battlefields

Last weekend our group of 53 students traveled to the battle fields. It was a five hour drive on a bus to see some of the different sites where the battles between the Afrikaner and the English and the Afrikaner and Zulu took place. It was quite the adventure. If I am being honest, it was not too exciting.

here are some pictures that reflect our groups attitudes towards the battlefields ...
























The highlight of the trip was Tony. Tony was our tour guide. I have never met any one like this man. He is an elderly man that has retired from him job and now takes groups on tours of the battlefields. He was a character. Anytime anyone yawned he would stop his lecture and very rudely ask that person why they were yawning. At one point, he referred to someone from my group as a tonsil expert, because he was yawning too much apparently. During one of his lectures, tony suddenly dropped to the ground and pulled out an imaginary gun and began to reenact the battle, with his own sound effects, of course. Tony also loved pointing out the different cattle to us, and who owned the different cattle that we passed. Why this was relevant to the battlefields, we have no idea.
We finished classes last week. Well everyone else finished classes last week. My Zulu class will continue on for four more weeks. We started our community engagement class on Monday. Our professor, Francis, is incredible. He is from Kenya and has worked all across Africa developing communities. Everything he says is so wise. I spend our entire lecture frantically scribbling down everything he says. This class as designed to equip up with the tools to empower the individuals and the communities we will be working with over the next month, rather than just coming in and throwing money or putting a band-aid on the issue.

isnt he lovely?





I am learning more and more everyday that everyone matters. This is becoming so evident to me.

I john 3:1
“How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are. The reason that the world does not us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what wil be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears we will be made like him, for we shall see him as he is.”

We have been labeled as sons and daughters of the King. We are children of God. I think I have become so humbled by this thought lately. I am learning more and more about the power of God that manifests itself in me everyday. I am beginning to realize more and more how much of a sinner I am and how wretched I am. God still loves me. he claims me as his own. I am so amazed at this thought. I am humbled. I have been learning so much about God’s glory. I have begun to realize that nothing good comes from me. Rather, everything that is good and encouraging that flows from me is purely God. It is all him within me. I have been recognizing that and praising him. I am realizing more and more that I am purely a vessel. I have said this before, but I am really beginning to understand this.

In a weird way I feel like a baby Christian again. I am rediscovering all of these different fundamental truths and really learning more about the God that I am living by each day. It is incredible. I am falling more and more in love with my creator everyday.

I have been able to spend some time with some of the senior youth from Haniville that I met last summer while I was here. It has been great to see the progress that is occurring in their life, and just kind of pick up where I left off. I am taking one of the senior youth, Sihle, to the mall next week to look for jobs. I am so blessed to be here, truly.

sihle and i



I have been reminded lately of how little I am and how big my Creator is. I have been reading a lot out of the Gospels and trying to understand the life that the disciples lived.
Matthew 10 is all about Jesus sending out the 12 and the instructions he tells them as he is preparing them. It is crazy for me to think that this is the life I am striving to imitate. Verse 6: go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, preach this message. The kingdom of heaven is near. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received now freely you must give … take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep.”

Matthew 10:27
“what I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight, what is whispered in your ear, proclaim it from the roofs.”

Matthew 10:38
“And anyone who does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it and whoever loses it for my sake will find it.”

I Corinthians 1:31
“Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord…”

i found out this week that i am going to be an RA next year. i am really excited about this opportunity. i cannot wait!


we start service sites tomorrow. I am so excited. The verse below is the verse I have been praying over our semester as we head out into the different communities. I am praying that God will clear our minds of our own selfish desires, of our own worries and our own anxiety so that we can just gaze upon His face and rest in him while we simply listen to his voice. I pray that love will freely flow from each of us … that God will rid us of ourselves and help us to see one another and the people of Haniville as his beloved. I am praying that we are all truly humbled and begin to discover what it means to be a true servant. I pray that everyday we are on our hands and knees begging God to speak through us, to use us in some way to bring him glory and bring love to the different communities of south africa. I pray that we are able to keep our eyes focused on the cross that we will begin to be able to embody what true service looks like. I pray that we will be able to not only love through actions, but also through our words and our thoughts. I am praying that we will be vessels of truth to one another and to individuals we meet over the next month. My hope is that we will be able to encourage one another and help one an other develop the different gifts God has given us so that we may be able to use our gifts to bring him praise and glory. I am begging for joy. I pray that we will be completely blinded to our own accomplishments so that we will purely see God amongst one another and our work. I pray that we are not the ones that are seen as we enter the communities, but rather that people see God.



