In February Marcia and I led a trip of 12 men to Swaziland. Among these men were 3 NFL players. Last night NFL Network aired this video.
That trip was a lot of fun since I have never met an NFL player before. Each one of the guys were great to hang out with. But that is not what this blog is about.
In the midst of the excitement of AIM being mentioned on NFL Network, there is the nagging reality continuing in Swaziland. During two trips this spring Marcia and I noticed there were a lot more people dying. The article below - using statistics from 2007 - confirms what we personally experienced.
"Jesus we need you now more than ever in Swaziland. Come in power, come in healing, come and dwell among your people. Have mercy on them and give them faith to increasingly turn toward you!"
Study shows mounting AIDS toll in Swaziland
From Associated Press
June 23, 2010 12:35 PM EDT
MBABANE, Swaziland (AP) -
Swaziland's death rate more than doubled in a decade, proof of the toll of
AIDS, statisticians in this southern African kingdom said Wednesday.
Nombulelo Dlamini of the Central
Statistical Office discussed a new study comparing censuses in 1997 and 2007 in
an interview on Wednesday. The study shows that in 1997, the death rate was 7.6
people in 1,000. By 2007, it was 18.03 per 1,000 people. Life expectancy over
the period decreased from 60 to 43 years.
"HIV and AIDS has killed many
of our people," Dlamini said.
She added that without the rollout
of AIDS therapy drugs, "deaths in the nation would be reaching alarming
proportions."
Infant and under-five mortality
death rates also increased during the 10-year period. About 107 in 1,000 babies
die in their first year, according to the 2007 census. In 1997 it was 78. Among
children under 5, the death rate was about 167 in 1,000 in 2007, compared to
106 in 1997.
The U.N. says the prevalence in
Swaziland of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, is nearly 40 percent, the highest
in the world. Swaziland neighbors South Africa, which has an estimated 5.7
million people infected with HIV, more than any other country.
Have you ever been angry with God? I was having one of those heart to heart talks with Him this morning. I was angry about a few things and I took the bold step to tell Him about it. Along the way I was telling Him, "I was ready to give my life in this situation and you didn't come through."
He stopped me right there in the midst of my bellyaching and said, "That is your problem - you still think it is your life." He's right. This is not my life - it is His. It was bought with a price. I have the wrong perspective - I don't have anything to be angry about. I am not dead yet.
Here I was laying in a position of submission as I prayed and I realized I have a long way to go to get to real submission in my life. The image of the cross came blazing to my mind - loud shouts of "Crucify him, crucify him!" rang in my ears. The rank of an angry crowd rose up in my nose. Only now it is I whose flesh needs to be crucified. I am not dead yet.
I repented. He was faithful and just to forgive my sin and cleanse me from unrighteousness.
Then of course my mind went to the scene in Monte Python's Holy Grail. I've never before identified with the man being carried to the cart - but now I do.
Below is a Blog written by missionary in Swaziland Julie Anderson. We were with her on this visit and Marcia knows Jabulile. Please consider if the Lord would lead her to help her build her house:
Sunday after church we visited Jabulile's house. Jabulile has been part
of Timbali Crafts since the beginning. She was abandoned 6 years ago
when her husband decided to take a 2nd wife and she now lives by herself
on a small piece of land in the rural area where AIM works. When
Jabulile first started living on the land (technically owned by her
husband but culturally he has to allow the 1st wife to live
on his land) it was still overgrown with trees, brush, etc. Jabulile
cleared the land herself, and was able to piece together a small house
made from sticks, mud, cardboard and some scraps of corrugated metal.
It is literally falling down. Jabulile can't even sleep in her house at
night for fear of what might happen if a strong wind came up or if
someone broke in. Every night she sleeps at her friend Juliet's house
(another Timbali woman) down the road.
We went to Jabulile's house to see her home in hopes that we can
start making plans to build her a new house. She's told me before that
she has purchased some supplies for the house, but I was so surprised to
see the piles of concrete blocks stacked around her house. For
three years Jabulile has been saving money from what she receives from
her sewing for Timbali Crafts and she has been able to purchase 600
blocks-half of what is needed to build a small two room home
(w/out water or electric). What a picture of patience and perseverance.
We're hoping that now we can come alongside Jabulile and provide the
rest of what she needs to get a new home. Pastor Walter (the main Pastor
AIM works with in that area of Swaziland) was with us and said that the
men from their church could volunteer their time to build, if we could
help finish buying the supplies. Just that morning in his sermon he had
said, "If you see something that needs to be done, do it." "Now we will
put it into practice," he said. I just talked to Walter again today, and
he said the men of the church have already started digging the
foundation of the house.
The estimated cost for buying the rest of the materials for
Jabulile's house is $1500. If
you'd like to donate toward the cost of building a house for Jabulile,
follow this link: https://www.adventures.org/give/donate.asp?giveto=swazi&multi=
(Choose Swazi Craft Co-op in the drop down menu, and put Jabulile's
house in the comment section)
Juliet was also with us during our visit. What was so beautiful to me
was seeing how excited Juliet was for Jabulile. Juliet has her own
struggles. Her husband, who had also abandoned her several years ago for
another woman, died and left her to pay for all of the burial and
funeral expenses. There was a legal battle over which woman would
receive the husband's death benefit from his employer. Juliet was
homebound for several months for the obligatory "time or mourning" until
the matter was settled and the husband could be buried. Finally, Juliet
received the death benefit and was able to pay for the burial and
funeral, and build herself a new house! Juliet has seen the
Lord sustain her and provide, and now she is rejoicing in hope with her
friend.
