A day at the orphanage

Some of the kids from the orphanage and neighborhood (with Lily, Anya, Katelyn and Lacy)  

Last Saturday our family and team went to the township to paint Pastor J's house and play with their 21 orphan children.  I was a little bit nervous about what it would be like, especially for Lily and Anya, because I wasn't with Christian when they visited last time.  But I knew it was an opportunity the Lord had for us as a family.  As we drove in to the township, my eyes bounced (along with the car) between all the women walking home carrying water jugs on their heads, starving dogs wandering around, kids playing out in the sand (their ground), and seeing all the "life" happening in the multicolored shacks.  There wasn't really a road...more of "a way" between the shacks.  We arrived at Pastor J's property, which consisted of a three small houses (one room houses the size of a motor home)~ one full of bunk beds for the girls, one for the boys, one for Pastor J and his wife and the babies~the church (a bigger room with a small kitchen attached), two outhouses, a trampoline and little jungle gym outside.  The property is fenced in, and felt "safe" in more than one way.  There were A LOT of children, and as Pastor J introduced himself he said many of them (aside from his 21) were kids from the neighborhood.  It was a Saturday, which I later learned was a day many of the parents of the neighbor kids spent drinking.  So they come to the orphanage to be in a stable and safe place.  So many sad stories there, but made us all the more grateful for the generous love of Pastor J and his wife.  He had to go shortly after we arrived, as unfortunately one of the young elders of his church (who he was training to take over) died suddenly that week from tuberculosis and he went to help make funeral arrangements.  It was a very close friend of his.  Please pray for Pastor J, his church, and the elder's wife and kids who are mourning his loss.

Lily and her new friend :)

Most of the team went right to work on sanding, priming and painting Pastor J and his wife's new house.  Shannon, Stephanie and I hung out with the kids.  The trampoline was a main attraction, and quite chaotic:).  I quickly realized that most of the children didn't understand English, as they speak Xhosa.  It was the first time in South Africa that I've encountered a language barrier...and it took me a little while to figure out how to round up 30 kids, and what to do with them.  Thankfully Stephanie had some game ideas and so we went inside to the church and played "Duck,Duck, Goose", "Red Light/Green Light", "Boom chicka Boom", and whatever else we could think of.  The kids were anywhere from 1yr to probably 13 years, so there was a wide range of energy and attention span:).  And although I was a little bit worried how Lily and Anya would do, they AMAZED me!  They joined right in and played with the kids.  And Lily hit it off with one little girl out on the monkey bars.  One of our Cru Community staff members, Rose, said she overheard Lily ask her if she would be her friend:).  Turns out the little girl is the first orphan Pastor J and his wife had, as she was found and dropped off when she was a baby.  Lily had a great time and when we got home she said she wanted to have her new friend over to play sometime, and wants to go back again to the orphanage!

We brought and made lunch for the kids, and the Lord multiplied the hot dogs and apples for the rest of the neighborhood children visiting as well.  For those outside of the orphanage, it may have been their only meal of the day.  Anya, being a slow and distracted eater, left her half eaten hot dog and apple on her plate to come find me in the kitchen.  When she returned, it was gone.  She came back crying, of course, and said the "big" boy took her food.  We quickly gave her another hot dog, and she was fine.  I wasn't upset, as I knew my kids would be able to eat again when we left.  I'm sure the boy thought she was finished...she normally only eats half her food anyway.  When we ended up having some "extra" hotdogs after everyone had eaten, I thought we could just put them on a plate and go around and offer them to everyone.  BAD idea- a swarm of hungry children quickly came to eat.  So instead, one of the older kids that helps with his "siblings" brought a handful of kids who he knew needed to eat more, into the kitchen for seconds.  It broke my heart that we couldn't feed all the kids til they were stuffed, and wished so desperately that they'd never go hungry again.  Thankfully, Pastor J and his wife are able to keep their kids pretty well fed most of the time.  They trust the Lord to provide, and he does.  Before we left we gave each of the children a "Kinder Joy" egg, which has chocolate in one half, and a surprise toy in the other half.  They were SO excited, and the little toys kept them busy for quite awhile!

Painting the primer on Pastor J's house-

It was a long day- we were exhausted!  Christian and the team got the house painted before the sun went down.  They learned a lot about the quality of painting supplies...brushes and rollers were breaking left and right.  But luckily it wasn't a big house- more the size of a shed.  It was a rewarding experience for all.  We continue to pray for Pastor J, his wife, and their ministry to their children, their church, and their neighborhood, and we plan to go back to help regularly.  Please pray that the Lord will bring justice- There are children that have been with them since they were babies that have abusive, alcoholic parents, and they are still fighting for custody and trying to protect them.  Pray the Lord will provide a way through all the legal red tape and change hearts and minds of the parties necessary so that all the kids will be in the safest, most loving environment (the orphanage).  Pray also that the Lord will provide all that Pastor J and his wife need; emotionally, physically, spiritually, and tangibly.  God's love is SO evident in this orphanage, and God is being glorified- even in the midst of such trial and need!

Playing jump rope in the church

Anya eating her hotdog...everyone else is finished :)