More Bridges of Hope Prayer Requests

I just received the latest update for prayer requests from our partner, Bridges of Hope. Please join us in praying for them for the following:

Apparently they had an Orphan and Vulnerable Children Support Group Retreat this past week, and asked the kids to write prayer requests down. Here are some of the children's prayers:


*Please God I want to say protect me in my life and keep me very healthy because my health is not good.

*I want to have a good relationship with God.

*I want to pass at school.

Please continue to pray that God will clearly guide Mountain Life Church as they seek to partner with Bridges in a significant way in the coming years.

Also, Please pray for Susan as she travels back to the US today and tomorrow and for the health and safety of our ministry team and friends in Philippi, Lower Crossroads, Sweet Home, Samora, Franschhoek and Swaziland.

Thanks, folks!

It is absolutely crazy to think about, but our trip is now less than a month away! Our training sessions have been absolutely amazing, and it is inspiring to see how God has been bonding our team together as a family. 

In addition, we have been working on our soccer skills (thanks to our great coach and team member Mitch) and learning some dance moves for a talent show with the students we will be working with as we're there. (Props to Jessica for choreographing and demonstrating boundless amounts of patience as we learn.)  

Here is a video of our "mad skillz."

In our past training we had a guest speaker impart a ton of information about HIV/AIDs upon us, and gave us time to have a little Q&A, which was awesome. Knowledge is power, right?

As we're preparing to head out and GO, please keep us in your prayers. Several of our teammates are beginning to feel the sting of the enemy's attack (as we know, doing God's work is like putting a huge target for attack on your back.) So please be praying for safety and protection. Furthermore, that His hand would be upon us each and that we would hear His voice much louder than that of the enemy.

Our fundraising is doing great, but some folks could still use support, so please also be in prayer for that.

And lastly, be in prayer for those who will be impacted by our visit in South Africa. Be praying for our partners, Bridges of Hope. Here are some ways that they've listed in their email bulletin that they could use your prayer:

"Please pray for Susan Wadley while she is in South Africa meeting with staff, board, leaders and as she hosts the team from Mountain Life Church from Park City, Utah.

Pray for the team as they adjust to the 9 hour time change, prepare for the Orphan Retreat and catch a vision for all that God is doing through the ministry of Bridges of Hope there.

Pray that God will clearly guide Mountain Life Church as they seek to partner with Bridges in a significant way in the coming years. 

Please pray for the health and safety of our ministry team and friends in Philippi, Lower Crossroads, Sweet Home, Samora, Franschhoek and Swaziland."

Thanks!

Powerhouse Church in Watts

Hey readers!

Sorry, first off, for the lag in the updates. (But we're back and that's all that really matters, right?)

As many of you may have heard, several weeks ago we had the chance to go alongside Powerhouse Church in Watts to serve, worship, and build community, and love on the folks in that area. Some of us served in their children's program, while others hit the streets to network with those living in surrounding areas and invite them to the church service. 

It was an incredible time for our team to come together and serve with one another. It was especially exciting to see each of the ways God has individually gifted each person on this team. 

Here are some photos:

Some dancing went down during worship.

Serving some food for lunch--with enthusiasm. 

The RH South Africa team with Powerhouse. 

I think that in many ways serving together made each of us a little more anxious and excited to jump on that plane and head for South Africa. 

Thank you to all of you have been continually praying and following our journey. We appreciate your support and love.

Hope and Fear over Zuma presidency

This article was linked in Dennis' latest prayer update for Bridges of Hope.

Hope and Fear over Zuma Presidency
source: http://www.capeargus.co.za/

Cape Town (South Africa) - ANC President Jacob Zuma, who will within a few days be the country's president, is suing the Guardian newspaper and writer Simon Jenkins for a column saying South Africa should get used to Zuma's style of government - "morally contaminated, administratively chaotic and corrupt" and also - perhaps most legally damaging for Jenkins - calling him a "rapist" perhaps without realising he had been cleared by a court of the charges.

