Christmas Greetings

Merry Christmas, my dear reader!

I'm really grateful that I can celebrate this special day with those I love. Last year I was in Brazil, it was just after the start of my DTS outreach and the first time I'd been away from my family over my birthday and Christmas. It was also the first time I'd celebrated it Dutch style. For the Dutch, Christmas isn't as big a celebration as it is in England or in other countries.

The Kenyan Coast, the Indian Ocean none the less

The Dutch celebrate Saint Nicolas on 5 December. If I'm correct, Saint Nicolas was the patron saint of sailors, and December 5 was his birthday. On his birthday hè decided to give presents to the children of the sailors who were at sea, it spread and so the Dutch will exchange presents on Saint Nicolas's birthday every year. Here's what usually happens. A few weeks before December 5 (or the nearest weekend), everyone will write a few things they like and a few of their hobbies on a piece of paper (along with their name) and put it in a hat. Everyone will pull out some else's name from the hat. The group will have decided how much each will spend on the presents and then they'll go away get their presents and work on their riddles and how to wrap one (or all) the presents to make it look like one of the hobbies of the person it's for. After the 'game' has been played the people will try to figure out who did their surprise. Christmas doesn't usually include exchanging presents (but it depends on the family) but is celebrated in a quiet way.

This year, a dear friend of ours from Hoedspruit, provided us with the opportunity to use her timeshare with a certain resort in the town of Saint Lucia on the Kwazulu-Natal coast. The Indian Ocean in three kilometers away. We've had the most unusual Christmas we've had as a family that I can remember. Usually we will have some decoration up. This year we aren't at home so no decorations but its lovely being with the family.

After many hitches, my visa application is finally with the immigration department and I'm currently waiting to hear whether or not its been approved or not. I'm at peace inside, as I know my Heavenly Father's decision is the right one.

Blessings!

Another Hurdle, Another Lesson

The lowvelt is in bloom!

As Christmas approaches, I still don't have my Australian visa. I've been fighting discouragement, because its been such a long process and its still not finished. I'm constantly discovering that there's forms that I still need to sign, scan and send in. We're hoping and praying that it'll be submitted to the Australian department of immigration before Christmas and that I'll hear whether or not I have my visa by New Year's Eve. When I applied to do my Discipleship Training School last August, the whole application process went by so fast. I think that part of the reason behind that was because I carry a Dutch passport, which means that I don't need to apply for a visa. Getting this visa is a really hurdle for me, but God's timing is perfect and it can be quite difficult sometimes trusting that He'll bring it in at the right time. I know He will.

Two warthog mums and their babies

I must say that being down in South Africa during the summer definitely means that I'm seeing and experiencing the beauty of a hot, wet lowvelt. The rain comes down in torrents, when it does rain, and the sun sends down bolts of heat when the rain isn't falling. When the rain started, everything turned green. Also I've seen a lot of really interesting animals and insects. There's been spiders, pray mantis, dung beetles and a whole host of other creatures coming out. Having grown up in Uganda, these creatures don't bother me, but I just don't like the idea of getting stung by a scorpion, bitten by a spider or having caterpillar hairs in my fingers. I've had caterpillar hairs in my fingers has happened since I've been down here and it wasn't a very pleasant experience as I had to resort to using a knife and tape to scrape and pull all the hairs out. It was an experience I definitely won't forget in a hurry and a lesson well learnt. Don't go sticking your hands into jars, even if you can see what's at the bottom.

Hannah, the chef

Hannah's been back a few days now and is already working as one of the cooks at the place she used to work before she left for France. She's really enjoying catching up with a number of the staff, who are good friends of hers. She's been wearing her Le Cordon Bleu uniform to work, but only the cooking jacket thingy (I have no idea what the professional term for the chef's jacket is) and has spiced it up nicely (i.e. not wearing the trousers or the cap that's part of the uniform but her own stuff). She loves what she does and its great seeing some of the beautiful pieces of 'art' that she cooks up. She'd send photos of what she's cooked back to us at home. World, be warned, Hannah's food is as beautiful as it is tasty.

Caterpillar on the loose

Caleb's finished grade eight, last week, with wonderful results (we got his report card last Monday). He passed all his subjects, including the core subjects (Africaans, English and maths) with flying colours. He decided that failure isn't an option, especially for the core subjects, which if he failed he'd have to redo the year and he did not like the prospect of doing that. For me, it was astonishing to see his dedication to passing this grade. He'd been up at five in the morning, sometimes before that, to study for tests and exams, and he would spend hours, in the evening, working on assignment that were due. We're all so proud of him and what he's been able to achieve since he moved down here with my mum last year.

