South Africa

Transcript

so um as x most of you all know um myself as well x as um x my mom and sister leah were in south x africa at the beginning of this year and x um yeah i'm gonna just share a bit x um kind of give you an idea of what that x experience was like x um x these were all the wonderful people we x were working with and x oh x okay x um these were all the wonderful people x we were working with x as you can see my family as well as x um x some other faces you might recognize x um x oh yeah x um x yeah and before i get um really into x this i just want to give you all um x our thanks and x for all the um support you've given us x and all the donations you've provided x and all the financial help it x was very much appreciated x all right so x um x some of the people who are um currently x working in south africa um x i don't know how many of you know the x the skippers this is uh lucas and leona x they are currently living in hope field x which is about an hour north of cape x town x so x we got to hear quite a bit about their x um faith journey and the challenges x they've had in life x um x they've been x putting their life's work into serving x with all their heart and energy and x they're x kind of hard to keep up with but um x so right now they're working on a ton of x different projects but bible classes x programs called days for girls leading x leadership classes x and x back in when they were um working in x other regions of south africa they would x have um x a facility to hold these all these x programs in as well as um x places for x volunteers to stay um x and run projects x no problem with my notes x there we go x um x but yeah x that's our hope to eventually um x get those facilities up and running they x only recently moved to the cape town x area and have begun making connections x there and x um x so this is their home x and x it's a beautiful area um x beautiful sunsets x and x these are their children um we got x luellen lavandi and liesel x and all all of them are married and have x children um x henry and liesel live right next door x and x this is where um my family was staying x with uh henry liesel x this is henry and liesel and they have x four children x while we were there actually they um x had just had um x a pair of twins as you can see here x um but yeah this whole family was x going through so much during our stay x and x um x the fact that they were able to x on top of all the stuff they're going x through with their family that they were x able to just x continue to x um help us with the projects we were x working on and x um x all the work they did is just x fantastic x okay x nope x okay yeah there's supposed to be a clip x here but x yeah they they were born while we were x there x do i have to click a certain button x no it's not working i'm sorry x all right x all right x um x this is the newborn twins and x um x henry um he runs this workshop where x um he tries to build connections with x the community holding um x family fun workshops where x parents and children from the community x can come and learn how to build um x practical things they can use at home x he showed us a bit on like how that sort x of works and we x made these like seed planters together x and it was a lot of fun x these are their older children ruby and x amberly and the twins teagan and tyler x um x and this is in charleston val who um x both x were a couple from scotland who had x moved to south africa years ago x and have been x um working with everyone there x they are the parents of stacy who is x married to lewellen x and and we've got to hear a lot about x their their journey during um x long drives between our different x projects x um x but yeah they put so much work there x into it while we were there um x um charles at the time was helping um x fix up the um shower at um x henry and liesel's place um while they x were at the hospital x um x at the time he had already hurt himself x um while he was playing football with x the kids so x um x but yeah yeah he kept going he was x always very helpful and it was um x inspiring to see x um here's what we were x shopping for uh supplies x and this is stacy and llewellyn who are x expecting a child themselves x and this is michael and londy x they live in the cape town area and x they have two children um lexi and zante x and you might recognize these people x ben and hannah and seth and rebecca x who worked on several projects with us x and this is the crew that i was hanging x out with most of the time um this is x like me and aaliyah obviously and uh x brother josh x and our newly baptized uh sister pippa x um she's from pretoria so it's me on the x other side of the country x um x so this is the uh local chris philippine x hall in cape town x where we um x ran a x puppet show for the the young people x there x and x let's see x um x afterwards some of us x went over to x the home of uh brother asamani and his x family and you can see them here we're x dropping off supplies x these are his children x this is home and x so a lot of the work we were doing um x was with um different um zoom classes we x were doing at the time x um rebecca and hannah and aaliyah all x for and my mom all presented um sister x classes online x and x um x as well as sunday school classes and x puppet shows online as well x um josh and x myself and seth and ben all presented x different exhortations and bible classes x online as well x so yeah a lot of the work that x we were doing there x was um x what what they had done x um the locals had um x made connections with different people x in the community and a lot of what we x were doing was different um random acts x of kindness to x um x help them where they they needed it so x here you can see we are x one of the things we did a lot was um x making different food parcels which we'd x get different x fruits and veggies and pasta and such x and x sort them into x packages that we would deliver to people x who x were in need x we did a x soup kitchen one day x here's us all x preparing some soup x um x cook it all in smaller crock pots and x then x combine it all together in one big pot x and deliver that and x we're distributing it here in a place x called green village x and there should be another clip here x but x okay x okay x [Music] x bye x so um a lot of what they were doing is x making connections with the local x community because they just moved in x there x and um x the cape town of occlegia is rather x small so they're hoping to x make connections with the community and x hopefully something will grow x and x some more folks in green village x um another thing we did was x helping a local farmer vaccinate his x sheep this was um x lucas and leona's neighbor x um yeah that was um an interesting x experience x so we had um yeah wrangled them up and x hold them well they got their x vaccination x and so another place we