Words can't even begin to adequately
describe all that I have experienced over the past week. There have
been ups and downs, laughter and tears, learning and growing. God has
been good, and I am amazed at all He is doing.
Last week was orientation, so this week
we started into the full schedule and our classroom teaching. The
topic was “Praise and Worship as a Lifestyle”, and I learned so
much. Worship is not just about songs or the time we sit in church,
it's how we as Christians are to live our lives. It is our response
to what Christ has done for us...He gave His all for us, so how can
we do any less than give Him our everything? Really, worship is not
about us at all, it's about glorifying and honoring God. I could go
on and on about what God taught me, because this isn't even
scratching the surface...
One thing that is so amazing is our
times of worship and prayer together as a group. There are at least 5
different nationalities, and many are praising God in their native
language. Even though I can't understand all that is being said,
there is a sense of unity because everyone is praising God. It is
amazing how only GOD can unite so many different people who have
different personalities and are from different locations for a common
goal. I feel that this week we have become not only a closer team,
but more like a family, and Christ is working in some wonderful ways.
On Wednesday I hit a point of really
missing my family, and I just wanted to see them again. I was blessed
by the support and love of Learmy amazing new sisters (love these
girls!), and God also used His Word to speak to me in a pretty
powerful way. As I was working through this time of homesickness, my
Bible literally fell open to Psalms 103, and verse 5 seemed to jump
off the page, “[God] satisfies your desires with good things so
that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.” God really used this
verse to remind me that He knows my desires, and He wants to satisfy
those longings with good things. Many times the things that I
want aren't what God knows is really best for me. In that moment I
had wanted to be with family, but that isn't what would be best for
me because right now God has called me to be in South Africa. He
wants to satisfy my desires with HIS amazing, unconditional,
never-ending love. He is giving me the strength I need for each day,
and I'm feeling more and more at home here every day.
On Thursday we got to help out at the
feeding program in the neighboring community of Dwaleni for the first
time. It was an amazing experience, and I loved having the
opportunity to play with the kids, help serve the meal, and help wash
dishes while talking with some of the youth that volunteer their
time. I held more kids than I can count, got (and gave) a ton of
hugs, saw so many beautiful smiles, and a few of the girls even did
my hair. I admire the local ladies who started this feeding program
and who continue to show so much love and dedication to these
children week after week. It was truly a joy to get to serve along
side them.
Today was long, but it was also really
neat. The DTS students all went to one of the local churches, which
is the same one that I have gone to the past two Sundays. Afterwards,
each of us was paired up with one of the local youth that was close
to our age, and then we spent the afternoon getting to know them and
building relationships. We will be doing this every Sunday afternoon
with the same person. We walked with them to their homes for lunch,
and then later walked back to the church for a time of teaching all
together (both DTS students and local youth). I was paired with a
sweet girl named Loraine, and I really look forward to getting to
know her better! I am so excited about this opportunity to get to
know a girl from the area who is close to my age, has so many goals
for the future, and shares in my love for the Lord.
For those of you who are still kind of
unsure of how a DTS runs or what I'm doing each day, the first three
months consist classes (taught by different teachers each week, most
of which are flown in from various locations), daily work duties,
book reading assignments, lots of time alone with God, learning to
become a team and family, local outreach, and training for our longer
outreach period. Classes run Monday through Friday, Saturdays are
free, and on Sundays we have church, time to build relationships with
youth from the area, and community night with everyone from the TTH
base. The last 2 months is where we put all that God has taught us
into practice by doing outreach in another country. I'm quite excited
because we will find out where that location is at this coming
Friday!
Yes, parts of this week have been
difficult, but I could honestly say in a heartbeat that I am so happy
to be here. I'm at the point where I miss my family, but can't
imagine NOT being here for this time. God is working in some pretty
amazing ways, and I am looking forward to how He will continue to
work. To GOD ALONE be the glory!
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| This is Christian, one of my buddies on the base |
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| This is where I go when I need some silence or alone time with God. The sunrise is gorgeous from this location! |
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| This is the local church that we attend on Sundays |
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| I'll finish off the post with a photo of these cute lil' guys...they like to hang around in the trees that border the base | |
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