to spend time with the kids of the community. I had the priveledge of going door-to-door with a couple of students to share the gospel with the community. The people here are so open to the gospel- it is very refreshing!
On Tuesday, we went back to the same place and the boys once again helped with construction. Mitch, myself and a large group went back to the local daycare. The daycare offers to watch preschool aged kids or younger for familys that are single parent homes or home where both parents have died and the older siblings are caring for the house hold. We closed out the day by playing a huge soccer game with some of the local kids (they were a little bit better than us!).
On Wednesday, we spent the day at an AIDS Hospice called Ukhakane (might be spelled wrong- it means light in the darkness). The boys helped build a fence at the entrance of the facility while myself and the girls painted some of the patient's rooms. At the end of the day, we celebrated Nelson Mandela day (July 18th) by going to the World Cup Stadium and watching Manchester United play Ama-Zulu. The game kicked off by the whole stadium singing happy birthday to Nelson Mandela- it was a once in a lifetime experience for sure!
On Thursday, we went back to Ukhakane and continuted to work on our painting projects and the fence. At lunch time, Penny (the woman who began the ministry), took us down the road to a local meat shop. We all picked out meat and they grilled it on a huge braai for us for lunch. It was quite an experience (and a little nervewracking) but the meat was actually very good! It was a great end to our time in the communities.
Today, we are spending the day training the students in evangelism methods. Mitch also will be spending some time teaching them about Islam so that they may be prepared if they meet Muslim students on campus. Tonight, the UKZN interns are joining us at our place and we are having a huge cookout. We have made such sweet friendships here- its going to be so hard to leave!
Please continue to pray for our team. We have a couple who have been sick this week, myself included, and are having a hard time getting better. Also, please pray for us as we begin our time on campus. Pray for open hearts for those we will speak to, as well as for our students to have courage and to be faithful in spreading the gospel. We miss you all and covet your prayers!
On Monday, we spent the day working along side a church that works with the Isaiah House (orphanage). The boys spent the day helping construct a new building, while the girls spent the morning prayer-walking around some of the occult meeting sites that were near by (will explain more in coming posts). In the afternoon, most of the team went to the local daycare to spend time with the kids of the community. I had the priveledge of going door-to-door with a couple of students to share the gospel with the community. The people here are so open to the gospel- it is very refreshing!
On Tuesday, we went back to the same place and the boys once again helped with construction. Mitch, myself and a large group went back to the local daycare. The daycare offers to watch preschool aged kids or younger for familys that are single parent homes or home where both parents have died and the older siblings are caring for the house hold. We closed out the day by playing a huge soccer game with some of the local kids (they were a little bit better than us!).
On Wednesday, we spent the day at an AIDS Hospice called Ukhakane (might be spelled wrong- it means light in the darkness). The boys helped build a fence at the entrance of the facility while myself and the girls painted some of the patient's rooms. At the end of the day, we celebrated Nelson Mandela day (July 18th) by going to the World Cup Stadium and watching Manchester United play Ama-Zulu. The game kicked off by the whole stadium singing happy birthday to Nelson Mandela- it was a once in a lifetime experience for sure!
On Thursday, we went back to Ukhakane and continuted to work on our painting projects and the fence. At lunch time, Penny (the woman who began the ministry), took us down the road to a local meat shop. We all picked out meat and they grilled it on a huge braai for us for lunch. It was quite an experience (and a little nervewracking) but the meat was actually very good! It was a great end to our time in the communities.
Today, we are spending the day training the students in evangelism methods. Mitch also will be spending some time teaching them about Islam so that they may be prepared if they meet Muslim students on campus. Tonight, the UKZN interns are joining us at our place and we are having a huge cookout. We have made such sweet friendships here- its going to be so hard to leave!
Please continue to pray for our team. We have a couple who have been sick this week, myself included, and are having a hard time getting better. Also, please pray for us as we begin our time on campus. Pray for open hearts for those we will speak to, as well as for our students to have courage and to be faithful in spreading the gospel. We miss you all and covet your prayers!
Friday, July 13, 2012
Durban: Week Two
We have successfully made it through week two and have had an amazing week! Last Saturday, our group hosted a VBS for local kids from the Kwa-Dabeka township. HIS church, Anele's homechurch, has a ministry called KwaCare which pays for the schooling fees, clothes, and food for a select number of kids that come from families that cannot afford to pay the yearly school fees (roughly 12 US dollars a year). We hosted a VBS for these kids on Saturday and were able to share several Bible stories with them, the Jesus Film for kids, and the gospel in whole.
