I love Africa

I’ve been here for a few days and my experience so far has been absolutely amazing! Tonight was the first night for our team to eat with two of the families at Bethesda. Oh my goodness, it brought my heart such joy. When we were all waiting for the food the kids sang songs, danced, and quoted scripture, all with such enthusiasm and joy. They all call me Auntie Kat. It’s adorable. Oh and this little girl Bussie (I have no idea how to spell her name) keeps asking me to roll my R’s and I can’t. She gets the biggest kick out of it. I have loved bonding with the kids and there is so much more to come.
For the past few days, we have been working here at Bethesda. We (the woman) have cleaned two of the school classrooms. I didn’t realize how much work went into cleaning floors over here in Africa. At home I would normally use a mop and a buffing machine to clean and polish the floors. Instead, we got buckets of water, a washcloth, and steel wool to clean the floors, and then we got on our hands and knees again to polish. Working here isn’t necessarily about efficiency. Instead, it is about a job well done. That we achieved with joyful spirits. It would have taken Dora, the cleaning woman over 2 weeks to complete what we did in a couple of days. I was so glad we could help her.
Another afternoon, we picked up trash outside the Bethesda property. There are places along the side of the road that look like a dump. Trash is everywhere. As we were picking up the trash, a man who lived across the street came over to help. That was neat to experience. Michelle, the lady in charge said normally people do this so they can ask for something in return, but he didn’t. Instead, he wanted to let us know when we would be out again so he could come and help.
The poverty and the HIV/AIDs epidemic here is high. Bethesda is surrounded by townships, which are poverty stricken areas. Blacks were forced to live in these townships during the apartheid. Right across the street is a township. In this township are shacks made out of tin, the size of my bedroom and it’s not just one person living in that house, it’s a family. In one of these townships we visited, a woman had a beauty shop inside an abandoned boxcar. As the gate opened for us to get in I saw a little boy walking toward the drinking faucet outside. He seemed really thin to me and he was walking with only one shoe. It made me wonder if that was his first sip of water for the day. I believe next week we are going to another organization in the area. This organization provides hospice care for people of all ages. Children – adults – grandparents. That will be a hard day. I’m so glad this is not a glamorous vacation. Instead, I am able to see how life is for the poor.

Trusting God even when it is Hard

Hello! I have to say, I am new to this whole blogging thing. It has never been a burning desire of mine, but I thought it would be a great and easy way to share my experience to Africa. (YEAH!) I have also never excelled in writing so this blog will not be grammatically correct and the flow will not be the greatest. Those are my two disclaimers. I thought that would be a good place to start. :)

Anyway, I am leaving for Africa next Sunday. In 7 days I will be flying out of the Boise Airport at 11:00 A.M. It still seems so surreal to me. I never thought I would go to Africa, especially as a short term missionary. In high school I fought God for the longest time about the call I felt to be a missionary. (I remember telling my friends I was going to live in a Tiki hut) I ignored that calling, yet here I am 7 or so years later flying to Africa as a missionary for three months. It makes me smile to think how God worked this out. He will use me in any way He desires. His plans for my life will always be better than mine, no matter how scary, exciting, or unpleasant they look.

Africa is going to be a life changing experience. As of now, I can't imagine what this experience will fully entail. Some things I do know however, is tears will be shed and laughter will echo the rooms, relationships will be build, and experiences will be shared. I'm praying for brokenness (even though it is never delightful to go through) and a different view on life and the world, and a changed heart.

Right now it has been hard for me to fully trust God. I'm leaving in one week. 7 days. 7 days! The financial aspect is not looking as bright as I hoped. There is still a lot of money that I have to raise. I know this is what God has for my life right now and I know that he is my Provider, but it is not easy. It is so easy to trust God when everything is provided for. But man it can be stressful and scary when things are not put into place in the way I like. There are times when I have such little faith. Like now. I have to remind myself that God sees the bigger picture. He loves me and cares for me. That is what matters.

Well, folks, that is about all I've got. I actually wrote a lot more than I expected to. Thanks for sharing this journey with me. Oh, and feel free to pray for me as I go on this journey. Thanks!

Peace be with you all.