Stand Tired... For The Lord is Coming

The title of tonight’s blog was a line from a song that we heard at one of the COTs (Community Orphan Trust) that we visited yesterday.  “Stand tired…  for the Lord is coming.”  Today we were tired.  But we were still standing.  There was still work to be done.  The Lord is coming and we are here to proclaim His glory, His kingdom, and be about His work.  This morning we were without the Lehman’s for breakfast, but because of Linda’s gift of hospitality we had cinnamon rolls ready heat up and eat!  We were picked up by Daniel, from the World Hope team, and headed out to the government-funded orphanage here in Xia Xia.  The same precious faces that we met for the first time yesterday greeted us.  As we were arriving in the courtyard, they were lining up for breakfast.  They stood in a line from the shortest (able to walk) to the tallest.  Moses was the line leader today.  Moses had an amazing story.  He came to the orphanage without a name.  His mother had thrown him in the river when he was an infant.  He was rescued, brought to the orphanage and his mother went to jail.  The women at the orphanage aptly named him Moses, since he was rescued from the river.  That face could win a million hearts as you can see above!!  We had a wonderful morning with all the kids.  After they ate breakfast we played a little soccer in the courtyard, and then enjoyed drawing in “art class” with them.  We each created a message for them and our translators helped us to write it in Portuguese.  After art class we went outside to play games with the kids.  The few hours we had with them flew by and we enjoyed every moment.  We were taken back to the World Hope headquarters where we said goodbye to the staff and to our translators for the week.  We so enjoyed getting to know them and learn about the culture from them as the week progressed.  Daniel took us to a local restaurant in Xia Xia for lunch before coming back to the Lehman’s house.  This afternoon we went for a tour of the local Bible college, where Orai Lehman is a professor.  Chad, another missionary we have met while here has a recording studio at the college.  His ministry records readings of the New Testament in the languages of Mozambique.  There are 39 languages.  They have recorded 5 thus far.  These recordings are put onto solar powered audio bibles that they can then distribute to the villages.  They currently have two men from tribes in Northern Mozambique down for 2 weeks to record in their tribal language.  Very cool stuff!!  The college is located on the top of this hill and had a beautiful view of the surrounding countryside.  Too bad none of us had our cameras!  The day culminated with a dinner and a rousing rematch of Phase 10 (a card game).  Vanessa whooped up on some of us last night… and a few of the team members are out to take back their dignity.  (At this moment in time it's not looking good for them.)  It has been a wonderful trip.  There has been a lot of laughter, at times some tears, and all of us have been changed.  We are tired.  But we are standing. 

We leave Xia Xia tomorrow morning at 6:30 (12:30am Atlanta time) headed to the airport here in Mozambique.  We will fly out of Maputo to Johannesburg (Joburg as it is referred to here) where we will have a 7-hour layover (oh my goodness!!!!!!!).  Our plane leaves Joburg around 8:00 (2pm Atlanta time).  Then after about 15 more hours we will arrive in Atlanta.  Thank you for your prayers over our LONG journey home.  We can’t wait to get home and share our pictures and our stories with you.  See you soon!

You Ate What For Lunch?

