Good Morning Sunshine

We awoke this morning to beautiful sunshine, no wind, and much warmer temperatures. We were thrilled!! Everyone was much more relaxed , knowing more of what to expect from our day. The best part of the morning , HOT showers!! WoooHoooooo!!!! This was the first day some of the team members had the joy of having hot water for their showers. Finally, the hot water issue seemed to be resolved.

I have no reports yet from the other teams, so I'll share about our time today at Living Grace, located at Muizenberg. We entered the shelter this morning just as Peter was preparing to begin the morning devotion for the homeless that had stopped by the shelter. After a brief opening devotional story, the men and women were able to pick out their favorite worship songs and hymns to sing. I realized that every song we sang dealt with second chances, over coming difficult times, or just being loved for who you are.

The first song we sang was "Amazing Grace" . Peter stopped us at the second verse and commented he always read this first, due to the importance of the message of the words.
"Through many dangers toils and snares , I have already come.
Twas grace that brought me safe thus far and grace will lead me home".
As we sang the final verse, I thought about how the previous verse so aptly fit the lives of the homeless we were sitting with. I thought about the dangers and fears they face each day, especially at night when they are sleeping on the streets. We have been told , that sadly, they are safer on the street than in some of the night shelters. A lady lead in a devotional about God is all about relationship and that our relationship with Him is what makes the difference in our lives each day. The main thought from the opening and closing statements was that if today was not a GREAT Tuesday, it was because we chose for it not to be great.

Two other things stood out to me as well this afternoon. As we were working on the renovations of the kitchen, the staff would stop by to look in on our progress. They would get all giddy and laugh as they looked and would comment on how great things looked. Ironically these comments were made as we were just beginning to put cabinets and pantries together. We told them we had not done anything yet, and they would laugh and say "Oh but it will be friendly when you are finished" (You must say that with a South African accent, which sounds very much like a British accent). That makes you remember just why you are working on these projects and just how much people appreciate acts of love and kindness.

The other thing that really struck me was the cold hard facts of what the homeless face. Many of these men and women stop by looking for day work. Most are there for food and shelter for the days. They are allowed to leave their belongings in a locker. I looked at a few of these and noticed how little was there. All the possessions of these individuals were in a tiny locker and yet we constantly complain about not having enough closet or storage space. Then as we were wrapping up work for the day, a gentleman came in looking for food. There was no more soup left, although he spotted a pot of something close to the stove. I looked a little closer at the scene and overheard the lady holding the pot say that was food for the dog. It was scraps and everything left over from the day. The guy indicated he didn't care and would eat it anyway. She said no she could not, that it might harm him. She did however find him some bread, so he would have something to eat.

How many times do we complain about our food? We talk about the bad taste or the fact it is not prepared just right. Here was a man willing to eat what was basically dog food, he only wanted food....no matter what it was , tasted , or smelled like.

The humbling fact is that many of us are just one paycheck, or lenghty sickness away from being in the same state as this guy. Did anyone else think of the scripture ".....for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink......" This was a true example of when Jesus said, "whatever you do for the least of these, you do for me".

Who Needs Electricity, Anyway?!?!

It's been a rainy day in Cape Town. We woke up to a fierce wind and immediately wondered what our day was going to hold because of the weather changes we weren't expecting. It was also the first day of Vacation Bible School... I am leading the music in Red Hill, a small township that has about 800 families and 3 camps: upper, middle and lower. We gather the kids by walking in their unsafe communities about a half hour before VBS would start and tell them to bring their friends. In our township we were expecting about 80 by the end of the week, so we assumed, rain and all, that today we'd only have about 45. We had 70 kids at VBS Red Hill today! PRAISE THE LORD!!! However, we learned that when we got to the facility, which is basically at tin box, we had NO electricity! How were we going to hold VBS in a tin box with no electricity while it's pouring down rain and we are wondering if the building will blow away due to the wind? Guess what?!? We did and it was WONDERFUL!!!

The beauty of these people is that they don't expect much. Although it's in my nature to give them much and specifically the BEST I can offer, because I've learned to never bring anything but the best before the Lord. We played games, sang "Outrigger Island" and "God is Real" acapella, taught God's biblical truth, memorized bible verses and simply PRAISED the Almighty God!!! There is a joy and a hope in these children's eyes that amazes me. One child pointed to a seashell and asked, "what is this?" We told them it was a seashell and then they continued to ask, "where did you get it from?" "The ocean," we said. The child asked, "where is that?" Red Hill is located about 2 miles off the coast of the Atlantic ocean and this child has NEVER even seen it. These children don't have much of anything but they have faith in the knowledge that God is real and that He loves them. So I ask you... Isn't that enough? It is for Red Hill.

The rain continued to pour over Cape Town the majority of the day, but along with the rain came blessings. Blessings of hope, love, faith and strength. A hope, I fear I could never have the way these children have it. A love that is given to all of us from the Father, who sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for our sins. A faith in the knowledge of the Almighty God and a strength, that I'm still learning to accept so that I face these children tomorrow and be a light to them, in their lives and communities.

If the Lord wills, tomorrow is a new day in Cape Town. This trip has been a humbling experience so far and I am incredibly eager to see what the Lord will continue to do in Red Hill and Cape Town. Lives are going to continue to be changed and mine is one of them...