By Cape Argus (South Africa) | 04.20.2009

Perhaps Zuma's lawyers missed the article in the Daily Mail by Peter Hitchens asking British readers to imagine their feelings if their prime minister Gordon Brown "opened and closed his election rallies by bursting into a song called Bring Me My Machine Gun, swaying and jigging to the hypnotic chorus of this menacing ditty", also that Zuma was "alleged to be taking campaign money from Colonel Gaddafi; faced 783 counts of fraud, racketeering, tax evasion and corruption".

"If you can picture all this happening here, then you have an inkling of the horrible process South Africa is now going through. Except it is much, much worse."

Hitchens noted concerns that South Africa would "rapidly become a lawless kleptocracy when he comes to power, which he will do after a hopelessly one-sided and rather crooked election."

But not all the international commentary on Zuma becoming the next president is so gloomy, even in Britain, where criticism has generally been much harsher than in the US or elsewhere.

The Economist's latest editorial is balanced and hopeful, urging Zuma to "confound us all" and advising that "If Jacob Zuma avoids becoming a caricature of African leadership, he could change the whole continent for the better".

The journal lists Zuma's good points, calling him "undoubtedly a man of remarkable qualities," including the ability "in contrast to his dour predecessor, Thabo Mbeki [to] charm the birds out of the trees. Unlike the racially twitchy Mr Mbeki, he feels good in his skin, happy to acknowledge, even celebrate, his modest background".

continued...

Pray for leadership, wisdom, compassion and humility for Jacob Zuma

Training # 3

We had training #3 for the July/August 2009 trip yesterday. Fund raising looks like it is going well and the team is really starting to bond. We spent time in prayer and worship and covered a great devotional on spiritual warfare. We then talked about testimonies and defining moments and everyone will be sharing theirs with the rest of the group over the coming weeks. These are good preparation and used often when meeting new people in a new culture so we like everyone to have one ready. We also learned more about how to create a lesson plan since some of our work could include teaching classes at the Bridges Academy. We did a "River Crossing" skit which is and early CHE lesson to discuss the difference between relief and development.

Dennis Wadley came and spoke to the whole team about Bridges of Hope and the model they have used (CHE - lifewind.org) in transforming Phillipe and what we have started in Sweet Home. It is always amazing to see how far they have come and how much more is possible.

The next training is a service day in Watts with Watt's Powerhouse Church. Serving there is always amazing and we really enjoy Pastor Todd Grant.

These are the two memory verses for the week.

1 Peter 5:8,9
Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

James 4:7,8
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you.

Sweet Home using Google Earth

I found Sweet Home using Google Earth. Here is the image.


If you would like to use Google Earth to explore Sweet Home yourself, I created a kmz file which you should be able to open after you have installed Google Earth.

The pin in the picture is placed on the corner of the shipping container that is used as the creche (pre-school). If you follow the direction of the pin you will see a tree. That tree is the tree behind Joy in the picture from the previous post. The line of toilets extends from the tree and you can see some empty space behind them. That would be the location of the Church plant if our information is correct.

Church plant in Sweet Home

We've been hearing for a while about a church plant going on in Sweet Home. We asked for more information and this is what we received from Lisa.

No solid info. I know it's going to be located right next to the area you guys worked in before, like behind those toilets. It's not really very connected to Bridges b/c the church that is planting it is from another community, not philippi. But the CHE Champion heading this up is named Joy. So that's about all I know, they haven't started building it yet though. SH seriously NEEDs a church though, pray with us!

We met Joy on our first visit into Sweet Home and he was amazing. This is one of my favorite pictures from that entire trip. He is one of the people I remember most from that trip. In this picture, Joy is playing Fire On The Mountain with the kids at the creche (preschool). Behind him is the exact spot that Lisa mentioned in her message.

Sewing Business

We received another update from the Sweet Home sewing business. This is a picture of
Nowethu and Nolutando making bags for the academy gift shop.

Sewing micro-business in Sweet Home

This was in the Bridges Of Hope update for today.

Thank God for the successful launch of the sewing micro-business in Sweet Home. Ask God to bless the ladies as they begin selling the goods that they are making.

Ask God to multiply the vision for micro-businesses and to bring financial success to the people throughout the townships in the Cape Flats.

Please pray for Thobeka and Nowethu as they develop their sewing micro-business in Sweet Home.