So many of the Timbali women have stories similar to Jabulile's and
Juliet's. Another woman has had 4 family members pass away since the
beginning of the year. Another talked with me about the anger she
struggles with because her husband has at least 7 children with other
women, two of which have been abandoned by their mother and are now
living in her home and she is now their care giver. These situations are
almost unimaginable to me, but pretty much the norm for women here.
These ladies are of course, notperfect, but I'm always amazed at the way
these ladies persevere, even smile in the midst of hardships, and serve
others everyday. Please keep praying that God would be their source of
strength and encouragement!!
We're home. Stayed up all day after the flight and then were able to sleep all night. Had fun watching grandson Michael today. Got a start on mowing the jungle outside. There is milk and bread in the fridge.
I've been reflecting on our month in Swaziland. So many stories - so much happening there. This month was characterized by stark reminders of why Africa is called the Dark Continent. I can't explain how frustrating some of our experiences were.
Our last day at a care point it was raining and I took this picture below. For me it symbolizes much if not most of our month. The little girl who these feet belong to walked from who knows where to get some food. She was about the age of my two grandchildren - less than 2 years old.
I can say my heart is broken (again). This thing has gotten personal in ways I am not ready to talk about. I found myself having the following conversation with myself, "Scott you better be careful or you will get your heart broken." "Yeah, but Jesus wasn't careful." "But it hurts." "The world is a broken place full of broken people - it's messy and full of pain and Jesus is the only answer we have." "I would rather there was no mud."
So we all have a choice - be careful and safe, or be reckless in love and get hurt. There is life in that mud somehow. It is dirty and sticky and very inconvenient, but somehow I know even in my broken heart that this is the only life I know worth living.
I have to be honest. Part of me never wants to go back to Swaziland. And another part of me was thinking about the next trip while I was mowing the yard.
Yesterday we spent a good amount of time at Mahangeni Carepoint near Nsoko. We are leading a small group from Children's Hopechest who sponsors the carepoint. They were doing children's ministry there. There was a lot of activity – more than 50 kids were there. Also we are building a small addition to the existing building to use for storage. The ladies who volunteer to cook there asked for the addition as well as a stand for their water tank. We'll put the tank next to the building to catch rain water. Right now they use water from the nearby pond to cook and drink. Hopefully someday we will have a well here.
Pastor Gift says things are very difficult right now on the area homesteads. Three out of five families have nothing to eat. I noticed at the carepoint that when lunch was ready there were close to 20 adults there to eat as well. And I saw small pots of the cooked food leaving the carepoint once the kids were finished eating. This creates a lot of strain on our carepoint food but it is hard to tell the ladies who counter to cook that their families cannot eat.
In the afternoon we did a couple of home visits. One to a woman's house who cooks at another carepoint. She passed out that morning while preparing food for the kids. She is HIV positive and very weak. We brought a nice pile of food to her home and prayed for her for a long time. The other visit was with a woman who lost her 28 year old son last week. Her husband left her some time ago. She was grieving and we were able to bring food there and prayer as well.
As I write this Marcia is with the group of ladies from around Nsoko for a special day of ministry with them. The group here has paid for a nice day at a conference center and have plans to appreciate the ladies, encouraging them and teaching them. It will be a good day. Then for lunch we are having a "braai" which is a barbeque. There will be chicken and a warthog on the grill! I hope to get some pics!
The other day I went with Pastor Gift to visit a family who lives near Nsoko. We've been to their homestead a few times and we had some things we needed to talk with them about. When we got to the homestead of course they got out the best chairs they had and we sat under a tree and talked for a while.
They are farmers and have a plot of land they depend on for food as well as sell the extra for some income. They were lamenting the fact that some cows had gotten into their field and eaten or destroyed the crop. It is harvest time in Swaziland so this was a critical blow to their ability to sustain themselves. I asked if I could go with the father of the homestead to see the crops. He had just returned from there, but was willing to go back to show me.
One thing I should have learned in Swaziland by now is that when you ask where something is and the response is pointing off in the distance then is it nowhere near where you are! I thought logically the field would be right there at the homestead – like behind the house or something. Nope. We got back in the car (glad I had one) and drove for several minutes down roads little more than paths. Then we came to the river.
Since it was obvious we had to go across the river on foot, we asked if there were crocodiles in the river. The farmer laughed and said no – but in this part of Africa that is a serious question. When we made our way down to the bank there was a man bathing. He didn't seem to mind at all and struck up a conversation while standing there in full bathing circumstance. We sat down, took off our shoes, and rolled up our pant legs.
While taking off our shoes I thought I should ask if I would need the shoes on the other side. Of course I was told no. Again, I should have learned more than this in my time in Africa. We waded across the river leaving the shoes behind.
