As I stepped though the church door way, I was greeted by 30 brilliant smiles. I found my seat and waited for someone to announce the beginning of church. As I waited, a woman broke out in song- her voice strong and full of soul. Then, to my surprise, others began singing along with her. The room was immediately filled with the beautiful harmonies of African voices singing to our lord Jesus. ! Five people went to the front and began to worship. They didn’t have instruments but honestly, I think instruments would have distracted from the beauty of what was being sung. I understood...

  Coming to Swaziland I thought I had no expectations, or at least I knew what to expect. My team and I have only been here in Nsoko, Swaziland for a little over a week, but already whatever expectations I had have been blown away. All 21 of us live in a team building in extremely close quarters. The 16 of us girls are squeezed together in a room smaller than my bedroom back home. Our care point has a church, a preschool, a playground, and our team building, which is also used as the office space for the Adventures in Missions national staff.   Our whole team has been broken down...

At 5:30 PM Wednesday, my flight landed in Manhattan, Kansas. I had so many thoughts and emotions upon arrival. I missed my team and Swaziland, but it felt so relieving to be back on Kansas’ soil after two days of airports. I had a joyful reunion with roommates and friends, and I was so grateful for a safe journey home. Re-entry is hard. Culture shock is definitely real, and jet lag is annoying. I was so overwhelmed by the hundreds of drink options at Sonic. My first trip to the grocery store was way more emotionally intense than the average American experiences. I miss my team. I...

They say that home is where the heart is. Well if home is where the heart is, then I’m screwed, because I don’t know where to call home. There’s a quote I found shortly before I left for Swazi that captures this sentiment: “You will never be completely at home again, because part of your heart will always be elsewhere. That is the price you pay for the richness of loving people in more than one place.”    My heart is elsewhere. My heart is everywhere.  My heart is in Tashville, Nennessee. My heart is in St. Clair, Michigan. My heart is in Canada...

“Teacher, take me!” From the moment Lindsay and I step off the bus onto the dirt of our carepoint at 8:30 to the moment we get back on around 3:30, we are swarmed by children wanting to be held. Arms outstretched and big brown eyes longing for affection- you simply can’t say “no.” Never is there an inappropriate time for a child to demand, “Teacher, take me!” I am astonished with the children’s longing for my love and with the peace and joy that comes after I give it to them. I’m overwhelmed with the love I have for them. So many times I...

Africa is showering in a bucket. Africa is washing our clothes by hand. Africa is using the bathroom outside. Africa is riding in a crowded public bus everywhere we go. Africa is living with 21 other people in a tiny house. Africa is waking up to roosters and chickens at the crack of dawn. Africa is seeing dying children at the hospital and knowing there is nothing you can do but pray for them. And guess what, it’s HARD. But Africa is also worshiping around a campfire with our Siswati friends. Africa is befriending the orphans who live near our homestead and playing with them each...