Ministry!!!

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After spending a few days getting to know our way around
Jeffreys Bay and getting settled in with the thing we need, we finally found
out where we will be spending our ministry time from now until December. We
were giving a list of 9 choices and asked to number them in order of
preference. I prayed about it and talked to the leaders over the weekend and
felt like I knew where I wanted to minister. I got my first choice, so I’ll be
spending the majority of my ministry time split between Algoa Frail Care Center
and a crèche (daycare) in Humandorp (a
small town just outside of Jeffreys Bay).

The Algoa Frail Care Center is a center for children with
disabilities about an hour outside of Jeffreys Bay. They serve about 200
children with disabilities like cerebral palsy, mental retardation, physical
deformities, and other things. First we spoke to Daniel from Algoa about the
center and what we will be doing. Daniel has a small workshop right next door
to our house in Jbay where he makes special chairs, walkers, tables and
strollers to help improve the functionality of the children at Algoa. He said
that our group of four girls who will be ministering at Algoa is an answer to
his prayers. The children’s basic needs are taken care of the by the nurses but
there just isn’t enough manpower to provide for the spiritual, emotional, and
social needs of the children. He has worked with children with disabilities for
many years and has struggled with asking questions like why would God allow
disabilities? What is their purpose? Can they know God? And He gave us insight
into a couple of things he’s learned. One is that people are created to have a
body, mind, and soul. Even if someone has a mental and/or physical disability,
they still have a soul. Along those same lines, just because it may be
extremely difficult for us to communicate with people with disabilities,
doesn’t mean God can’t communicate with them. He believes that they too can
have a relationship with God, because God speaks to the soul. These are things
I’ve never thought about before. I’ve always been interested in the disabled
population, and I fully believe that it will be really difficult to minister
there. I would love to be able to bring my guitar and use music to minister to
the children and their caretakers.

The next day we got to go to the Algoa center! We only spent
about an hour there. We saw lots of the kids and words cannot describe them.
They are so frail, they are so disabled, but they are so so so beautiful. I
tried to go up to as many as I could to hold their hand, smile and look into
their shining eyes. Many of them smiled back with big, beautiful smiles and it
brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it. I can’t wait to start working
there. But we won’t be able to start until October 1^st. Pray for my
ministry here! God has already given me a heart for this place, but I pray that
He will give me a vision of how I can be His hands and feet here.

The second ministry I will be involved in is a small daycare
center in a town called Humandorp. Virginia is the name of the lady who started
this crèche from her house. She is a small woman with a big smile and a big
heart who turns 60 in November. The crèche is only one room and Virginia takes
care of only 5 or 6 babies from newborns to age 2 every day while the parents
are at work. Last year the AIM team helped her completely make-over the room.
They fixed the roof, put in insulation, painted the inside and outside, provide
new toys, and built small beds that are attached to the wall. Virginia mainly needs
help with every day chores like washing the linens, fixing things around the
building, and feeding and washing the babies. But hopefully by working here we
will get the opportunity to meet and build relationships with the families who
bring their children here. It will be a good way to share the light of God with
this little township. Not to mention, these babies are absolutely adorable!

I’m so excited to get started in these ministries. I
really can’t wait to see what God does through all of this. Be praying for the
people I will meet in these two unique ministries and that God will prepare my
heart for the challenges to come!