It was another beautiful sunrise this morning over the Indian Ocean.  Cinnamon rolls were on the menu at the breakfast table.  Thank you Linda!  We said our goodbyes to the Lehman’s who were headed to Swaziland for the weekend.  We are so appreciative of the hospitality they have shown us and we will miss them these last couple of days we are here.  We headed out to meet our interpreters and began our day by visiting an orphanage in Xia Xia.  We were unable to stay long; the purpose of the visit was just to see the buildings and children and we are all happy that we will be able to return tomorrow morning to spend some time playing with all of them.  The main part of our day was spent at a couple of the COT’s (Community Orphan Trusts) supported by World Hope.  In COT’s the community has come together to give care to community members with HIV/AIDS as well as those children who have been orphaned.  We arrived at the first trust to singing and dancing.  We toured their chicken coop (they raise the chickens to sell for money), were given a gift of kasava root, and more dancing ensued.  Vanessa (our dancing queen) quickly joined in and one by one each of us stepped into the dance mix.  Shawn was even drawn in and it was a sight to behold.  We viewed a couple of houses that World Hope has helped to construct for families that were living in very run down conditions.  We had the opportunity to see two different trusts and at each community we were given the opportunity to pray over people.  It was a powerful day.  Today we were reminded of the power and might of our God… that nothing is possible by our own strength.  At times I felt like Moses saying “God, I am not up to this task.  I am not the one you need to do this.  I am not able, not strong enough, send someone else.”  And he reminded me that it is not of my might, but of His and that He has CHOSEN me for such a time as this.  I am not praying out of my strength, but for His glory to come down from heaven.  Today was overwhelming emotionally for many of us, and our prayers to be stretched were definitely answered.  After praying over members of the second trust, we came together with the community members and leaders for a time of celebration.  Once again they were so welcoming and said over and over how joyful they were to have us as visitors.  More dancing!  More singing!  More praying!  We were humbled to be given the opportunity to share with and encourage these people in their faith and the way they serve and take care of one another in their community.  The people we have met in Mozambique are truly concerned with the eternal life that God has given and not so concerned with the temporal things (2 Corinthians 4:18).  They literally find joy in simply being alive.  It was a testimony to us, and humbled us to know that we are seen as an answer to their prayers.  The time of celebration ended with… what else?  Lunch!  A delicious meal was provided and a few of us topped it off with a local culinary delight… a bright orange caterpillar (think plump and juicy… see above photo) plucked from a nearby tree and roasted over the cooking fire.  Crunchy with a chargrilled flavor… Shawn, Steve, Jeff, Todd, and Amanda all have the bragging rights!!  We made the drive back to the Lehman’s and spent a little time enjoying the gift of the nearby ocean.  A wonderful dinner was brought to us by another local missionary named Chad who lives next to the Lehman’s.  We are ending our evening by eating more cinnamon rolls (I hope we have enough left for breakfast!!), drinking coffee, and listening to a local pastor and his band perform traditional music in our living room.  Tomorrow will be our last day here in Xia Xia, and it will be spent at the orphanage mentioned above playing, playing, and more playing with all the precious children!!  Those of us with ultra tender hearts (which would be all of us!!) are going to need to be bathed in prayer tomorrow.  Thank you so much for your prayers over this trip.  It is evident that we have been covered.  We pray an extra heaping of blessing over you tonight!

Africa Hot

It was a partly cloudy sky this morning, which meant that a small contingent of our group rose extra early and headed to the beach to watch the sunrise.  The photos won’t hold a candle to what was seen, but were still gorgeous to look at for those of us that missed out!  We started the morning going to a well dig.  We drove down a dirt road for what seemed like miles to arrive in a community that was in the beginning phases of receiving a World Hope well.  We were able to see the first stage of the dig and the involvement of the villagers in this process.  Our group then headed to another village for a third well dedication.  It has been amazing being welcomed into these villages as honored visitors.  The gathering at this village today was the largest one yet and everyone was so joyful as we got out of our cars and greeted them.  We were given the opportunity to each introduce ourselves to the gathering and the leaders of this particular community and nearby communities were able to introduce themselves as well.  There was actually a government official of the area in attendance.  Some of the people of the village had actually prepared a short drama for us about what life was like before the well and what it is like now.  It was amazing.  At the end of the drama, the men and women were dancing and Vanessa and Amanda were invited to come and dance with them.  Todd and Steve couldn’t stand being left on the sidelines and jumped right into the action.   We learned that the women beating the branches of leaves on the ground as they danced signified their thankfulness.  Todd is now an expert and well practiced in showing his thankfulness.  We are all thankful that Jeff was able to capture every moment of this on video.  Today we were again able to pray over members of their community; people who were sick or in need of prayer for any reason.  The community today had a lot of people with head and joint pain, tumors, leg crippling, and even a precious little boy who asked for prayer to make good grades in school.  Again, what a humbling experience to be able to spend time praying over men, women, and children and calling on the power of the Holy Spirit to come and heal.  After this time of prayer the well was dedicated.   Today Sally had the honor of helping the small children cut the ribbon and standing beside a woman of the community pumping water from the well.  We made a trip down to the old water source; an open well in an area we were told had many snakes nearby.  The water in that old well looked even darker and dirtier than the water we saw yesterday.  After seeing the old well we all walked back up to the dedication area where Jeff was invited to show us his talents on the drum.  When his drum solo was over, shouts of joy and adulation went up from all in attendance!!  There is also video footage of this moment!  Another delicious lunch was served and we enjoyed eating with our interpreters, World Hope staff, and some of the village leaders.  Our new friend Simao taught Vanessa and Shawn how to use the top of a water bottle to pop the top off of a coke bottle (the old glass kind).  Vanessa was quickly a pro and Shawn nearly took the life of a bird in the tree above us as his flew off with the speed of a bullet!  As we were preparing to leave Shawn, aka “The Candy Man” pulled out a bag of bubble gum and took off running with a mob of small children following.  As he rounded the corner of the church the mob overtook him and bubble gum went flying.  We said our good-byes to the joyous people and once again made our way back to Xia Xia and the Lehman’s house.  Vanessa, Todd, and Jeff went for a little swim in the Indian Ocean when we got home.  Sally and Amanda rested on the Lehman’s front porch as Steve went with Orai (Mr. Lehman) on a mission to town.  After another fabulous dinner we are preparing for an early bedtime and looking forward to the day tomorrow.  We are planning on visiting an orphanage in the morning and COT’s (Community Orphan Trusts) in the afternoon.  Thank you again for your prayers over our trip.  