visited was this x blueberry farm in a place called x wellington x there were a lot of children in that x area um x did puppet shows there x um x a couple of x bible stories you might recognize um x oh um did i skip ahead too much okay um x yeah we're doing a puppet show here of x uh jonah x and x made crafts with them x and x this is uh and one of the um x larger x what they call townships there they're x like more like slums x so essentially x what happened was x a lot of people here were promised x government housing x if they didn't build any um permanent x dwellings so they um set up these x temporary shacks and x they have to pay steep rent on the x property and x um x yeah as of 2011 the population here is x um x in this township known as denune was a x 31 thousand x yeah it's a particularly dangerous x situation x the brothers there were x doing work inside to noon at um x at one point x um x helping out a school there but x um x it was a bit dangerous as there was only x one road in and out so eventually the x local people there told them that it x provides them not to x continue doing that x so x what they've been doing to try to x continue to help the children in the x area is they've set up their um x this shipping container here x they've outfitted it to x be a building where they could um x bring the children to here to x give them the classes x let's see x you see we are x painting it up making it a little more x friendly x oh yeah always on the move x um some folks understood english but um x i said some some folks understood x english but the the main language in the x area is afrikaans so x um x yeah x um we weren't weren't the best at x communicating with some people but um x you know the the skippers and their x family all understood it so x and here's some some donations and x supplies we x had stocked there x and we held a pup show here as well x see we got jonah x i got a whale x made um whale crafts with the kids x and x also did a lot of different uh games and x singing with them x okay simon says stomp your foot x it's time to swipe your other foot x says clap your hands x simon says x jump and clap your hands x that's pretty good jump up your hands x [Music] x one more time okay you're gonna dance x with us x [Music] x we went downstairs x we went down x [Music] x i x so one more game we were playing with x them x okay one two three x [Music] x [Music] x so yeah currently um x they are transporting the children to to x the container for these classes um x it's a less than ideal um x way of um transporting them they're x it's a bit a bit crowded but x and they can only bring so many kids at x a time x what their x michael is hoping to do is raise funds x to um x buy a larger vehicle which they can use x to x transport the children x um x [Music] x in noon i'm not sure if it's a x government school or not um x they said there was x some sort of school there um i'm not x entirely certain what how x their situation is but x but was school in session during this x time x um i don't believe so no okay more of x their like um summer break i got you x okay thank you x little nerd x january x [Music] x okay x [Music] x that's just outside one of the x smaller townships x oh did i miss a clip okay x you guys is it heavy x it's heavy x yeah that's one of the care packages x yeah this uh x right right after we had done a class x with them we were dropping them off back x home x so x this this place here called the little x brinks x was uh x started up by a local lady who um x was x adopting a child from one of the x townships and x um she saw that there was just so much x need and there were so many children who x were in need and x decided that she had to do more x she opened her home up as a safe place x for um children x and ended up adopting more children x so um lalande had made a connection with x her and she and michael would go x regularly to her place and do x educational games and songs with these x children x some of these children had x were x afraid of men or adults and but they um x through all the constant love that they x were given x with michael and lulandi they x had eventually gained their trust x these educational games x really help them to reach a level where x they are have a qualification for x adoption and x have a better position to start x attending school x so this place uh green village um x is uh x closer to hope field um it's another x township um x and the this church building here has x been used for x um x the x girls program that leona runs as well as x the x children's bible club x the the these kids we um x we x had um a spare bag of apples and we um x josh and i um x were sharing with them and they uh x helped us go around the village and help x find more children who were x might might want some food x and x this is uh the women's program x that leona x presents x on women's health issues and safety x and x they they were all given x supplies and given self-defense courses x and x this is the children's program where x they read them bible stories x um x did more puppet shows x um x these are some of the puppets um x my mom and grandmother put a lot of hard x work into making you might recognize uh x got david and goliath here x we've got jonah and the whale x we've got jesus and the apostles x and x this is the x local uh x green village crash or what we'd call x preschool x um x there's another connection they made x with the um x with jacqueline and her husband who run x this preschool x through their own funds x um x what we did is we went in there and x helped her fix up the place x did a lot of painting murals and x um weeding thorns we planted a vegetable x garden you'll see a little further on x um x paint this little um x tricycle track for them to drive around x on x and we planted a garden x um x with um veggies to help x um x and here's leah and i doing some weeding x and another project we did a lot um x well at least once um we x i guess they do this regularly um x well we we all went out um to a local x beach x and just started picking up trash and we x all had these matching t-shirts that all x said um clean up for christ x um x and yeah um x it was a nice way to um x help take care of x the environment and show that we care x and um x yeah we had people um come by and um ask x us what we were up to and we were able x to x share our faith that way so that was x really special x and yeah x so on some of the off days we um one of x the off days we were able to x see x some of the x natural beauty of the area x and yeah these are um x michael and londy's children's pets x interesting choice x found some other interesting animals x and it's a lot of good food x um x a lot of great discussions over dinner x um x um x some of the x seaside and i think there's a clip here x [Music] x bye x and yeah x it's a great trip we made a lot of um x great um connections and x this is