The other night, Faith and her 2 cousins, Paige and Kelly, spent about 2 1/2 hours Skyping with each other. They did their usual things like playing with American girl dolls and having a dance party, but then they did something new which made my heart extremely sad. The three of them decided to convince their mom/Faith's aunt of all the good reasons they should come to Africa. My kids and their cousins are like siblings in that they are so close and they really love each other and miss each other so much while we are here in Africa. It is so hard to have them separated, but I have to trust God's timing and plan.
Sorry Kristin but I made a promise to the little sweeties that I would write out their list and make sure you saw it. They spent a lot of time and had some great discussions (more than one which made me want to cry because they love each other so much) and here is the list of all the good reasons why you should bring your two girls to Lesotho/ South Africa:
1. Good way to spend time together
2. It's educational
3. Once in a lifetime opportunity
4. African kids
5. Fun
6. Warm
7. New foods
8. Amazing views
9. Pet and see cool animals
10. Help kids
11. New culture
12. Exciting
13. Amazing sunsets
14. Swimming
15. Hunting
16. Fishing
17. You will see what life is like for us
18. We don't have to Skype
19. New smells
20. Stars
21. We can climb the big tree
22. Pretty flowers
23. Amazing trip
24. New language
25. Adoptions
26. See each other in person
With each list of good reasons, you need a few bad reasons too so the girls had:
1. Expensive
2. Long travel time
3. Mosquitos
4. Need shots
5. Passports needed
6. Poverty (seeing it I guess)
7. Boring trip in airplane
8. Water is not clean
As you all can see the good far out ways the bad, so it is a pretty convincing argument :) I praise God for a family that really loves one another and really wants to be together. We are lucky that our kids and nieces get along so well. I just need to remember to be thankful when I hear them talking and plotting together and not feel sad or bad that they are not able to be together as much as they would like. This is one of the unfortunate costs of obedience, but we have eternity to spend together making up for the time we do not get to be close to each other on Earth. And Kristin, I do not know if their argument will help you come here, but here is their well thought out list. If only the cost was not so high, then it would be so much easier.
Saturday, July 19, 2014
Friday, July 18, 2014
Quarterly Update
This is an article that I posted in our most recent newsletter so if you received our newsletter, you can ignore this post.
The
last 4 months have been very full of visitors from around the world. We have
hosted several teams, even a few from our own hometown which was great. During
our furlough, we felt like we were too busy to really connect with a few people
that we wanted to connect with and having a team from our church as well as a
team from Bryan’s old high school, offered a great opportunity for us to make
stronger connections.
Seeing
those we love and respect coming through the gates here and falling in love
with the same kids and staff we love is heartwarming. Seeing their tears,
hearing their stories, and listening to their hearts about how God has met them
while they served Him here is always so encouraging to us and inspiring also.
We have had 3 volunteers join our team this year and spending time with
them has also been such an encouragement to us. Living in community day by day
and seeing Jesus come alive through the actions and attitudes of those serving
alongside us has kept us going through the hard times and helped us stop and
give God the glory in the good times too.
Beautiful Gate is not a perfect place because we have not reached our
destination in heaven yet, but it is great to see how God is using people from
around the world to come alongside our staff and He has helped our staff come
alongside those who are hurting. There are many issues that arise both through
our staff and through our volunteers and it has given us many opportunities to
grow and also to display the fruit of the spirit which God is pruning us to
produce. All that being said, we feel God moving and shaping us and we love the
way He is using His people to encourage each other in the amazing journey of
life.
Thursday, July 10, 2014
New Prayer Request
We all have experienced that there is a season for everything just like it says in Ecclesiastes, and right now I guess is the season of frustration.
Running the day to day operations of Beautiful Gate is well more than a full time job. There are after hour emergencies, work that needs to be done over the weekend and mental and emotional stress of the job that is taken home each night. I know that is true with many Americans too and I do not discredit their hard work, but the added stress of a donation run organization in a foreign country do add a difficult dimension all their own. Sometimes there are so many great things happening that the difficulty is easy to overlook. A sick child is healed and returns home from the hospital, a child is reunited with a parent who really loves them, a child is adopted, one of our staff shows gratitude for something, a team comes and blesses our staff with special gift, etc.
But sometimes the difficulties of one thing going wrong after another with no break in between is too much and it overshadows the good.