Do stay posted for more news on what's going on in the little town of Hoedspruit and in my life!

Learning Patience

A tortoise trekking across our garden

Sometimes God keeps confirming things to us so that we can learn something or to encourage us. God has been telling me that I need to wait on Him. Everything will fall into place at the right time, according to His will, His good and perfect plan. I just need to trust that Him, that He'll bring my visa in at the right time, because I'm not sure how long it will take for my visa to be processed. I think it may take a few weeks, but it depends on how many visa applications there are before mine. I'm praying that it comes to the top of the pile extremely fast.

Since the beginning of this month, December, I've remembered, that God, the Lord of my heart, is my vision and I need be totally focused on Him. Just like what the song "Be Thou My Vision" says. I've been listening to this song a lot over the past few weeks and in my opinion, its a very beautiful and stirring song, and is one of my favourites. It was written in honour of St. Patrick (385- 461 AD), who was one of the first missionaries to Ireland. You might have heard it before or you may not have, if not, feel free to look up the words online or search for the song on youtube. I love the song, the words are so moving, so powerful. 

Stoffel of Moholoholo Rehab Centre

Sometimes things don't always go the way we want them to, but God is at work through everything that happens in our lives. Sometimes He allows things to happen in our lives to force us out of our comfort zones, thus giving us more room to grow. Sometimes He asks us to wait, for extended periods of time before He opens the door, so that we can grow in our relationship with Him through the waiting. Its has been a difficult wait for me, because my desire is to go to where He called me, now, Australia, but the last few months, all it seems that I've been busy with is waiting on Him. I'm trusting He'll bring the Australian visa in before my South African one expires on the first day of the new year. Its been a difficult, long wait as I long to get over there, but I know that God wants me to trust Him, trust that His timing is perfect. Over the last year and a bit, a lot has happened in me and though me. I've really grown in who I am and who God made me to be. I once heard someone say that every time a person dies they become extinct. This is because there is no one else on this planet exactly like you or me. God made us all differently, all unique. Its amazing. Its been hard, but I'm finding it easier not comparing myself to others and not making my goals unachievable. I'm a perfectionist and am still in the process of learning not to let that get the better of me as it sometimes causes me to give up what I'm attempting to do because the goals I'm trying to achieve I've put out of my own reach because I want to do it perfectly right away, this is quite a big struggle when it come to my music, for example. I play the violin and I've struggled for years because I've never been able to play a piece perfectly right off. I'm learning to have grace with myself every day, in all aspects of my life (including my music).

A wild dog who also lives at Moholoholo

Since I came down to South Africa, I've been ever so thankful that we're living in such a beautiful area. Hoedspruit is situated on a main road with a number of game farms and nature reserves in the area. For those of you who don't know what a game farm is, its a plot of land where the owner will keep different types of wild animals, mainly for trophy hunting. People will pay to be able to shoot an animal. The shooting of wild animals is a controversial issue. There are those who say that its alright and others who don't agree. I'm not about to throw my oar in and say what I believe about hunting and kulling (when there's too many animals on the land and a few have to be killed as not to over populate the area they're living in). I must say that a few things have changed, for example, my favourite animal. If you'd asked me a year ago, it would have been the dog and the horse would have been tied at the top of my list. Now its honey badger and the wild dog. I still love domestic dogs and horses. However, there's nothing compared to seeing a pack of wild dogs hunting, or a honey badger jumping out of a large rubbish skip and giving everyone a shock. Honey badgers are immune to the bites of dangerous animals (scorpions and snakes). The honey badger is quite an interesting animal, so if you've got the time, search for Stoffel (photographed above) on youtube.com, there's some really funny videos of his break out attempts on there.

Also, in three days time, Hannah, my sister, is back home after six months in Paris, France. She's been at a very prestigious cooking school (Le Cordon Bleu) over there and loving every moment of her time there. She's finished two courses already, and placed in as one of the top students (I don't remember exactly, but I think it was fourth and third respectively). I'm very proud of her and can't wait for to get back.

Patiently Waiting: A Few Notes Of Interest

"Can I Come In?"