Dora Pop

Dora Pop

The Work Begins

Today we were able to actually get down to work. The various teams left the team house bright and early around 7:30am . Sunday's beautiful weather was replaced by a cold , windy, rainy day. We were not going to let the weather get in our way.

The Four VBS teams reported a total of just over 400 kids attending despite the weather. Many kids will not participate when it rains due to the fact they only have one set of clothes and don't want to get those clothes wet. It seems each group had a great start. There will be more stories from various locations later on.

The construction team broke up into two separate teams , both might have been better classified DE-Construction teams. Shane was a one man wrecking crew with his local helper doing some repairs. The other team gutted a kitchen at the homeless shelter in Muizenburg and worked on rewiring power supplies for computers in the offices there.

Landscaping was also working in Muizenburg, their big project is preparing to pour a 20x20 concrete patio. I think Melanie, Wayne, and Tom were actually making mud pies instead of preparing the ground ;-)

The IT team, wasa busy at several sites and finished the day with training of office staff on FTP .
Hopefully we'll have some more detailed stories after we have our team briefing tonight.

Praise in any language

Today the team worshiped at King of Kings Church and the Masi church. The message at King of Kings was delivered by John Thomas. This was a message on baptism, which is part of the discipleship series that they are going through. Some interesting points and good reminders of some basics. The service at the Masi church was more music oriented . The choir was away this week, so members of the congregation would lead in a song and some would offer testimony as well.
We had a very spirit filled service and we were all very enriched from the experience.

After the service the team members in our KomBi (van) were discussing the mornings' service.
All of us were impressed that even though we understood very little of the languauge spoken or sung we were able to worship just the same. We were reminded that when the spirit leads we can all take part.

I was thinking during the service that we have no idea of what is being said, yet we are getting just as much from the service. Also, it hit me that God understands everything we were saying at the same time understanding what we were also hearing in another language.

We had lunch at the home of Avril and John Thomas. We were whale watching just prior to going inside for our meal. A very fascinating location. John and Avril updated us on some of the operations and projects of Living Hope and the other ministries.

After some shopping and dinner we have returned back to the team house. We will be meeting and then resting for tomorrow's work to begin.

Day Two

Saturday went by really fast, we were very busy all day. The day was mostly spent with each sub team checking out their job sites and meeting with various people that will be helping in each area.
After lunch we spent the day playing tourist, visiting Table Mountain and WaterFront.
We discussed tonight how we have seen God move today.
The most obvious was in the beauty of Table Mountain. The view is breathtaking. After viewing the mountains and ocean from an elevation of 1078 meters you will have no doubt there has to be an intelligent designer. God spent a little extra time in creating the area around Cape Town.

Another example was with some of the people we kept seeing everywhere we went today. After a few conversations we learned they were part of another missions group, this one from Miami. They are also here to work mainly with children. Talking with two of the guys we learned they are very dedicated and committed to reaching these kids.

A running theme during this trip will be "How did you see God work today?"
Tomorrow will be a day of worship , visiting with John Thomas, and a little recreation time.
I'm sure we will be filling this blog this week with many examples of how God is working in South Africa and through team members.

The Eagle Has Landed

The team arrived in Cape Town only a few minutes behind schedule. We just finished a team meeting and are going to eat dinner, unpack supplies and probably get some rest! We have a busy schedule beginning tomorrow morning. We'll get some team updates as soon as things get rolling :-)

Last Minute Pep Talk

John Thomas met with our team Sunday evening as we finished packing our supplies. He gave us an update on the political changes now happening in South Africa . He also warned us that Global Warming has forgotten Cape Town as they have been experiencing the coldest winter he remembers. This week begins the season of Spring in South Africa, so as we are enjoying highs in the 80's they are enduring highs in the 50's and 60's.

Later that same evening Mr Thomas spoke during a dinner designed to address the work of Fish Hoek Baptist Church and Living Hope. He also mentioned that on his last trip to The White House he informed President George Bush of the wonderful support he has from the partnership with Brentwood Baptist Church.

Anyone that has ever listened to John Thomas speak or have heard the story behind the beginnings of Living Hope can only be amazed. This one man, along with a tiny church saw a vision and dared to believe God was capable of anything. Almost ten years later John Thomas and Living Hope have become world leaders in the global fight against HIV-AIDS.

T - Minus 2 Days

As I type this entry it is only 40 hours until our departure for Cape Town South Africa. We spent Sunday evening packing supplies for the VBS portion of the trip. Along with VBS , sub-teams will also be involved in leading a retreat for wellness center workers, various construction projects at the 5 locations of Living Hope/Way/Grace properties, an IT team, and also landscaping.

We will provide updates each day of the trip, and hope to summarize each day how various teams have seen God at work. We'll try to post an entry upon our safe arrival (depending on internet connection) and then the first reports will begin Friday or Saturday Nashville time.

The team asks for your prayers as we continue to prepare and pack for departure, our safe flight to New York and Cape Town, good health, and that we will be used in the ways that God intends and that He will lead each step of our journey.

Thank you for your prayers, support, and encouragement. Please feel free to leave comments and they will be passed along to the team.