And These Signs Will Accompany Those Who Believe...

Today.  Wow.  How does one put into words the experience we shared today?  The day began with a wonderful breakfast time with the Lehman’s, and then we headed out for another well dedication ceremony in another village.  We were once again greeted with a warm welcome from the men, women, and children of the village.  The children had prepared some songs and a reading for us as the visitors; they even took a day off of school for time with us.  What an honor.  It was touching to see how much work they had put into preparation for our coming.  Shawn (who had connected with the crowd by joking he was the president of the United States... luckily they found this as humorous as we did!) was given the opportunity to explain the relationship between 12Stone, World Hope, and the wells project.  He then invited anyone who wanted to be prayed over to come forward for our team to pray with them.  This is not a common thing in their culture as people might be prayed over in groups, but do not pray one on one.  Many people came forward and we were given the tremendous opportunity to pray for healing in those with stomach, leg, and back pain; vision problems; skin lesions; and even two small children who were unable to speak.  The power of the Holy Spirit was with us, and God moved.  After that time of prayer, we traveled by car near to the old well the women of this village used to walk to for their water.  The cars were not able to go the full way, and we walked about the last quarter mile.  When we arrived at the old open well, we were able to see how contaminated and dirty the water was (see the above picture).  There were actually two women from a nearby village there to get water to take back to their homes.  As they pulled the water up, we were able to see firsthand the brownish-yellow water they used to completely fill two five gallon buckets that they then placed on top of their heads to begin their walk home.  We were tired from simply walking up the trail back to the car unencumbered by heavy jugs on our heads!  What an eye-opening experience.  When we returned it was time to dedicate the well!  The villagers had decorated the fence around the well with palm fronds and flowers and had even tied a string over the entrance.  Amanda was asked to help two children from the village use a small pair of scissors to cut the string.  She then got to help a woman of the village pump the well until it ran with water signifying the well being fully turned over to the village from World Hope.  Needless to say, it was quite a joyful moment for her.  We then passed out bibles in the native language to the leaders of the local churches.  We were also able to give out Bible messengers, which are digitally recorded translations of the New Testament to these same leaders.  We then had another delicious lunch where everyone tried the goat meat today… even those that were too chicken yesterday.  Jeff was even adventurous enough to eat a hot pepper.  We said good-bye, made the drive back to Xia Xia, rested a bit before dinner, and then had another delicious feast provided by the Lehman’s.  We are anticipating yet another amazing day tomorrow.  We will be seeing a well actually being drilled in one village and then travel to another dedication ceremony.  Thank you for your continued prayers over our trip.  God’s power is evident in our week.  