I'm still waiting on God. It seems that's He's been asking of me over the last few weeks and months, to wait on Him and His perfect timing.

Things have still been happening whilst I'm waiting on my Heavenly Father.

Its been a week since my teeth were taken out. The swelling has gone done completely. There's no sign at all that I had four teeth pulled out and I'm thankful I had barely any bruises (I had a small, light coloured one, which wasn't noticeable at all, but not nearly as bad as other people I know). I must say that its taken a bit of getting used to, having gaps in the back of my mouth (especially where where the twelve year old molar was taken out as the wisdom tooth is still sitting behind it). Also it's still taking some getting used to not being able to eat hard food, like popcorn and biltong. For those of you who don't know what biltong is, its the South African version of the American jerky, i.e. dried meat strips and, in my opinion, they're very tasty. Due to my sore mouth, I've been eating a lot of yogurt and soup, and though I'm starting to eat more fruit, I end up taking ibuprofen in the afternoons to counter the discomfort I end up feeling in the back of my lower mouth due to whatever I've eaten that has come in contact with the gaps where my teeth were.

(Clockwise from top left), the bush, a leopard
orchid blossoms, warthog piglets, and
a green tree frog

When December started, I got quite a shock at this realisation, because Christmas, and two birthdays (mine and my mum's) are fast approaching. I'll be turning twenty one just days before Christmas. It seems like the last year has flown by so fast. It seems like just yesterday I turned twenty and was enjoying life under a Brazilian sun, now I'll be enjoying life under the African sun I was born under. So much has changed since then. I'm year older and, in many ways, very different and very much changed since then.

Another big thing that's happening is that my beautiful sister, Hannah, is arriving soon in South Africa.  She's been in Paris, at one of the best cooking schools on the planet, since the beginning of June and will be spending Christmas and New Year's with us. She's arriving in nine days time and I'm really looking forwards to seeing her again. We've been roommates almost all our lives so I'm thrilled to be having my old roomie back again after so long! I've missed her a lot since she left!

I'm also still waiting for news about my visa, but I don't expect to hear from them, if I've got it or not for another few weeks. I must say that this visa process has been quite a journey of faith and trust in God, for me. Almost every time I think I've finished the whole process I hear that I need to send another form or photocopy of something in. A really journey of trust! Its the first time in my life, that I can remember, when I've not been able to get a visa at the border when getting into a country and had to send a form (and a whole load of other documents, like a stamped photocopy of my birth certificate) off before knowing if I've got it or not. I've had to trust that God would help me through this and now I'm trusting that He'll bring the visa in, at the right time.

Until next time!

Impacted Wisdom Teeth

My "Missing" Teeth

When I was about thirteen, we discovered that one of my molars (the one that usually comes in around the age of twelve) had started coming through my gum at a 90° angle to the surface of my gum and my lower jaw. So instead of coming through straight up, it went through my gum lying on its side and pushing against the tooth next to it. We decided to wait and see if it would straighten out, but over the years, instead of sorting itself out, just the problem tooth was getting more and more impacted. Not even braces would be able to salvage it. We then also discovered that the wisdom tooth of the other side of my mouth was also laying wrong, though still under the gum. We weren't sure what to do about it.

So.... A few weeks ago my mum and I went to the dentist's here in Hoedspruit to see what he suggested we do about that impacted twelve year old molar. He said that he wouldn't pull  that tooth out himself and suggested that all my wisdom teeth come to give my mouth some more room. Here in South Africa its common practice to remove wisdom teeth after students have finished their final exams, at the end of November. The doctor said that we needed to rush to get an appointment if I were to have my teeth out before the facial surgeons (the doctors who deal with this sort of things) got too busy.

The health insurance was covering it and on Sunday afternoon my parents and I travelled down to Nelspruit. We spent the night in a little guesthouse and arrived at the hospital at six o'clock yesterday morning as there were a few pieces of paper work that needed seeing to. It was the first time I was in hospital (other than for visits) since I was about a year old. I was scheduled to go into theatre (the operation room) at eight o'clock, but there was a little girl who they'd put in before me, to remove some pins out her broken elbow. So I went into theatre at just after nine o'clock. It was my first time under GA (general anaesthetic), so I'd been peppering my mum with all sort of questions for the last few days, to find some clarity, you see my mum's been trained as a nurse and midwife so has had had loads of experience in the theatre, and what I could expect.

