Simply put, this trip was an eye opener. God did some amazing things to me and through me during my time in Africa. First off, a couple months prior to leaving God threw the mission team a curve ball by changing the organization we would be working with. Instead of working with Childrens Cup we ended up working with a ministry called Thrive Africa. We were all a little unsure at first, but once we got there we realized God is much smarted than us.

(A friend posted this picture. It’s so funny I had to leave it up.)

The facility we stayed at was amazing. Before the property was bought by Trive Africa it was a game reserve complete with Cabins, Conference Rooms, Rope Courses, and a restaurant. Not to mention over 400 animals including zebra, ostrich, wildebeest, and antelope that were just walking around you. At first I felt like I should be roughing it, but realized we’re doing God’s work and maybe he was just blessing us.

Welcome to South Africa

We arrived in Johannesburg, South Africa at about 3:00 PM. I was a little tired because I’d been up for about 50 hours straight. Don’t ask. The city of Johannesburg seemed like any America city with lots of shops, car dealerships, and tons of traffic. To my surprise everything is in English from billboards to stops signs. Some villages had their own languages, but most people spoke English.

It took about 3 hours for us to get to the town of Harrismith where we would be staying. Get this, once we got to the property it was freezing. Geography lesson. It snows in South Africa. Really, it snowed the second day we were there. South Africa is just coming out of their winter and is starting summer. Like I said before the property was amazing. It had 3 mountains directly on the property and the rest of the view you could see for hundreds of miles.

We all thought we would lose weight while we were there, but turns out we all probably gained weight. We ate buffet style for every meal. Sure, the food was a little different, but still very good. Most mornings consisted of bacon, eggs, toast and something called POP. Think of a soggy grits. I wasn’t my favorite at first, but if you add enough sugar it was perfect. Kudos to Patrick our chef. Yes, Patrick is from Africa. Most African people have an English name as well as African name.

Our first Saturday we did some team building exercises on ropes courses and after had some free time to walk around the property and try and take it all in. The landscape was amazing you could hike up a mountain turn around and gaze upon a vast amount of land that never ended.

Sunday started with the property church service at “Thrive Church”. Pastor Neil was pretty amazing. He used the bible story in which 4 men carried a paralytic to see Jesus, but when they got to Him the room was already filled and there was no way for anyone else to get in. They didn’t turn away or wait for people to leave instead they made their own way in. They broke a hole in the roof and lowered the man down on his mat. He used this to show us sometimes things get in between ourselves and Jesus, whether it’s a job, money, friends, etc. Whatever it is you must push it aside and do anything in your power to make sure nothing keeps you from getting closer to Jesus.

After church the Thrive interns began teaching us more in depth about the spiritual beliefs of the people we would be ministering to. Most believe in God as a “Supreme Being”, but view their deceased ancestors as the essential link between this world and the spiritual world. The ancestors are also thought to have powers, which they can use for good or to inflict harm. Because of this they are greatly feared and must be appeased by a variety of ritual offerings.

Also on Sunday we got to “ab sail” off the side of a mountain. Ab sailing is their world for repelling. The only bad part was hiking up the mountain to the starting point. Most people had never ever been repelling before and were a little scared at first, but ultimately had a blast.

Building Relationships

Each morning for the next 5 days (Monday - Friday) we’d be up at 7 AM for prayer, breakfast at 8, and into the cars by 9:30. Our team would meet at a local church in the town of Qwa-Qwa, from there we would break into 3 teams of 4 people (plus an interpreter) and head out into the community. Each team would have a section of area to work where we would walk down the street and start knocking on people doors. Culture lesson. The back door is the door you want to go in. I made this mistake on the first house and my interpreter quickly explained to me that all friends are brought in through the back door.

Our first visit was to an old man named Matthew. I’m not going to lie the first 30 minutes was pretty awkward for everyone in the room. We didn’t really know what to say and he’s never met American’s before so it was often that there would be about 10 seconds of silence between each question. After we started to learn more about Matthew it made it much easier to talk with him. During the hours we spent with him we discovered he loves the Lord and has a good understanding of the bible. His wife passed away about 3 yeas ago and he has 2 sons, one of which still lives with him. We cooked him soup and he showed us some pictures he had of his family around the house. We talked more about his sons and he explained to us the son that lives with him practices ancestral worship. Before we left we sat in his dining room and prayed with him for his son.

What did I do in South Africa?

Our primary goal was to show the people of the small town of Qwa-Qwa (pronounced with clicking) that God loves them so much he sent his son to die for them so they may live life abundantly. Imagine telling this to people where the unemployment rate is about 85% and 1 in 10 people are infected with AIDS.

First, thanks for all the prayer to be bold. Meeting strangers and sharing the Gospel is totally new and scary for me, but God did something to me and I was preaching it. The kindness these people showed us was amazing. We would knock on their doors introduce ourselves (with the help of interpreters) and they would simply invite us in. Most times we would spend the entire day with one family helping them with their laundry or planting them a new garden. We were not going to run in tell them about Jesus and walk out. That’s not was Jesus did so that’s not what we did. Jesus would not only teach people, he would also fulfull their needs by healing people and feeding people. They were also amazed Americans wanted to come into their house and talk with them and learn about them. We would take turns asking each other questions about the cultures and to my surprise they had a lot of questions about America. The only things they know about America they learned from watching Opera and American soap operas.

After dispelling the myths that none of us live our lives like the “Bold and the Beautiful” we would begin to find that almost no one has any hope of anything. Why would they? Most have no money. Live in a 4 bedroom house with usually 3 or 4 people that is about 20 feet x 20 feet. There are no jobs to get and no one can afford to move anywhere else to find a job. No one thinks about tomorrow it is just about getting by today. There is simply no hope.

That is when would start sharing the gospel with these people telling them about how much God loves each of them so much and he promises us that “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD , “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the LORD , “and will bring you back from captivity. (Jeremiah 29: 11-14).

Some received the gospel with open arms, others had many questions and if people didn’t want to hear anymore we would simply help them with anything else we could do for them around the house. Knowing we planted a seed and God would grow that seed.

We also went to a school for children with disabilities. In Africa if a child is born with any physical or mental disability he or she is usually shunned by the community. Most times parents even keep the kids inside all day because it’s a shame on family as well. We had a blast with these kids. I’ll be sure to right about them later.

Probably the hardest was when we visisted a hospital where we met patients with AIDS and shared the gospel with them and laid hands on them to heal them.

(Remember. More stories and many pictures will follow over the next couple of days.)

Extra battery for my digital camera purchaced off Ebay - $2

Polio Vaccination - $45

Passport - $65

DVD player with enough batteries to last the 18 plane ride – Priceless

Well, its 4 AM and time to meet everyone and head down to the airport. We’ll be making a quick stop in Atlanta before we get on an AirBus and make for Africa. After a stop for some gas somewhere in West Africa we’ll then head south to surprisingly South Africa. Then, Road Trip. A 4-hour, 150 mile road trip. We’ll be going by bus and since it’s going to take us 4 hours to go 150 miles I’m guessing it’s going to be bumpy.

Again, thank you all for your support. I know God is going to do some amazing things, so please keep me in your prayers. I look forward to being able to share my experiences with you all when I return.