IF WE SURVIVE PACKING FOR OUR TRIP...
...we can survive anything!
WOW! I've packed our big family for a lot of trips in the past, after all, none of our relatives live nearby so any family get-together almost always requires some packing and preparing. Heck, one time we even took six of the kids all the way out west as far as Nevada via lots of stops along the way.
But none of that compares to preparing for a two week stay in Africa plus the added travel days on both ends. I'm thinking that a whole lot of opportunities for repentance and forgiveness and growth is going to be happening...and that's before we even pull out of the driveway on Thursday!
So y'all keep on praying for us. I've got almost all the people packed so tomorrow I hit full-force the beautiful piles of donations that are going to bless so many in Swaziland. Pray that we use good organization skills, that we show patience and grace to each other, that good attitudes and work ethics prevail, and that we remember who we are doing all of this for and that our God is worth it. Obeying Him, serving Him, taking His message of love and hope to His precious ones in Swaziland is absolutely worth it all.
And introducing my kids to Swaziland and watching them discover the life that God has planned for us there is going to just be amazing icing on the proverbial cake.
For now, I'll share another day from last year's trip when I had the blessing of introducing Jim to Swaziland and my Swazi friends:
Friday, October 3, 2010
Today was spent meeting up with old friends in Mbabane.
The first friend was Josiah Matsebula. Josiah was one of the youth in the SWAT group I helped lead in the 1980's at Mbabane Int'l Baptist Church. Josiah is married to Goodness. They have two boys. She is a teacher's assistant at a primary school near Checkers and he is a Baptist pastor who also does carpentry and rabbit raising. We met him at the main Mbabane post office and then road with us to the Mbabane Clinic.
The Mbabane Clinic is a very modern, clean hospital and there we visited James Dlamini. James was the gardener for Patsy and Roy Davidson way back when while Josiah worked for Anda Littleford. James is now an accountant at the TIMES OF SWAZILAND but is presently on medical leave. He has extremely high blood pressure and has diabetes. He has been hospitalized and went blind a month and a half ago due to the health issues. James looked very much the same, just a bit older with whiskers. His mother was with him at the hospital. He was very surprised to have me visit and we spent some time catching up on news. We also sang "It Is Well With My Soul" with him and prayed over him. James is very concerned about what whill happen to him if he dies.
After we left teh Clinic, we stopped by the school where Josiah's wife works. We were unable to see her because she was in a meeting. But Josiah showed us some carpentry work he had done and then we left.
The next stop was The Mall. There we met briefly James' wife. She is a cashier at Pick-n-Pay.
We then went into the AFRICAN FANTASY shop. This is where they sell the darling African and Swazi themed cartoon items such as "Two Wild African Cats". I bought a "Children of Africa" poster and a Swaziland homestead t-shirt among other things. Jim bought a hat to keep the hot, African sun off of his head.
I have a lot more to type about this day but to be honest, my fingers and arms are really hurting and I need to stop. Tomorrow is going to be here all too soon and with it a lot of effort --- mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally.
Pray!
...we can survive anything!
WOW! I've packed our big family for a lot of trips in the past, after all, none of our relatives live nearby so any family get-together almost always requires some packing and preparing. Heck, one time we even took six of the kids all the way out west as far as Nevada via lots of stops along the way.
But none of that compares to preparing for a two week stay in Africa plus the added travel days on both ends. I'm thinking that a whole lot of opportunities for repentance and forgiveness and growth is going to be happening...and that's before we even pull out of the driveway on Thursday!
So y'all keep on praying for us. I've got almost all the people packed so tomorrow I hit full-force the beautiful piles of donations that are going to bless so many in Swaziland. Pray that we use good organization skills, that we show patience and grace to each other, that good attitudes and work ethics prevail, and that we remember who we are doing all of this for and that our God is worth it. Obeying Him, serving Him, taking His message of love and hope to His precious ones in Swaziland is absolutely worth it all.
And introducing my kids to Swaziland and watching them discover the life that God has planned for us there is going to just be amazing icing on the proverbial cake.
For now, I'll share another day from last year's trip when I had the blessing of introducing Jim to Swaziland and my Swazi friends:
Friday, October 3, 2010
Today was spent meeting up with old friends in Mbabane.
The first friend was Josiah Matsebula. Josiah was one of the youth in the SWAT group I helped lead in the 1980's at Mbabane Int'l Baptist Church. Josiah is married to Goodness. They have two boys. She is a teacher's assistant at a primary school near Checkers and he is a Baptist pastor who also does carpentry and rabbit raising. We met him at the main Mbabane post office and then road with us to the Mbabane Clinic.
The Mbabane Clinic is a very modern, clean hospital and there we visited James Dlamini. James was the gardener for Patsy and Roy Davidson way back when while Josiah worked for Anda Littleford. James is now an accountant at the TIMES OF SWAZILAND but is presently on medical leave. He has extremely high blood pressure and has diabetes. He has been hospitalized and went blind a month and a half ago due to the health issues. James looked very much the same, just a bit older with whiskers. His mother was with him at the hospital. He was very surprised to have me visit and we spent some time catching up on news. We also sang "It Is Well With My Soul" with him and prayed over him. James is very concerned about what whill happen to him if he dies.
After we left teh Clinic, we stopped by the school where Josiah's wife works. We were unable to see her because she was in a meeting. But Josiah showed us some carpentry work he had done and then we left.
The next stop was The Mall. There we met briefly James' wife. She is a cashier at Pick-n-Pay.
We then went into the AFRICAN FANTASY shop. This is where they sell the darling African and Swazi themed cartoon items such as "Two Wild African Cats". I bought a "Children of Africa" poster and a Swaziland homestead t-shirt among other things. Jim bought a hat to keep the hot, African sun off of his head.
I have a lot more to type about this day but to be honest, my fingers and arms are really hurting and I need to stop. Tomorrow is going to be here all too soon and with it a lot of effort --- mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally.
Pray!
2 comments:
Love your sweet attitude. I imagine that you are right that there will be a lot of opportunities before you even get off the ground. Praying for God's peace for all of you. So very excited for your family!
Love
Leslie
Thank you, Leslie!
Love you too,
Elysa
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