This past week, the AR team, along with Vincent & Gloria and potential AR staff for the coming year, returned to Bulembu, Swaziland, where we visited in December.

A few things struck me on this second visit. I loved Bulembu the first time but was secretly prepared for a less-romanticized experience, simply because we were already familiar with the place. I was surprised; in no way had Bulembu lost its luster. In fact, it was even more clear to us how God is using this village and drawing the right people into His mission there. Since December, a new primary school has opened, four times the capacity of the previous school; the arts & crafts center employing ladies from the village is ever-creative in the goods sold at the gift shop; the dairy is soon to open, which will provide more than 200 gallons of milk per day for the village and ministries; and most striking, an abandoned building we toured in December is now a beautiful welcome center for abandoned or abused children from all over Swaziland, before they are placed in specific homes in Bulembu. For more background on the incredible story of how a once-abandoned mining town is regaining life through the obedience of Christians, check out our previous blog post on Bulembu.

Our team was delighted to pay a visit to ABC Ministry and spend a morning with Robin and Gerry Richter. Once again, we were all incredibly moved by the amazing work ABC continues to do in taking in abandoned and unwanted children from all over the country, rooting them in God’s love and raising them up as leaders of the next generation. To hear Robyn herself explain ABC’s work, check out our multimedia piece.

We are excited that our friend from home, Katherine Donahoe, arrives in Bulembu today to volunteer at the clinic there for the next two weeks and that friends from our church and Will’s church who are interested in community development and sustainable enterprise will be returning there in early June. We hope that everyone of you will someday see first-hand the wonderful things that God is doing in this tiny corner of His creation!

Filed under: General and Outside Mamelodi by Rebecca on May 10th, 2009. Tags: ABC Ministry, arts & crafts, bulembu, Bulembu Ministries Swaziland, community development, dairy, Katherine Donahoe, mine, orphans, poverty, redemption, sustainable enterprise, swaziland | Post a comment

Maria and Koketso (and their siblings/cousins) were among some of the children featured in my master’s thesis project HIV Stories in the story titled “Facing the Future”. They immediately captured my heart, and Rebecca’s as well.  It’s been so much fun to see them growing up while we’re here, though I admit also a bit scary as they leave the age of innocence and start discovering the world of adolescence and adulthood.

When I first met them, Pastor Vincent took me to their house to see the living conditions there.  Like a lot of houses in the township, there is a main house with lots of one-room shacks behind it that tenants rent from the owner.  In this case, it’s pretty hard to tell there is an owner at all. There’s trash all over, kids running around and a general stench of poverty.  We visit there occasionally during our Tuesday feeding scheme, and at other times just to visit the children, but it’s not enough.  Part of the issue with reaching out to them is that it’s really hard to even figure out which kids have parents, which are orphans and if we give them food, who will even be the ones to consume it.  But that’s how it goes here a lot of the time—messy and complicated.  Maria and Koketso come to the Powerhouse almost every Sunday with their brother Thabang.  I pray that God will lead them in their lives to avoid the pitfalls of poverty, and may use us to help in any way we can while we’re here.

The panoramic image below is shot from the back of their house where all the shacks are.  Maria is in the photo along with a few others who live there and the rest are members of the outreach team.  Koketso was not around when I shot this.

Filed under: 3D Panoramic Image by Nathan on March 4th, 2009. Tags: Facing The Future, HIV Stories, innocence, poverty, shacks | 3 Comments

He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, and He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.—Psalm 40:2

Abandoned Babies for Christ Ministry was started by Robyn and Gerry Richter more than a decade ago and is located in the mountain village of Bulembu in the northwest corner of Swaziland. HIV/AIDS has decimated the population of the country to less than 1 million, leaving tens of thousands of orphans behind, vulnerable to abuse and neglect. Taking in abandoned and unwanted children from all over the country, Robyn and Gerry are living out their calling and supporting the Bulembu vision of restoring a dying race of Swazi people through education and God’s love, raising up the leaders of the next generation.

Click the image below for the audio slideshow on ABC Ministry.

Additional Audio Clips

The Power of Prayer

Robyn tells a story predating ABC, when she and others fed and clothed children in a squatter camp near their home.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Gerry’s Story

Robyn shares her husband’s story and the cost of following Jesus.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Thanks

Many thanks to Robyn and Gerry for allowing me into their extremely busy lives to take photos and record their stories. Thanks to the ABC staff for letting me get in their way. Thanks to my wife for her support and assistance in editing the audio and selecting the photos. Most of all, thanks be to God for supporting and sustaining the ABC Ministry.

Filed under: Outside Mamelodi and Stories by Nathan on December 31st, 2008. Tags: audio, bulembu, children, HIV/AIDS, orphans, poverty, swaziland | 5 Comments

Today we went out to distribute food that was donated from Pick-n-Pay. As always the food was mainly an excuse to go out and visit people, many of them folks that were at the VIP banquet last Saturday. To see the faces light up as we approached, to see their excitement to have visitors who pray for them and encourage them, was a blessing to us. There’s one granny, we call her “Baba Gogo” because she always thanks baba—which means daddy, referring to God. She is so thankful and jumps around and claps her hands when we come (next time we go to her house we’re taking video, as there’s no other way to do it justice).

