girl talk, simple church & kid's camp, oh yeah!

“Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him – for this is his lot. Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work – this is a gift of God. He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.” Ecclesiastes 5:18-20

This passage really sums up my life these days. This season of outreach in Butha-Buthe, Lesotho is the most fulfilling I've ever been blessed to be part of. I wake up with such joy that I am serving my God in such a tangible way, and I am blessed in the heavenly realm with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Eph. 1:3). God has moved so powerfully in the community of Nkoeng where we are working, I can't help but skip my way through the 45 minute walk each morning, rain or shine. My love of ministering to and discipling youth girls has grown into an all-consuming passion. God has blessed me with a group of fun, hungry young women to meet with and share the word of God. Mahlalele, Ntoaski, Neheng and the others are in turn teaching me to cook over the fire, speak Sesotho, and play the games they love. As we gather together a few times each week I am amazed over and over again at the transformation God is effecting in their lives. They are receiving deep revelations from the Holy Spirit about the importance of forgiveness, power of unity, and character of Father God. Many of these girls are orphans or from very broken homes, so it's been incredible to see how God has brought together this family built on love, unity, and Jesus Christ.

In addition to the youth girls, I have had the amazing opportunity to connect with a number of widows who struggle under the burdens of lonliness, grief, and raising children without men to provide for and protect them. God moves powerfully as we listen to them share stories about their lives and pray for their needs. Inevitably he replaces their sadness with joy and their fear with peace. Many have come to know Jesus during our visits with them and we have been able to encourage them to meet together to continue learning from the Word.

As much as I love working with the girls and women, one old man has stolen my heart. Ntate Lillane is a sweet, spunky man who raises his two young sons without the help of his wife, who works in South Africa. He has suffered from TB for many years and often battles to complete his daily tasks due to his illness. However, God has done miracles in his life. He knew Jesus as his Lord and Savior when we met him, but his faith has grown so much since we started visiting him. God is healing his body and he testifies he hasn't suffered from his sickness since we prayed for him over two weeks ago. He also experienced an attack from the enemy in his dreams one night, so we prayed with him the next day and explained the battle that rages in the spiritual realm between the armies of God and Satan. When we asked him how things have been since we prayed he told us “all those bad things have gone to hell!”. I love seeing his joy and energy increase with each visit and sharing of God's word. His sons are part of the program we help Godfrey run on Saturdays and they are stealing my heart as well. A big prayer request is for the kids camp we are putting on. We will be having an overnight camp this Friday to Sunday full of games, activities, ministry in the community, and sessions aimed at building the foundations of Jesus and scripture into their lives. Please pray for wisdom as we plan and prepare for the camp. We are also trusting God for finances and people to help us. Mostly, please pray that God will prepare the hearts of the kids to encounter Jesus in a powerful way. We believe God will use the camp to speak to a lot of kids about his plan for their lives and boost the momentum of Godfrey's ministry to them. Thank you for your prayers!