Wearing the ice pack!

I was already drifting when they wheeled me in to theatre, I fully expected to come round without five of my teeth (all my wisdom teeth and one twelve year old molar) and I barely remember getting onto the operating table. By the time the drip was being inserted into the back of my left hand, I was well and truly out of things. I have vague recollections of going into recovery room and asking mum if the little girl with broken arm was alright. I also vaguely remembering the surgeon telling mum and papa that he'd decided to remove four teeth, and not remove the wisdom tooth behind the impacted twelve year old molar. That should move down on its own.

I slept for about two hours after the whole operation was done. My parents were absolutely amazing. They were with me through out the time I was asleep afterwards. The journey home was also an opportunity for me to sleep off the GA, so I don't remember much of the way back to Hoedspruit.

I've now got an ice pack strapped to my face, to help reduce the swelling, especially on the left side of my face. I'm on a strict diet of liquids until the wounds in my mouth have healed a bit, so for a few days. I've got a rather unflatteringly swollen face and rather sore lower jaw (though two wisdom teeth were taken out from my upper jaw as well).

The plan now is to let my mouth heal up nicely and then we're gonna see what that last remaining wisdom tooth is going to do. I may have to have a brace on to help move it down to where the impacted twelve year old molar was but we're not rushing anything.

Keep an eye out, I'll post again soon.

The Final Things

Sunset light reflected off the clouds

The last few days have been a bit of a roller coaster for me. When I got my police clearance form earlier this week, I thought I was ready to go, all I needed to do was email it to YWAM Australia. They already had my other papers. So that's what I did. On Thursday, I heard that that the Immigration Department want all the original paperwork for the visa application, because of the signatures. As well a few other things, like a certified copy of my birth certificate (this is a photocopy of the original with a few stamps from a police station saying that its an exact copy of the original) and a doctor's report saying I'm healthy, along with a signature and an official stamp.

There's now a sense of urgency involved as my South African visa expires at the beginning of next year. So on Thursday evening, my father and I went to the police station to have them certify that my photocopy of my birth certificate is identical to the original. Then yesterday evening my mother got hold of the local doctor's assistant and made an appointment for me to go in for a health check. My mum has a medical background, but the letter from the doctor needs stamping to prove its not a forge.

A warthog and her offspring

So two days after hearing that I need to send everything via DHL, I gathered all the needed documents and put them in order. They're now safely with the the curriers. It'll be send off on Monday and I'm thrilled to say that I'm a few steps closer to leaving than I was at the beginning of this week.

The process from here is that the base I'm going to be joining in Australia will send my application (when they get it) to another base, which handles all the visa applications. They'll put it into the system from there. It may take some time, depending on how many other visa applications are in line before mine. I'm praying it arrives before I need to be out of South Africa (I need to be out of South Africa by 1 January 2014). Keep posted for more news on what's happening down here.

One Step Closer!

My police clearance form (good behaviour report, as some may call it) as arrived!! After much prayer and waiting, my police clearance form arrived in the mail today. It came as a bit of a surprise, because though I was expecting it, I had been told today that it would arrive on Friday. 

The story goes, as follows:

Yesterday afternoon, my father and I went to the Hoedspruit Defence Department Building (we were refered to the Department of Defence by the officers at the police station) to talk to the lady who had sent my police clearance to ask if there was anyone we could call. She gave us a number and told us to phone first thing this morning because otherwise we'd use all our airtime waiting for someone to answer the phone or to turn the hold button off. So this morning I phoned in, not expecting it to go through or anything, but my call was answered almost right away. There was a slight thingy (I don't know what else to call it) with the fact that I'm not a South African national, as she asked for my ID number (which is a mixture of letters and numbers). When she realised the fact that she wasn't dealing with a national, she asked for the reference number instead and then told me the police clearance form had been posted and would get to the family post box by Friday.

A mother warthog feeds her young in the garden

So when my father suggested I check the post box this afternoon, I thought to myself: 'okay, but it'll the usual, empty, except for the dust'. When I opened the post box, there was my police clearance form, in a brown envelope. It was amazing for me, because I had told God that I was willing to wait as long as He wanted me to stay in Hoedspruit. If He had asked me to stay here forever, I had gotten to the place where I would have stayed. It wasn't easy because I know He called be to go to Australia, but His timing is perfect.