the view from on top of table x mountain which is kind of the uh x iconic landmark in the region x brutal x yeah x i didn't bring enough water x that was our clip oh okay x in the hundreds x [Music] x oh x [Music] x oh yeah we eventually made it to the top x and there's a x lot of x interesting plants up there x oh yeah x this is craziness x oh yeah x all right so um x yeah as i kind of conclude this talk i x just wanted to x explore x different ways we could um x potentially um continue this and x um x also help x like help both them the the south x african brothers and sisters continue x doing their good work x as well as x looking for ways that we can x spread that kind of x spirit and continue to look for ways to x help x our own communities and x hopefully build connections and x so um one thing like as i mentioned x earlier x michael and alandi are x looking to raise funds to x buy a vehicle to transport those x children to x the um the classes that they run x i believe he's starting a gofundme i x don't have the link yet but if i do get x that i will share it with you all x um x and x this last photo here x was actually on not in south africa this x is in rhode island um x sister rebecca has continued to x had this effort of x the cleanup for christ and she's been x sharing a lot of this on instagram and x trying to get more people involved with x this and x i just think it's a great idea um x um but yeah i just like to open it up at x this point if anyone would like to share x any ideas they they might have to x share x god's love x not necessarily an idea but i just want x to x pick your brain what was what was the x best part of this trip that made an x impression on you x what was what was the most x impressionable thing that happened on on x the trip that you t that you took away x from this trip x um x yeah i'd say just like all the um x hard work that um x the this keeper's family is put into x like helping their community even like x when like while we were there like x they've been going through quite a lot x with their family x um with with like the birth of children x and x um so much more and like it's inspiring x to see all the work that they despite x that that they continue to x do to help um x um x for one just um house us for the week x and then the other x to just help continue um that work and x um x yeah that's x thank you x so follow-up question x what was your favorite food item there x outside of the pizza that we saw like x traditional african x uh x food x indoor beverages x um x oh man there's this one dish i just x cannot for the life of remember what x it's called x okay could could you describe thank you x yes could you describe it for us x um x uh it's got like x it's kind of like a x the uh x south african sort of x version of like a shepherd's pie sort of x deal oh yeah yeah yeah okay i think i've x seen i forget the name of it too but x yeah x i've seen a food show on x delicious destinations cape town x okay hold on i'm i'm done x first of all thank you for the x presentation that was great x is there a list of items x where you know that they need or where x we can send stuff to like how would that x all work x um like you know school supplies or x anything right x um well i don't know i know that they x want to organize some more x of these kind of trips to there and x we could definitely send supplies along x with whoever goes on those next x missions i'm not sure when the next one x will be x but um in the meantime x mom do you know x no okay x okay yeah i'll let you all know if i x thank you i have any more information x oh yes x thanks jacob um x this was a sort of the culmination of x the prepare to preach program is that x right yes could you talk a little bit x about prepare to preach p2p x um yeah so that was um back in 2019 x uh a slightly larger group of us um x spent um a week in last summer that x summer um x in portland oregon where um x we had um training just trying to x look um we did some bible study as well x as x just um trying to figure out x where our x preaching strengths lie x with each member of the team x and x yeah it was a great experience we had x planned this trip um for 2020 but x obviously that x that plan did not follow through until x this year but yeah x so when you are on p2p x one of the things i think i heard you x say was that x they helped you identify what your x strengths were x uh your preaching strengths is that how x you described it yes x and so then when you were in south x africa you showed us a number of uh x photos some of which were things like x puppet shows other things were x you know youth sports x did you find yourself attracted to one x or the other or was there x an area that you prefer doing as opposed x to uh x tried to avoid x um x i mean um i it was all very very much x enjoyable even if um certain things x weren't particularly my best um x suited for my talents but um x yeah i definitely enjoyed working with x the kids um x yeah i like playing these sports with x them as well as x um like the x digging holes to plant gardens in and um x you know that like all of it was x most certainly wonderful x the williamsburg foundation has a x podcast called that levi gelino hosts x i think it's called the one uh x a little faith a little faith and they x recently uh they recently interviewed x seth x and um x and josh x and they talked a little bit about their x experience the same time you were there x and x they talked a little bit about uh x i think one of them said you know hey x some people love the puppet shows not my x thing right x and x i think the lesson that they were x bringing out was that within the x ecclesia x we tend to have certain talents and i x guess the question is do we x try and strengthen our strengths x and sort of go with what we're good at x or do we weak do we try to strengthen x our weaknesses and become more x well-rounded do you have an opinion on x that hmm x i'm i i think that there's um value in x both like i think we should develop our x um the natural god-given talents that we x do have and try to strengthen those to x the best of our ability x um but yeah there's also something to be x said for um x working on x our weaknesses and trying to x you know become more x adapted to that x thanks for this program x yeah x thank you x i'm still waiting x i'm still waiting for that promised uh x sunday school breakfast that you had x teased us with for week after week after x week x [Music] x you really did have the food x oh x now i feel left out x thanks jacob nice job x [Applause] x chris won't let me x give up on this so here x if whoops i don't know philip is it x possible still to x phil is it possible still to run the x projector one x okay x turn the what x oh x hold on one second i don't need to talk x all right so this is what you x what we wanted x for some reason it wasn't working in the x show x oh uh