Lots has been going on here. Part of life here is multiple volunteers coming from around the world for varying lengths of time (a few weeks to a few years). That means people come and serve impacting Swaziland for a time and then return to their home country. Since I've been here we've had volunteers on the farm (where I live and work) from Zimbabwe, Zambia, Scotland, England, Ireland, Sweden, USA, Canada, and probably even more places. :) Recently my roommates and friends from Canada wrapped up their 1 yr internship program and left to pursue whatever God has for them next. Below are some recent pics.

The house parents I work with & a group of volunteers
I've served alongside

2 leaders in the ministry at the one on the
right's birthday party
(really good friends of mine, awesome women)

Volunteers & I shortly before they left
(2 African guys, 2 Canadian girls)

A goodbye braai for the volunteers
in one of the children's homes

My trip to the States was great and it was wonderful to see so many familiar faces - friends, family, church family. Thank you everyone for making it a special time! (Sorry for the delay in getting this posted. Time seems to be flying!)

Here are some highlights from my trip to the USA:

My Dad's wedding in South Carolina
(my 3 brothers, sister, 2 stepsisters, stepmother, my Dad & I)

My absolutely adorable little cousin Nadia
(she's like a niece to me, she's my cousin Natalie's girl,
looks SO much like me as a child)

My nephew Brayden (8months old, met him for the 1st time during
visit to the States)

My friends Musa & Waheedah getting prayed for at their wedding
September 24th at CLC in Dayton, Ohio

My youngest sibling EJ and I right before his first school dance (Homecoming)
I'm the oldest of 5, he's the youngest. :)

My sister & I (ok and my funny brother)
My last meal w/ my family before flying back to Africa

My Aunt Diana, me, & friend Pam

Saying goodbye to my Mom at the airport,
flying back to Africa
(lyrics come to mind "leavin' on a jet plane
not sure when I'll be back again..")


Bye to my Dad & his wife Candy
(Their wedding in SC was a blast! Welcome to
the family Candy, Emily, & Erin)

It was so nice to visit with family, friends, church family and so many who are part of my missions support team. There's too many of you to mention by name but please know your prayers, friendship, encouragement, and support bless me beyond words.

Some of the last couple weeks in photos...

Children's outreach team from my home church before they took off for Lavumisa, Swaziland

Friends Clark & Erica from CLC Dayton.
It was great to connect with them in Swaziland!
Their hearts for missions in Africa are inspiring to me.

Phyllis, another friend from my home church.
She's a hardworking nurse who served on the medical missions team.

Elizabeth, who served on the medical team.
A joy to see her serving in Swaziland!

A dear friend Patti and I at my Swazi home church Potter's Wheel.
She's a nurse and served on the medical team. She also faithfully prays for the ministry here. I went on my first overseas mission trip to El Salvador with her.

The children's outreach team, Waheedah and I before they left Swaziland to head back to the States. They did a great job serving Swaziland through a drama, puppet show, and testimonies!

Two very special kids from the orphan care center and I. They both have cerebral palsy and through the ministry they have been united as brothers in the same home to be cared for.

Pastor Wafuka, Lily, Liete, and Wana the morning they left Swaziland to head to Zambia to plant Teen Challenge there. We will miss them!!!

Pics with a couple of the kids as I collect their inspiring life stories. God has been faithful to bring them through so much. They are living testimonies.

It's Winter here in Swaziland and I thought to prove it I would show you a picture of myself in my house - yes with winter coat, scarf and all! Our fireplace is no longer working but it was a blessing while it lasted! It might be hard to believe that I'm in Africa and it's cold, but Swaziland has all 4 seasons.

A team from Northern Ireland comes annually and holds a soccer tournament for the community. This year there were about 750 in attendance. Much fun was had by all and the prizes for 2nd and 3rd place were live chickens. The grand prize was a goat! You can see the winning team from White City with their goat below. :) It's not everyday that you see a goat going as a grand prize for a soccer tournament. Things like this remind me that I'm in Africa. :)

one of the prize chickens...

I recently had the opportunity to visit a homestead in a rural area in Swaziland about 2 hours from where I live and work. The children were precious. It was a blessing for me to spend some time with them accompanied other Swazis from the ministry here. We shared Christ, prayed with them, passed on some donations of food, including rice packets. My eyes are opened to how the majority of the people of Swaziland live in poverty. Often many children to care for in each home and parents are absent many times through death, unavailable due to sickeness or abandonment. What a joy it is to bring the hope that God brings to people. He is a Father to the fatherless. The invitation is open to anyone who wants to be His child.

And I can't leave out a recent celebration for some good friends' engagement here in Swaziland. Musa asked Waheedah to marry him and we threw a surprise engagement party immediately afterwards. It was a nice evening. Congratulations guys!!!