I peter 3:7-11
“The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.”

ziplining and cafes

this weekend we got to zipline through the canopy. it was unreal.
the view was beautiful from up there.

God really really loves the color green. it is everywhere here in SA. there are so many different shades of it.














here are some thoughts from this past week:
i have been reading out of I and II Corinthians alot lately and i have been focusing on I corinthians 10:3-5.
"for though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and eery pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."

this verse was a lot for me to take in for a couple different reason. over the past month i have become far more aware of the ways in which Satan works and how easily he can get into our heads. I think this trip is one of the first times i have really felt spirtitual warefare before. I have spent a lot of time thinking about this over the past couple of weeks and i keep coming back to one thing... the batttle has already been won. it is over. Jesus has defeated Satan. he binded him to the ross. all it takes is for me to simply call on the name of Jesus .. that is it. Jesus' name alone is that powerful. the God i serve is so big. he is in control, he is sovereign. The battle has been fought and won. he has already equipped me with the tools to fight it. I am learning each day how to take my thoughts captive. it is hard, really hard. The concept of giving my thoughts to Christ and claiming each thing as his is really hard for me to comprehend. I have really been trying to figure out how to stop those negative thoughts and whispers of inadequacy. i am on a journey. it is a long one, but an exciting and challenging one.

today a small group of us went to a little cafe right down the road from campus. it was nice. for some reason though i felt very convicted. i am in south africa, in the place that has opened my eyes, transformed my heart, challenged my thinking and awakened me from apathy, yet i am getting caught up spending money on things i do not need in the least bit. i had a hard day trying to figure all of this out. i do not have it figured out by any means, but it is something i am working through. what does it mean to live in privilege? i feel like i have been able to push aside things i know to be true since i have been here. i know i am not called to a comfortable life. i know that i do not have a right to spend money frivolously, i am not entitled to anything. it was a weird moment. realizing that i brought my desire for unnecessary objects with me to a place of such poverty. i have been thinking alot about this today. it is something that has come up quite frequently over the last five years since i first came to africa.

i went to a new church today. It is called God's Family. It is a Pentecostal, charismatic church. There were coloureds, blacks, whites and indians in attendance. it was beautiful. There has been so many steps of reconciliaton since apartheid was ended in 1994, but there is still a separation in many aspects of life here in SA. i really enjoyed church. the church was real. the people were real. during the worship the pastor mentioned some prayer requests for some the different members in the congregation, then brought them up and the church, collectively, prayed over them. i feel like in so many christian community the phrase "i will pray for you" is thrown around so often. it has become something to just say to others when bad news is given or when an individual is having a hard day. it was refreshing to see a church truly committed to one another in prayer, because lets be honest, it is an integral part of our lives as christians. it was true community. it was not a facade. the pastor gave a great sermon. he challenged the congregation to begin to dismantle the systems of oppression within south africa. he called on the congregation to begin to actually listen to the things God has been putting on their hearts, and begin to change their community. He reinforced the fact that church was not within those four walls, it is something so much bigger and deeper than that. he called on the members of the church to begin to be a voice for the voiceless within their community. after that he asked any members of the church who worked within any of the government programs to stand up and for us all to pray over them. we prayed that these systems will be changed from the inside out. it was incredible to see a church embodying the ideals we are called to. i was truly amazed. it was not a show. it was church being done the way it was intended to be done. during the sermon he challenged us all by asking us what is the thing we know God has put on our heart but we continually ignore. oddly enough, south africa popped into my mind. i have been struggling a lot with trying to figure out where i am supposed to be next year. i feel a strong call to south africa. i do not know what the future is going to look like and i do not think i am supposed to, but i know that God is calling me here. it is both scary and exciting.
second

those are just a few thoughts of this week. each day presents so many opportunities for growth and learning experiences. i am learning so much here. i am thoroughly enjoying every of being here.