On Sunday, we visited HIS church alongside of Anele and the UKZN students and interns we have been working with. It was a great opportunity to experience a different church and worship alongside our new South African friends.
On Monday, we ventured out to a community called the "Newlands". Before the Aparteid, the "Newlands" was created to house all of the "colored" people so that they were not living in the white South African neighborhoods. We partnered with a church called Shalom Outreach Fellowhip, which was started and run by ex-gang members and Christian men with amazing testimonies of how God brought them out of the darkness. We spent Monday doing door-to-door evangelism with members of the community and praying for those whom we talked with. We also had an "outdoor service", where some of the leaders of the church and the youth group shared their testimonies and truth from the gospels over a loud speaker.
On Tuesday, we had the opportunity to sit in on the church's Tuesday morning service and introduce ourselves to the community. We also got the opportunity to spend time with the church's youth group, sharing testimonies and getting to know them and their culture.
On Wednesday, We headed to a place called Cato Manor where we hosted another VBS. We spent the morning playing games, singing songs (like the kids all-time favorite "Father Abraham"), and doing crafts. After lunch and another round of games, I (Amy) had the opporutnity to share the gospel alongside one of our students, Kris, with 50 plus kids. At the end, we were able to pray with the students who desired a relationship with Christ and explain to them what a life with the Spirit looks like. It was an incredible experience.
On Thursday, We had another day of VBS with the kids of Cato Manor and we were able to share the Jesus Film with them. Their craft for the day was to make a giant chain out of strips of paper where they wrote down what they were thankful for. Some of their answers broke my heart: "I am thankful that God that my parents are still living", "I thank God I have a mother", "I thank God that I am still living", and "I thank God for keeping me until today". The pain and hardships that these kids are going through at such young ages is devestating- but they are so thankful!! I am learning so much about humility and thankfulness from such young people.
Today (Friday), we are heading out for the weekend to go on a Safari! Each 5-week summer project has a fun activity somewhere in the project to "debrief". We hope this finds everyone back home well and we look forward to sharing with you again next week!
On Sunday, we visited HIS church alongside of Anele and the UKZN students and interns we have been working with. It was a great opportunity to experience a different church and worship alongside our new South African friends.
On Monday, we ventured out to a community called the "Newlands". Before the Aparteid, the "Newlands" was created to house all of the "colored" people so that they were not living in the white South African neighborhoods. We partnered with a church called Shalom Outreach Fellowhip, which was started and run by ex-gang members and Christian men with amazing testimonies of how God brought them out of the darkness. We spent Monday doing door-to-door evangelism with members of the community and praying for those whom we talked with. We also had an "outdoor service", where some of the leaders of the church and the youth group shared their testimonies and truth from the gospels over a loud speaker.
On Tuesday, we had the opportunity to sit in on the church's Tuesday morning service and introduce ourselves to the community. We also got the opportunity to spend time with the church's youth group, sharing testimonies and getting to know them and their culture.
On Wednesday, We headed to a place called Cato Manor where we hosted another VBS. We spent the morning playing games, singing songs (like the kids all-time favorite "Father Abraham"), and doing crafts. After lunch and another round of games, I (Amy) had the opporutnity to share the gospel alongside one of our students, Kris, with 50 plus kids. At the end, we were able to pray with the students who desired a relationship with Christ and explain to them what a life with the Spirit looks like. It was an incredible experience.
On Thursday, We had another day of VBS with the kids of Cato Manor and we were able to share the Jesus Film with them. Their craft for the day was to make a giant chain out of strips of paper where they wrote down what they were thankful for. Some of their answers broke my heart: "I am thankful that God that my parents are still living", "I thank God I have a mother", "I thank God that I am still living", and "I thank God for keeping me until today". The pain and hardships that these kids are going through at such young ages is devestating- but they are so thankful!! I am learning so much about humility and thankfulness from such young people.
Today (Friday), we are heading out for the weekend to go on a Safari! Each 5-week summer project has a fun activity somewhere in the project to "debrief". We hope this finds everyone back home well and we look forward to sharing with you again next week!
Friday, July 6, 2012
Greetings From Durban!