We would appreciate your prayers. Please pray that things would stop "breaking" here at Beautiful Gate, that our equipment would work properly and be installed correctly and that our cars would be maintained well and a trustworthy and good mechanic could be found. Please pray that our staff would love one another and that they would work with unity and in a peaceful spirit with one another. Most of all, please pray that we would ALL keep our eyes focused on God and not let the worries of this world carry us away through fear or frustration.
Running the day to day operations of Beautiful Gate is well more than a full time job. There are after hour emergencies, work that needs to be done over the weekend and mental and emotional stress of the job that is taken home each night. I know that is true with many Americans too and I do not discredit their hard work, but the added stress of a donation run organization in a foreign country do add a difficult dimension all their own. Sometimes there are so many great things happening that the difficulty is easy to overlook. A sick child is healed and returns home from the hospital, a child is reunited with a parent who really loves them, a child is adopted, one of our staff shows gratitude for something, a team comes and blesses our staff with special gift, etc.
But sometimes the difficulties of one thing going wrong after another with no break in between is too much and it overshadows the good.
We would appreciate your prayers. Please pray that things would stop "breaking" here at Beautiful Gate, that our equipment would work properly and be installed correctly and that our cars would be maintained well and a trustworthy and good mechanic could be found. Please pray that our staff would love one another and that they would work with unity and in a peaceful spirit with one another. Most of all, please pray that we would ALL keep our eyes focused on God and not let the worries of this world carry us away through fear or frustration.
Saturday, July 5, 2014
Goodbyes, Apartheid and G.A.S.
Our family was away most of the last week because we took Grace and Terp to Koranna Game Lodge and met up with some of our friends who are living in South Africa. We had a lot of fun and relaxation time while we were there. We wanted to give Terp and Grace a couple days to have some down time to process all they have experienced over the past 6 months before hopping on a plane and returning to America. Terp and I made a fun little video about hunting and making a homemade bow, which amazingly, was able to shoot an arrow!!!!! Not enough force behind it to kill an animal, but it was impressive anyway (not that I would ever actually kill an animal).
We drove to Jo-berg on Wednesday to drop Terp and Grace off at the airport and Faith summed it up best when she said, "No one should have to say good-bye to 3 of their best friends on the same day." (Elaina is her friend who lives about 8 hours away in South Africa and we had to say buy to them before we drove to Jo-berg). Despite the sadness of saying good-bye to people we love, we were able to have some quality time together as a family for the rest of that night and the next day. I wanted to take the kids on a field trip to Soweto to learn more about apartheid, but we could not afford the tours (I had no idea anything in Africa cost that much, bummer). We settled for the Apartheid museum which was very informative but also very sad to see pictures and see first hand videos of the horror people faced in those years. Each of my kids wrote a paper about it and I was impressed with the things they picked up on while at the museum.
After that we decided to end the day with something a little lighter and took the kids to a place where they could feed giraffes and it was great. They had one of the biggest giraffes I have ever seen (and yes I have seen quite a few since coming to Africa) and unfortunately for Mercy, he confused her finger for a piece of food and squished it a little. After a few moments of tears, she forgave the giraffe, and Bryan told her she was in a rare club called G.A.S., giraffe attack survivors. We all has a very good laugh at that and continued with our day :)
I enjoyed our family time very much as it is a rare thing when we have a few days to ourselves so although our hearts we sad to say our goodbyes, God gave us a little present of family time so we could make a few more memories as well as have a few teachable moments through learning about the history of South Africa.
We drove to Jo-berg on Wednesday to drop Terp and Grace off at the airport and Faith summed it up best when she said, "No one should have to say good-bye to 3 of their best friends on the same day." (Elaina is her friend who lives about 8 hours away in South Africa and we had to say buy to them before we drove to Jo-berg). Despite the sadness of saying good-bye to people we love, we were able to have some quality time together as a family for the rest of that night and the next day. I wanted to take the kids on a field trip to Soweto to learn more about apartheid, but we could not afford the tours (I had no idea anything in Africa cost that much, bummer). We settled for the Apartheid museum which was very informative but also very sad to see pictures and see first hand videos of the horror people faced in those years. Each of my kids wrote a paper about it and I was impressed with the things they picked up on while at the museum.
