A visit never to be forgotten

There was great excitement in the Patty household as the 15th of July drew nearer and nearer. Beds were being made, supplies were being bought, the house was being cleaned, and the anticipation was rising. The Sweets and Justin and Johanna Voeller were coming! Daddy drove into Lusaka on the 15th of July and picked them up and all their baggage.

So what exactly were they coming to do? Well, there was nothing really planned, so they were coming to give whatever they had and to experience God's goodness. While they were here, Mr. Sweet was able to help with construction, and fix the things that have been continually broken. He and Justin really blessed the Hamelryck family by motivating the workers to finish their house. They installed the whole kitchen, electricity, plumbing, windows, and so much more!



Mrs. Sweet was an unbelievable help in the school. She worked with Adam, Matilda, Maggie, and Joyce, all of whom have learning disabilities. She evaluated all of the children to see where they are in school, and she trained Zandale to be a teacher for the special needs children. No one who has ever been here for that length of time ever did as much for the school as Mrs. Sweet did!





Johanna worked up a storm on the sewing machine. She made children's clothes and curtains. She taught one of the housemothers how to sew, and encouraged one of the girls in her designing. Besides all that, she still found time to invest in the lives of the children, housemothers, and workers. She even found time to make us some fabulous dinners!



Justin worked wherever he was most needed and that was many, many places. From the Village of Hope, to Green Farm, and to the chicken coops, he did a great job wherever he went. The children loved him, and he was a great addition to the group!



Joanna was loved wherever she went. Her help at the school was wonderful, and her patience in listening to the children was a great example. The children always looked forward to school with her there. Besides, that, she was an amazing friend.



Just as we realized on our first visit to the Village of Hope, so did the Sweets and Voellers, that the heartbeat of the village and the primary focus is the children. The Sweets and Voellers immediately engaged themselves with the children in different ways. As Mr. Sweet did his work in the village, he would pray over each child. Mrs. Sweet helped with their school and played games. Joanna was always playing soccer with the children. Justin amazed the kids with his "magic tricks," and Johanna always found tie to talk to the children and encourage them, especially in their reading. When the team from Delaware came, we all had an opportunity to participate in the VBS that they did.



When people stay with you for 5 1/2 weeks you are bound to have some fun memories. SOme of my best ones are when the bidet sprung a leak and flooded the girls' room and the hall way. No one realized it until Johanna woke up at 2:00 am and sounded the alarm. Soon we had a brigade of sweepers sweeping the water out the door. Another is when *someone* (oops!) was melting butter in the oven, it spilled, and the oven exploded in flames. Butter went everywhere! Nothing was hurt, fortunately, except a tiny but if my pride! :-)



Some of the things we did besides work were fun, such as church. I know many energetic little boys would think, "fun and church do not mix." Obviously, they have never been to an African church. Everyone sings and dances their hearts out with huge smiles n their faces. The joy of the Lord is indeed in their hearts!



Other things we did were going to the local markets and haggling for 50 cents off. What fun! We also took a trip down to Livingstone. It was beautiful, and Victoria Falls was stunning. We also had a chance to go bungee jumping, but Justin was the only one who did. Joanna was daring and did the bridge swing.





Being here, and investing in the lives of people as much as the Sweets and Voellers did causes you to come away with new convictions, thoughts, and impressions. I always love hearing what people have to say, and what their thoughts are of the time they spent here. Mr. Sweet was especially burdened for, Matilda who used to live in Green Farm village. She is nine, had never been to school until she came to our village, and she has a bad case of spinal TB. Mrs, Sweet was impressed with the spirit of the people, and how joyful they are. Johanna said she had never been to a place with such extreme poverty, and she agreed with Justin when he said that the people set a good example of contentment.



I know it was difficult for the Sweets and Voellers to leave. I pray that they have opportunities to share their new love for Zambia and the people. No one who has been here ever wants to leave, and I hope that they have a chance to come back.



Psalm 26:7
"That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all your wondrous works."

Update on the Children's village

Presently there are still three housemothers. They are Rose M., Rose C., and Anne. Anne replace Sylvia who was better qualified to work at the take away restaurant when it opens. There are 24 children at the village. The most recent arrival (last month or so) are Prudence, Precious, Paul, and Matilda.



Prudence



Precious



Paul


Matilda's mother is still living but Matilda has many needs that her mother could not fulfill. She was born with Spinal Tuberculosis and cannot walk. The Schwartzes have been able to help by getting a wheel chair and physical therapy treatment. Then Matilda's leg was badly burned. This was overwhelming to her mother who has two other children and a husband in prison. Matilda is now living at the village of Hope and is going to school there. This has worked out well for everyone involved.



Matilda


There will be an additional number of children coming from an orphanage that is shutting down. Cottages are being built and housemothers will need to be found with the Lord's help. Please pray that the Lord will guide each detail. As Jesus says in Matthew 19:14, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them, for of such is the kingdom of heaven."

