Thanksgiving in Mozambique

(Connie wants everyone to know this post is written by her husband : )).

Unlike Christmas or Easter, Thanksgiving is a uniquely American holiday. For the rest of the world, including Mozambique, Thursday, November 24 was just another weekday. The team dug irrigation ditches. I (Garry, aka Dr. Morgan) taught my Islam course. Life at Volta a Biblia went on as normal - almost.

Late morning it began to rain - hard - and went on for the rest of the day. We discovered that puddles will even form in sand if it rains hard enough. The geese that roam the school compound thought they were in heaven. Laundry that had been hung out in the morning was quickly gathered and draped inside wherever there was space. It looked like a bleak afternoon.

Connie and I are staying in a house previously occupied by a South African  missionary family that returned home several years ago. A number of girls on the team came over to the house, wearing aprons they had purchased in South Africa. Connie pulled out a few surprise items she had picked up at a supermarket in South Africa before we left. Before long the aroma of oatmeal cookies wafted from the oven of our propane stove. Then the rest of the team came over and we had coffee, tea and cookies warm from the oven. While the rain pounded down outside, we sang praise songs and gave thanks to God. Then Willem was prodded into telling a few stories, like how Volta a Biblia began (he literally built it from the ground up while living in a tent) and how he proposed to Carol (after the Land Rover got stuck hood-deep in a mud hole).

It wasn't turkey and cranberry sauce, but we were truly thankful and I expect it will be one of the more memorable Thanksgiving days for many on the team.

Journey to Mozambique

A lot of dreams came true last weekend as our team got to experience a real African safari. Our route from South Africa to Mozambique (17 hours on two buses, which included a night of “sleep”) took us near an entrance to Kruger National Park. We had booked two nights at a small Christian retreat center nearby, overlooking the Crocodile River, which lived up to its name.  On Saturday, a full day’s game drive through the park gave us glimpses of many African animals – elephants, giraffe, lions, zebras, hippos – just to name a few!  It was a perfect break before we transitioned to our next destination on Sunday.

Thankfully, the border crossing into Mozambique went smoothly and quickly, and now we are located in the southeast corner of the country in a town called Macia.  We are staying at a Bible school that trains African rural pastors, hosted by a special couple named Willem and Carol Nel.  Carol happens to be the sister of Garry Morgan, so there’s a nice family feel being here with my sister-in-law and her husband.  Willem has a number of practical projects for the Northwestern students here.  They’ve been hard at work helping to put in an irrigation system for the orange trees on the compound.  Today some students spent several hours roasting and preparing peanuts to make peanut butter, which the Bible school students sell for fund-raising.  Others walked to a nearby church to have English practice and discussions with some Mozambique young people. Before supper, there was a short class on the local Shangaan language so that our students can at least learn some basic greetings to use with the local people.  Portuguese language knowledge has also come in handy as a bridge language for some.

Life in Mozambique is much less modern and developed than South Africa, and it seems that our ICS team is enjoying getting into the rhythm of a more rural lifestyle.  They’re even getting used to starting their day at 5:00 a.m. to have morning devotions with the Bible school students, followed by shared outdoor chores with the students before breakfast.  Garry is teaching a four and half-hour per day course on Islam for the Bible school students this week, which is being translated into Shangaan.

We don’t have any easy access to internet while we’re here, so it’s more of a challenge to post blog updates, and that’s also the reason the picture downloads haven’t been working.  But be assured that everyone’s doing well, despite a few coughs and colds that come and go.

I’m sure the students will all be thinking of home a bit more on Thanksgiving.  We’ll imagine the smell of turkey in the air!  We won’t be celebrating here until the 6^th of December, which is the end of the school term.

On the Road Again! Small Group Update

Due to Internet difficulties, this post was emailed to NWC and posted Stateside.  We apologize for not being able to post the pictures at this time with the update.  Hopefully, in a few days the pictures will be added to the post. :)

Hey everyone! This is Stephanie (Morgan not Manthey) here with a brief update. Our team is no longer in Luskikisiki – we are back “home” at Sondela. Here at Sondela we are more at ease and resting. Our hosts, Barry & Louise Atkins, cook delicious food for us each day and we are so blessed to be in their care. The weather here has been sunny and breezy, so we have had a lot of time outside J Tonight we will be leaving this place we have come to love and bussing to the next phase of our journey. It will be a challenge to be on the road again, but thankfully we have gotten some rest and rejuvenation here at Sondela. Below is an update from each of our small groups – Portugal, South Africa, and Mozambique. Enjoy!

