Hello All,

Sorry for my lack of blogging since I left three weeks ago. I have so much to say and yet no words to explain. I'll start from the beginning. After spending 12 hours at the ATL airport, 17 hours on the plane, and another day and a half of driving into Swaziland, it's safe to say that we were completely traveled out. God blessed us with insanely safe travels. Never once, did I feel unsafe.

Upon arriving to our home in Nsoko, we were greeted with dozens upon dozens of smiling children jumping up and down. I could hardly make it out of the van before a little girl ran at me with her arms wide open, ready for me to pick her up and love on her.

There is quite a variety of ministry opportunities here is Swazi. I spend the mornings working at care points. There I assist in teaching orphans or helping out the GoGo's (grandmothers) with meal preparations for the community. Two days out of the week, I do more hands on labor. We have been working on building two new showers for the community center and building a chicken coop for Pastor Gift. The afternoons are spent building relationships with children or doing house visits. Through the house visits, I have met two people, both suffering from Tb and Aids.

 I can't even tell how hard it is to stand there and see this. Bringing hope to a woman who has not been able get out of bed for months is something I wasn't quite prepared for to be honest. I knew it would be hard. I knew I would see death and disease. I knew this all, but have learned that there is no way to prepare yourself for it.

Friday afternoons, I spend in a young women's small group made up of myself, four of my team members, and several other young Swazi women. I love it. It is so awesome to get to know these women and learn about their culture, their hardships, and their dreams.

I have also grown to love my team. Saying it is hard to live in a house with 18 other young women is an understatement. Yet, even with its hardships, there is so much, laughter, love, and growth.

God is doing big things in my heart. Most of which, I am not completely aware of at this point. I know he has me here for a reason. The fact that my team is made up of all women is no coincidence. The lack of communication is yet another circumstance God is growing me in.

I am excited to see how I grow from this and to see prayers answered. But more than that, I look forward to growing closer and closer to God. My Faith has never been shaken so hard. I've never asked more questions, nor have I ever had to be so open minded.

I hope all is well. I love and miss everyone. I can't wait to see everyone. Thank you all for your prayers.