First Team Training

We had our first team training for the July/August team today. It looks like it's going to be a great team.

Here is the memory verses to have memorized for the next training.

"If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. For how then will it be known that Your people and I have found grace in Your sight, except that You go with us? So we shale be separate, Your people and I, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth." NKJV - Exodus 33:15,16

Bridges Of Hope Mailing List

As we discussed in training on Sunday, there is a very informative weekly and daily e-mail list that Dennis sends out. Please sign up for it here.

http://www.bridgesworldwide.org/page.php/9

Required Vaccinations

The best place to get vaccinations is the Orange County Health Care Clinic. Here is a document with all the information on travel vaccinations. Call early as you will require an appointment and they sometimes require a booking a month in advance.

Travelers Clinic in Fountain Valley is a great doctor that specializes in travel vaccinations.

Here is the CDC list of required vaccinations from their website.

Vaccination or Disease	Recommendations or Requirements for Vaccine-Preventable Diseases
Routine	Recommended if you are not up-to-date with routine shots such as, measles/mumps/rubella (MMR) vaccine, diphtheria/pertussis/tetanus (DPT) vaccine, etc.
Hepatitis A or immune globulin (IG)	Recommended for all unvaccinated people traveling to or working in countries with an intermediate or high level of hepatitis A virus infection where exposure might occur through food or water. Cases of travel-related hepatitis A can also occur in travelers to developing countries with "standard" tourist itineraries, accommodations, and food consumption behaviors.
Hepatitis B	Recommended for all unvaccinated persons traveling to or working in countries with intermediate to high levels of endemic HBV transmission (see map) and who might be exposed to blood or body fluids, have sexual contact with the local population, or be exposed through medical treatment, such as for an accident, and for all adults requesting protection from HBV infection.
Typhoid	Recommended for all unvaccinated people traveling to or working in Southern Africa, especially if visiting smaller cities, villages, or rural areas and staying with friends or relatives where exposure might occur through food or water.
Rabies	Not recommended at this time because the expense if you get biten by a strange dog is the same if you are vaccinated or not. If you are bitten by an animal, please see your doctor immediately.
Polio	Recommended for adult travelers who have received a primary series with either inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) or oral polio vaccine (OPV). They should receive another dose of IPV before departure.
Malaria	We will not require Malaria medication for the Cape Town trip. If you are planning other travels, there is a malaria advisory for other parts of South Africa. If you will be visiting a malaria risk area in South Africa, you will need to take one of the following antimalarial drugs: atovaquone/proguanil, doxycycline, or mefloquine (primaquine in special circumstances and only after G6PD testing). Note: ROCKHarbor does not allow the user of Mefloquine on missions trips. There have been incidents in the past with side effects. Note: Chloroquine is NOT an effective antimalarial drug in South Africa and should not be taken to prevent malaria in this region. Malaria risk area in South Africa: Risk exists in the low-altitude areas of the Mpumalanga Province, Northern Province (Limpopo), and northeastern Kwa- Zulu-Natal as far south as the Tugela River. Risk in Kruger National Park.

Africa Prayer Night

Don't forget about our Africa prayer night on Wednesday 3/11 from 8pm-9pm in the RH library. We will be joining the Uganda team for our monthly prayer night.

Sweet Home Update

This was an update from Bridges Of Hope.

Please pray for Sisanda as she recruits and trains more Community Health Evangelists (CHE's) this year.

Please pray for Khuselwa, a 13 year old girl who is facing a personal crisis.

Pray for this weeks CHE Training Lessons: Worms and Praying for others.

Below is a picture of some of the Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Sweet Home:

Sewing Business Underway in Sweet Home!!

This was in an update from Bridges Of Hope.

Please pray the women of Sweet Home who purchased their own sewing machine and have launched their Micro-Business! The second picture is Noluthando holding up the receipt. Please pray for Noluthando, Nowethu, Nozuko and Thobeka who are all employed now and are putting their business plan into action. Please pray for success and for God's protection on their new asset and business.

Please pray for Nosizile, one of the Sweet Home Committee Members who has been sick and for Chumani, who has a problem with alcohol abuse.

Please pray for this family as they are grieving and in a very though spot. Pray that the Community Health Evangelists in Philippi will know how to best assist this family.