So much else has been going on that I hope to update you on in the near future. For now I'll end with some song lyrics I recently wrote. I pray they encourage you.

Make It Beautiful

It's not about me, it's all about you
Forgive me for licing with my focus on me
I want to be Your vessel to a lost and dying world
To be used by You, that is my desire
Give me Your heart Lord
Ignite in me that holy fire
How You chose me I do not understand
Take my life Lord, I surrender to Your hand

You are the Potter, I am the clay
Help me to live out the words that You say
My life is Yours, oh Lord
have Your own way
Shape me, mold me, purify me and restore me
Here's all I am, my one request
Make it beautiful

Lovely in Your sight, set aside for a purpose
Shining brightly in Your light
May I be a piece of pottery to be used everyday
Not on a shelf hidden away
I want the world to see You in me
To be part of Your master plan
Be glorified in all that I am

Praise God! My camera is back in action! So, I've been looking forward to sharing with you an update of the last few weeks in pictures. :)

In May, Potter's Wheel, my home church, had a mother daughter tea which was hosted by the women's ministry. It was suggested that if we did not have a biological mother or daughter we could adopt one. I was blessed by adopting a teenager who is so precious to me and who is a single orphan. She was my "adoptive" daughter for the day and I was also "adopted" by a sweet friend who works at the men's Teen Challenge rehab center. It was a time of encouraging each other and coming together as women in the body of Christ.

my Canadian roomates & I

my adoptive daughter & I

At the end of May we went to pick up my friend Waheedah (from my home church in the States) from the Johannesburg airport. She is marrying a Swazi friend, Musa, from the ministry here in Swaziland. Many of us were anticipating her arrival and it's great to have her here with us now as they prepare for their wedding in September.

Musa & Waheedah - finally both in Swaziland!!!

On Saturday June 11th Potter's Wheel Church hosted a Fun Day for the orphan care center where I live and serve. All the cell groups of Potter's Wheel adopted one family from the children's homes at Hawane Farm. It was a day filled marked by seeing the body of Christ reach out to care for orphans and widows. Much fun, competition, and laughter was had by all!

The children opened us that morning with singing...

On Friday June 17h I had the honor of serving at The Great Ability Group, an outreach to people with disabilities from the rural areas. In Swaziland people with diabilities are often neglected, mistreated, and ignored. It's a joy to reach out to these precious people that most of society has forgotten. We pick them up from the community and bring them to Hawane Farm where they participate in praise & worship, prayer, physical therapy, fun, and free lunch. I was humbled and moved to participate in reaching out to those who God loves so much.

2 guests of the Great Ability Group & I

The Great Ability Group, Nurse Nokthula, & I

Time seems to be flying by! Honestly, it's hard for me to realize it's almost July. Here in Swaziland we are now in Winter and where I stay at Hawane it gets quite cold, especially at night. I'm thankful for my hot water bottle and loads of blankets I snuggle during the night. :)

I realize I typically give updates on what ministry work or outreach I've been involved in, including counseling and mentoring the ministry children, house mothers, and LifeSkills students. While I love to share what's going on here, I feel the need to include some personal reflections in this post.

What's life like for me in Swaziland, Africa? I'm constantly reminded of how blessed I am as I encounter life stories of the people here. I've always had a roof over my head, warm clothes, plenty of food, safe drinking water, people who care about me and express love to me, a safe place to call home, a mother and a father, good health, an education, and friends and family who support me. Many of the children and adults I work with do not have or have not experienced these blessings that, for the most part, I've taken for granted my whole life. When working with the ministry's children who have been orphaned and are vulnerable my heart sinks in my chest to hear of their backgrounds of physical and sexual abuse. I'm beginning to think more young girls than not have been raped or molested before they reach adulthood. It's hard to imagine how these crimes go on day after day. The results are girls and boys who are left with damaged souls, poor self-images, distrust in people, and silent voices.

A project that is before me currently is to meet with each one of the nearly 50 children at the orphan care center to obtain a life story from them. The story will be from their point of view but will include social welfare records and other credible reports. Each child will then receive a copy of their story from me to keep. My prayer is that these precious children will begin putting a voice to their pain and that God will bring beauty from ashes. Nothing is impossible for Him. He is the Healer. He is love. He has come to bind up the brokenhearted. What a joy it is for me to see God repairing brokenness, healing hearts, restoring lives. God can truly bring good out of bad situations. He's doing it around the world one life at a time.

Our God has sent me to comfort all those who are sad.
He wants me to help those in Zion who are filled with sorrow.
I will put beautiful crowns on their heads
in place of ashes.
I will anoint them with oil to give them gladness
instead of sorrow.
I will give them a spirit of praise
in place of a spirit of sadness.
They will be like oak trees that are strong and straight.
The Lord himself will plant them in the land.
That will show how glorious he is. - Isaiah 61:2,3

I'd like to share some excerpts of my journey so far in Swaziland with you. In these 8 months I have learned so much, been stretched to truly live by faith, been blessed by the people I serve and work with. God has brought people from around the world (currently people with God's missions heart from England, Canada, Zambia, Korea) to live on Hawane Farm where I stay and to share His love with the orphans and widows here.

