Our First Weekend

For me, our first full day in South Africa was one I will never forget. I turned 21 and I couldn't have asked to be anywhere else. Although I was not able to celebrate with family and friends back home, God intended me to be here and provided me with so much love! To wake up to the crashing waves and beautiful view was truly a blessing. We spent the day exploring Cape Town and familiarizing ourselves with the culture of the region. We visited the Slave Lodge and the District 6 Museum, which were so interesting and eye opening. Then we spent some free time by the waterfront. We returned to the team house and watched Yesterday, a South African film portraying the reality of HIV and AIDS. After debriefing and discussing our feelings and attitudes about the movie, a group from the house (World Race) walked into the room singing "happy birthday" with a cake. What an amazing moment! I was so thankful for the love, support, and joy we all shared and I am so thankful to God for an amazing 21 years.

Today we attended two church services, King of Kings and Masi Baptist. Although the services had two distinct atmospheres, both were amazing places to worship and we were able to see and experience God's presence in a new environment. We then returned to the team house and welcomed a new team from Nevada. Now there are three teams - about 30 people here! Tim and Natasha, the volunteer coordinators of Living Hope joined us and introduced to the ministry. We split up and toured the Living Hope sites and communities that we will be working with. The sites were overwhelming and almost impossible to describe. I know that God will be challenging us throughout the month but our mission here is all due to Him and I can't wait to see how He will be working through us in these communites. That's it for now...off to worship! Tomorrow is our first day so please be praying for us!

Zoey