Dis-ci-ple noun
A personal follower of Jesus; one who accepts and assists in spreading the doctrines of another: such as Christianity.
First of all I want to apologize for not writing consistent updates. It's such an important part of Missions work that I royally fail at. After week three I decided to simply write a larger report at the end of this trip and allow you to read the story in its entirety.
Before I go into the stories from outreach, training, and life on the farm in Schlip. I would like to introduce you to the team:
The coordinators were Japie and Ronel vanVuuren. They are born and bred in Namibia. Not long after being here, the other two team members and I began to call them 'Mom' and 'Dad'. They are diligent, funny, caring, beautiful people. I was pleased that not long after landing, they said the schedule completely changed. So we were just winging it and listening to God's leading through the entire two months and it was amazing!
My two team members were Jannie, from The Netherlands, and Hillie who was born in The Netherlands but moved to Eastern Canada when she was 10. I was the youngest in my 20's, Hillie is in her 30's, and Jannie in her 40's.
Another vital piece of information to help you understand Namibia is the country's history:
Namibia is located in Southwest Africa, astride the Tropic of Capricorn and beside the South Atlantic Ocean. Its main borders are with South Africa, Botswana, and Angola, though it also adjoins Zambia. The climate is a subtropical desert climate. Literacy is estimated at about 40%. Since independence, the government has poured resources into an expansion of the education system, and at present about 89% of children (aged 6–16) attend school. There are small primary schools in the most rural of areas and large secondary schools in the regional centers. To help with this expansion, many foreign teachers come to Namibia with the help of NGOs and overseas aid agencies. About 44% of Namibia's population is under 15 years of age, whilst only 4% is over 65. Statistics indicate that the average life expectancy for a Namibian is 65 years. Around 86% of the population is black African in origin, and the remaining 14% is mostly of European or mixed race. Namibia is home to a wide variety of ethnic groups such as the Tswanas, Bushmen, Whites, Caprivians, Rehoboth Basters, Topnaars, Nama, Himba, Kavango, Damara, Herero, and Owambo. The majority of people where we stayed in Schlip, were Nama and Basters. The two communities were separated by a small river which further caused division within the community. The last group to arrive in Namibia were the Basters – descendants of Boer men and African women (mostly Nama). Being Calvinist and Afrikaans-speaking, they considered themselves to be culturally more "white" than "black". As with the Oorlams, they were forced northwards by the expansion of white settlers when, in 1868, a group of about 90 families crossed the Orange River into Namibia. The Basters settled in central Namibia, where they founded the city Rehoboth. Schlip is a settlement of about 1,500 inhabitants in the Rehoboth Rural constituency in the Hardap Region of central Namibia. It is situated on the unpaved road D1290 which is 90 kilometers west of Rehoboth and has two primary schools and a junior secondary school. Schlip is the main settlement of the ǁOgain (Groot Doden) clan of the Nama people.
// sources: Wikipedia, Namibian.org, Namibweb.com, rehobothbasters.org, Namibia-travel-guide.com
I would encourage you, if interested, to further research the history of Namibia as there is more information that I wasn't able to include. i.e languages etc.
Week One – The Introduction
Three flights, two days time, thirteen hours of layovers, and eight time zones later, I found myself landing in Windhoek, Namibia. My Facebook friends will remember my posts asking for prayer those first nights. I was exhausted and felt lost and confused. It suddenly hit me this would be my new home for the next two months. I also went from –21 degrees Celsius to 34 and sunny, of course I go to Africa in their summer. The next day we had a road trip which instantly boosts my mood. Listening to music and long drives are vital for realigning my heart and soul and changing my frame of mind. The road trip ended at Erindi Private Game Reserve. 1.5 hour drive North of where we were staying in Okahandja. It was only Japie, Ronel, Jannie and I at the Reserve because Hillie was late a few days due to issues with flights. We camped the night there and did a self-drive safari the following morning. We saw many species of wild game, giraffes, ostriches, hippos, crocodiles, warthogs, and zebras. It was a wonderful introduction to this beautiful country.