The counseling I've been involved in here is going well. God has given me a new direction to focus on training and equipping the house mothers (often widows who are caring for the orphaned and vulnerable children of the ministry) with basic counseling skils. This will enable the mothers to then be available to the children in their homes - many of these children have experienced trauma, abuse, and loss. For me it's a testimony to see the house mothers growing in their confidence, in learning new skills, and in their ability to communicate within the ministry. Having worked with this same group of amazing Swazi women in 2008, I can see first-hand their growth spiritually and emotionally. These hard-working ladies are raising the next generation of Swazis who will lead this nation to be the pulpit to Africa. God is using Swaziland to bring transformation to all of Africa. This nation that is predicted to become extinct due to the AIDS pandemic will instead live and declare the works of the Lord. What a testimony to the world it will be!

I also have the privilege of working with Teen Challenge Ministry Institute (TCMI) students. Recently one of them preached in our morning daily chapel and I afterwards I wrote the following in my journal:

This morning in chapel Sibosiso (one of the young adult Bible school students from Hawane Farm, the orphan care center where I live) shared his testimony. He powerfully explained how he was a well-known alcoholic, drug addict, and drug dealer in the very community we reside in. He said he was the kind of person people would look at once, not want anything to do with, and move on. He was rejected by the community members and thought of as worthless. This morning he testified of how he met Jesus and his life was transformed. Today he studies in the Teen Challenge Ministry Institute an d frequently preaches with power. He encourages others to follow God, accept His forgiveness, and to live for His purposes. He also attends Hawane CLC church and participates in community outreach.

When I hear stories like this from the lives of the Swazi people I work with my heart is touched and I find myself praising God for showing up in people's lives as only He can do. As Sibosiso encouraged us this morning people may have disqualified you or discarded you but God wants to use you. There's no limit to what God can do in and through one life!

Some highlights from the last few weeks serving in Swaziland...

During a recent trip to the government hospital to visit those who are sick, I had the privilege of leading 2 girls who accepted Jesus & decided to begin a relationship with God. Both girls shared that they had never heard of Jesus before. We (myself and the Teen Challenge Ministry Institute students I work with) found Nosippo, a 12-year-old girl who was suffering from severe malnutrition, laying on the dirty hospital floor with just a towel over half of her body. Her eyes with empty of hope as she shared that her family experiences poverty and often doesn't have enough food. After she listened to the gospel - how God loves her SO much and has a purpose for her life- and prayed, inviting Christ into her heart, she was smiling and reading the Bible we gave her. She's such a precious girl and a future leader in Swaziland.

The TCMI student ministry team and I at the hospital (rules prohibit pictures being taken inside)




Lavumisa, Swaziland -Last week I spent 3 days in Lavumisa, the location of the ministry's newest church plant and orphan homes. I was asked to accompany a Teen Challenge missions team that was here from Oklahoma. This team was from a girls' adolescent Teen Challenge, a drug treatment center. It was a joy to serve them in practical ways (cooking meals, praying, accompanying them in the community) during there time here. Our 3 days in Lavumisa was complete with powerful times of worship and prayer for this village with the highest rate of HIV infection in the world, visits to community members' homesteads for encouragement and prayer, and taking outdoor showers inside a shack made of tarps :) We even had a little visitor one night - a rat that had made it's way out of the team leader's mattress during the middle of night to make an appearance. :) TIA - "This is Africa" is a common saying here among missionaries...

An old
bridge at Lavumisa
(community members walk across this daily)

Me on the bridge (walking across is a little scary, tests your faith:)

The Teen Challenge Oklahoma Team and I (we all made it across!)

Building the orphan homes by the church (using sand bags)

Our youngest little helper

ok.. youngest AND cutest volunteerVisiting homesteads in Lavumisa

homestead visit with the team
children playing in the river at Lavumisa (it's super hot there, not surprising to have temps over 100 degrees F)
Support volunteers and I with Pastor Sabelo
CLC Lavumisa

I'm honored to be involved in assisting in leading the women's Bible study at Hawane CLC Church. Many women from the rural community walk far distances to attend this meeting every Tuesday morning. It's exciting for me to see them growing in their faith and in their handling the Word. Now, some have even begin to preach to us, sharing the message! Praise God! Jesus told us to make disciples of all nations, including teaching them to obey everything he commanded. What a blessing to see this happening before my eyes!


THANK YOU for making a difference through your prayers, encouragement, and support! Together we are making disciples in Swaziland and seeing people's lives by changed through God's power!