LONDON!!!

The Frog On The Window!

Before I get down to writing the more serious information that I'd like to share in this particular post, I have some rather interesting insight. On Thursday morning, as I was doing the house work, I opened one of the curtains in the corridor of our little home and was surprised to come across a lovely little frog (it's the same frog in both the first two pictures). He was sitting on one of the security bars, looking out at the rain swept patio. So I though I'd help him get out so I opened the window. He then lept onto the glass (as you can see in the second picture) and, instead of climbing down towards the nearby plants as I expected him to do, he climbed up the glass and onto the roof.

It was really encouraging for me to see this frog because I love animals, not matter what size, be it frogs sitting in the house or lions walking around the estate. It made me think again of how God looks after each one of us, individually. He knows our problems, and the trials we all face. He sees our joys and our happiness just as He knows our hearts and He hears them beat. I'm ever so grateful that He has been walking this difficult road of waiting with me because I'm sure that I would have given up a long time ago, if not for the determination He planted inside me.

On The Glass

I know that you really want to know what's happening about the next step forwards towards going London. You probably gathered enough from the title of this blog post that I've been accepted into the Basic Leadership School (otherwise known as a BLS). I'm ever so excited about it. I do want to write down the story of how I got to this point in time, and the journey of faith and trust I've been on (I'm still on that journey).

:: PART ONE :: Before the Skype call :: (I wrote this yesterday) ::

I'm sitting in a sweet little café and deli near my home. My sister, Hannah, worked here before she left for Paris. She was one of the chefs and joined the kitchen crew soon after the place opened. If you're ever in Hoedspruit, you have to visit! I'm was at that point when the beautiful decor and the lovely smells of cooking food or roasting coffee beans (which is one of my all time favorite smells) isn't totally registering anymore. I'm waiting for a Skype call from YWAM London. Nerves are playing up as I don't know what the conversation is going to look like. Even though I have total peace about it all, I'm still shaking slightly and trying to hide it from those around me. I don't really want anyone to know how important this is to me, well, not until the call was done.

Maybe I'd have to wait a few days before knowing if I've been accepted, or maybe I'd know before I go to bed. It's a journey I'm on and I must definitely say that it's been a walk of trust, it still is. I knew my God is total control of what's doing on in my life and in the situations I find myself. I'm praying that everything will definitely come together before my parents leave the country.

There's two reasons behind why I've been praying for this.

The first reason is that my mum will be able to leave South Africa without having to worry about what's going to happen to me and the small details involved with me traveling from Hoedspruit to wherever I'm going to be staying in the UK. 

And the second reason is that I don't have a bank account, in South Africa or anywhere else in the world, so I won't be able to book plane tickets and pay for the shuttle service to the airport. This will be very tricky for my parents to do when they're in Europe, and they already have a hectic schedule ahead if them with what they're doing after they leave South Africa. If everything's sorted out before I leave both my mum and I will be able to sleep assured I'll be alright and that everything's sorted out.

My parents are going to do quite a bit of traveling in both the United Kingdom, where my mum's originally from, though she spent more of her childhood in Hong Kong and Uganda than in England, and the Netherlands, where my dad's from. They're also going over to Paris, for a few days, to go to Hannah's graduation from her cooking school. Hannah's  planning on staying in Paris to do some more practical training (on the job kind of practical training) in a number of different restaurants in the French capital, as well as working. She's part of a Hillsong Church and enjoys spending time with her friends from both her cooking school and the church.

A Lizard Outside My Room

:: PART TWO :: A Short Wait :: (I wrote this section this morning) ::

The call went amazingly well. I talked with one of the YWAM stuff, Apryl. She asked me some questions about what my thoughts were are on leadership, why I want to do a BLS and what led me to apply to YWAM London. I also had some questions for her about the base, the accommodation and the outreach locations. The onset of nerves I had before the call seemed to disappear almost as soon as I hit the green 'answer' button on my screen. It went so smoothly and afterwards I walked around for about an hour and a half with this huge smile plastered on my face. I was thrilled about it all. Apryl said that before she could give me a definite answer to my being accepted into the BLS or not, she needed to make some phone calls and talk to the leaders about my application. She knew about the situation with my parents leaving South Africa and my lack of a bank account, so she said she'd get back to me as soon as she could, which was either Tuesday evening or on Wednesday. The Lord had really been working in me, teaching me to just wait on Him because He knows the right time for everything.

:: PART THREE :: A Step closer to leaving for the city of London ::

Now for the news you've been waiting to hear. I've been accepted into the BLS, which starts on the 10th of April, and will run until September, because my parents are leaving soon, we've spent some time discussing the fine print, as it were. My parents know I don't want to stay here in Hoedspruit for too long after they go.

My mum has an appointment the day her and my dad travel to the UK, so it's a bit unpractical for me to travel down to Johannesburg with them. They're flying with British Airways (they have given  my parents the best return), whilst when I go I'll be flying with another airline that gives the cheapest price with a layover that isn't too long. Since I've discovered, after much research with Sky Scanner, that if you travel British Airways' return, you get a good price, whilst this isn't totally the case with the one-way flights. Because the two flights leave at different times it could easily spell disaster for someone, due to traffic in the big city.

So, you might want you might want to know. Well, my patents and I will spend the next few days talking and praying things through. I'll also be sorting through what I'll be taking with me and what will be staying here in South Africa. There will be a few trips into Hoedspruit, to get a few things I don't have on the list of things I need to take with me. Thankfully that list isn't very long! It's a good thing I've kept hold of my bed roll and sleeping bag, both of which saw me through my DTS outreach. I must add that the sleeping bag saw me through the lecture phase and a Dutch winter (which was VERY cold for a girl who'd grown up in Uganda).

As I think I've said before, my life is totally and completely in God's hands. As things start to  come together, after such a long time, I'm continuing to trust Him and hold onto the truth in His Word.

I do encourage you to watch this space for more news, photos and information. I do think that as things get busier, I won't be posting as often. There's a lot to do before my parents leave, and a lot for me to do before I follow them to the UK.