We picked up Hillie the next day and made our way South to Schlip, our new home. 200km drive with a couple pit stops. One being a photo opportunity with the Tropic of Capricorn road sign. Our first week we had plenty of storms, rain and wind in Schlip. Because of the mosquitoes and the heat, we would pitch our tents outside of the farmhouse on the 'stoop' and put the twin bed mattresses in the tents so it was actually incredible sleeping comfortably outside. The farmhouse was given to us for our time there by Aunt Macy and Uncle Adolf. It was a beautiful home. No electricity. So no fans, fridge, etc. We did have a small solar panel to charge phones etc. We had fresh farm water, a cold shower, and working toilets. There was a tiny dam/reservoir beside the house which was nearly four feet deep and 7 feet wide which we filled with fresh water and used as a pool to cool down. A 5 minute walk through the fence and past the windmill was a gorgeous river with large smooth stones to sit on. I spent many hours with God there. The farm was 3 km from the settlement, a 15/20 minute walk. Sometimes the river heading towards Schlip from the farmhouse was full (usually it was dry) so we had to walk through and one time it was up past my knees. We also wound up not being able to leave Schlip multiple times because we were unable to drive the Combie across without getting stuck. Our first few days in Schlip were spent sharing our stories and learning more about hearing God's voice. On the Saturday we went into the settlement to go to the Athletics competitions that the schools compete in. Loretta Smith, one of our contacts living in Schlip, drove us. It was our first time riding in the back of the buggy. It was a 4x4 Isuzu. When we stopped at the Smith's house on the way back their water tank was overflowing and Hillie and I, the overheating Canadians we are, ran underneath in our clothes and had a nice cold shower!
What I learnt most this week:
One thing that really resonated with me was that Christians often live a Spiritual life consisting of being charged, running out of power, being charged, and the cycle goes on. We need to be connected and plugged in.
This entire week I was fighting a horrible flu which was discouraging but I was thankful it wasn't during an outreach. The first part of this week went through the entire Bible chronologically and learnt about how Jesus' sacrifice for us is foreshadowed throughout the entire Old Testament. Seeing from the beginning God did and does have a plan for mankind. In the afternoons we would go out into the community to the Baster side of Schlip to visit people, hear their stories, and build relationships. While we were praying before going out the first day, I received a mental picture of a woman in a green shirt. As we walked around the community, we went to a small shop, and the owner was in a green shirt. So we made a connection with her. We never experienced any outward indications if God moved in her heart, but I'm trusting that I planted a seed and God will do the rest.
When the team met one afternoon to pray about where to go on our first outreach, I received the verse Acts 1:4-8. It essentially says to stay in Jerusalem and baptize with the Holy Spirit and that you will receive power to do so. I at first was hesitant to share the scripture because honestly I was selfish and I didn't want to stay in Schlip for the outreach. I wanted to go somewhere new. When we came together to pray however, Ronel had received the exact same Word from the Bible. So I reluctantly apologized to God and shared with my team. Hillie had prayed that if we were meant to stay God would make the river full so we couldn't drive across. Sure enough, after a day of heavy rain, first outreach the following week was in Schlip!
What I learnt most this week:
One time when we visited the shop, a clerk asked me about my tattoos. In Namibia, most tattoos are from prison or war. So to see a young lady with ink was odd. Being able to share the meaning behind my tattoos was amazing, it was a way to evangelize without preaching at her as we were still building relationships. Her face lit up after hearing the stories and I felt it touched something in her heart. I was blessed by that opportunity.