philippians 2:12-16
"continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. Do everything without complaining or arguing so that you may become blameless and pure in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the world of life..."

this has been my prayer for myself, for the others on my semester, and for the youth of south africa.

pretty fingers and pen pals

one thing i love about the zulu culture is that their names mean something. last week we received our zulu names. everyone in the class got some great names like "we thank God for your kindness" or "example to all" and "princess of love." my zulu name means pretty fingers. that gave the class a good laugh. thought i would share that with all of you.

since the first week of zulu class we have been writing to a grade eleven class. they have been our zulu pen palls. this week we had the opportunity to go and meet them. my pen pal's name is Jabulani, which means happiness. He is 17 years old, and the fastest kid in the school, he made sure to tell me that part. It was a lot of fun though. They made us some traditional zulu food (this included cow tongue). They zulu danced and sang for us. The Zulu dance is my favorite to watch. the lift their leg up really high and kick down. i have no idea how they get their legs that high, but they do, and it is incredible to watch.








this weekend we are going ziplining. i am excited for that.

we received our service sites this week .. i am back at walk in the light. i am so happy about this. i will be going with 19 other students. we start our service sites in 2 weeks.

little update for my south africa may team: alfred is going to capetown with foxfires. the growth that is going on in him is unreal.

drakensburg boys choir and ubuntu

yesterday we went back to the drakensburg mountains to watch the number one boys choir in the world perform. it was great. they were very talented. they sang a lot of older hymns in german, english, and afrikaans. then they did zulu dancing and singing. it was great.

some pictures of the beautiful people i am doing life with here in south africa...
i am truly blessed. i am surrounded by so much beauty. there is beauty everywhere i turn here. beauty in the people, beauty in the girls around me, and beauty in the creation i am surrounded with. i serve such a creative and artistic God.

long bus rides are my favorite.






all about the long dresses here. it summer time in south africa!


some of the girls from my lovely dgroup.


meet kristen. she is so wonderful.


i just really love paige.


UBUNTU
africa has so much life. i am just so enthralled by south african culture. it is so rich and so beautiful.

south africa has a beautiful story. it is a country of forgiveness, reconciliation, and a genuine interest in one another.

ubuntu.
it is a belief that i am because we are.
there is a reliance upon one another. we can do nothing apart from each other. the way i live affects my community. it is a team effort.

it is a philosophy of life that is seen throughout africa. it stresses generosity. it is the basic idea of humanity. embracing one another, as people and affirming that. the underlining idea of this is interdependence. this is the most beautiful thing i have seen while i have been in africa. i think that this idea and the embodiment of this concept in people's lives is what draws me back to africa every year. it is the true dependence on one another. it is the acknowledgment that we, as humans, need one another. it is a beautiful thing.

it is this concept that makes south africa so beautiful and unique, in my opinion.

it is an embodiment of Christ's teachings. it is what we should be seeing in Christian communities.

hike in drakensburg

this weekend we went for a hike in the drakensburg mountains.
it was beautiful.

here are some of my thoughts from this week ...

i love the african sky. it never ceases to amaze me.

south africa has more shades of green than i could have ever imagined.

i love long bus rides.

nsync is always a guaranteed hit in a car full of 30 people.

monkeys are disgusting. all types of monkeys. none of them are cute.

south africa is my favorite place on earth.

fresh mangos are my favorite.


i have some great friends.





God is bigger than any of my problems, and it is only in my weakness am i made strong.

i have a lot to learn from the people of south africa.

letters from home are always a lovely reminder of the blessings i have.

