Heavy Hearts

It's a Monday night and I'm already tired, although this is mostly due to an exhausting previous week, emotionally and physically.  Sometimes it seems there aren't enough hours in a weekend to recover.  Thankfully we serve a God who is able to do far more than we could ever hope for or imagine, and His power is made perfect in our weakness.  Last week was one of the most emotionally taxing weeks we've had since we've been here and one of the most eye-opening.  But it was also one of the most affirming weeks we've had, knowing without a doubt that this is the place where we're supposed to be.

                                                     

Sive & Liyema 

 About a month after we arrived here in October, we met two kids who were new to Red Hill, Sive and Liyema, 6 and 5 years respectively.  They went away for holiday in December and we didn't see them until just before we left to come back to the States in May.  When we got back July 1st, in the middle of Holiday Club, we started  noticed Sive had peed in his pants one day at club and continued wearing the same outfit for the next week.  We saw he wore the same soiled clothes for a week. Starting on Monday the 17th, all our Red Hill kids returned to school.  All except for Sive and Liyema.  By this time, the weather was getting significantly cooler and rainier so anytime we saw these two running around, we brought them inside so they could warm up by our heater.  We told Lumka our worries and she made it a point to find out who was taking care of these kids and see if there was a reason for them wearing the same clothes for weeks on end.  It turns out these two kids have been sent by their mother from another township, Masiphumelele, to "take care" of her friend living in Red Hill who lives real close to the Living Hope Office. 

Tuesday, Sive came into teens club and cuddled up next to Claudia and told her his feet were cold and he was hungry.  It was the equivalent of 45 degrees Fahrenheit and raining, and Sive was wearing the same socks and sandals he's been wearing the last 2 weeks.  Lumka went to where they are staying and talked with their "caregiver" and gave them each some clothes that we had sorted from a donation from Living Hope.  The next day was another chilly, rainy day and we saw the brother and sister walking outside, again, not in school or cresh (daycare), but wearing a new outfit.  We brought them inside again and warmed them up, gave them some leftover bread and juice from our communion, and then found some leftovers from Phillis' kitchen and fed them a warm meal.  We also got them some boots and socks to help them keep warm this winter.

While we know this story isn't unique in the Cape Town area, or even Red Hill for that matter, we can't help but be heartbroken for these two precious kids.  One of the hardest parts of the day is leaving to come home, knowing we can cuddle up next to our heater, but not sure if these kids will have dinner on the table at night or breakfast in the morning.  There are people looking into this situation, trying to get these kids in a house where they can be given proper care - a bath, meals, blankets - but until that gets sorted out, we will continue to try and do what we can to take care of these kids.  We hope you will join us in praying that this situation will get resolved in a timely manner and these two can get into some sort of educational setting before they get set back another year in school.  Also, pray that we can discern what our role in helping is.  We wish we could just take them home where we know they'd have plenty of food and blankets and a bath, but unfortunately we can't because of liability reasons.  Maybe after we make contact with the mother, we could arrange something where we could keep them for a night a week or something, however at the moment, we will continue to pray and when an opportunity arises to meet any physical needs of theirs, we will do what we can to meet it.

In addition to this, we are starting to feel Satan start to attack some of our teens.  Following one of the best weeks we had in a bible study sense last week, this week we learned of many issues that our teens are facing.  We asked them to share some topics they struggle with and that we would see what the Bible says about these issues and some of their responses were hard to swallow.  From alcohol and drug abuse to rape to satanism, these teens have experienced far more than any 12-16 year old should even be exposed to.  But the fact they want to talk about these issues is encouraging.  "But when anything is exposed to light, it becomes visible." Ephesians 5:13.

We have gone to sleep the past week with very heavy hearts, but we also rest in the peace that we serve a God who is so BIG and loves the kids and teens of Red Hill more then we could ever imagine! We know that His perfect plan is going unravel in time. We all know the power of prayer, so thank you in advance for remembering these sweet faces and names. We are excited to watch our Father move in incredible ways!