So its easy to say that I was thrilled. I've been praising God all day! My father and I then scanned the police clearance form, at a local printing place. When I got home I sent it through to the base I've been accepted as staff, in Australia. They'll send all my paperwork, as well as all the other needed documents, on to another base in the country. This particular base that my documents are going to handles all the visa applications for the Australian YWAM bases. They'll send it on to the right people.

The next step forwards, on my road to Australia, is getting my visa approved by the Department of Immigration. It may take a few weeks, depending on how many other applications need to be processed before mine does. Its a step forwards and I'm one step closer to heading off to the other side of the world.

So my prayer request is simple, that my visa gets approved quickly and that there isn't a long line of applications before mine.

I'll keep you posted, so watch this space!

Photo Update

One of the things I've really enjoyed doing is taking photographs of the world around me, be it with the camera on my phone or with my Nikon. Since the rains began the lowvelt has changed colour, very quickly. It was a dusty brown in colour as all the plants had retreated into themselves to survive the five months without rain. Now that summer is coming, so have the rains. The plants are blossoming and a new generation of baby animals are slowly emerging.

Here is just a sample of what I see around me.

A cactus flower

A flower, from one of my father's orchids

A skink that took temporary residence in my brother's helmet

The Lowvelt from the loft porch

The vow of the mountians

The lowvelt with the mountains as a back drop

My brother's newly acquired 'pet'.
If it stinks you, don't worry, you won't die.

One of the plants in our garden

New Life

The rains have started at the end of October, after about five months without. There is a beauty of hearing the rain on windows, the ground outside and, faintly, on the roof, as well. The thunderstorms have been really been magnificent, with lightening flashing every few moments and the thunderclaps making everyone jump. The lowvelt is full of bright colour and new life. The trees are greener than ever, and all there are new babies wondering around. There are now warthog piglets, and we're waiting to see the offspring of the large herds of impala that roam through the estate. The zebra are extremely shy and in the seven months I've been here I've only seen them twice, so I'm not sure we'll be seeing their foals (as baby zebra are called). The other animals aren't as shy as the zebras of Hoedspruit Wildlife Estate. Its lovely seeing this.

Just now, two of the female warthogs that frequent our little garden arrived with two tiny piglets. These two little piglets are extremely nervous and skittish. They ran up and down the garden, looking for their mother, at almost every sound. They kept climbing into the water troughs that we have in the garden, looking for the small amount of water at the bottom. It was quite funny to watch them. Last year, my mum said that there was a litter of warthog piglets who came into the house. They got stuck because of the sliding glass doors, which they couldn't see. The glass door was half shut and because they couldn't see it they kept walking into out and Mum says they were squeaking to get out and had to be helped. We being more careful, as we've had two baboon raids on our house since my family moved down here last year! Baboon raids are not nice to clean up, I can tell you that!

Watch this space for more news, stories and pictures! I'll post when my forms, visa and the like start coming in!

Rain, Frogs And ... Driving

The lowvelt is finally brimming with colour after an unusually long and extremely dry winter. The weather is here is different to the northern hemisphere. In Europe, the winters are freezing cold (around zero) and wet (plenty of rain and snow, in South Africa, its cold and very dry. We hadn't seen rain for five months until last week, when the thunderstorms rolled in and rain came down, heavily. It was beautiful. I love the rain, the thunder and the smell of wet earth. The summer rains started last week and with the rains the temperature has risen. Its common for the summers to be hot and wet. During the winter months the skies are very empty and very blue. Right now, with the unset of the summer there are a lot more clouds in the sky than before, even though we still get clear skies from time to time. Its still amazing to see the beautiful African displays the setting sun causes on a nightly basis. I'll really miss see the sun set over the African wilderness when I leave for Australia.

The rains have also brought out a vast amount of wildlife that had disappeared during the dry winters. These animals are mainly insects, and smaller creatures, like frogs and snakes. The frog in the picture has taken residence in my shower, which is outside the house with a wooden fence around it. I don't know how long he'll stay but I'm not planning on disturbing him as I'd much rather have him sitting where he is than a parabuthis scorpion or a violin spider, both of which are highly poisonous, in my room.

A Foam Nest Frog, A Resident of my outside shower

On December 11, Hannah will be back in South Africa, to spend Christmas with us, as well as mum's birthday and mine. I'm looking forwards to seeing her again as I haven't seen her since she left for Paris in June. She's almost finished her cooking course. She's really enjoying life in Paris and what she's doing. When I see the photographs of what she makes, my mouth waters crazily and I almost want to ask her to send the dish to me, to try, then and there. She's an incredibly talented chief and I'm very proud of her. 

