08-16-08

Its hard to believe that August is at the midway point, and sad that our trip is a little over half done as well. We are so thankful that God blessed us with the opportunity to come to Bethesda and serve Him here. It is a dream come true for us!

This morning was a crafts day. The older children make necklaces, bracelets, greeting cards, and magnetic frames. They pay for the materials up front with their own money. Then, when teams or visitors come they are able to purchase these souvenirs that were made by the Bethesda children. The kids who made the item earns the profit and is taught at an early age how to manage their money. The children can choose whether to reinvest that money in making more souvenirs or spending it on "sweeties" (candy). Kate helped Alyssa all morning with 15-20 children older than 10 years make the trinkets. Kate always enjoys making crafts so it was a fun time for her. It was also really good to get to know the older girls better (she helps more with the younger kids more by doing child care). One of the girls, had a tough morning with the crafts. She had to redo her necklaces twice because the charms were not on straight, and Bethesda wants these children to learn to do things with excellence. She also had to redo a card because she had done it quickly and it looked messy and would not have sold. By the end of the day she was so frustrated and once again made another mistake with another necklace. This time she was just wanting to quit and give up. Kate sat down with the girl and encouraged her to not give up and to finish the necklace. Then Kate and a different girl helped the frustrated girl finish making the necklace. It was so good to help her smile again and encourage her to persevere.

Andrew helped with the set up and tear down of craft day. He also helped the boys at the beginning get started. (The boys actually make the best necklaces and make a lot more than the girls.) He then headed off to the administrative building because there was a community continuing education day that both houseparents and the community attended. It was so good to see another aspect of Bethesda as they reached out to surrounding communities and churches equipping them to minister better in the culture that they live. Andrew walked away with a greater insight and awareness of how and why the AIDS epidemic continues to be such a huge problem in this country. It was good to look at scripture and be reminded of God's view and plan for sex and how we (as the body of Christ, and parents) "must train up a child in the way he should go, so when he is old he does not depart from it."

This afternoon, we had some time to see some more South African culture by first visiting a mall and also a grocery store in Pretoria. All in all, it was really not that different than being in Grandville, MI except that every sign first had English and then had Afrikaans (Pretoria is very modern and in places wealthy).

Tonight we had the opportunity to have dinner in a third home. This family is the newest to Bethesda and has the youngest children (six of the nine children are under the age of five). Upon arriving Kate jumped in and made homemade brownies and washed the preparation dishes. Andrew jumped in a different way and had up to seven children climbing on him at one time. Tonight was the most South African meal we have had in the homes, but it was very nice (you don't say the meal was good, you say it was nice). Once again Kate was at her finest eating both vegetables and salad, while not even flinching at the unknown meat she was served. Andrew says it was all VERY good and would happily eat it at any Sunday lunch. Afterward, we chatted for a bit and played with the kids, before the kids needed to go to bed before a long day at church tomorrow. We really enjoy our meals in the home getting to know both parents and children so much better. Thank you for all your prayers! Have a great day worshiping at church tomorrow!

America........................South Africa
napkin..................................serviette
restroom..............................loo or toilet
What is your name?.............Leina la gago ke mang
Thank You...........................Ke a leboga
Food......................................digo