Week Three – The Other Side
Outreach one! We stayed in Schlip and focused on the Nama side of the river. Schlip is split into two areas. The Baster side which has more regular houses of cement. Contrary to the Nama side which is also referred to as 'The Location' which consists of many small shacks built from corrugated zinc. Some elderly Christian friends of ours from the Baster side joined us, along with Loretta. We split into three teams and Japie went on his own to evangelize to the men. I was with Loretta and Ronel. We visited several houses after a tour of the pre primary school and performing a skit of Abraham and Isaac for the children. During all of the house visits they either spoke only Nama or they spoke Afrikaans which Ronel and Loretta could translate for me. Oftentimes they didn't bother to translate because I could catch on and was engaged in the conversation, the Holy Spirit revealed to me what was being said. Ronel would occasionally ask me if God spoke anything to share or if I could pray a blessing over the home or maybe share a piece of my testimony to be translated. It was such a wonderful time and no matter how tired and hot I was when I began ministry, we always left feeling excited and overflowing with joy and peace and love for these people. The one day we had the opportunity to pray for the Hardap Region inside the Schlip Council Office. That same day, one woman recommitted her life to Christ and we were able to give her the tools to start a Bible study within her network. When we left Schlip last week, March 24, we gave her a visit and she was still on fire and connected with God. One family we visited were unresponsive due to drinking a popular alcoholic concoction in Namibia called Home Brew. Made from sorghum or maize, oftentimes made with dangerous ingredients such as battery acid to increase the potency. We could only pray for them and leave them in God's hands. On a lighter note, we then visited an elderly woman with the most joyful expression on her face. She had been praying God would send her someone to encourage her as she strengthens her relationship with God. Loretta and I visited and encouraged her and enjoyed a lovely time of prayer and fellowship. I spent the final 30 minutes colouring with a group of children who had followed me around the previous days. The next day Loretta and I did more visits and one that stood out was a visit to Paulous and his father. His father was a believer and you could see the love of Jesus in his eyes. However his son, after a night of binge drinking, believed he had been cursed by witchcraft. He has a speech impediment and feels bound to dark magic. We prayed, encouraged him, and shared the gospel. I shared that in the Word it says 'Where the light is, the darkness cannot be.' He could not speak but Loretta asked him to say Jesus and by the time we left he was saying Jesus. We told him when he feels that suffocating darkness to call out to Jesus. Loretta and I were so encouraged to see God's power at work.
The first day of the Relationships Seminar went well. We watched the series 'Love, Sex, and a Lasting Relationship' with Chip Ingram and split into small groups for discussions. The next day there were power outages so no one arrived. Although unknown to them we had a generator. It was discouraging and like everything else that tries to be built up within this community, it felt half baked and unfinished.
What I learnt most this week:
I learnt that if I follow God's leading in obedience, no matter how ill or exhausted I'm feeling, He will provide me with not only the energy, but also the words to speak and direction to go to accomplish His will.
Week Four – Learning How To Say Namibian Town Names Correctly
Before second outreach, we drove Ronel to Windhoek to take care of her granddaughters for a few days while the rest of us went on our way. That night, Japie and Ronel had bought us ice cream and we stayed at their friends house which had wifi. We felt very spoiled. Second outreach took place in a settlement called Hoachanas. At first I was saying 'hoach-annas' but caught on that It is said 'hwa-ha-nas'. It is a settlement of 3,000 inhabitants. The majority of the houses at the settlement are shacks made from corrugated zinc like most 'locations'. Almost half of the villagers are unemployed, and literacy levels are low. The main economic activity is small livestock farming with goats and sheep.
Upon arrival Japie felt we should visit the council office. We had no idea where we were going to be staying, we had our tents so we asked where we could pitch them. One young lady overheard us and said she was moving into a house on Sunday, which was the day we were leaving, and we could stay there until then. What a confirmation and amazing testimony of God's provision! The house is about the size of a North American living room but it was safe, had electricity, a shower, and a normal working toilet. I struggled with migraines that week but again God gave me strength.
