Hello there. How ya doin? I’ve got all these thoughts just floating through my brain.

     Whoever said that God cares more about your character than your comfort
must have visited Swaziland. Although Swaziland continues to be one of the most
beautiful places I have ever visited, it definitely is not one of the most
comfortable places I have ever been. Please keep in mind that before this trip
I had sworn off the idea of camping, and public bathrooms were always out of
the question. Let me just paint you a picture of what daily life looks like for
us here. We have no air conditioning, we sleep in a hut, we take our showers in
a bucket, use “toilets” that require you to hold your breath before
getting within ten feet of them. Because we have a tank that holds our water,
we have to ration our showers…meaning that you’re lucky if you get to take a
shower every three days. Mind you that every day you sweat like nobody’s
business. We also shower, wash clothes, and do our dishes all out of the same
buckets. Therefore, our dishes are never completely sanitary. If you were to
look at the bushes in the back of the homestead you would see that they are
coated with a thick layer of toothpaste because we have to brush our teeth
outside with a water bottle. Easy entertainment is hard to find. Therefore, we
have come up with creative ways to pass the time when not doing ministry. One
of my new favorite pastimes is naming and keeping up with our flock of chickens
and roosters. To give you a brief summary there is Mrs. H.S. Balls, crazy
Brittany (who is bald because of constant pecking by the other chickens…I’ll
let you put together the pieces), and Chester the chicken molester. We have
also developed an interest in the game, Punch that Cow. It is actually a little
harder than you might think. So why does any of this matter? I tell you this to
say that God is showing us daily what it means to die to ourselves for the sake
of becoming more like Christ. Jesus had everything, yet he chose to take on the
skin of a man and walk in a world that was broken and hopeless without him. The
creator became the critter. What a mind-blowing concept. Being Swaziland I have
been stripped of many of the comforts that I have always taken for granted.
BUT, I am still alive and kicking! I have been abundantly blessed. I am in a
place where the sky is so clear I can see the Milky Way. I have a roof over my
head and a bed to sleep in. We live on the homestead of a 71 year old Gogo who
has the most beautiful blues eyes and who dances and sings every day in praise
of her maker. I am surrounded by a group of people from all over the United
States who share the same desire to see God do something big in Swaziland.
Multiple times a week I get to be rushed by a group of orphans and vulnerable
children who have Jesus in their smiles. Every Sunday we go to a church in town
where I am moved to tears by the worship I hear. There are no instruments, only
the most beautiful voices I have ever heard. I may not be comfortable in
Timbutini, but every day I am brought lower, I am brought closer to my Savior.