10 May 2010

I finally made it out to my first
care point, just for a visit. The first care point that I was able visit was
Es'Khaleni. It is one of the care points that is down in Nsoko, which is about
an hour and a half away from Manzini where I will mostly be doing ministry. I
wanted to go visit there because there was a team from a church in Birmingham
and I wanted to see them in action. I'm so glad that I did, they were a huge
blessing to me!

I was only at Es'Kaleni for about
an hour, but it was such a joy to see the excitement on the faces of the team
that was here to minister to the children and people of Es'Khaleni. This was
the church's first trip to their new care point and they had done a lot of work
in the week that they were there. They had built a fence and there was a new
kitchen that was in the process of being built, it looked like it should be
completed soon. As we arrived there was a team cleaning feet and giving out
shoes, which is always exciting! There was also a team that was finishing up
their morning Vacation Bible School lesson. Todd the pastor from the church
showed me around, all that they had done and showed me the amazing view from
this little care point.

I was not able to do much ministry
with the team, but you could feel the love for the people and hear how proud
they were of their care point. I talked to several of the team members who all
told me little bits about what they had done and what they were planning for
this little piece of dirt. When I was talking to Todd, he commented that this
is where he stood when he came the previous time on a vision trip and heard
Pastor Gift tell about this area. When he came the first time it really was
just a bit of dirt, there was one small building, but not much else. Now it is
a place where the children can come to be fed, not just physically, but
spiritually as well. They now have a church family and individual families that
are praying for them and communicating with them. They now have a greater
opportunity to learn about Jesus and to receive the joy and hope that He
brings. I'm glad that Es'Khaleni was the first care point that I was able to
visit, it is a place that will grow and one that I will always be able to
remember where it started from. As I continue to have the opportunities to go
out to the different care points I will have to remind myself that at one
point, it was just a piece of dirt, but look what God had made it now. I'm sure
that can be said for a lot of our lives as well.

I am trying to attach pictures, but have run into some issues. I will see what I can do to work that out. I will attach the pictures to my facebook group page if you want to see them there. Snapshots of my Heart: Swaziland, through the eyes of Megan McWhertor