Steph Manthey: “I learned to dance filled with the joy of the spirit. I’ll show you some moves when I get back.”

Chris Vang: “Being stripped of my daily comforts, I shout for joy in knowing that every single breath is a blessing.”

Ali Gunderson: “I praise God for his grace in my life as I learn more and more everyday about Africa, about God, and about my wonderful team.”

Emily Hein: “We have gained just a glimpse into South Africa as a country by riding the buses, knowing the people and speaking in the churches. We are stretched to love people enough to share the hope of Jesus by word and example everywhere we are.”

Priscilla Martinez-Carlos: “I am becoming a woman of faith and prayer.”

South Africa has been really, really great, to say the least.

Our team misses everyone at home: family, friends and especially, Tina.

United States’ food can’t compare to South Africa’s, especially their scones.

“T.I.A.” This is Africa. And, thank you.  For your prayers.  For your thoughts. We can feel them.

Halleluyah. Maga-bong-weh. Halleluyah. Maga-bong-weh.

All the memories and friends we’ve made here will be remembered forever.

Fridays are no longer what we look forward to during the week.

Rain has never meant more to us than it does now. We bathed in it, drank it and everything in between those two.

It is possible to fall asleep with cockroaches flying off the walls and falling off ceilings.  Believe us.

Can’t wait to share our stories and pictures, though what we have experienced here couldn’t possibly be put into words or captured through images.

All of us would like to say a few things: “You deserve the best.”  Africa does get cold sometimes. You can do almost anything in a skirt, really.  No alarm clocks are needed, if the roosters don’t wake you up, the children will.  Kari is leaving her heart here in South Africa.  And, last, but not least, God is good and He has blessed us with more than what we could ask for J

Signed,

Team “South Africa” from South Africa
Evan. Kari. Erin. Pazee. (Tina, we miss you)

Greetings from the Mozambique team! In just a few short days we will be entering our final destination which is of special interest to our small group. This is a group photo that was taken at the lake that we visited a couple days ago. It was a beautiful setting for a day of relaxation and soaking up the sun as we had a braai, or a cookout. The small group has just a few thoughts to wrap up processing our time in South Africa, so here are some words from us students:

In Africa we have learned:

Chelsey- 1) Cockroaches can fly. 2) Roosters crow at ALL hours of the night. 3) God and His Word are living and active in my heart and in these people. He is mighty to save!

Dani- 1) I can do anything in a skirt. 2) Sponge baths create great team bonding. 3) Singing “I have decided to follow Jesus” with my mouth and singing it with my heart are two different things—and one is easier than the other!

Mafú- 1) The world knows what eating well is exponentially better than U.S.A-ans. Mom, I now love squash. 2) It is not necessary to know the deceased or really anyone at an African funeral in order to be seated in a place of honor and be a pallbearer—you merely need to be white, Christian, and male. 3) “Solid, lasting missionary work is done on our knees.” Preaching seven different sermons in one day takes “pray without ceasing” to the next level!

Stephanie Morgan- 1) A netti pot works wonders in clearing up sinus infections. 2) Slapping children’s hands is a common form of discipline. 3) Evangelism is key. Sharing Christ is powerful and effective—many times children become saved and later bring their families to salvation!

Sunny- 1) Showering is in fact optional. 2) The “sniff test” takes on a whole other meaning. 3) “I’ve learned to hold everything loosely because it hurts when God pries my fingers from it.” –Corrie Ten Boom

That is a small snapshot into what we are learning culturally and spiritually throughout the adventures of this trip. We appreciate the prayers and ask that you keep them coming! We are praying for those of you at home as well and are excited to see you in a few short weeks. For now though, we will fully enjoy our time in Africa. God bless.

A Week in Lusikisiki

A Week in Lusikisiki

Last Monday, our team loaded into three vehicles.  Garry and I were two of the “designated drivers” to navigate the right-hand drive vans on the left side of the roads – our years of driving the busy and rutted roads of Kenya came in handy!  In the last 10 days, we’ve covered hundreds of kilometers on a variety of road conditions.