15K

The morning started off cool thanks to an amazing thunderstorm that passed through during the night.  A few of us got up before the sunrise in an attempt to see it do so over the ocean.  Unfortunately with the cloud cover, we did not get to see the sun itself.  But, with the cool breeze coming off the water, it was still a perfect start to our day.  After breakfast with the Lehman's we were picked up by Daniel and Simao who took us to the World Hope International Mozambique offices in Xia Xia.  We got to meet the staff and hear about what was in store for us this coming week.  We met our 3 interpreters for the week and reloaded into the cars to head to the village of Chissano for the well dedication ceremony.  Off the beaten path does not begin to describe how out in the middle of the bush this place is.  It was a beautiful drive out to the village and we were greeted with song and smiles when we pulled up.  As we stood on one side and the people of the village stood on the other, the gap was quickly closed with outstretched hands and the greeting of lixile (lasheelay) which means good morning in the native language.  This village has a well that was dug in January and this particular well is one that was funded by 12Stone (see picture above).  During the course of the day we learned that the people of this area used to travel 15km to get water (about 9 miles) from a reservoir type source before the installation of this well.  The women would leave the village around 9 in the morning and return about 3, carrying the heavy and full water jugs on their heads.  The team was honored to be a part in the entire celebration.  At one point we split up into groups with women, men, and children.  Todd, Shawn, and Jeff enjoyed meeting with the men and hearing about their villages and learning from one another's cultures.  Amanda and Sally met with the women and also shared from each other's cultures and offered encouragement in their faith, ending with a dance lesson from a few of the women.  There is video evidence of this moment, but unfortunately the file is too large to load.  So sad.  Vanessa and Steve taught the children of the area about the salvation bracelets and gave some away.  As with the women's group, their time together ended with singing and dancing.  The joy was evident and shared by all.  Our time in the village ended in a feast of delicious Mozambiquan food (goat meat anyone??) and goodbyes were said.  We made the ride back to Xia Xia and ended our evening with even more food provided by the Lehman's.  


Tomorrow we will again attend another well dedication ceremony in another village.  Thank you for your continued prayers over our trip.  

The Red Sauce Isn't Ketchup

Today started early, we woke up at 6am and had breakfast then headed over to the airport and jumped on a plane to Maputo. It was such a blessing to be on a plane for only 1 hour after yesterday’s 15 hr flight. Once we arrived in Maputo we spent quite a while in customs getting our visas. Once we received our visas and got all of our bags we met up with Daniel and Samone from World Hope.

We got into two trucks and headed to Xai Xai which was a 2 hr drive (really Todd???) from Maputo.  Samone got pulled over twice on the way to Xai Xai and had to pay off the cops .  Once we arrived at the  Lehman’s residence, we unpacked and  walked down to the ocean.  It was a great experience to put our feet in the Indian Ocean. Afterwards we walked back to the house and had dinner which included ham sandwiches, fresh fruit sald, brownies and sweet tea!! We were honored to meet a couple of  local missionaries and got to hear amazing stories of how God is at work here in Mozambique. We felt right at home as soon as we arrived here at the Lehmans  and feel very blessed to know them.   We are now getting ready for bed so we can get up early and watch the sunrise over the Indian Ocean which should be amazing!

I Didn't Get My Pat Down...

Thank you so much for all your prayers over our travels today. We left the church at 3:30 with a wonderful send off prayer and loaded up the shuttle with our bags and ourselves.  The travel  couldn’t have gone better!  From the time we left the church parking lot till the time we made it to the gate was less than two hours… on a Friday afternoon… in Atlanta… the Friday before Spring Break for most schools!  The flight, though long, was smooth and about half of us were able to sleep.  Steve and Amanda made the very wise investment in a neck pillow at the last minute at the advice of theiir amazing leaders Todd and Shawn.  Wisdom.  The 15 hours passed with some sleeping, some eating, and a lot of movie watching.  Finally, our plane landed in Johannesburg.  Getting through customs was a breeze and thanks be to God everyone’s luggage made it!  Tonight (Saturday) we are staying at a hotel attached to the airport.  Tomorrow we depart Johannesburg at 9:45 headed to Maputo, Mozambique.  From there we will drive to Xia Xia, about a 2 hour journey. 

Please continue to pray over smooth travels for the rest of our journey towards Xia Xia as well as good rest tonight for those that didn’t get to sleep on the plane.