After that we decided to end the day with something a little lighter and took the kids to a place where they could feed giraffes and it was great. They had one of the biggest giraffes I have ever seen (and yes I have seen quite a few since coming to Africa) and unfortunately for Mercy, he confused her finger for a piece of food and squished it a little. After a few moments of tears, she forgave the giraffe, and Bryan told her she was in a rare club called G.A.S., giraffe attack survivors. We all has a very good laugh at that and continued with our day :)
I enjoyed our family time very much as it is a rare thing when we have a few days to ourselves so although our hearts we sad to say our goodbyes, God gave us a little present of family time so we could make a few more memories as well as have a few teachable moments through learning about the history of South Africa.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Little Babies
Today I took some time to go into the houses and hold babies and play with children. You would think that since I live on campus, I'd do that everyday. I'd love to but with teaching, being a mom, being in meetings and helping with teams and volunteers, I do not get to do that as often as I would like.
I visited my little girl who has special needs and who has been put on a feeding tube since she was admitted to the hospital last month. I found out that she has gained almost 2 kgs (4.4 lbs) since she was put on the feeding tube and since she was very malnourished, this is great news. I had fun holding her and another baby in her room and then laughing at the antics of the little boys in that house.
I went to another house and played ring around the rosies, played duck, duck, goose and read 2 books to the children. I had so much fun that I lost track of time. Holding babies, reading to kids, tickling kids, playing and laughing are all such a privilege for me and I love being able to bring joy into their lives.
Winter is here and we received a 4 day old baby this week and we have about 5 other new little ones on campus that have come in since the weather has grown colder. It is sad that we get so many newborns in the winter, but I am thankful that they have been brought to BG to be given love, care and warmth. I feel so honored that God would bring Bryan and I here along with our 3 kids because caring for orphans is hopeful yet heartbreaking, joyful yet depressing, and fulfilling yet tragic. Their stories break my heart and make me sad as some of their circumstances are just tragic. They have endured so much in their life already and yet God has a special plan for each one who comes through our gate and so we get to enjoy watching them join families. We see their faces light up when they find out that they have a new mom/dad who will be coming to take them home.
I pray that these little babies will have a family in the near future. I love playing with the older kids as well as the babies but my heart longs for them to be matched and placed with a family or reunited with a family member here in Lesotho so that they do not have to grow up in a care facility. I enjoyed my day with the kids and am thankful for the opportunity.
I visited my little girl who has special needs and who has been put on a feeding tube since she was admitted to the hospital last month. I found out that she has gained almost 2 kgs (4.4 lbs) since she was put on the feeding tube and since she was very malnourished, this is great news. I had fun holding her and another baby in her room and then laughing at the antics of the little boys in that house.
I went to another house and played ring around the rosies, played duck, duck, goose and read 2 books to the children. I had so much fun that I lost track of time. Holding babies, reading to kids, tickling kids, playing and laughing are all such a privilege for me and I love being able to bring joy into their lives.
Winter is here and we received a 4 day old baby this week and we have about 5 other new little ones on campus that have come in since the weather has grown colder. It is sad that we get so many newborns in the winter, but I am thankful that they have been brought to BG to be given love, care and warmth. I feel so honored that God would bring Bryan and I here along with our 3 kids because caring for orphans is hopeful yet heartbreaking, joyful yet depressing, and fulfilling yet tragic. Their stories break my heart and make me sad as some of their circumstances are just tragic. They have endured so much in their life already and yet God has a special plan for each one who comes through our gate and so we get to enjoy watching them join families. We see their faces light up when they find out that they have a new mom/dad who will be coming to take them home.
I pray that these little babies will have a family in the near future. I love playing with the older kids as well as the babies but my heart longs for them to be matched and placed with a family or reunited with a family member here in Lesotho so that they do not have to grow up in a care facility. I enjoyed my day with the kids and am thankful for the opportunity.
Friday, June 20, 2014
Swedish Celebrations!
While there are many Swedish families who are taking today and celebrating their midsummer festival, we had two families here who were celebrating adoption. They gave us a really beautiful book with hundreds of pictures of Sweden and then pointed out that today is a holiday there. A day to get together and celebrate the warm season (since they only really get 2 months of really warm weather). So while their fellow countrymen celebrate the warmth, they are spending a few weeks in the cold winter of Lesotho (which I am sure is not too cold compared to their homeland).
We had two boys adopted today and they both came to us as tiny babies. We have had the pleasure of watching them grow a little and hit a few milestones such as crawling, pulling themselves up, and walking. However, today we handed them over to their parents who will get to be there for them for every new milestone from now on. They will have parents to tuck them in, read them books, listen to their good and bad days, hug them, and love them forever. What a joyous day! Celebrating the warmth of becoming a family!