Chimwemwe (Happiness) Ladies

Chimwemwe (happiness) is very evident when the ladies are singing. When we came for the first time last May 2008 there were about 30 women. Now there are about 60 women that meet once a week for Bible study and singing. They also work on purses made from plastic garbage bags, jewelry made from magazines, or old calendars and knitting baby clothes. The crafts they learn to make hep them earn money for their family.



When I attended the first meeting after we arrived I was struck by the joy of the Lord heard and seen through the ladies singing and dancing. It reminds me of Psalm 100:1 "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands." These ladies make a joyful noise. They "shout joyfully to the Lord of thier salvation" as Psalm 95:2 says. I thought about the ladies bible studies in the U.S. They are encouraging and edifying but so "reserved and quiet!" When I left the meeting I was overflowing with joy myself!

return to Zambia

The flight to Zambia was familiar along with the airport. The sights and sounds brought back memories of 2 previous trips. When we arrived it was wonderful seeing familiar faces and renewing friendships. However there was one main difference about this journey. We were not coming for a short visit. We were coming to live in Zambia for at least a year!

Psalm 92:4 says, "For You, Lord, have made me glad through Your work; I will triumph in the works of Your hands." This is how we will persevere and receive the joy of the Lord - through HIS WORK and not ours.



We are settling into our new home which we are renting on a farm called Arulussa. The area is very green and peaceful and is close to the Village of Hope. There is a mud hut village down the road from us called Glenn Farm which I will write more about later. Some of the men that work in the farm live in this village.

We help out in many ways at the school and play with the children as often as possible. Daddy has many jobs but one of his big tasks will be purchasing supplies. There are many projects being developed and built including a chicken house, tilapia pond and take away restaurant. The Lord is working in miraculous ways here.

We look forward to seeing the Sweet family along with Johanna and Justin Voeller who are coming together around July 15th (approx. a week!!!) for 5 weeks. There will be other families and teams we will meet as well.

Over the coming months I look forward to taking photographs of the many faces of Africa and writing about the word the Lord is doing here. To God Be The Glory - great things He has done and will do!

We will miss you Zambia!

Lidza ku kumbukilani Zambia. Tidza ku onani manje manje.
(We will miss you Zambia. We shall see you soon.)
By my Dad

We are so thankful for all your prayers, BLOG comments, and emails. You have faithfully ‘held the rope’ that holds us firm to the wonderful community we live in. Now it’s time to ‘reel’ us back in! ☺

As we prepare to leave after our 5 weeks here, we are all wondering why we’re not staying longer? Our time here has gone by very fast, so we are praying for our time to pass equally as quick for our return in June. After spending 8 weeks here in 2008 we’ve really connected with everyone and feel so confirmed to be returning for an extended time – for how long truly only God knows for sure. We’ve got a lot to do in the next 5 months as we adjust our life from Cordillera Ranch to Village of Hope.

The headline on the front page recently was “Zambia to Remain Christian Nation, says State”. Zambia was declared a Christian nation on December 29th, 1991 by the then President Dr. Frederick Chiluba. Current President Banda has reconfirmed that commitment. It is believed that it is this Covenant which has protected Zambia from the wars, starvation, and mass human suffering that much of Africa currently experiences. While certainly a very poor country ravaged by HIV/AIDS, it has a stable democratic government and seems a very safe place with an ample food supply.

As we reflect on this nation, dirt village/mud hut /walk everywhere barefoot poor as it is, we find encouragement that the government proclaims and raises up Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. How they desire Christ to direct their ways and how they encourage all civic leaders to trust in Christ and the Bible for their wisdom. It’s hard not to contrast this to America, extraordinarily rich in so many ways (“poverty level” in the US makes one very very wealthy here!!) , yet a country that is morally and spiritually decaying because of that wealth. One country is poor on the outside yet so Rich on the inside, and the other just the opposite. WOW, how this place changes your perspective!!! How America desires to erase their Christian heritage, here they want only to preserve and cherish it.

This is just one of the many many reasons God is calling us to return we believe and what excitement He has put on our hearts to do so!! When you have nothing, Christ is your ONLY hope. There is such hunger and thirst. When you have it all, God easily gets pushed out. “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Matthew 6:24

And I still think about the Pastor from San Antonio that came to Africa to teach, returned and resign from his Church, and then returned back to Africa. His warning: “Don’t go to Africa!! You will never want to leave!!” How true, how true!!!

We are also greatly blessed by the efforts of SA friends who stepped forward to fund and support the 1st (of many we pray) “San Antonio Cottages”. Their generosity, especially in these very difficult times, is a great blessing and encouragement. It is not because of our family that they were called, but for the children of the Village of Hope. Perhaps one day their children’s children will come to the Village and meet the grandchildren of the children they will be supporting??

Please continue to pray for the country of Zambia and everyone involved with All Kids Can Learn Zambia and the Village of Hope.



We’ll miss you Zambia – But we’ll be back soon. Very very soon.

/ap