Monday’s drive took us through beautiful countryside of rich farmlands nestled below giant cliffs and rocky peaks that opened up to our first view of the Indian Ocean, where we picnicked.  Our final destination for the week was a town in the Eastern Cape Province called Lusikisiki, where we were received by a Xhosa pastor by the name of Robert.  He and his wife and extended family welcomed this big group of gregarious Americans into their compound, vacating several rooms for us to put down our mattresses for sleeping.  We also brought a bright green and white striped vinyl tent to serve as our bath house for taking bucket baths.  The ladies of the house worked around the clock, it seemed, to serve three big hot meals to us each day and to heat up water for the bath house.  Village homes do not have indoor plumbing.  The main source of water at our hosts’ home was a tank that collected rain from the roof of their house, and not wanting to deplete their supply, each day we’d take empty water containers by car to a public water tap down the road to restock the water we were using.  By now, the ICS students are experts at using outdoor pit latrines, as well. 

It’s hard to summarize in a few words just how the week was filled.  Pastor Robert had a lot planned for us.  For example, on two of the mornings, we participated in the assemblies at both a private and public junior secondary school (kindergarten through grade 9).  We will never forget how we were greeted with joyful singing by all those hundreds of uniformed students, as they stood outside in straight rows to begin their day.  Our group did songs and skits, and afterwards was received by the teachers for refreshments and exchange of ideas about education in our two countries. 

Another day, we traveled to a village and took part in a women’s conference at a church – which was also attended by men.  The cultural challenge of this day was huge.  The students saw firsthand the effects of syncretism, where elements of the Bible were taught, but where African traditions were also deeply entrenched.  The elders and women wore special capes and robes and accessories to give them protection from evil spirits.  A candle burned on the altar, signifying the presence of the “angel” of the church, who is actually a departed ancestor.  Loud iron cymbals were beat, along with drums, as they sang.  Pastor Robert, along with our translator for the week, Dumi, had both come out of this tradition before they met Christ, and they are working to bring Biblical truth to churches like these.  Our students had a lot to process after that day’s experience.

Each day, back at Pastor Robert’s, our students were responsible for two events in another tent (a larger yellow and green vinyl canopy which sort of matched the bath house…).  This one was large enough to fit about 75 people.  The students who love to work with kids put on a children’s program for children in the area.  The program was quite popular, and the children would wait eagerly each day for it to start.

In the evening, there would be a meeting for singing, testimonies, and a message.  Each of the guys on the team got to practice homiletic skills.  Jesus was always at the center of each talk, and there were a number of young people who gave their lives to Christ during those meetings.

One young man in the church asked Pastor Robert if he would bring the foreign visitors to his mother’s house.  His mother, a widow, was a witchdoctor, and wanted prayer.  Several of the members of our group went to her house yesterday, along with Robert and Dumi, to see what she wanted prayer for.  It turned out that she had seen such a change in her two sons’ lives in recent months because of their new-found faith in Christ, that she had made up her mind to follow Jesus as well.  So she wanted to make a public profession of Christ in front of the group!  Afterward, she told the pastor that she would be removing her charms and getting rid of all of her paraphernalia. 

One surprise this week was several days of rainy weather with temperatures in the upper 50s at night. The team has pulled out their sweaters, jackets and stocking caps while they ask each other, “Are we really in Africa?” Yes, we are, but this is the rainy season.

It’s been a long and rewarding week.  Saturday, the students had a work party, spending  the morning hauling dirt in wheelbarrows and filling in the foundation of a nearby church building.  I think everyone’s ready for a rest.  Monday we head back to Sondela for a few days to regroup, wash clothes, and rest, before starting the next phase of ICS Fall 2011 – Mozambique.

A Xhosa Funeral

Going to a Xhosa funeral wasn’t on our original schedule, but some of us got to see one close-up.

Over the past weekend, our team was divided into two groups and assigned to a different Xhosa church in two villages in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa.  One group did teaching at a men’s conference.  Another group did house to house visitation with church members and helped in some church services, with Xhosa translators.  We were exposed to (and blown away by) the music that makes South Africa famous.  The beautiful  harmonies and rich voices make the whole congregation sound like a choir.  The singing was a huge part of the service, and even the children had impressive voices.