On the other side we climbed up the bank and set out to walk to the field. It was sandy soil with the occasional burr. I got laughed at because apparently my "feet are soft," at least not hard enough to walk over burrs without them sticking in between toes etc. I hopped along avoiding cow pies, picking things off my feet, and wincing at the burning sand. With my white legs and rolled up pants I am sure I was site rarely seen in those parts.
The field was about 500 yards from the river bank. I would estimate it was about 5 acres. The farmer had a fence around it but I guess the cows know how to get through the wires and large thorns that lay against the fence. The man offered to walk into the field but I didn't think there was any way I was going to avoid those large thorns so I looked from a distance.
I asked how he waters his field – he said he carries a bucket of water on his head from the river. Can you imagine watering a 5 acre field with a bucket of water you carry on your head? Walking through hot sand with burrs? He said a few of the 11 families who have plots along the river have gas powered water pumps to water their fields. Sometimes they let him pump some water to his field too, but not very often. So while this man has a hard life he is fortunate to have land near the river. At least he can get water somehow to his field if he can keep the wandering cows out.
I thought about what it would be like if there was a cooperative between the 11 families to use each other's pumps, guard each other's fields, and manage their produce together to get better prices from the market. I wanted to spend more time with this family of 9 who live on little to nothing in mud and rock huts on a bare scratch of earth in the heat of the African sun. I wanted to thank this man for staying with his family and working hard in spite of the set-backs. I wanted to buy the guy a pump for his field. I wondered what would happen if a family in the US was able to be connected somehow to this family and encourage and support them.
In the picture you can notice several things. Of course this is the farmer walking across the river. This water is also what the community uses for drinking and cooking. What you can't see are about 20 of the infamous crop eating cows lingering in the river doing their thing. Across the river you see two buildings. One is the home of another family who are fortunate to live right next to the river. Another building houses a corn grinding mill. They have a large pump that allows them to irrigate a lot of land on that side of the river. If you look very close on the shore you will see the man putting his pants back on.
Psalm 34:8 "Taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the man who trust in Him."
This was the text for our sermon yesterday in church. I must say I needed that sermon. We had a big fun day with over 300 kids on Saturday - games, singing, and a nice lunch with meat! The Discipleship Team (the group of 6 dynamic Swazi's who do the children's ministry at the Care Points) planned the whole day. It was amazing and when I get home I will try to get some video up of all the kids singing.
But the night before the fun day every member of the Discipleship Team (D-Team) were at overnight vigils for funerals. One member - Dheli - had her sister die last week. The sister was 29 and left behind a few children. The youngest is 4 months old. The dying wish was for Dheli to take care of the child. Dheli is young and single and as she told us when we talked with her, "I am a mother now."
The funerals here start of a Friday night, go into an all night vigil, then people are buried at the homestead at sunrise. It amazes me that even though there is a funeral to go to almost every weekend, people just keep on with their Saturday schedules. The whole D-Team was up all night and then led the program for 300 children for several hours Saturday morning and afternoon. How they do it I have no idea.
In the sermon Pastor Walter talked about how you cannot taste the goodness of God unless you go through the trials of life. The people in church were praising and thanking Him at the top of their voices - for they have indeed tasted and seen the Lord is good - and they trust in Him.
Just a few minutes here to give an brief update from Swaziland.
Marcia and I have been leading a group of men these past few days and it has been an great experience. To see 12 men giving of themselves in this country is rare. Among these men are three NFL players who are very large - bigger humans than the Swazi's have ever seen. The response is amazing. The players have hearts of gold and we are having a good time together. Wish there was time for a picture or two!
Today was not as easy day. We started at a care point that serves 261 children. These kids come from very rough backgrounds a live across the street from the city dump. The teacher told me that when a garbage truck comes to the dump the kids leave the care point to run across the street to pick through the new trash. One little one around 4 years old was chewing on a chicken wing and the teacher said he got if from the dump.
Then we went to visit the homestead where a mother of 5 died last week. She left behind 2 children in grade school and two teenage/20 year old daughters who each have their own babies - one only 3 weeks old. They live in two mud houses and have nothing. 7 more orphans in Swaziland now. The guys prayed and shared and we stood in a circle to surround the women to pray over them - a group of men protecting Swazi women and standing in the gap for them. We saw the crops around their house were failing from drought and prayed for rain. It started raining just a few minutes ago - now 7 hours later.
The we went to the homestead of an 8 year old girl who drowned yesterday in a pond. We sat and prayed and cried with the grandmother and father and some other family members. Very sad and tragic.
In each place we bring some food. In the first home one daughter who is 19 has 2 years of high school left. She has no money to pay the school fees. The guys dug into their pockets and paid the year school fees - $250. Amazing.
We have seen highs and lows in our first week here - and more often than not the internet has not worked to even try to update you all! please pray for us as we travel tomorrow to Nsoko - the hardest hit area of Swaziland. We have another group coming in so the logistics and overall work will double for Marcia and I. We are already a little tired - although as I type this Marcia is visiting at the hospital. I don't know how she has the emotional or physical energy to do it.
