The Shades Mountain team left on Friday. They were here for a week doing ministry –mainly in Capricorn in Cape Town, South Africa. We did door-to-door ministry, shared the Gospel, prayed for the people in their homes, conducted a 'Testing Day' (HIV, TB, Blood Sugar, Pregnancy), put on a 'Community Party' at the church where 5 people came to know the Lord, did Kids Clubs/Teen Clubs with the Life Skills Educators in Capricorn and Overcome. Pastor Severo and I have a lot of follow up to do in Capricorn; the team mapped out homes that need follow-up visits. There were 3 of the 'new Believers' in church this week- one came to Youth on Friday, the other 2 were in worship on Sunday Morning! Please pray with me that the church will minister to these new Believers and disciple them properly.
It was so great having loved ones here with me. I especially enjoyed having my youth here; it was a hard reminder that I had (have) their full trust and didn't have walls up like there are with the youth here. Seeing the teams' sweet faces all week was wonderful! It was nice for me to have people from home see and understand pieces of my life here. It's often lonely being here. I was reminded what sweet, deep friendship is and it made me long for that type of love and friendship here. I know I've only been in South Africa a little over 2 months, but it seems like an eternity when I'm alone in a 'mission.' Having the SMBC team was refreshing, exhausting and hopefully fruitful!
The Saturday after the team left, I spent most of the day in my new home (!!!) just chilling. I moved the Friday (just hours before) the team came. I hadn't been able to spend time in my new space. I'm such an introvert- needing time by myself to recharge – that having the team here was a bit overwhelming. So, I said NO to lots of things I could have done on Saturday during the day! I was proud that I had courage to say NO and simply spend time with God in the quiet of my home. I slept, read, did laundry, unpacked some bags, and enjoyed the silence. Then, Saturday night, I got the opportunity to go to my first RUGBY game: Stormers vs. Cheetas. I LOVED it! We had great seats. I learned the basic rules of this complicated sport, and enjoyed every minute of the crowd and roar of Newland Stadium!
Sunday Worship in Capricorn Church was just wonderful. Shagmie and Lauren and Kendra came to my house for Sunday lunch! It was sweet time with them, but we were all so tired that we went our separate ways for naps soon after we ate. Life in America is definitely busier than here, but not too much busier. I'm learning that there will always be time restraints to this world. There's so much to do, so many visions to put into practice, but never enough time to do it. Africa definitely has it's own 'time' but that doesn't mean that people aren't stressed and have no care in the world. Their schedules are still full.
Please pray for me as I have a LOT on my plate the next few weeks. Lots of deadlines, meetings, a Camp for grades 6-7 next week (Monday-Wednesday), Holiday Clubs- like VBS in each community (week after Easter), etc.
Pray also for my sweet friend Meagan (pronounced Meegan). She and I are trying to encourage each other through a lot of hard stuff; she has really opened up to me (which is a huge honor in this culture) and we're learning a lot from each other. Meagan and I are memorizing the book of Philippians together. We're on track so far, have tested each other and say our passage/section to each other at our LSE training time on Fridays. It's been neat to watch the Lord give us open hearts for each other. Pray that God will continue to build us up and use us for His glory!
And also pray for my friend Melissa. Her brother lives in Belgium; he's trying to move her from South Africa to Belgium so she can study and be with family. I took her to the travel center to look at plane tickets, Visa applications, etc. It's going to be a long, frustrating process. Pray that the Lord shows her patience and His timing through it all. As much as I don't want to see Melissa leave, I know that a better education and opportunity is ahead of her, and I want to help guide and support her any way I can. The Lord has big plans for her!
Thank you for your love and support. God is doing great things. I just need to be patient to watch His plans unfold.
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