Our first day we walked around the settlement and met some people and prayed with the school principals and church leaders. We experienced Hoachanas as a much more ambitious and hopeful settlement than Schlip. Yearning to see their community developed and elevated and working towards achieving that goal. There was a large government built and supported community building which was beautiful and the owner of the restaurant/cafe from South Africa, El Jo, had such a huge heart for the people. She had low prices and supported those in need when she could. One story she shared was one of caring for a little boy who was neglected by his parents who were both alcoholics and were not supporting him physically or emotionally. She had practically become the boys new mother.
We also spent time with the workers at the council to pray and minister with them. Almost everyone wanted prayer for some kind of experiences, they, or a loved one had with evil spirits and/or witchcraft. Fear of the occult was strong in Namibia. That same day we visited the large school hostel and spoke with the children. Many of the children were involved in choir so they sang us one song in English and one in the Nama language which is tonal and consists of 4 different click sounds. It was so beautiful and all of us had tears in our eyes. I was talking with the younger children and it was difficult because they all just wanted to touch my hair. But I was able to share a bit about Jesus with them and explain how much they are loved and valued. We also had our first introduction to corporal punishment. Although outlawed the year of Namibia's independence 27 years ago, it still continues. We had to turn away as one boy was whipped for not having his shirt buttoned up straight. I was so angry.
Our final evening we decided to go for a nice walk. We stumbled upon a man with a horse cart and Japie payed him to give Hillie, Jannie, and I a ride. So we all pile in this little cart and suddenly he jumps up in the cart, almost on top of me, and Hillie still has her leg trapped on the front bench with her body on the back bench when this guy takes off full speed ahead! The man was slightly intoxicated and after about two minutes we look back to see Japie motioning us to turn around. So after pleading with the driver to take us back. At full speed he makes his turn, with the wooden wheels bending. Somehow we all managed to get our feet back on solid ground with all of us praising God for our survival and Hillie shaking from our nearly traumatic experience.
The next morning, Sunday, we packed up the Combie to the sound of church music being played on the organ at the nearby Lutheran church and made our way back to Schlip.
What I learnt most this week:
God's amazing provision! How he looks after His children.
Week Five – Finishing What We've Started
The day we arrived in Hoachanas I had felt God telling me that for the remainder of our outreach time we needed to focus on finishing the Relationships Seminar we had started during first outreach. That afternoon, while we were back on the farm at Schlip, Japie said he had experienced the same thing. So, off we went to speak with the principals in the schools. Our idea was to ask the Principals if we could do it as a class during school hours so there was 100% attendance. At first all of the Principals started off saying no but within minutes would phone back with a time slot for us. So we were ready with times set on the 8, 9, and 10 of March.
March 1 we left Schlip again to pick up Ronel in Windhoek and made our way to Okahandja and further on to Rock Lodge. Rock Lodge is a Christian lodge outside of Okahandja and used for seminars, leadership training, youth camps, etc. We were there to intern as facilitators during a two day seminar called 'The Question' which is a part of Family Foundations International. It was an amazing opportunity to minister to some wonderful young women and help them heal from things in their pasts and to acknowledge and answer 'The Question' which is "Who am I?". The weather was cool and rainy which was a lovely break from the hot desert farm life in Schlip. I think I wore a sweater one day while I was there!
The day we left for Schlip I was in a foul mood due to an unfortunate night getting eaten alive by mosquitos. But after a visit to a real coffee shop and some wifi to download new music I felt better. That night, we stayed at Loretta's guesthouse and there was an influx of these strange little red beetles coming in under the door and they would fly towards the light and drop on us. Hillie and I were sharing a bed and Jannie was on the single mattress. Hillie and I were freaking out because there was at least 30 of these beetles on our bed. So we strung up the mosquito net and tried to sleep.
What I learnt most this week:
During our internship at Rock Lodge I learnt that God will send the Holy Spirit to speak through you. You don't need to try to fabricate something.