Of course the food is actually important as well; many of the people we visited said they hadn’t eaten all day. One granny said she was so hungry she ate the 30 bananas we had dropped off a few weeks before, which, not surprisingly, made her stomach run. While she told us laughing about it, it’s also sad. It makes me wonder what she does on the days we don’t show up with food.

It’s a true privilege to visit the “least of these” in the township. To pray with them, to encourage them. I know we’ll look back on this year and these times of serving will stand out among all the other wonderful memories. As one man who was serving with us said, “Today we went out to practice love.”

Filed under: General by Nathan on October 15th, 2008. Tags: blind, feeding scheme, poor, poverty | 4 Comments

“As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God!” —Psalm 40:17

Last Saturday, we joined the Powerhouse in serving a few families in the community who Vincent knew were facing many troubles. Armed with cleaning supplies, a washing machine, ample food provisions and even painting supplies, 15 of us—including many youth from the church, which was awesome!—set out mid-morning eager to help in any way we could. Vincent chuckled later as we learned a lesson that day: don’t give people a heads-up that people from the church are visiting—they’ll clean house in expectation of your arrival! So needless to say, we didn’t end up cleaning or painting anyone’s house or washing anyone’s clothes, but we did bring song, prayer and encouragement to the families we encountered.

We set out that morning thinking we would visit two or three families, but as the morning went on, momentum grew and we just kept on going. We visited an elderly woman and a wheelchair-bound man experiencing fighting among family members; Granny whose favorite grandchild had died earlier in the week from under-developed lungs; Selina whose father is critically ill; a sleepless elderly woman haunted by witch doctor curses and family issues; another wheelchair-bound man; and finally the family of a very special young man, Nicodemus.

The most moving experience for me that day was walking into the last house we visited. For some reason, I had a sense that I was to see/experience something unexpected. In the garage was situated a bed, and on it lay a young man somewhat disoriented, but smiling and happy we were there. The smell of urine was fresh, yet old. Flies buzzed around. Vincent translated the man’s elderly parents: his name is Nicodemus and they have considered him, since birth, a gift from God. Though he has never been able to walk and has been bed-ridden for nearly 30 years, he is their gift and their joy. As we had with the other families we had visited throughout the day, we sang praise songs and prayed aloud, all at once, petitioning God on this family’s behalf. Among the prayers we lifted up was that Nicodemus would know that he is loved and that his life has a purpose. In making eye contact with him, my fear of experiencing an awkward moment was replaced instead with a sense of joy: Nicodemus returning a big smile. God, you are so good, that this young man knows you and knows your love.

Last Saturday, we felt God’s presence among us. In one sense, surrounded by my brothers and sisters from the Powerhouse, singing and praying at the top of their lungs with great faith, I was humbled that day by how spiritually under-exercised I am and how small my faith can be. Why do I not pray this boldly always? Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that here, we are so close to need, poverty, distress, sickness and death. Or perhaps not. In fact, I was struck by how many of situations we encountered that day are no different than what we face back home: sickness, old age, family members fighting, grief, financial distress. Even the darkness of witch doctor curses manifest differently back home; it’s just that Satan has more subtle ways… And poverty is just as present at home, though less exposed. I thank God that despite my sin and inexperience in serving the poor—here or elsewhere—He used me and everyone that day to bring great light and hope into places of darkness. His Spirit was surely felt. You could see it on people’s faces. God was smiling back at us.

“I have waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord.” —Psalm 40:1-3

Filed under: General by Rebecca on September 11th, 2008. Tags: feeding scheme, poor, poverty | 4 Comments

While AR Board Member Dave Clark was here, he led us through an afternoon of orientation on walking with the poor. Dave works with an inner city ministry in Chicago, and had some great insights to offer, as well as many challenging scriptural references. For me, the main things I took away were a great need for humility in serving and God’s heart for caring for the poor. Also, that ministry to the poor is based on relationships, and that not all poverty is a result of personal choice. There are many injustices in society as well as straight-up natural calamities that lead to poverty. All good stuff to keep in mind as this year we’ll be working both on a personal level with individuals as well as working to combat some of the systemic injustices that perpetuate poverty.

I wish I could recount the entire session here, as there were so many valuable points on empowerment vs. paternalism, approaching servanthood with a cross-cultural understanding, celebrating the image of God in a different culture (rather than focusing on the brokenness), etc. But instead, I’ll let you ponder the verses below that talk about what God thinks of the poor, and what he expects of Christians. Roll over the links to view the text (you have to roll off and wait for the text to disappear before you can view another verse).

A big shout-out to Dave for condensing such a large volume of material into a very enlightening and helpful session.

Micah 6:8, Isaiah 1:11-17, Isaiah 58:1-12, Proverbs 14:31

Amos 2:6-7, Amos 5:21-24, Proverbs 31:9, Psalm 146:5-9

James 1:27, Galatians 2:10, Luke 4:18-19, Acts 20:35

Matthew 25:31-46, Luke 10, Acts 2:42-47, Jeremiah 9:23-24

Filed under: General by Nathan on September 2nd, 2008. Tags: poor, poverty | 1 Comment