Eco-Gardening

Well, today I am very excited about traveling to Kwandebele to learn about eco-gardening. Eco-gardening is an economical way of gardening that allows you to grow large amount of foods in small circular spaces. Our garden will consist of potatoes, carrots, beans, peanuts, onions, lettuce and beetroots. I will be trained for 3 days on the basics of how to create and sustain an eco-garden. The objective of this trip is for me to learn and then go back to the township of Katlehong to teach and help the residents learn how to create and maintain their own gardens. We want to teach the residents of Katlehong how to be self-sufficient. I imagine there must be a great fulfillment in eating vegetables that you have planted in your own garden.
The thought of using the God given resource of the earth to grow and provide food for those who otherwise would not able to afford it, is motivating. This is the first time that I will learn how to grow crops. So, please pray that I will retain all the information in such a way that I will be able to teach it to others with clarity.

Grace alone!

The Lord is our shield!

Sometime after 4 this morning I was awakened by our alarm. Half asleep I looked out the window to see what was going on. I saw a man in the yard walking with a flashlight. I found out later that this man was the area security guard. Anyways, at some time in the a.m. two tootsies (thieves) broke into our yard. Our yard has a gate and is quite secured but as I am learning, a motivated crook will find a way to get what he wants. The house mother said there were two men who rang the gate bell repeatedly. After a few seconds of ringing the bell they both jumped over the gate and sat down with the objective of stealing the gates motor. The motor controls the electricity and the alarm among other things. Once the wires were cut a sensory was sent to the alarm company who then phoned (called) the house to see if we were OK. The mama of the house told the security men what happened and they were immediately to our aid. Thank God! Whether or not the motives of the two tootsies were to attempt breaking into the house is uncertain. But they did take the motor which is worth about 2000 Rand, about $285, not to mention they gave us a bit of a scare.

Each night I make it my goal to pray with the children. We often pray for the Lord to keep us safe each night. Having this occurrence really helps me to see how God is faithful in answering our prayers. There are many Scriptures that talks about sleep.

“I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety” (Psalms 4:8).

“The day is yours, and yours also the night; you established the sun and moon” (Psalms 74:16)

“On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night. Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me” (Psalms 63: 6-8)

When the terror of the night comes, it is Scriptures like these that allow me to rest in the Word of God. He is my shield, nothing can happen to me or the children that He does not allow. “He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart” (Psalms 91:4)
In addition to praying for our safety here, my prayer is that I will not cling to anything or anyone in this world so much so that heaven isn’t my hearts longing. If I truly desire heaven I will not live in fear of death. Because when I die I will behold Christ face to face. There is therefore no tragedy in death, only victory!

First two weeks

Arrival

I have now been here for two weeks. For some reason it seems as if I have been here longer. The first week I was here was very hard in terms of rest. My body was not adjusting well to the 8 hour time difference. So, I was tired during the day and up at night. Thankfully, to date, my body seems to be adjusting to the time difference. Upon my arrival here I was surprise to see how developed Johannesburg is. I guess I thought I would live in small huts, walk everywhere, fetch my own water and pretty much live in an agrarian society. I blame the media for this misconception. L That of course was not the case. South Africa is one of the most, if not the most developed countries in Africa. They have everything that America has to offer. I haven’t decided whether that is a good thing or a bad thing. But at any rate this is where the Lord has me and I am thankful. The weather here is beautiful, the scenery is amazing and I have been told that there is much more for me to see. I look forward to the creation telling of the glory of God.

The Children

Lambano currently have 29 children from the ages of 18months to 8 years old. They are all a delight. The first couple of days I was here I prayed incessantly that I would remember their unique but difficult to pronounce names. It was hard but after weeks I can say I know all their names. Lambano has 4 different houses that are homes to all 29 children. There is about 22 full time, South African women staff here, so they are always being taken care of. I share the same yard with 7 of the 29 children. I love this! Whenever I leave I am asked in beautiful S. African accent, “Keisha, where are you going?” and when I come back home seven children run up to me and hug me and ask me more questions. This is an awesome feeling. The children here are so happy. They are always smiling and when we pray at night their prayers are filled with Thanksgiving to our God. What a humbling thing to hear how amazingly thankful these children are to God. I came here to have an impact on them but within two weeks of being here they have had an impact on my life that I pray I never forget.
Within the 1st couple of days I was here, I was so consumed with getting to know the children that I forgot they were sick. It wasn’t until the fourth day I was here that it hit me that these children are sick and their estimated life span is brief. How could I have forgotten that these precious children were sick? I repeatedly ask the Lord, how could I have forgotten? I thought, well maybe the Lord didn’t want me to see these children as being sick but instead as His image bearers. They are all so precious in His sight and I am so thankful that I didn’t treat these children with pity or like victims. I have treated them like I would any other child, healthy and well with a promising life. After all, it is biblically accurate to say that the Lord holds each of their hearts in the palm of His hands and He is the one who will have the final say on their life span. In this I rejoice, God is so much bigger than diseases and suffering. I was reading through Matthews’ gospel and I came across the woman with the bad blood who touched the hem of Jesus’ garment and was healed. God is the Great Physician and if He wills to heal them He most certainly will. But, as for today, we are faithful to love, teach and encourage these children to trust and obey God, to laugh and play and to really live each day as if it truly was their last.

