LOVING AFRICA!

Oh wow!
Where to begin... It’s been a while since I’ve updated everyone! It’s been a crazy two weeks so you guys are going to have to cut me some slack. =) Haha. I don’t even remember where I left off.
We left Mossel Bay on October 2nd and traveled back to Bloemfontein, stayed the night there, woke up early the next morning and crossed the borders into Lesotho! (Le-soo-too). Lesotho is a tiny country inside of South Africa. The entire country is really battling poverty. Every house is made out of shutters and precious naked babies everywhere you look. It’s so heart breaking especially when you see these people as God see’s them.
When we pulled into the place that we are staying, every kid that saw white people started chasing our car and trying to jump on it, Hahah. The kids will sit there and stare at you, and as soon as you look at them they get a huge smile on there face and wave. Most kids have never seen a white person, so you can only imagine…
Haha. The place we are staying has 12 beds in one room! So we’re pretty tight. They do have hot water (such a blessing!) but no kitchen. So the food thing has been a bit of a challenge. But we have managed and God has provided, once again.
We actually aren’t doing ministry in Lesotho. We have been asked to do “research” this week. And in doing research, we are assigned to get into as many schools as we can and give a survey to the kids. The survey is given in English, there are 42 questions, yet each question has letters A-S underneath. It is SUCH a pain…because it takes over two hours to complete. The students don’t understand half the questions we are asking or half the words we say because there 1st language is Sesotho. We are really helping Book of Hope by doing this though. Because now they can make the Book of Hope in their language and Lesotho is one more country they can start spreading the gospel in. So, what we have been doing is beneficial…but it’s the farthest thing from fun.

Last Wednesday, October 7th, we drove for 5 hours trying to get into schools and every school we went to denied us. We’ve been doing a TON of driving…so last week was pretty stretching. The Lord is teaching me to do things with a servant’s heart, even when I don’t feel like it. To serve Him in and out of season, even when I don’t feel like it or when something isn’t my really my heart.

The next day! We wake up early in the morning on October 8th. We we’re supposed to pack an over night bag because we we’re driving to a school 5 hours away. But! That morning we we’re told that it was only 2 ½ hours so to leave our over night bags because we’ll just drive back home and sleep here. So, we leave our bags get in the car…and begin out journey. We we’re driving to an extremely rural area. The school was in this little village in the middle of no where. To get to this village we had to go over this mountain, and the mountain road was really steep with sharp turns. So our co-leader Ryan was driving, and most of us we’re terrified because how steep the edge of the mountain was. So we’re finally almost off the mountain and we hear something drop. Daneli goes, “Oh no! That doesn’t sound or smell good, pull off!” We pull off the side of the road and it turns out the clutch had burnt out because of the way Ryan was holding it down when we we’re going down the mountain. Of coure me and Dom are in the back cracking up…Hahah. So Daneli and our translator, Palesa, start walking to the village to see if there is anyone that can help us. The rest of us stayed there in the middle of NO WHERE. It was so Africa though! There were African people walking by on donkeys, herding sheep dressed in clothes. AFRICA! But! The mountain was really beautiful. So me, Dom and Tamara get out go in the mountain to go to the bathroom (that was an experience) and the just sit outside. It started getting really cold and then of course…started to rain! So we we’re wating and praying for Daneli to come back safely with help. A black truck pulls up and Daneli is inside it! We we’re really excited. They tie a rope to our car and pull us into the town to the school which was by the grace of God only about 7 mins. Away! We get to the school and immediately go and do the surveys. It turns out that the only mechanic in town couldn’t fix our car so they had to go back over the mountain and find another mechanic. They do, but he said he couldn’t fix the car until tomorrow. (which is funny because left our overnight bags!) So we go on a random searching spree for somewhere to sleep that night! We luckily find this little “lodge” to sleep at! They provided dinner for us too so we we’re really thankful for that! 6 girls had to squish into two beds that night. And the two boys got there own room. Didn’t sleep very well!
The next morning Daneli goes with the principal that was helping us out to find the parts for the car. The rest of us walk back to the school and hung out with the kids the entire day! We we’re there for about 8 hours…and didn’t end up leaving until 8:00 that night! We didn’t eat all day, it was freezing…and the longest day ever!!! And! Our mechanic was drunk. Finally around 7:30 someone invited us to have tea and bread. It was amazing! The to end off this insane journey! We end up having to take the mechanics back down the mountain in our car. So all 5 girls piled on top of each other in the back and rode that way for about an hour and a half in the dark! It was risky…Hahah, but hilarious and the Lord had his hand over us! It was ONE crazy adventure!!
It was really funny and a story I will tell for the rest of my life. =)

We’ve definitely had an experience in Lesotho. We we’re ready to leave but plans changed and we we’re asked to stay here for one more week. Blah. The kids here really do need Jesus in their lives though! A lot of the rural areas we’ve been to, the kids haven’t even seen a car before. I believe that God is going to use Book of Hope dramatically in this country!

The Lord has been showing up in my life over and over again this past week. I’ve been leading workouts with the girls! That has been going really good and actually a lot of fun. I finally feel like God is revealing himself to me. It’s like I’ve created such a habit to spend so much time with him daily. This journey with Him is so exciting! Having to trust God with everything I do is such a valuable lesson I’m learning. I’m so looking forward to this next year of my life. I’m beginning to become so sensitive to sin. The Lord is making me so aware of good and evil. I’m always in prayer that I will hate what God hates and love what He loves. I’m realizing that God hears our every prayer! He hears them and He works with them! The things I ask for He provides for me. We serve an incredible God! He is so protective of us and loves blessing us! He is so faithful and amazing…

I’m definitely missing South Africa! We are here till Saturday then we go to the “unknown”. I’m really excited to get back to ministry! I actually miss it! Haha. The team is doing great! We’re making so many memories and are constantly laughing. We’ve been faithful to each other in prayer and that is what is creating unity with us. God has his hand on this team and we all see Him at work. He’s breaking down walls, but in the best most sensitive way. I’m seeing who I am in the Lord. I’m seeing myself as God sees me. It takes time and I don’t have anything nailed down…but that is the interesting part about being a Christian. I still Charlee, still a mess and still make mistakes all the time and he loves me for it! He created me this way. And He wants me to be myself, and be free. And being in the will of God is the most freeing feeling we can experience!

WELL! That is my update for now! Pray that this week will fly by. October has been a challenge, but we have about 15 days left of it. Then one month till I’m home! Can you guys believe it? Time is FLYING! Thank you so much for your faithful prayers!!!!
I MISS YOU GUYS SO MUCH!!! AND I LOVE YOU EVEN MORE! Thank you for your support…I’m so happy here!
I love you I love you I love you!!!!!
Love,
Charleeeee!