I'm enjoying life at home. Its busy but quiet. I still haven't received my police clearance form as it hasn't arrived in the post, yet. I won't be able to apply for my visa without it. Its in God's hands, He wants me here for a reason. I think the reason is so that can I learn and improve the skills of housekeeping, which my parents are teaching me. I've been helping them around the house, with a lot of the house work, the cooking and the shopping.

For many people, its may come as a surprise that I can't drive. In Uganda I wasn't brave enough to learn, as the traffic in the city is chaotic and dangerous, and that doesn't explain the full potential that even the most experienced drivers may run into problems. I had no intention of running anyone over because they drove their motorbike in front of the car right at the last minute or ran behind the vehicle when I'm parking. Personally I think it was dangerous enough travelling on one of the motorbike taxis hat are the most common (though not the cheapest) from of transport through Kampala city, even with a helmet, jacket and jeans.

"Boda Bodas" Waiting At The Traffic Lights

The motorbikes are generally known as "boda boda" by Ugandan residents. The words were orginally given to the bicycle taxis, because the "mtatus" (or the 14 seater minibuses) wouldn't go all the way to the border, so people who were headed that way would shout "border, border" and over time it became "boda boda." This name was then also given to the motorbikes. It was a lot of fun travelling on them, as you see a side to Kampala that you don't see in cars. If ever you go to Uganda, beware of tourist prices! You might end up pay three or four times more than you should! I'm looking forwards to being able to drive myself around and not have to rely on others, or on the public transport system, to get me to where I need to go.

Footprints On A White Beach

Caleb is his formals

Life is like walking down a beautiful white beach, as the tide is going out. Over the blue green water, the sun rises on the eastern horizon, painting the sky different colours in a breath taking and awe inspiring display. You stop and look behind you, you see your footprints in the sand. Sometimes there's two sets of footprints disappearing in the surf, but at other times, there is just one set disappearing behind you. For me, there have been times, when it seemed so dark, and yet I know that I was being carried by my Saviour's mercy and grace and at those times, its only His footprints I see behind me. Its amazing how He has provided for me and continues to do so. This has confirmed the next step in my journey of life. Sometimes, there are points in life that involve a lot of waiting, like now. On an almost daily basis, I need to make the choice to trust God that my police clearance form, which has been approved, will get here soon. He has it in His hands, and I'll continue to praise Him despite all that's going on around me. His love for me will never fail, no matter what happens.

For my brother, Caleb, a big milestone is approaching. Two days from now, he'll be turning fifteen. Its hard to believe that the baby my parents brought back from the hospital on the evening of October 30, 1998, is now a good foot taller than me and, in my opinion, very handsome. He doing so incredibly well in school, constantly surprising us and himself, by ranking, at the end of the last term, fourth in his class of eighteen. He has set his mind on moving up, in his class, and I know that he is surprising, even himself, by doing so. Its incredible to see how far he's come over the last year since he became a student at Southern Cross College.

A year ago, Caleb really struggled writing, and when I left for the Netherlands in September 2012, I didn't know how he was progressing, until I received a card from him whilst on outreach in Brazil. I was shocked. My brother wrote me a card, and it was beautiful. I remember going outside and crying. I was so proud of him, I still am. Southern Cross School has really motivated him to work hard and sometimes he'll be working for hours to finish what he couldn't do in class. There is an element of peer pressure involved, I think, because he fights to keep up with the rest of the class, who don't have dyspraxia, dyslexia or any other learning challenges he is facing. Just like when I was in school, Caleb is learning to see his challenges, not as hindrances that get in his way and hold him back, but as gifts that others don't have.

Until next time.

In The Hands Of The Almighty

Sometimes God wants to how far we will trust Him, by not allowing things to come through when we want them to. For me, trusting that my police clearance form (good behaviour report) would come in before the end of the year was hard thing for me to trust God with. I wanted to go to Australia and serve God there, as soon as possible. Yet my visa application form couldn't get submitted until I have this police clearance form. Last week I heard I couldn't get my visa without a police clearance form, which I had submitted a few weeks back and didn't expect to hear that it had been finalised until the end of November. I had to hand it back to God.

