T.I.E.

T.I.E.....this is Elna's. Thats the title of this blog entry, a play on the saying T.I.A. (this is africa...a kind of derogatory statement suggesting that anything can happen in africa-its africa, not america!) So, why do i say T.I.E.? Well, because thats what the whole team has been saying lately, as our power went out about 5 times in 2 days! Elna is the lady who owns this guesthouse and makes us breakfast every morning, takes care of us, lives here, etc. So, this past week, we had terrible power issues-once, we left and it was out, came back and it was on for about 20 minutes, then it went out again. It was bad- we lived by the light of a candle. One night, I simply crawled into bed at 10 PM, like a character out of one of those American Girl books. It was depressing. But on the good side, the power people (they have been here at least 20 times this summer, no joke) installed something to where we can flip the breaker when it goes out instead of it going out for hours.
So, this past week was our first week on the campus of TUKS! (the university of Pretoria). On sunday, we had a day of fasting and prayer, which honestly made me kinda weary about going on the campus, the gears seemed to change so quickly from all fun and games to strategic ministry, which is our purpose here, to really bring people into the ministry of Campus Outreach here, to build up laborers on the campus that have a heart for the lost, and to share with people who dont have a relationship with Jesus. So, on Monday at 3 PM, Ashton and I went to Jasmyn to begin ministry. We are following Charity, a girl on staff here with CO, who lived in Jasmyn when she was a student. Its also cool because Emily ministered in Jasmyn last summer, and let me just say that probably at least 2 times a day, people have hugged me and thought i was emily!
So, each day this week we went to the dorms and 3 and got picked up around 9:30. In the mornings, we have ministry training, time to read the Bible, prayer groups, and free time. Each time in the res, Ashton and I visit different girls that Charity has already begun building relationships with, basically sit and talk to girls for hours...it can be very draining. But we also have 3 Christian girls, Megan, Hadi, and Nomfundo that we are hanging out with and doing Bible studies with, and that is my favorite part. This weekend, we went to the movies and out to dinner with 3 girls! Then on Sunday we went to the opening night of Tuks missions week with some of the girls, it reminded me of a big rally at something like the JWC or ATL in the states. It was cool because the topic was missions, like what are we called to do about the 6,000 people groups that have never heard the name of Jesus? Its definitely something to think about, even though I halfway across the world, I am telling people about Jesus who have heard of Him, you know, the way its common to hear about Him in Sunday school and even get baptized, but thats alot different than really giving control of your life to Him and daily laying down your life. I think thats the hardest thing, is to shatter the myth about what Christianity is (and I find that to be true both here and in the US)- just because you read the Bible, go to church, or were raised in a Christain home doesnt mean you are a Christian. Being a Christian is about loving God and making God known...and loving God above all else, even good things like family, work, whatever,...and making Him known means that whatever you do wherever you are, if you believe, you tell others. This is hard to communicate to people, and I am praying the verse 1 Peter 3:15 for my time in Jasmyn: "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect" So, I want to live and share with gentleness and respect, but always be prepared to share...and it has been great to be able to really rejoice when i get to mention Christ's name as the One that I trust, even if i am not giving a full out talk about my faith.
Some fun things that have happened lately- Christine's bday (21st!) was on Saturday, so me and my roomies here got up at 6 AM and baked her a cake! (we had to make the icing because here in SA, theres no icing you can buy!) and we decorated the door and the room, and put her presents out like Christmas morning!!! It was great, we woke her up singing happy birthday, and that night, all the girls went out to eat at this nice cafe, and watched How to Lose a Guy in 10 days!!! It was so fun. Today was my sabbath- I spent it at the mall, paid too much money to call mom and dad and emily, and went shopping. I'll be honest, the fashion here is more metro than it is in the US...I couldnt find anything that I really loved, although I have worn all my clothes so so much, I couldnt find anything that I loved- there are stores like Guess, Levi's, and even some Gap clothes, but theyre all too expensive! Mom would be proud that I refused to shop anything but the sales (plus, I have no idea how I'm going to fit all this in my suitcases)
Well, I'll leave with some random thoughts-
-we only have about 2 weeks left! Its weird to think that...
-our room is now named Princess Palace..we all colored pictures of Disney princesses and decorated our door (Im Ariel!! of course)
-People on our team are overusing South African lingo...its very annoying, they say "Ah, Shame!!" and "as well" after everything, and the a sounds like a mix between O as in ostrich and A as in apple
-A girl became a Christian this week! Christine led her to Christ!!!!!:)