Community stay;

This story I am about to tell you has been one of the most amazing, precious moments of my life. The second weekend of our orientation we had an opportunity to stay in a community that we had visited a couple of times in the weeks leading up. Ashley and I got to spend the weekend with a family that will always have an imprint in our hearts, as corny as that sounds. The oldest child we were staying with and the head of the household was around the same age as my sister 19years old Mary, she looks after her 2 younger sisters Bussiswe, 15 and Grace, 12 and a brother Siphiso, 15 and her 4 year old daughter Temu.

The moment we arrived the eldest made us feel right at home, she wanted us to be like her sisters and she kept on saying don’t be afraid, feel comfortable. And I went in scared to have a language barrier I thought we would feel like outsiders and that we would have lots of awkward moments, but it was quite the opposite from the moment we arrived we felt like we were part of the family.

We spent 2 hours as the sun was setting playing games and singing songs with all the street children, there were at least 20 – 30 kids outside in the yard. The most precious moment was when, I had been walking around carrying Temu, I put her down she stood in front of me and grabbed both sides of my skirt and wrapped it around herself. She seemed to have a real sense of pride in the fact that we were hers we were staying at her house. :D that night we sat around in the lounge room, watching a tv that had 2 channels and Temu sat on my lap and she kept on repeating our names over and over again with her beautiful African accent – Ashley, Rebecca. She cuddled, kissed, played clapping games on our laps, then fell asleep with her head on my lap.

That night God really clearly spoke to me; as soon as the sun went down we heard tribal intense drumming and a couple of my friends had warned me that when you hear drumming its usually witch doctors and dark stuff. and so I sat there and was freaking out a little bit and saying what ever happens I am ready. And I should have just prayed and given it to God but I was too distracted on the drumming and what it meant and then I got a txt message from my friend that said I think God wants you to know this

Luke 10:17-20

When the seventy-two disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, “Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!”

“Yes,” he told them, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightening! Look, I have given you authority over all power of the enemy and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you. But don’t rejoice, because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered in heaven.”

So why is this significant? Well when I was preparing to leave Australia on 2 different conversations people had told me to read this chapter in Luke 10 where he send out his disciples and I thought God was preparing me for rejection, because I care too much about what people think and so I need to focus on Gods opinion. But I thought that was it and never properly read it for myself and God had been opening my eyes up to spiritual warfare stuff as a lot of people say when they go to Africa and developing nations you can see God work more miraculously, people being healed, and his presence being verse intense but people have amazing faith some of them God is all they have, he is their only hope and reason for life. And spiritual stuff happens, demon procession, curses. And so I was all prepared to face whatever was going to happen, but God reminded my focus needed to be adjusted, he is greater than anything in this world, and nothing was going to happen because his hand of protection was over that house and that all these children I was with, their names whether written in heaven.

Never underestimate the power of God if he wants to get the message across, he has no limitations, and he can send you a message via txt message!!

Our God is greater, our God is stronger

God you higher than any other

Our God is healer, awesome in power

Our God, our God

The rest of the weekend was a blast, we help with chores, went for a walk around the community, sung, played games, danced. Enjoyed singing away to Celine Dion, and Westlife. We went to a ZCC church which is a combination of Christianity and traditional ancestral worship which was an experience. We helped with their homework, we played with them, and you know it didn’t feel like we did much, but we really connected with the kids and the last day I really saw how much God was using us with us realising. We got a letter from Mary. And it said loved having us there because it made her happy and make her feel like her parents were there. And she hadn’t mentioned her parents the whole time we were there. WOW!!

And I really wanted to give all of the kids an encouraging letter each and I prayed about giving them a verse each to encourage them, because I wasn’t sure if they had one. And the coolest moment happened when we went back to visit them a week or so later, I had given Mary the verse Romans 12:12 which says; “Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble and keep on praying.” And the first thing she said to me was, I remember it Romans 12:12 and I was so excited, how can God not be at work when you hear that.

I love this family; they feel like my kids and I will always keep them in my heart, thoughts and prayers. I know whatever there future holds God has hold of them. Mary wants to be a lawyer, Bussiwe wants to be a doctor, Siphiso wants to be a pilot, Grace wants to be a teacher and Temu at age 4 wants to be a frog :D