Then by the end of Tuesday (15 October 2013) I got a message from the SAPS (South African Police Station) saying that my police clearance had been finalised! I was thrilled and now I'm waiting for that to arrive. I should have it soon and then I'll be able to scan it into my laptop and send it to Australia. I still don't know how long it will take for my visa to come in, but I'm definitely hopeful that God will bring it in. He has before, He will again.

Whilst I've been waiting, God has been revealing to me what walking by faith means, and also depending on His guidance and provision, even through difficult times and situations, like Esther of Susa did. Esther later became queen of the Persian Empire, but before she was chosen she had to undergo a year of beauty treatments before her night with the king. When I was reading through the book of Esther the other day, I noticed that Esther's parents had died and her cousin, Mordecai, was raising her as his own child. Before she went into the harem of King Xerxes, Mordecai told Esther not to reveal her nationality and family background to anyone and she obeyed him (Mordecai, on the other hand, was known throughout the palace as a Jew). She trusted in her cousin and she trusted that God would use her, and He did. God placed her in her royal position to save His people, the Jews, who were living throughout the Persian Empire. I could ruin this beautiful story by telling you what happens, maybe its time you read the book of Esther?

Just like Esther, who's life was in the Hands of the Almighty, mine is, too!

There Is A Master Story-Teller

Life's journey

"I had felt life first as a story: and if there is a story, there is a story-teller." G.K. Chesterton.

Every second that goes by, two babies are born. Each baby’s life is a blank piece of paper when they breathe their first breath. As that baby grows up, their life is written onto that blank piece of paper in blank ink. There is no whiteout available to us, but we can turn from what we did wrong and make amends for what we’ve done, by apologising and asking God to forgive us for what we did. Though we may never forget, God chooses to forget what He has forgiven. As a result a new chapter is written without these wrongs and show instead the right decisions we have made. Yet, as we live our lives, how our stories take form, is a testimony to those around us and to those we encounter along the way. Even though we may encounter negative influences, we have the choice to embrace these influences or to reject them all together, allowing these influences to mar us… or to shape us. We can’t always choose what happens to us, but we can choose how we react to them, we can choose to be a victor instead of a victim!

The beauty of a South African sunset

Sometimes we believe something but don’t know exactly how to share what we believe with those around us. I had the same problem. Evangelism was something I really didn’t enjoy because it involved the possibility, that whoever I was talking to, might reject me, however, what I realised was that its not my problem if what I say gets rejected. It’s my job to share. When I was doing my DTS (Discipleship Training School), my passion for what I believe in grew, and I became more and more bold in sharing my faith with people. I’ve had numerous occasions when I’ve walked out of a shop having shared my testimony with someone in that shop. Though there are topics I am cautious about sharing with people, one of these is my belief on how the world was created, the way the Bible says the world was created, in six days. This topic is an area of great discussion and debate. We have all heard of Darwin and his book, The Origin of Species. We all know about evolution, its in the text books and taught in our schools. Then… what about creation?

The Bible writes that in the first few chapters of Genesis (the first book in the Bible). The heavens, the earth and everything in it were created by the words that came out of God’s mouth. He spoke everything into being in six days, a perfect world. Then sin entered into this paradise, and creation fell when the man God made, Adam, and his wife, Eve, disobeyed God’s one instruction, not to eat from one tree in the garden He had placed them in.

The glowing embers of a fire.

In the time span of about one thousand, six hundred years, between when Adam and Eve first walked the earth and when the flood took place, a lot happened. God was greatly troubled by the level of wickedness that man had fallen to. So He decided to start again and instead of destroying the earth in fire and brimstone, He flooded it. However, instead of wiping mankind out and starting again, He provided Noah, a man of righteousness, blameless amongst the people of his time, with a blueprint of a ship, a giant ship. This ship was called the Ark. It was through this Ark that God provided a way for Noah and his wife to escape the coming punishment. Noah and his wife weren’t the only survivors of this flood; their three sons and their wives were also aboard the Ark along with a large number of animals. After a year adrift on the flood waters, the Ark came to rest on Mount Ararat, in modern day Turkey.

Creation and a global flood are two controversial issues, even amongst Christians. So this weekend my father has arranged a number of meetings, in the schools as well as a number of other places, for a speaker from Durban to share about Creation and some other topics, like dinosaurs and giants. We may believe in something but its good to know what others believe in, isn’t it?