Last week in George...

Hey all! Tyler here.

Sadly, things are coming to a close in George, South Africa. We are very excited to see all of our friends and family, but the work that God has been doing these last few weeks has been spectacular! We've seen him move in so many ways, in so many lives. It's going to be hard to say bye to everyone we've met - the kids, adults, students, workers, volunteers, and many more. Still, God's hand is thriving here, and we'll be praying for the people in this area long after we've left.

I want to let you guys know what's been going on the last couple of days here. Monday morning started out at LIFE ministries, where we helped clean up their facilities and spent time with the adorable kids there. Then we had lunch and made our way over to Kid's Stop, a local kid's and youth ministry site in the area. We played a big game of soccer, as well as letting some of the kids partake in the arts and crafts we had set up. The day was full, but good. Tuesday was intense! We made our way to downtown George, set up an area in the middle of the morning chaos and business of life, and performed our team drama "Everything" by Lifehouse. This drama explains the gospel in a compelling way, and opens up opportunities for conversation afterwards. I spoke to the crowd when it was over, explaining what the drama means for them and everyone, and invited them to stay and chat with us. The next hour was spent praying with anyone we saw and came in contact with, and sharing with them the love of Jesus. It was fantastic! The afternoon was great as well. We worked with Alif ministries, a surfing ministry in George, by helping clean up a home that belonged to two brothers in the group, Stuart and Leroy, who are 17 and 14-years-old. We did yard work, played some soccer in the street, performed our skit again in the middle of the road for anyone watching, and had a blast. Wayne lead us in a Bible Study later that night. He heads up the Sports Ministry with OAM. All together an awesome day!

Wednesday was phenomenally wrecking, in a good way. Dan and Val surprised us by taking us back up in the mountains to Waboomskraal to visit the school we had worked at the previous couple of weeks. We didn't think we were going to go back, and were very happy to be doing so. On the way, however, we stopped in a township called Blanco to visit another team here with OAM from Northern Ireland that was helping build a house for a woman with tuberculosis, and set up an art station on the street corner. We had about 20 of the local children come to color. It was really fun! Then two woman came to our station, a grandmother and her daughter. The older woman was 54, and the daughter was probably 35. The daughter's left arm was permanently bent out of shape. She could barely move it at all. It was obviously very painful. As we found out through translation, she had an accident nine years before that left her in this dreadful condition. Not only that, but both woman said they were hungry. They hadn't eaten in a few days. Our hearts broke. We prayed for them and their baby they had with them right then and there in the street. Tears rolled down their faces and onto their shirts. It was devastating. We didn't know what to do, so we grabbed some food we had, and Emily and I met them down the road as they were walking back to their house. They invited us into their home, which was very small, but clean. Emily and I were speechless as they opened up their cupboards and refrigerator, only to show us that they were empty. They literally had no food. We gave them what we brought, and through many tears, while holding onto each other in a circle, we cried out to God for healing and restoration. (I am not one to cry easily and couldn't, as much as I wanted to, but my heart was broken - all of ours were). They asked us when we would return. Emily and I looked at each other with guilt, knowing we probably couldn't before we left, but told them we wouldn't forget them and would pray that God would perform a miracle in their lives. Their address is 2530, in Blaco. I know you guys don't know them, but if you can, please pray for this grandma, her daughter with the broken arm, and their baby. Please pray for the city of George.

Man, I'm sorry. That was very difficult, for all of us. The afternoon was more joyful as we met with the kids at the school in Waboomskraal. We hung out with them, colored, played rugby, and even gave some of them a new pair of shoes that we had bought for them, (we noticed a lot of them needed shoes the weeks before). It was a great afternoon, but we are all still affected by our encounter with the women on Wednesday morning, as it should be. The night was very fun, too, as the people here at Mackani with OAM hosted a "braai", (their word for b-b-q), which was absolutely delicious! We had lamb, sausage, and multiple side dishes...amazing!

This morning was spent helping clean and do yard work here at Mackani. After lunch, we made our way over to hang out with the boys from the Alif ministry. We were going to go surfing and play music, but the weather wasn't the greatest, so we ended up having a great time playing soccer, rubgy, and praying with each other after we watched a surfing documentary about Liberia. Liberia is a country in West Africa, near Ivory Coast and Ghana. This documentary talked about their civil war that ended about 7 years ago after the rebels killed and harmed many people, driving countless refugees out of their homes with no place to live. It was extremely eye-opening as we realized that so many people go through this type of lifestyle everyday! We ended the time by splitting up into groups with the kids and praying for one another's needs, as well as restoration for the continent of Africa. We prayed that God's Spirit would continue to bring light into the darkness, and that people would come to know Him, even in the most dire of situations. Please be in prayer about this as well! Other than that, we came back to home base, ate dinner together, and had a Bible Study lead by Brian who heads up the Living Hope Homes ministry here with OAM.

We look forward to the rest of our time here in South Africa, and can't wait for what else the Lord has in store for us before we fly home. I'm not going to lie. At times, it has been very discouraging. The things that so many people have to go through everyday - the hurt, the pain, the brokenness - it doesn't seem fair. Why are they in so much pain while I'm not? Why was I born in America, a place of plentiful opportunies to become whatever I want to be, while most people around the world were not given that chance? It hasn't been easy to cope with, but God is faithful. That is something I am strongly reminded of every single day. I can't worry about fixing everyone. God doesn't want me to. If I do that, my efforts and struggles are for nothing, because sooner or later I'll hit rock bottom and give up because I've been relying on my strength and not God's. All I can do, all any of us can do, is love the people we come in contact with, even if it's just a few. I may not be able to make a difference in everyone's lives, but if I can show the amazing love of Jesus Christ to a few people, then I did my part. And if everyone can do their part, then the world, the entire world, will be affected. Our team has been doing an amazing job at just that. I am so unbelievably proud of all of them! God isn't asking us to cure all of Africa. He's asking each of us to simply give Him our 5 loaves and 2 fish. He'll do the rest.

Much love,

Tyler from Team Uthando