The Township of Katlehong

Katlehong is one of the many townships in Africa. The townships are very impoverished and in desperate need of revitalization. This past week Martha who is employed full time with Lambano has become a dear friend. Last week Martha and I along with a resident of Katlehong traveled into the township with the objective of interviewing the residents to see if they were in need of Lambano’s services. Our service to Katlehong includes providing food parcels for the residents. As you may imagine there are more residents in this township than Lambano can feed. So, we only help homes where the children have been diagnose with HIV/AIDS. The AIDS epidemic has destroyed many families here. We try to help the go go’s (grandmother) who have assumed the role of raising their grand children because of the death of their parent(s). However, this week we interviewed a young girl who was only 22 years old. She lost her mother and her older sister to AIDS. Her sister left 2 children, age 7 and 3. This young 22 year old girl has dropped out of school and is now raising her niece and nephew! Wow! I have so much respect for this young girl, she is so young and not only is she dealing with the grief of losing her loved ones but she is also left with the responsibility of caring for two children who are terminally ill. I cannot disclose her name but please join me in praying for this young lady who has made such a huge sacrifice.
Other services that Lambano provides to Katlehong is to take in children who are dying from this epidemic and give them medicine until they are fit to go back home. These services were provided to the little girl Zincle who was in my brochure. If a HIV child is given medication, their life span is significantly longer than those who are not on medicine. So, being able to provide medicine for these children determines the difference between life and death, literally!

The Crime

Hmmm! So far I haven’t experienced any crime. Thank God! It is dangerous here but thankfully the Lord has kept me safe. I do however, have to be careful when I walk down the streets and am out in public places. But, I try not to live my life in fear of those who are able to kill the body but unable to destroy the soul. I do think criminals are looking for the vulnerable and the fearful. So, I try to act ‘normal’ as if I belong here and am use to the dangers of this place. And again, the Lord has promised that not a hair will fall from my head a part from His will. So, I take great comfort in these TRUTHS! Please do continue to pray for our safety here.

"What is God doing in Missions?"

In preparation to serve in South Africa I took a class titled, Perspectives on World Missions.” We were encouraged to read several different articles to help prepare our minds and our hearts for the work of the ministry. One of the articles that has always been on my heart was titled, “What is God doing in missions?” The author did an amazing job in helping us, the reader gain an understanding of the complete goal of God in and throughout missions. He stated that as a result of the fall of Lucifer there has been a counterfeit kingdom established by Satan himself. The goal of Satan in creating this counterfeit kingdom is to win as many followers as possible to himself. Thus, the fall of Adam occurred. Adam of course was our federalist. “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). We were all born with a sinful nature. All of creation has a heart that is desperately wicked. (Jeremiah 17: 9; Romans 3:12-13) We by nature do not pursue God. In fact, our nature is in constant opposition to the things of God. So again, I beg the question of, “what is God doing in missions?” God who is the Creator and Sustainer of life has been robbed of His glory by His creation, namely the angels and mankind. Therefore, God’s goal in missions is to reclaim His kingdom and to redeem the hearts of man. What a privilege to know that we, as vessels of the Most High God have the honor of being a part of His purpose. Knowing this, it is my joy to labor for the Lord here is South Africa. Knowing that I am a speck in His whole scheme to redeem the hearts of man from every tribe, tongue and nation to Himself allows me the desire to press on, with an eager expectation to be in His kingdom, before His throne worshipping the Lord with many other believers, saying “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power for you created all things and by your will they existed and were created” (Revelation 4: 11)
So, with this perspective in mind, please journey with me as I serve the Lord here is Johannesburg, South Africa.