Week Six – Finances and Relationships
The beginning of the week we had a representative of Crown Financial lead a two day course with us in Schlip. A decent amount of people from the community also joined. The course was looking at finances from a Biblical Christian perspective. The remainder of the days we were leading the Relationships Seminars. We had 10-11:30 at the Primary School and 12-1 at the High School. From 5-6 we would go back to the High School to lead small groups for those who wanted to join in. By the end of our time, we reached over 260 students and teachers with the Seminar. Everyone was so grateful and said they had never received information like that before.
During that week I had some much needed time with God down at the river. But also found myself burnt to a crisp one day. All it took was one day too long in the sun. Even with sunscreen. My legs were blistered and my shoulders were bright red. We left for final outreach the following day.
What I learnt most this week:
African sun is not the same as Canadian sun. Ouch.
Week 7 – Bethany in Bethanie
When we were praying where to go for outreach, my teammate, Hillie, kept reading about Bethany in the Bible. One verse in specific was "He led them out as far as to Bethany". She was joking that she kept reading about me until Japie said there is a place called Bethanie. But it's 5 hours away. Thus the scripture. So off we went! The first hour on the road was insane. Huge rocky slopes, rivers, and gravel eventually turned into a smoother dirt road. By our second toilet stop, Hillie and I the Canadians, started getting worried as we both horrifyingly realized that the further we went, the hotter and dryer it became. Meanwhile my already burnt flesh was stinging under the sun. When we arrived at our campsite I checked the forecast and it was 36 degrees and sunny all day every day. We asked the owner for an umbrella so I could attempt to hide from the sun. Bethanie was extremely dusty, dry, and hot. I had head stroke and a mini meltdown the first night but by the second day I was pumped and ready to go.
There are so many amazing stories from our time in Bethanie but I'll only share a few. Our first day we went to 'The Location'. Melvin, Loretta's husband, joined us on this outreach and we were evangelism partners the first day. We were led to houses that had date palms or fig trees outside. That was the theme of our outreach in Bethanie. The first house we visited was an old Opa who was a retired elder in the Lutheran church. We asked him about what some of the strongholds in the community were and he talked about teenage pregnancies and drug and alcohol abuse. He didn't speak English so Melvin had to translate for me. He said he loved to garden but because of pain from his cancer he cannot. I prayed if it was God's will that he would be healed and encouraged him by saying God has given him this community as his figurative garden. As he pours into people and plants seeds, God will reward and bless him. He in turn blessed us by saying we were great communicators to the people here and prayed wherever we would go we would be joyfully accepted. Melvin and Jannie went to visit him a couple days later and he was asking where I was. Apparently he was healed and wanted to thank me. Once again I was in awe of how God could use someone like me to work through in such a powerful way. All glory to God.
We were able to hear Lydia, the guesthouse and campsite owner's, story as well. By this time I had already heard from people that Africa has a 'hands out' mentality. Asking "What can you give me?" But not willing to work and support themselves. Many receive government money and spend it all on drugs and alcohol. There is also no ambition to succeed because once you begin to thrive, those around you feel entitled to your success. So when we come across those who are entrepreneurs, working, or are actively searching for work, we commend and encourage them. Saying this, it was sad to hear stories of how Lydia had hired people from 'The Location' only to have them steal from her or spend their money unwisely. She told us how there are many outreaches to Bethanie and nothing ever changes. That was so discouraging to hear and many of us were questioning why God would send us here. God had to show us that we may not see the fruition of our work until far into the future but the seeds we are planting are not in vain.
A couple of the days Hillie and I evangelized together. One woman had a small business selling perfume and we wrote out some useful information from the Finances course to share with her and encouraged her in her business. It was a busy day to visit her because she and 7 other neighbours were all busy cutting up donkey meat.
We visited a small store that had a palm tree outside and there were two young ladies we had a wonderful chat with and shared stories and shared the Gospel. During our visit a man came in and said he saw two 'different' women enter the store. We joked and looked at each other and said "Who? Us?" He then proceeded to ask if either of us wanted to marry him. I said no, I had someone in Canada. Hillie said she needed to marry someone with a Canadian passport so she can get dual citizenship and he seemed to understand that. It was funny. One of our more sober proposals we received in Namibia.
