TRACEY
Today was one of my favorite days here in South Africa. We had so much to do but it was all so rewarding. One of those things was visiting the preschool. I just love the kids and how happy they all are. It filled my heart with joy getting to hold them and play with them. My favorite memory from this trip, however, will be from the housewarming party. All of us joined in singing Jesus Loves Me. It brought tears to my eyes. I will never forget that moment of us all worshiping Him. Amazing!
DICK
Today was incredibly rewarding . We actually finished our house. We went to the man's metal shack that was getting our house and then we walked to his new home. His first time with plumbing, electricity etc.
I am very tired from the hard work but today clarifies why we come here!!!!
Amen!! Praise God!!!!
JEN
I was once told that compared with the Afrikaans language, English has so many more words and adjectives. Even so, when working alongside of the South African people I often find myself completely speechless. My heart is full from....slapping cement on bricks and laughing with the South African workers; walking through Philemon and Emily's mukuku (shack) and then taking them to the newly finished Mosaic house where they will soon live with their two foster children and watching the tears come to their eyes as they saw their new home; visiting children I worked with at the preschool and getting to talk with them in English for the first time; seeing God at work in our team and in the South African people...these are just a few! Thank you all for your continued prayers for this amazing partnership.
I have to admit that it can get quite lonely here in South Africa sometimes, especially when I feel like I might be the only American within 5 surrounding towns, so it is always a blessing to have a whole team of friends from home visiting!! It's so much fun to watch everyone take in everyday life in South Africa. My favorite conversations are always with those who have never been here before, watching them discover the realities that face South Africans and comparing them to our lives back home. My prayer for the team here now is that this experience will bless them even more richly than they have blessed the ones that they're serving here. I know that this will be true.
LEAH
Today was a incredibly rewarding day that put our entire trip to South Africa into perspective. We started off by seeing some of the happiest and most carefree faces I've even seen at a local preschool in Ikageng. From here we did an HGTV style finish on our home to get it done in time for our amazing family who would be moving into the home to see. After seeing their current house and then welcoming them into their new home so many emotions were flying that just made the trip a truly amazing experience!
JILL
Today made it all come full circle. We started off the day by spending some quality time with the local preschool, such an amazing way to start the day. The kids pour out such emotion and joy, it is contagious. A great pep start to the day! Power painting started! Once we rushed the painting, it was time to get the place ready for the housewarming party. Being able to see Philemon and his place before the transformation was very eye opening. Being able to see the appreciation on the faces of the family was the most rewarding thing I have ever seen. This has been such an incredible journey and I will always think back on the family and be so thankful that I was able to be part in making a differece in making a family's life one step closer to the dream for a better life.
LAUREN
By now you have a pretty good idea of how our first day went! But I can't explain in words how moving today was. This is my first trip to South Africa working with the Mosaic, so I wasn't quit sure what I was in for when I arrived. As you have seen from the previous blogs it was definitely some long hours, sore muscles and overall physically draining work days. Today made all of that worth it. Seeing Philemon and his families faces when they saw the house that we had built, brought me to tears and summed everything this trip was about. It put everything into perspective for me. The reason we were here, all we take for granite, what I can do for the future,...really everything. Overall, I am moved, I am beyond grateful for this experience and I am looking forward to Dr. Dick's therapy session tonight!
TONY
Today was another great day in South Africa. After a frantic rush to finish the house, we were able to show off what we had accomplished (from a physical point of view) to the new homeowners. We talked to the parents, Philemon and Emily, about their adopted kids. Philemon mentioned that they could not have kids on their own and had wondered why for many years. Then he looked at his youngest adopted girl and said now he knows why.
Along with the normal housewarming gifts, we gave the family a Bible and a picture of our team building their house. We told them that God loves them and that we love them too and will be praying for them. I mentioned that we accomplished a lot from a physical point of view, but what I love about this trip is letting less fortunate people know that there are people that care about them and love them.
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