A little about what is happening...

We are still recovering from our trip, sort of. Getting back to our jobs has been difficult. In a way, we are in let-down mode, but it's not what you think.


Here's a little background. We have done missions before. I have been involved in Team missions since Jr. High. The model was of course, short-term group trips mostly in Mexico, to Native American reservations, or to neighboring towns for some kind of project. During the Summer a couple of the trips sometimes lasted for several weeks. God used us in many ways, and He used those trips to impact our lives as well. We usually came back pumped and excited and ready to change the world - particularly our own church. Soon, our zeal would fade and we'd be back to normal.


This time, I believe things are different. In a way, I feel changed like never before. We didn't do anything earth-shattering - mainly we just observed. I am now able to say that I got to preach in Africa. (Big woop!) Beth spent some quality time teaching and hanging out with some beautiful women of God and some really awesome teen girls. We saw some wild and exotic sites, ate wonderful food and built deep friendships with some very awesome godly people.

What's different is that we now want to DO SOMETHING about some of the things we experienced while we were there. Our prayers, our conversations and even our dreams have been affected by the people and thier situation. God is stirring something inside of us. It is both scary and exciting.

For one thing, for us some of the glamour and mystery has been removed about overseas missions. We now have a better understanding about some of the challenges and frustrations they face. There are also some things that we are going to change about our own lives because of what we learned from them. (More on that some other time).

I'm sorry this is still so vague. We are still processing it all. But suffice it to say, I believe things have changed, for the better. Keep us in your prayers!

It is snowing, indeed!

Happy Easter everyone. He is risen! It is also SNOWING!

This year we are celebrating Easter early due to the phases of the moon. Passover falls next month, which is actually a lot closer to when Jesus was actually crucified and rose from the dead. I am not one of those who has a problem with celebrating Easter whenever it falls - I just have a problem with the Easter Bunny.

BTW, this year I plan on making "Peeps" (chicken) Chili instead of Easter Bunny Stew. I couln't justify paying $8.99 a pound for Rabbit. In years past, I have had friends give me wild rabbit, or I have bought it MUCH cheaper. Alas, another tradition gone by the wayside....

I don't think many kids are going outside to look for eggs today - at least no in Jacksonville.

What are we doing?

O.K. - so this one's got me a bit flustered. I have to ask, what is the church - Us, We, collectively - The Church - what are we up to with this kind of stuff? ( I saw this on Brant Hansen's blog - he got it from someone else).


This just plays (no pun here) right into the whole commercialization of Easter that I continually rant and rave about. Boxing with Jesus? Maybe I could go for a Jesus character on Tony Hawk's pro-skater - that would be cool, but, c'mon people!!!

Isn't she beautiful?

This lovely young lady is just twelve years old. She lives with her mother, aunt and baby cousin in a one room apartment in the Claremont township. She should be out playing with her friends. She should be running, jumping rope, playing with dolls....she should be in school.

She is not. She cannot go. She cannot do very much. She lays on the bed. She cannot see. She is blind from Meningitis. She is also HIV positive. She has open sores all over her back.

Life should be good for her, she has food to eat, and she is receiving her prescribed medication, but it does not help much. She cannot keep her food and medicine down,...she throws up when they try to feed her.

She has AIDS. She did not contract it from her mother at birth. She was raped when she was younger - much younger. But she is only twelve now. Just twelve.

This girl is living proof of an ongoing myth, or superstition. In ignorance, some believe that they can rid themselves of AIDS by having sex with young virgins. This beautiful young girl, was raped. She is just twelve. She cannot see. She lays down on her bed, all day long, nauseous and dying. Only twelve.

Why is she smiling?

This lady just kept smiling, until she started crying. She had visitors, and was overjoyed. She was very hospitable, and offered us a seat on a ragged, dusty couch. We could see light through the tin roof above our heads. There were two small children wearing cloth diapers playing on the floor in the room next to us. She smiled, and wiped a tear away from her eyes.

She cannot work. She is a grandmother, and cares for 4 of her young grandchildren. There are five of them living in two rooms and a "kitchen". Their water comes from a communal tap up on the hill. Their restroom is outside. Someone in the home is HIV positive, but through our translator, we are unsure as to who. Probably one of the children. Their mom (her daughter) died from AIDS related causes about a year ago.

She is tired. We find out that she has walked nearly 25 KM that morning to pick up her governement aid (about $25 U.S. per child), but was refused. She came back empty-handed. She smiles, wipes away a tear, and tells us that there is no food in the house. We pray for her. We feel helpless. We spend a few dollars and buy her some food. She is overjoyed when we pay her a surprise visit carrying a few kilos of rice, maize meal, beans and some fresh fruits and vegetables.

She is smiling now. They will have some food in the house again...for a few days. We feel sad. We try to smile back at her. This was merely a drop in the ocean. They will be out of food again...very soon. So will many of their neighbors. As we leave, we try to hold back our tears. We can't.

Meet Winnie...

This is Winnie. She works very long hours. She started as a volunteer for her organization, but now she gets paid a few dollars each month. She helps families deal with the problem of HIV/AIDS in the Zulu-speaking township of Claremont, in KwaZulu Natal province in South Africa.

Winnie spends her days travelling up and down hills... on foot. She visits with AIDS patients, making sure they recieve their treatments, and their meager government assistance money.

She is able to "help" them, but not very much. Sometimes she is able to bring them some food. Sometimes she even has enough to feed 40 or 50 families for an entire week!!!

Winnie sees more than 200 different families who suffer from the effects of HIV/AIDS each month...on foot...up and down hills... She gets paid just a few dollars each week.

She smiles. She feeds them when she can. She prays for them. She watches them die.

There are others like Winnie, but we need more of them.

Just a quickie...

I am visiting with Pastor Paul Hesmon - the missionary. He was kind enough to let me use his internet connection. We are having a blast!!!! The people are great! We were very touched yesterday by the aids ministry. We joined with Pastor Henry Houk and walked through a Zulu Towhship with a lady named Winnie. She is a contact person/social worker who helps AIDS patients coordinate their benefits and keeps them accountable with regards to their treatment and medication. The task seems soo overwhelming. What we saw was very mild in comparison to some of the stories we have heard (which are true!), but still very moving nonetheless. I don't have time to share much now, but just know, we have already been changed by this trip.