Time At Home

Although we've been back in Cape Town for a week, it's been more than 2 months since we've posted an update on our journey, most of which was spent on a much needed furlough back in our homeland.  We were originally scheduled to depart Cape Town on May 21st, but some unknown health issues forced their hand and we opted to push our flight up 2 weeks earlier to get them sorted out.  We spent a total of 7 weeks living out of a suitcase, traveling all over the southeastern part of the US visiting friends and family, going to numerous doctors appointments, and eating all the food we'd missed over the previous 8 months.  We returned to Cape Town a week ago Friday, on June 28th, and had a weekend to gear up for the whirlwind of Holiday Club back in Red Hill with our kids and teens this past week.  But let me catch you up, briefly, on our life - doctor appointments, traveling, family, friends and eating - over the last couple of months.

The bulk of the focus of our coming back early to the USA was to figure out what had been ailing Claudia for so long.  For the better part of the 6 months prior to our departing South Africa, Claudia had been experiencing some physical problems.  There wasn't a span of 2 weeks where we she felt 100% the whole time.  Over a span of 6 months, we frequented the doctor's office 15 times and each time it seemed we were only treating the symptoms and not getting to the source.  Looking back, you'd think we would have figured out something was wrong sooner.  But oh how quickly we lose perspective when we don't understand.  I don't know if it was a fear of letting people down or not wanting to feel vulnerable, but either way, our pride told us we needed fight this battle on our own.  In May, after Claudia had missed 3 straight days in Red Hill, we decided it was best if we pushed our flight up and spent the extra 2 weeks seeing doctors, trying to figure out the source of Claudia's ailing.

After we landed in Nashville and had our "Welcome Back" meal at Cracker Barrel, we headed to Lexington in hope of finding answers.  After weeks of blood tests, a stomach scan, and a colonoscopy, we still hadn't found a definite answer to our medical questions, but we had eliminated many of the serious diseases.  While there was still a bit of unknown, we were thrilled to know it wasn't as serious as we had once thought.  After the findings of Claudia's colonoscopy, we had our first hint that it could be a food allergy, and so we scheduled an appointment with a Nutritionist/Chiropractor in Nashville.  There, Claudia had her blood drawn and tested for food, mold, and other allergies and we finally got an answer to what had been an 8 month mystery.  She is allergic to many of the foods we eat on a daily basis in Cape Town, including dairy and wheat.  Although seemingly having to adapt a new lifestyle with these allergies was a bit daunting, we were thrilled to have finally figured out what battle we are up against.  Changing our diet here has been a work in progress, but Claudia will tell you she's felt better than she has in a long time, which is such an answer to our prayer for the last 8 months.

Being back in the US was such a blessing for us.  We visited family and friends all over Kentucky and Tennessee while getting to update our supporters and host some dinner parties to tell others about our journey.  It was such a blessing and looking back at our time there, was exactly what God had planned.  While we were dealing with all the unknown, we spent 10 days, split up into 2 legs in Franklin, which is where our journey began, where our roots are.  It was while I was an intern at Rolling Hills Community Church that Claudia and I began dating.  There I went on my first overseas mission trip to the place where we would end up moving.  It was where God affirmed our calling to the kids and teens of Red Hill.  So it should have been no surprise that we would get the answers to our medical issues while we were visiting there.  Through meetings with our mentors, God brought us back to the basics of our calling and in doing so, refreshed and refueled us to come back more excited and with more purpose than when we originally moved!  

Looking back, our time spent with friends and family was invaluable.  We were blessed to have 7 weeks at home.  We were lucky to be able to celebrate both Mother's Day and Father's Day with our families.  We were able to go to Atlanta to see a Braves game.  We were both able to see one of our best friends marry the love of their lives.  We got to relax on vacation with our family to Florida.  We went to a concert and most importantly, we ate all kinds of Mexican food!  

I don't think I can properly express how much being home, surrounded by family and friends who love and support us, meant to Claudia and I, but know that I am very grateful for you.