About Our Partnership with Bridges Of Hope

Our partnership with Bridges Of Hope started in 2007 when a 9 member core team was created and went on a scouting trip to South Africa and Namibia. We landed with Bridges Of Hope and adopted the township of Sweet Home. In 2008 we had two teams visit in July and December.

The Bridges Of Hope ministry is built around a CHE (Community Health Evangelist) program developed by LifeWind. When adopting a community, Bridges searches for leaders to become CHEs. After training, these CHEs go on home visits and give spiritual and physical lessons. They also create a list of "felt needs" for the community which is the list that Bridges Of Hope and ROCKHarbor work on when coming alongside the leaders in the community. Bridges Of Hope has a strong desire to work on development as a long term goal and relief only to support short term needs. Here is an official description of Philippe from the Bridges Of Hope website.

The original community which was adopted by Bridges Of Hope in Cape Flats is called Phillipe. The church of St. Paul, once a small metal building is now a beautiful brick structure and a center piece of the community.

In 2009 we are again planning on sending two separate teams, one in July/August and one in December.

Summer Team Selection

We've spent the last few weeks interviewing candidates for the Summer trip and after many meetings we have selected and called the final team. If you didn't find out by today (positive or negative) then something went wrong.

If you were not selected, please don't be disappointed. There are a lot of variables that go into creating a team and it may be that you have a skill that we may need on a future team. We are working with ROCKHarbor on a program that should launch soon that will give everyone an opportunity to serve. There are a lot of events and ways to help before and after a trip and we will be announcing ways to get involved. This will also give the leaders a better opportunity to get to know potential team members well before the interview process and will help us make a more informed decision. A 30-45 minute interview is short and may not show your true heart for South Africa.

Interviews

The core team will be interviewing applicants every evening for the next two weeks. We plan on having the team chosen by the middle of February. We will call everyone we interview to tell them if they have or have not been selected for the team. This is a very difficult process as we typically receive three or four times the number of applicants as we have slots available. There are always difficult decisions at the end and we have turned away many amazing people for no other reason than there are just not enough slots. We pray a lot about our choices and try as best we can to lot God choose His team and simply work through us. If you pray, please pray that we put Him first and allow Him to guide our every move in the selection, training and during the trip.

Summer Trip Dates and Info

We are currently accepting applications for a trip in the summer.

Applications are due by February 1 and can be picked up at ROCKHarbor.

• Trip Dates:: July 24th - August 9th
• Approximate trip cost: $3500. You will be responsible for raising personal support in this amount through sending support letters and other creative ideas you come up with. The Leadership team will help you in the process and track your progress throughout our training period.
• $400 non-refundable deposit is due upon being invited to go on the team
• The trip will consist of, but not limited to, two main areas of ministry:
• Community development in our adopted township called Sweet Home where we will teach spiritual, health, and business lessons with local leaders, do home visits and hold a VBS
• Ministering to orphaned youth at an Academy through teaching academic classes, helping with homework, participating in sports and recreational activities, and building relationships
• Training Dates & Times:
• Sunday, March 8th
• Sunday, March 22 (Team Social)
  
• Sunday, April 5
• Sunday, April 19
• Sunday, May 3 (Serve day-8:30-3:00pm)
• Sunday, May 17
• Sunday, June 7
• Friday, June 19 (Team Social)
• Sunday, June 28
• Sunday, July 19

*All training sessions are mandatory and will take place from 11:00am to 2:00pm unless otherwise noted. Team social times are to be announced. Please take a look at every date and note that this is a very big time commitment, in and out of trainings.

For more information, stop by the information tables after church, or send us an e-mail to the contact listed at the right of this page.

Welcome

Welcome to the 2009 ROCKHarbor Africa blogs. We are planning two trips this year, one in the summer and one around Christmas.

Here are some links to previous trips.

This is the website for 2008: http://www.rockharborafrica2008.blogspot.com
This is the website for the scouting trip in 2007. http://www.rockharborafrica2007.blogspot.com
This is the website for Team #3 and #4. http://www.rockharborinnamibia.com/
This is the blog for Team#2. http://rockharborafricateam.blogspot.com/