The beauty of adoption never gets old to me. It blows my mind that God knew before He knit those boys together that they were not going to be staying with their biological mom. For some reason, their mothers would not have the privilege of raising their own children. He had another plan that involved two other families who would come in and love the boys and raise them as their own. Wow, what an amazing plan. One which we can never fully understand because it is hard to imagine being the one who has to give up her son, but God’s plans are for our good. He knows what is best for everyone involved and I am thankful that He is in control. Here are a few pictures of these wonderful new families!
We had two boys adopted today and they both came to us as tiny babies. We have had the pleasure of watching them grow a little and hit a few milestones such as crawling, pulling themselves up, and walking. However, today we handed them over to their parents who will get to be there for them for every new milestone from now on. They will have parents to tuck them in, read them books, listen to their good and bad days, hug them, and love them forever. What a joyous day! Celebrating the warmth of becoming a family!
The beauty of adoption never gets old to me. It blows my mind that God knew before He knit those boys together that they were not going to be staying with their biological mom. For some reason, their mothers would not have the privilege of raising their own children. He had another plan that involved two other families who would come in and love the boys and raise them as their own. Wow, what an amazing plan. One which we can never fully understand because it is hard to imagine being the one who has to give up her son, but God’s plans are for our good. He knows what is best for everyone involved and I am thankful that He is in control. Here are a few pictures of these wonderful new families!
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
A Delightful Visit
Earlier this year, 4 of our Beautiful Gate children were moved to another care facility being run by the Beautiful Dream Society. I remember the day well as there were more tears cried that day here at Beautiful Gate than I had ever seen before. It was a day of laying down our dreams for these kids to be adopted by a family of their own. It was never that we had bad feelings about the other care center, it was only hard because of our own desires and dreams for these 4 children.
Tonight Terp (Christina Terpstra) and I had the privilege of going to their care center and having dinner with the 4 children and their 8 brothers and sisters in their care facility/ foster home. Each child greeted us warmly as we came into the house and told us their name and then we ate dinner with the kids. The kids sang us a few songs and even showed us a few dances and a little rap song. I asked Terp to sing "Trading My Sorrows" to the kids while I cut the dessert I made for the kids and house mothers. That song broke the ice for us and helped the kids who did not know us to feel like we were okay. It was especially fun to see the banter between one house mother and a few of the older kids. They have so much joy in their relationship. I asked if I could take a picture of the kids and so one of the older boys lined up all the kids by size and then I took a few pictures of them smiling, then with funny faces and then laughing with them all leaning on each other's backs.
I guess the best way to describe my time there was laughter. We all laughed and joked with each other and really, it felt like a family. Older siblings helping the younger ones, parents teasing their kids, laughter and chatter during a meal together, etc. I am so thankful that I got a glimpse into their lives at their new home because I see that the kids are thriving together. God has chosen them for this family and they fit in well. Once again it shows how much I do not understand God's plan. He has good plans for us and for our future. He has good plans for those 4 children and so I will trust His plan and His placement of these precious little ones.
Tonight Terp (Christina Terpstra) and I had the privilege of going to their care center and having dinner with the 4 children and their 8 brothers and sisters in their care facility/ foster home. Each child greeted us warmly as we came into the house and told us their name and then we ate dinner with the kids. The kids sang us a few songs and even showed us a few dances and a little rap song. I asked Terp to sing "Trading My Sorrows" to the kids while I cut the dessert I made for the kids and house mothers. That song broke the ice for us and helped the kids who did not know us to feel like we were okay. It was especially fun to see the banter between one house mother and a few of the older kids. They have so much joy in their relationship. I asked if I could take a picture of the kids and so one of the older boys lined up all the kids by size and then I took a few pictures of them smiling, then with funny faces and then laughing with them all leaning on each other's backs.
I guess the best way to describe my time there was laughter. We all laughed and joked with each other and really, it felt like a family. Older siblings helping the younger ones, parents teasing their kids, laughter and chatter during a meal together, etc. I am so thankful that I got a glimpse into their lives at their new home because I see that the kids are thriving together. God has chosen them for this family and they fit in well. Once again it shows how much I do not understand God's plan. He has good plans for us and for our future. He has good plans for those 4 children and so I will trust His plan and His placement of these precious little ones.
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