Back to the funeral.   Our host pastor had been asked to speak at the funeral of an old woman who had recently died, and he invited us to come to the funeral to experience that side of Xhosa culture.  The service took place under a huge rented tent on the woman’s home property.   About three hundred people were crowded underneath.  While the girls on the team sat on benches in the crowd, the “men” (our guys) and myself were ushered to the front, squeezing between the coffin and the front table.  We watched the proceedings within arm’s reach of the coffin.  The service, which lasted a couple of hours, was filled with remarkable singing that went on and on.  Even our Northwestern team was asked to come up and share a song.  We knew we couldn’t begin to measure up to the South African standard, but we sang with our hearts “You’re Beautiful,” which was actually pretty appropriate for a funeral.

Mafu (Mathew), our Brazilian MK who’s always ready for anything, ended up being one of the pall bearers at the end of the service.  A long procession made its way out of the tent to a nearby steep hillside where the grave had been dug.  Prayers and more songs were offered, and the coffin was lowered into the ground.  The officiating pastor gave a final word to the crowd, “And remember, our dear departed is now in heaven.  Her spirit is not here to be appeased, so do not come here to offer your sacrifices to the ancestors.”

Back to the tent we went to be served a huge meal.  Our plates were piled high with food: rice, “nqosho” (beans and maize), beef chunks, chicken, potato salad, pumpkin, beets, cabbage, and apples.  Everyone did their best to clean their plates…

Pictures from South Africa

Running with the Ball

Running With the Ball

Because we are staying on the grounds of a training center that also houses a nursery school, attachments are quickly forming between the adorable little children that come each morning, and our Northwestern students.  Some of the girls visited classrooms this morning, hoping to ?”  They observe early childhood teaching methods.  A couple of them, Sunny and Dani, were “thrown a ball,” and quickly caught the ball and ran with it.  It went like this:

They entered the classroom and were introduced to the children.  The teacher asked them, “Did you come with a lesson to teach, or should we use mine?”  Sunny and Dani were wondering what the polite answer to that would be, so they replied, “It’s better to use yours,” thinking that she would go on to teach her own lesson.   The teacher then introduced them as the” teachers for the day” and handed them her lesson plan.  She said it was a music lesson, and then showed them the sheet, which had four words on it:  “high-low; soft-loud.”  With that lesson plan in mind, they took off running, and taught the children all kinds of ways to make sounds that were high and low, and soft and loud.  They taught them do-re-mi.  They sang songs. They pulled out of their repertoire many fun and creative ways to teach their lesson objectives.  The morning session continued on until recess, and after playing with the children at recess, the teacher asked them if they would like to teach the next lesson as well.   Unfortunately, they had other things on their schedule, so they passed the ball back to the teacher.  When they later  met up with a couple of the other Northwestern students who’d visited another classroom, those girls said, “Guess who got to teach class today?”  “You, too?”

Starting tomorrow, there will be many more opportunities for the team to “run with the ball,” as they have been invited to teach (and other things) in a couple churches throughout the weekend.  Then on Monday, we will be traveling for a week’s stay in a rural setting (about three hours from Mthatha), at the invitation of a pastor there, so we may not have access to internet for a while.   We heard that there used to be an internet café in that town, and hopefully it’s still there!

First Impressions -- South Africa

Usually every couple of days or so, Garry does an informal “debrief” with our students to see how they are processing new experiences.  Last night, after our second full day in South Africa, he asked, “When did you really feel like you were in Africa?”  That was different than the first question, “What did you first notice when we landed in Johannesburg?”  There were comments like, “I love the purple trees in full bloom everywhere” (jacarandas).  “I was surprised to see that most signs are in English.”  “Most of the houses are behind locked gates.”  “I have to stop using Portuguese greetings!”

Soon after arriving, we were taken off on an afternoon tour of the city. We visited Soweto, the black African township that birthed the popular uprising against the apartheid system in the 70’s.  That, together with touring an apartheid museum, gave us a good backdrop for beginning to understand the post-apartheid climate in South Africa.

