I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas...

because that's the closest I'll get to snow this year! Yep - it's my first Christmas away from the cold and snow most of us associate with this time of year. But hey - I'm not complaining - I'm gonna be spending Christmas by the pool! As I write, I've just arrived at the home of Sue, Doug, Vicky and Bryce Reed, a family I met during outreach in a lovely little place called Tzaneen in the northern part of South Africa. They live on a HUGE prickly pear farm, where they export hundreds of thousands of tasty pink and yellow fruits all over the world, including Canada! But that's not all they have on the farm - we drove around in a "bakkie"(truck) this evening, where I saw goats, chickens, ostriches, cows, dogs(and puppies!), and wild animals - monkeys, kudu, impalas, fish eagles(similar to bald eagles), warthogs - the list just goes on and on! It feels like Africa.

How was outreach?
So enough about Christmas - I have at least three months of catching up to do! Friends, I've just had the most amazing experiences on "outreach" - the latter part of the two-phase Discipleship Training School I staffed with YWAM(Youth With A Mission). First, let me introduce you to my team.

First we have my partner in crime, Billy, a crazy coloured South African who loves working up a crowd and singing at all times - Gabi, an energetic white South African who loves people and exploring, Bertine, a very practical and very dry-humored Dutchie, and Tony, a talented musician and prayer warrior from England. I'll let you figure out who's who in the photo! We spent three months together spreading the love of Jesus - we traveled around northern South Africa during the first month, where we ministered at HIV clinics, prisons, orphanages, elementary schools and highschools. We grew as a team and spent time praying for our main destination, a beautiful island in the south of Brazil called Florianopolis. We spent five weeks there partnering with a local Calvary Chapel church, where we were involved in leading worship, cleaning, painting, and working at a group foster home. We were very fortunate to have our own house during our time there, which we took full advantage of. Every night our challenge was to bring someone new home for supper. Though slow-going at first, by the end of the second week we didn't even need to invite people over - they just showed up! There was always plenty of food for all, accompanied by good conversations and live music. I have so many stories I could share with you - but one in particular was by far one of the most exciting things to happen to me as a missionary. We made friends with a Brazilian guy named Nuni at a wedding about halfway through our time in Florianopolis. We invited him to hang out some time with us, and he told us that he would love to come and jam, but that he wasn't into religion. We had no problem with that, and Nuni started hanging out with us. To cut a very long story short, by the end of the two weeks we knew Nuni, he had decided on his own to follow Christ, and we were able to share so much of our faith with him. The way God transformed his life in such a short time was one of the most amazing and powerful things I've ever experienced! What's incredible is that he's currently surrounded with friends that can continue to disciple him and encourage him in his new walk with Christ. It was hard for us to leave at such a pivotal point in his life - but we knew we could trust God to bring the right people along Nuni's path. I can't wait to get into the details of this story and so many others with you the next time we meet.

When we arrived back in South Africa, we attended a week long conference called Nations to Nations with many YWAM bases from South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. It was a wonderful time of refreshment and inspiration before we headed into our final stretch of ministry. We spent ten days working at Wakkerstroom Wes, an elementary school in a town called Ashton, smack dab in the middle of South Africa's famous vineyards.
Most of the students were children of oppressed farm workers, a situation with a whole story of its own. Tony taught an entire grade six class a three-part arrangement of a beautiful song called "Something Inside So Strong" that sounded absolutely beautiful by the end of the week. I asked Mikayla, one of the students in that class, if she enjoyed learning the song. She seemed hesitant as she tried to express herself. "Yes..." she began, "it was... what is the word... inspirational?" It was amazing to see the students take it so seriously and try their best. So many of these children are expected to remain on the farms they grew up on to provide cheap labour for the farmers. By attending Wakkerstroom Wes, these children are encouraged to dream big and to break away from what can be a very oppressive farm life. I was honored to be a part of it, even if only for a week.

To make a long story longer...

Leading the outreach was better than I ever could have imagined. God was so faithful in providing everything we needed, even in and especially in the hard times - being robbed in Brazil, damaging a vehicle, running out of gas in the middle of a busy highway, being short on money - and He truly deserves the glory. Our team grew together and as individuals. We developed solid friendships within our team - we were really like a family. We shared everything with each other and supported each other. My leadership skills were greatly improved, and not a day went by that I didn't learn something - whether it was about life, God, people, or areas of need. I am extremely grateful to have had this incredible opportunity.

Coming up soon...
After my lovely holiday in Tzaneen, I'm heading to my final South African destination - a hot and muggy city called Durban, where I'll be spending two months volunteering with a church program that focuses on youth at risk. Two of my students, Tony and Keiko, will be joining me and I'm very excited for this new chapter. Can't wait to tell you about it.

Tchau for now
Friends, my prayer for you this Christmas season is that you will really experience the love of God through the amazing thing He did for us a couple thousand years ago. What a mighty God we serve. Thank you for your support, your emails, your prayers, and for your friendship. I am truly thankful for you and constantly thinking of you.

All my love,

Lindsay