God has instilled a passion for Africa in me for a specific reason. i am choosing to embrace that.

i miss starbucks. a lot.

i have the best mom. i got a package with 5 bags of flaming hot cheetos. what a great day.

monkeys hate flaming hot cheetos. it makes them real sick. that makes me happy.

never get between a mother zebra and its baby. bad call.

thunderstorms are quickly becoming one of my favorite things.


the colors of africa are beautiful.

you can never have too much tea, specifically roobios.

i suck at communicating while i am half way around the world.

i love african music.
i wish i could zulu dance like some of the girls here. it is unreal.

i thoroughly enjoy learning about new cultures.

americans apparently don't use their knife enough while eating.

it has become normal for me to eat a chocolate bar a day. probably not a great new habit to pick up.

i like to run more than i thought i did.

i love moleskin journals.

i suck at learning languages.

i feel more alive in africa.

i think that i could live in south africa one day, which both excites and scares me.

i have the best dgroup. i am blessed.



i am prideful.

i need Jesus more and more everyday.

the vibrancy of africa continually surprises me, blesses me, and encourages me.

"you'll come"

i have decided I have resolved
To wait upon you Lord
My rock and redeemer shall not be moved
I'll wait upon you Lord

As surely as the sun will rise
You'll come to us
As certain as the dawn appears

You'll come let your glory fall
As you respond to us
Spirit reign flood our hearts
With holy fire again

Chains be broken
Lives be healed
Eyes be opened
Christ is revealed

We are not shaken we are not moved
We wait upon you Lord
Our Mighty deliverer my triumph and truth
I'll wait upon you Lord

beauty in the brokeness

south african sunrise in durban


i am learning more and more each day about what it means to find my identity in Christ.
I am broken. I am weak. But i am learning to see the beauty and the glory of God in that.

II Corinthians 12-13.

it is only in my weakness that i am able to fully rely and depend on God. God's grace is sufficient for me.
where i am weak, he is strong.

i am learning alot about the power of vulnerability and truth. as a chrsitian, i have become so good and pretending everything is okay. i will say, this is what i am/was struggling with, but its okay because God is doing this .. which is awesome if that is what is happening, but alot of times it is me building myself up.

my dgroup leader challenged me with two questions:
1. what weaknesses of mine is God using?
2. what weakenesses am i hiding from everyone else.

i am rediscovering what it means to be real, to be honest, and to embrace both weaknesses and strengths.

i am learning alot here. there is not much to distract me. i love being back in south africa. the mornings are my favorite time of the day here. i found myself a longing to be with my friends from home this week. it is hard not having my best friends to process through everything with, but it is producing a deeper reliance on God and that was one of my biggest prayers coming into this semester.

this weekend our group went to Durban. We were able to shop in the markets and spend the day at the beach. It was perfect weather. There is so much beauty in South Africa. Everywhere we go i am amazed at the physical beauty surrounding me.

our group in durban:




my prayer for myself, and for the 52 other students on my semester is that we as a group will collectively learn how to see God's beauty in the brokeness of South Africa. My fear is that we will go into communities for our service sites and pity the people around us, that we will think that they need us. My fear is that we will look at these individuals as something to be photographed and observed. I have come to realize that there is so much beauty in brokeness. I think that areas of poverty have given me a small glimpse of the kingdom of heaven. i have seen what true community, genuine love and care, and reliance upon one of another can look like while i have been in impoverished areas. It is so humbling. i am blessed to be back here.

drive to durban


my friend sent me an email this week and asked me this,
"and i want to ask you a question allie...
which statement is of more importance to you, or which statement to you identify better with?
"God is."
or
"God is good."

i have been thinking about that alot lately.

fun fact about living at African Enterprise... mold grows everywhere.
there is black mold covering the frame of my bed, which apparently is really bad for you. the other day i opened up my closet to wear a black dress, and it was covered in white mold. it looked like a patterned dress. our lampshade, which is supposed to be brown, is white from the mold.

they are moving us into a different room this week.