We were then whisked off to the bus depot to take a twelve-hour, overnight Greyhound bus to Mthatha, about seven hundred miles to the southeast of Johannesburg.  After arriving the next morning at our new “home” for the next couple of weeks, the answer to the original question became clear:

“I felt like I was in Africa when I saw the first early sunrise coming through the bus window…”

“…..when I looked down the hill from our dorm and saw villages below and fields with cows and goats…”

“…when I heard the clicks coming from people’s mouths as they spoke…” (in the Xhosa language)

“…when people laughed at me trying to make a click sound…”

These are only a few of the many first impressions.  As a co-leader who’s already been to Africa (although in a different part), I’m having a great time watching the students adapt to their new surroundings.  They’re mastering the art of washing clothes by hand and hanging them out to dry.  They’re learning that a “geyser” (pronounced “geezer”) is a water heater, and it runs out of water quickly, and it’s really ok to take a cold shower.  They’re learning to share their bathrooms with the nursery school children (or vice versa), because we’re staying on a compound that houses a rural preschool.  They’re learning that lunch is at “lunch time” (whenever it happens to be ready), and according to Barry, our missionary host, “You’re better off not wearing one of these things,” pointing to the watch he’s not wearing.

Learning is coming in many forms; every day has been full of its richness.

Tina's Perspective

(This special entry comes from Tina, as she processes her experience of getting sick and returning home.)

I write this post to you from my home in Minnesota. I wanted to share with everyone my perspective of my journey with the ICS trip. I returned home safely late last night after some tough weather in Philadelphia where my connecting flight was. It was a huge relief to be home in Minnesota with my family and friends.

Before all this, though, God sent me on a new journey with Him.

Two weeks before I left on the ICS trip, I had beginning symptoms of mono: a weeklong headache followed by a sore throat and fatigue. I figured it was due to all the stress of final projects and so I remained spirited and positive about going on the trip despite a bit of illness. Any ICS-er will tell you how crazy it gets the few weeks before departure!

As many of you know from other updates, my first days in Portugal were spent in different hospitals and clinics trying to get answers to my incredibly swollen lymph nodes and fatigue. When I received a final diagnosis of mono, there was a sense of relief and dread. I knew what I was dealing with now, but I didn’t know what this meant for the rest of the trip.

As the first week went on, I began to realize the gravity of my situation. Waves of anger and bitterness swept over me one afternoon and I wept with the Lord. The last 8 months of my life were spent preparing for this internship, only for me to be sick and go home? Why God? I haven’t even seen Portugal, except for the airport and the hospital! Why don’t I get to go to pastry shops and churches and learn about ministries here? What about all of the people who gave me financial support? Why is this happening to me?

I felt so alone.

And indeed, mono really isolates you! No one wants to be around you because you’re contagious, and you can’t be around people because you’re so tired all the time.

I started thinking through the meaning of being alone.

God gently whispered truth into my life about coming to Him with my hurts instead of running to other people and things. “What do you treasure most?” Now that I really was alone, I realized my gaping pain was because I was lacking deeper intimacy with God and was using people and things to get by in life. Though God did not cause my mono, He has used it to teach me the importance of treasuring Christ over anything. I was selfishly and sinfully treasuring this trip, among so many other things, more than Christ. These things were my comfort and treasure, not Christ. I felt so much guilt and cried out to God for forgiveness and wisdom as to what to do.

Be still.

“Be still and know I am God.” I don’t need to run. I can be still and know the Lord will fight my battles, and that he has forgiven me. I can have peace and liberation if I choose to be still and trust in God’s sovereignty despite any situation. I can have joy because of Christ’s love for me. Ironic. With mono, you are forced into stillness and rest. And so, I am learning the ways of stillness so that God can work in my life. Truly, I have been able to give over my bitterness and anger to God and I now have peace that is past understanding. I have such rest in the goodness, the treasure of fellowship with God.

I am reminded of Romans 8: 35; 37-39

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? … No, in all things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height or depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

And so, this blog ends with a question for all its readers: what do you treasure most?

-Tina

Hello, South Africa

(from Garry)

From southern Portugal to southern South Africa. 48 hours, two trains, two vans, two planes, two busses. You can imagine how we felt arriving in Mthatha, South Africa at 5:30 this morning. Most of us were too tired to even notice, much less appreciate, a flight on an Airbus A-380, the largest commercial airliner in the world, from Frankfurt to Johannesburg (on the inside it looks just like any other widebody aircraft, except for larger overhead bins). We thank the Lord for safe travels and endurance for the journey. Today we are recovering and learning about the plans for our two-plus weeks in this region.

We'll have more details of our last days in Portugal by the end of the week. In the meantime, we are enjoying the beautiful view from Sondela (a Xhosa word meaning "come near"), a combination training center and preschool as we catch up on sleep.