Just call me Thulani....
Well, the first week in our homestead is complete. What an AMAZING, and thats an understatement, week is was. Not going to lie, when we were on our way to homesteads, I was a little nervous. I mean they were dropping us off at at home, in the middle of nowhere practically, and we had to create our own schedule. Intimidating to say the least. Now, looking back on my worries, I worried in vain. My worries were pointless. God was in control the whole time, and man did He has an awesome week of His work planned out for us.
So once we got settle in, in our humble 3 room house, we began to get acclimated to the change(or at least try too). First off, Swaziland is not the typical Africa you would picture. It is nothing like the Lion King or any pictures of Africa you have seen. Swaziland is a very mountainous area and we were placed right in the middle of the mountains. The girls were placed in a flatter area called Mgudze. The place where we live is amazingly beautiful. There is mountains all around us and it's just an awesome picture of God's creation. Another thing that we expected but don't have: animals. Because of hunting, most of Swaziland's wildlife was killed off in the 60's and 70's. So no lions, tigers, or bears. We will be going to a game reserve where all those animals are located later on in our trip, but thats for a different blog. Anyways one of the biggest things we had to deal with was the silence and the vast majority of free time.
There is literally no sounds in Velebantfu, except for the animals. No planes or cars, its almost eerie but relaxing all at the same time. You never realized how loud American culture is until you get away from it. No to mention, God's voice is a lot louder when all the distractions and white noise is taken away. The amount of free time we have is unbelievable. When we go out to set up appointments or do presentations we are usually back before 12. Then we have nothing to do the rest of the day. Which is amazing because it gives us more time to dive into God's word.
As for our True Love Waits program is going, the guys have gone to 2 different schools and did 2 presentations and have gotten around 140 commitments from kids in grades 6 and 7. Glory be to God. The girls have been to 3 different schools and have gotten around 190 commitments. Thats over 300 commitments in one week. God is doing AMAZING things.
This past Sunday at church, the congregation gave us guys Swazi names. The names are as follows
Adam=Bheki, which means "The one from which we expect change"
Johnny=Themba(pronounced Timba), which means "Those we hope in"
Reh= Thulani(pronounced Tu-lani), which means "One who can face the storm"
You can just call me Thulani from now on...Did I mention we go to church 5 nights a week? This people are serious about their Jesus. They don't take the title "Christian" lightly like many do in America. They get it. The true believers out here in Swaziland are living out their lives totally for God. EVERY week night at 5pm we head to Velebantfu Baptist Church for a time of prayer and worship. I wish Americans would be as dedicated as the Swazis when it comes to learning and praising God.
Honestly, I don't know how things are going to get much better, but God ceases to amaze me out here. I already hope to come back even after my two months here has ended. God is doing incredible work here...I wish you all could see it.
Don't forget to check out the pictures on my facebook.
Peace, Love and Swazi
-Thulani
So once we got settle in, in our humble 3 room house, we began to get acclimated to the change(or at least try too). First off, Swaziland is not the typical Africa you would picture. It is nothing like the Lion King or any pictures of Africa you have seen. Swaziland is a very mountainous area and we were placed right in the middle of the mountains. The girls were placed in a flatter area called Mgudze. The place where we live is amazingly beautiful. There is mountains all around us and it's just an awesome picture of God's creation. Another thing that we expected but don't have: animals. Because of hunting, most of Swaziland's wildlife was killed off in the 60's and 70's. So no lions, tigers, or bears. We will be going to a game reserve where all those animals are located later on in our trip, but thats for a different blog. Anyways one of the biggest things we had to deal with was the silence and the vast majority of free time.
There is literally no sounds in Velebantfu, except for the animals. No planes or cars, its almost eerie but relaxing all at the same time. You never realized how loud American culture is until you get away from it. No to mention, God's voice is a lot louder when all the distractions and white noise is taken away. The amount of free time we have is unbelievable. When we go out to set up appointments or do presentations we are usually back before 12. Then we have nothing to do the rest of the day. Which is amazing because it gives us more time to dive into God's word.
As for our True Love Waits program is going, the guys have gone to 2 different schools and did 2 presentations and have gotten around 140 commitments from kids in grades 6 and 7. Glory be to God. The girls have been to 3 different schools and have gotten around 190 commitments. Thats over 300 commitments in one week. God is doing AMAZING things.
This past Sunday at church, the congregation gave us guys Swazi names. The names are as follows
Adam=Bheki, which means "The one from which we expect change"
Johnny=Themba(pronounced Timba), which means "Those we hope in"
Reh= Thulani(pronounced Tu-lani), which means "One who can face the storm"
You can just call me Thulani from now on...Did I mention we go to church 5 nights a week? This people are serious about their Jesus. They don't take the title "Christian" lightly like many do in America. They get it. The true believers out here in Swaziland are living out their lives totally for God. EVERY week night at 5pm we head to Velebantfu Baptist Church for a time of prayer and worship. I wish Americans would be as dedicated as the Swazis when it comes to learning and praising God.
Honestly, I don't know how things are going to get much better, but God ceases to amaze me out here. I already hope to come back even after my two months here has ended. God is doing incredible work here...I wish you all could see it.
Don't forget to check out the pictures on my facebook.
Peace, Love and Swazi
-Thulani
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