The day we left we had an opportunity that morning to counsel 20 young men who had been in a fire at the hostel. It burned the Wednesday we were there and some of them were dealing with trauma. The three I talked to were not near the fire when it happened and their joy and resilience in the midst of this trial was a testimony to me and I told them as much. The one boy said "It's happened now, there is nothing we can do to change it, so why dwell on it?" These boys had lost everything. Food, clothes, money, ID's, and even all their schoolwork. One fear they had was that of being sent home to their parents to recover and their parents getting mad at them thinking they were sent home on bad behaviour. So we told the principal they all need written letters to their parents from him. There were three boys asleep when the fire started and one woke up the other two. They were the ones who needed professional counselling. They usually lock the doors at night and that thought was causing a lot of trauma. What if it had happened then? We were blessed by the opportunity to speak into their lives but it was also hard to see these young men going through this difficulty.
What I learnt most this week:
That we may not see the influence we are making at that moment, it often takes time. God's timing is not our own. We need to be obedient and then give the situation or person to the Lord and trust He will bring it to fruition.
The final week was spent saying goodbye to friends and following up with those we had evangelized to, to see how they were doing. Mina, a Peace Corps worker in her 20's at the High School was on break at the school so were able to spend time with her and have her for dinner multiple times and to hang out which was fun. I had a lot of pent up energy my last week and spent the mornings running and the afternoons at the river. We also spent a lot of time deep cleaning the Farmhouse to leave it nice and tidy. Our last night in Schlip we had a big braai (African bbq) and chatted. Hillie played guitar and we sang and praised God together one last time.
The following day we left Schlip at around 2pm after tearful goodbyes to the Smith family (Loretta, Melvin, and their son and daughter), and the old Aunties. That morning we had time to pray and time to spend with God to write down what we learnt during our two months, then we shared it with each other afterwards. I will post what I learn at the end of this report. We spent the night in Windhoek at Ronel and Japie's friends house again. The owners of the house were leading a Seminar in the city that night and Ronel and Japie spent the night at their house in Okahandja so us ladies had the night together which was incredible. We had coffee, shared stories, looked at pictures and made a nice salad for dinner.
I didn't sleep much because I flew out the next day. Jannie was leaving March 31 and Hillie booked a safari until April 10. We didn't have to be at the airport until 1pm so we went to some markets to purchase souvenirs.
At the airport we all had lunch together and they made sure I was all checked in and ready to go. I was unable to check-in online prior and was feeling anxious. My Dad was able to book me window seats for my long flights which was a necessity for me. Everything wound up being so smooth. I had a 2 hour flight to Johannesburg, 11.5 to Frankfurt with a 6 hour layover, then the final 9.5 hours to Calgary. My parents, older brother, and one sister came to fetch me and the entire family was able to visit together once home in Red Deer.
What I learnt most this week:
Namibia will forever hold a very special place in my heart and I hope to go back again multiple times.
Three Things I've Learnt – prioritized
Life in Christ. Ecclesiastes 12:13 "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man."
While being in Namibia God has once again shown me the book of Ecclesiastes. The basic idea of this book is that all of life is meaningless if it is not rightly related to God. Only when based on God and His Word is life worthwhile.
Good Steward Of Time. Ephesians 5:15-16 "Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil."
I've learnt to use the time God gives me in a productive or Christ glorifying way. I'm feeling ambitious to use my spare time to further God's kingdom. Regarding time, I've also grown close to God once again and refreshed and renewed my relationship with Him. I realize I didn't have to go across the world to do that. I only had to prioritize my time, with God at the top, so we can communicate and grow everyday.
God Working Through Me. 2 Corinthians 3:18 "And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into His image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit."
This is something I'm often reminded of when doing active ministry. That even if I feel unqualified or not good enough or that I don't have the right words to speak; God still wants and can use me in amazing ways to further His Kingdom. All things unto His glory and He will work through me.