We have officially made it to South Africa and almost all of the way through our first week! Mitch and I met our entire team at 8:00 a.m. Sunday, July 1st, at the Atlanta airport where we began our journey to Durban. Our flight arrived in Durban at 8:00 p.m. Monday, July 2nd. We had a little mix up with the rental cars, but we finally got it smoothed our and we were on our way to our home for the next 5 weeks!
Tuesday morning, we woke up and headed to our first day in the township of Kwa-Dabeka. We helped do some much needed landscaping (clearing overgrown roads), handing out rice and soup to the orphans and the sick, and getting to know our partners from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The team leader, Anele, has planned out our entire 3 weeks in the townships and we have loved getting to know him and the other South African students we are working with. We ended Tuesday night in our small groups going through Tim Keller's 2 Timothy study.
Wednesday, we ventured to another part of Kwa-Dabeka and spent the morning picking up trash around the houses/apartments. In the afternoon, we split into groups and began getting ready for our AIDS/HIV training session that we will be hosting on Saturday. The 5 different sessions explain what AIDS/HIV is, how it is contracted, how to protect yourself, how to treat others with AIDS/HIV, and how to make smart choices with God for your life. We will also be putting together a Vacation Bible School for primary age children on Saturday as well. Wednesday ended with a night of reflection to meditate on the things we have seen this week and how God can be using us while we are here.
Yesterday, we spent the morning hosting a thrift store for the community and a soup kitchen. Before soup was given out, the gospel was presented and we had the opportunity to talk to members of the Kwa-Dabeka community and pray for them. In the afternoon, we continued our AIDS/HIV training and some of us girls also got dance lessons from some of the women in the community center. We ended Thursday with men's and women's time, discussing the past week and our spiritual walks.
Today, we had a day off which has been spent on the beach hanging out with our South African partners. The boys have made attempts to play rugby and we ended up running into a World Race Team that is currently in Durban and from the States! It has been a great day of fellowship, relaxation, and spiritual conversations that will end tonight with a group cook-out and a trip to watch the local rugby team play!
We have loved being in Durban and are so excited to see how God is going to use us to serve the people here as well as work in our hearts and the hearts of our students. Please continue to pray for changed lives as well for the safety of us and our students, as we are in some pretty dangerous parts in Durban. We will update again at the end of next week and cannot wait to share some amazing stories!
Tuesday morning, we woke up and headed to our first day in the township of Kwa-Dabeka. We helped do some much needed landscaping (clearing overgrown roads), handing out rice and soup to the orphans and the sick, and getting to know our partners from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The team leader, Anele, has planned out our entire 3 weeks in the townships and we have loved getting to know him and the other South African students we are working with. We ended Tuesday night in our small groups going through Tim Keller's 2 Timothy study.
Wednesday, we ventured to another part of Kwa-Dabeka and spent the morning picking up trash around the houses/apartments. In the afternoon, we split into groups and began getting ready for our AIDS/HIV training session that we will be hosting on Saturday. The 5 different sessions explain what AIDS/HIV is, how it is contracted, how to protect yourself, how to treat others with AIDS/HIV, and how to make smart choices with God for your life. We will also be putting together a Vacation Bible School for primary age children on Saturday as well. Wednesday ended with a night of reflection to meditate on the things we have seen this week and how God can be using us while we are here.
Yesterday, we spent the morning hosting a thrift store for the community and a soup kitchen. Before soup was given out, the gospel was presented and we had the opportunity to talk to members of the Kwa-Dabeka community and pray for them. In the afternoon, we continued our AIDS/HIV training and some of us girls also got dance lessons from some of the women in the community center. We ended Thursday with men's and women's time, discussing the past week and our spiritual walks.
Today, we had a day off which has been spent on the beach hanging out with our South African partners. The boys have made attempts to play rugby and we ended up running into a World Race Team that is currently in Durban and from the States! It has been a great day of fellowship, relaxation, and spiritual conversations that will end tonight with a group cook-out and a trip to watch the local rugby team play!
We have loved being in Durban and are so excited to see how God is going to use us to serve the people here as well as work in our hearts and the hearts of our students. Please continue to pray for changed lives as well for the safety of us and our students, as we are in some pretty dangerous parts in Durban. We will update again at the end of next week and cannot wait to share some amazing stories!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)