Rock Harbor South Africa

Mykl here, writing after our last day of leadership camp with the Bridges kids. It's been a week filled with not just fun, but also many challenges and life changing experiences not only I, but the team has encountered as well. I have to be honest, through out the week I found myself asking God why He sent me to South Africa to be His hands and feet, there had been moments when I really questioned if I was really making a difference in these kids lives, and what God was thinking when He chose me to god here.

The last two days, especially last night and this morning, really made it clear that God was not only working in me, but also through me to reach these kids. Although I may not have connected and made an impact in every one of those kids life. I realized this morning that if I could just make a difference in just one or two, and just show these kids the love and honor they deserve, that THAT was my purpose, that is why God brought me here.

This morning I had the 8th grade girls for my devotional group and for my Relationship/Sex class. I'm not going to lie I was pretty intimidated all week thinking of how I was going to approach such a sensitive and touchy subject to a handful of 12-14 year old girls. With much prayer and patience, I have to say that I was surprised and had my best morning/class yet! There was so many questions, so much openness and honesty, I really couldn't believe how smoothly and beneficial it turned out to be. These 8th grade girls are incredible! I was amazed with the honesty, grace, and intelligence these young girls brought. Between Nwabisa and Nontundo reciting scripture, to the other girls telling me that they want to be lawyers and journalists when they grow up, I really did not want to leave that moment and at that point I felt like I was right where I was supposed to be:)

I am looking forward to the rest of the week with the OVC kids and more relationship bonding with the team and the kids:) Love you mom and family! :)

*~*~*

Jared Here:

Today was the end of a very long, exciting, tiring, and encouraging week. The reason I signed up for this trip was because I wanted God to stretch me and boy has he done that. When I signed up I had no idea what we would be doing... I imagined us playing soccer and doing some sort of manual labor, which was fine by me. Something you should know about me is that I hate teaching and I think my least favorite age group is Junior High/High School. Of course... the entire week is focused around teaching Junior High and High School. God sure does have a sense of humor sometimes. All that being said I was pretty nervous coming into my first classes where we would be talking about Integrity.

Obviously, this is exactly where God wanted me. I was completely out of my element, uncomfortable, and forced to rely on him and it was in this dependent state that I got to see God really work. The classes all went so smoothly and it was such a great opportunity to talk about the issues these children are facing, which are heart breaking. I got asked some questions (from 8th graders) like "If I prayed for my Mom who was sick and she died, does that mean God doesn't hear my prayers?" Another tough one was, "If God knew who would follow him all along, why didn't he just sort us out in the beginning?" I think my favorite group, if I had to pick one, is the 8th graders because of their raw honesty. They just say what's on their minds. I asked the group if they believed that God answered prayer and one girl very bluntly said "no". When I asked why, she said simply because God had never answered a prayer of hers. While none of these questions were easy to answer or talk about it was so refreshing to hear such honest questions about our faith.

It's so encouraging for me to see that in the face of hardship, these kids still have such joy and happiness. Last night was our Talent Show night and our leaders told us we all needed to participate. Having no talent show worthy talents, I scrambled with Nicole to learn a dance that one of the students, Yanga had been showing us earlier. Well I had no idea how serious the talent pool was here and as we listened to beautiful acapella songs, serious dramas, and showstopping dance moves I got a little nervous. Nicole and I nervously jumped in through the backdoor to start our routine and within the first 8 count had completely gotten out of sync and abandoned our "dance". It was kind of embarrassing, but really fun and funny and the kids really enjoyed watching us make fools of ourselves. Fortunately, my job is videographer so I control this content.

There is so much more I could say but it's getting late here and we have an early morning. God is moving in our team and in these children and it's so exciting to see. The kids went home to their townships today so please pray for their safety and that they make wise decisions.

*~*~*

Siobahnne here.

First of all, don't worry. Jared may have control of HIS video footage of he and Nicole dancing, but he doesn't have control of the rest of it. Apparently some of it has already been posted on the web by one of the couples staying here and working with the Academy (somebody look into this and find it for us, okay?).

Today was both an amazing day and a hard day. It was our last day of classes after a grueling but incredibly rewarding week. Not only have we seen these kids open up and grow, but I know each and every one of us on the Rock Harbor team has been stretched and tested and grown a little. God has worked in some crazy awesome ways here.

After lunch the kids began to gather, waiting for the cars to come and take them home. That's where it got tough! We know they aren't going back to the best situations and we just ask that you pray for them. Pray for protection, wisdom and a safe return to the academy on Monday for all of them.

All around the room kids were hugging, singing worship and praying. Some really heartfelt conversations were going on between team members and the kids as they were preparing to leave. We reminded them about making good choices, staying strong and keeping their eyes on God. It was so easy, and yet so difficult in so many ways.

The afternoon lent itself to some team bonding, including some interesting conversations with the Winery folks next door.

We are now headed to bed because we have to be up VERY early to head to catch the boat to Robin Island tomorrow. Pray for a fun and relaxing day off for us, but also pray we keep our focus on why we are here. I'm excited to learn more about the rich history of this amazing country.

Please keep the anti-Spider pray going, but add to that anti-bugs. Some of us are being eaten alive, Mykl especially, and could use a reprieve!

Also pray we remember to use sun screen if we're going to take a cat nap outside. Long story short, I have a very interesting bit of sunburn.

Pray for the CHE's and OVC kids as they come to join us Sunday. Pray for our preparation of the VBS, pray for the people involved, our team and the hearts of the kids attending.

Keep praying for good health and safety! Your prayers are working and they are much appreciated!

Also, sorry about the lack of pictures, but I'm honestly not sure if any will be posted until after we get home. Spare time has been limited and we're trying to stay off the computer as much as possible. I promise, the wait will be worth it!

Lots of love and prayer.