Musings from Graceland

GIVE HER THE KNOWLEDGE

This is Lwazi. This little two year old girl's name means "knowledge".

Sadly, in Swaziland, the odds are overwhleming that a child in her situation, living with a grandmother and five other children, will grow up lacking a great deal of very important knowledge. Education is cheap by American standards but outrageously expensive for folks who are struggling to just survive. Without outside help, it is very unlikely that Lwazi will be able to go to school and gain an education that will help her be gainfully employed and break out the vicious cycle of extreme poverty wracking her nation. And most girls trapped in extreme poverty in Swaziland will also grow up lacking another kind of knowledge...the knowledge that they are precious to God and are worth much value.

All too many impoverished girls in Swaziland grow up without two parents to love and protect them and instill in them a sense of self-worth. Too many little girls are left alone and victims of human predators. Too many little girls don't know that they have the right to their virginity. Too many little girls growing up without the knowledge that they are beautiful and that God has plans for them other than a life of hopeless struggling and even abuse. Girls who aren't secure in the knowledge that they are unconditionally loved and will be cared for are daily selling their bodies --- and their futures --- for a loaf of bread, a bottle of soda, or bus fare to school.

Children's HopeChest and Adventures in Missions are partnering together in Swaziland to fight this lack of knowledge. Through their carepoint ministry, they are showing girls that they have are beautiful daughters of the True King. They are teaching them Biblical principles that will help them make wise choices that lead to life, not death. They are showing them the love of God that will enable them to view themselves as worth more than just something that is cheaply used by some human predator to satisfy their sick desires. They are instructing them in the path of Jesus that leads to eternal life despite the death and destruction that surrounds around them.



And they are working to help them go to school, something that is not a given in Swaziland. At Bheveni Carepoint, Lwazi gets a free preschool education that will teach her basic math, phonics, and English along with other essential skills for successfully transitioning to primary school. An education fund is also being set up to help provide scholarships for some of the children to cover their school fees. This scholarship program is called BEST...Bheveni Educational Scholarship Trust.

But AIM, CHC, and the Swazi Christians they partner with cannot do this on their own. They need thousands of partners here in America who will pray, give financially, and get involved personally in the lives of carepoint children through sponsorship. For just $34 a month, an individual, family, or group in America can sponsor a child like Lwazi and help ensure that they will receive the knowledge that leads to life. The knowledge that they are loved and do have a hope for the future.

Will you be the one that brings that knowledge to Lwazi or others like her?

Contact Danielle Brower at daniellebrower@gmail.com or http://moms4change.net/ if you are interested.

And feel free to ask me questions. If you haven't guessed yet, I love telling people about Swaziland and its beautiful children.