Well we have one week left in the great nation of South Africa. Our experience has been so incredible. We have been stretched, taught, and molded in ways we never imagined. We have laid bricks, wheelbarreled (dont know how to spell that) cement, dug trenches for water lines, taught soccer clinics, given out boots, eaten goat stomach, and attended a zulu wedding and sadly a funeral as well.
This place has challenged us more than ever to forsake "The American Dream". We have given that up. Who wants to work really hard for 30 years at a desk, make a lot of money and retire in Florida anyways?? that is a rubbish life if you ask me. We have eaten crusts on one day and "caviar" (not really but its a quote from a book) the next day. We know that God will satisfy all our needs on this earth. Our passion for the nations has never been greater. We know we cannot fulfill the Great Commission on our own, but as a body of believers we can surely take part. This journey has been incredible as we have interacted with so many cultures. The other day we had seven nations represented on the football pitch (USA, England, South Korea, Nigeria, Brazil, Australia, and South Africa). Football just unites the world like nothing else I have found on this Earth. It is such a tremendous way to begin a relationship with a complete stranger. What better way to share the Gospel then through the beautiful game?
Our hearts have been broken by the things we have seen today. We attended the funeral of a nine year old boy. He was the sweetest kid at this particular school where we have been working and building bathrooms. He was the first person to learn my name at the school and he smiled so big each day we came. He would run down the street and wave goodbye as we drove off. He had a tragic accident involving electrical wires and he breathed his last on the 5th of July. Today just brought me to tears. Life is so short. We can only make the most of every day that is given to us. Thankfully, he had heard the Good News of Jesus Christ and the hope that the cross brings to the Lost. As a result, there was much singing and rejoicing at the Wedding.
Russell and Precious' house is almost completely finished with interior walls and roof intact. We are praying that it is completely finished by the time we fly back to America. Thank you all for your support during this journey. We only have one week left. We are going to live it up and take every moment captive. Fight the good fight.
One World Watching,
T & B
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
7/6/88
Cheers everyone! Today was a fabulous birthday...we worked a football camp from 10am-4pm and then we went to the orphanage until the sunset across the valley. BBC filmed the entire day and are showing a clip of Lionsraw and all the projects during halftime of the Germany v Spain game on 7/7/10. Unfortunately for you guys, you probably don't have BBC so you wont get to see it live, but as soon as it gets posted to facebook i will let you know. Our days are numbered here now. 10 left. it seems like the past 40 days have just flown past. in a way i knew they would but still when you look back on it i can remember getting off the plane like it was yesterday. On the other hand i feel like i have been here for a year. I can hold a decent conversation in Zulu, have taught about 300 different young footballers, and can turn on an English accent like i was born and raised there...ok maybe the last one was a bit of an exaggeration.
anyways...keep us in your prayers the last ten days. we appreciate everything you have done for us and we cannot wait to relay the message of what God has done in Durban as well as all of South Africa.
One World Watching,
Thaddaeus
anyways...keep us in your prayers the last ten days. we appreciate everything you have done for us and we cannot wait to relay the message of what God has done in Durban as well as all of South Africa.
One World Watching,
Thaddaeus
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Catching Up
Hi all! sorry for such a delay. we have been away from the internet for the past two weeks because when we changed locations it was unavailable. the past fourteen days has been absolutely incredible. brian and i joined a team of about 8 other english lads and we ran a soccer clinic all the way at the base of the valley. this is by far the most destitute of the areas i have been. we ended up having about 100 kids coming everyday from 10am-4pm. we had the privilege of playing and coaching them but more importantly getting to know their lives and their own stories. Nearly every kid we spoke to has lost someone within the past year. Most of them have lost both their parents and an older sibling. I would find myself just choking back tears when i heard each of their stories, but to see their strength in how they handle the situation is incredible. these kids know that the only way they can stay alive is by getting a good education. it explains why they work so hard at everything they put their mind to. it is their only opportunity to survive. after we spent six days with them they began to take us to their homes to show us what they were like.
one of the women who was working with us took brian and a few others to a home made of clay and mud. it was about 15ft by 15ft for 8 people. the parents had just died and the 21 year old boy was taking care of all of his younger siblings. it is so devastating. i just cant explain it with words.
we have had a blast as we begin the third part of our journey here together. (first part was preparation, second part was whole lionsraw group, third part is finishing touches on the building projects) Russell and Precious currently have a house built with a roof and the interior walls are going up today, three other buildings have been built for orphanages in the area, 6 futbol projects brought in about 800 kids to hear the Gospel message, and every life involved has surely been changed.
we love and miss everyone of you but our heart are here for these kids and this nation.
we have three weeks left to pour out everything we have to them and then we will be back in the states.
please continue to pray for us as exhaustion kicks in.
One World Watching,
T & B
one of the women who was working with us took brian and a few others to a home made of clay and mud. it was about 15ft by 15ft for 8 people. the parents had just died and the 21 year old boy was taking care of all of his younger siblings. it is so devastating. i just cant explain it with words.
we have had a blast as we begin the third part of our journey here together. (first part was preparation, second part was whole lionsraw group, third part is finishing touches on the building projects) Russell and Precious currently have a house built with a roof and the interior walls are going up today, three other buildings have been built for orphanages in the area, 6 futbol projects brought in about 800 kids to hear the Gospel message, and every life involved has surely been changed.
we love and miss everyone of you but our heart are here for these kids and this nation.
we have three weeks left to pour out everything we have to them and then we will be back in the states.
please continue to pray for us as exhaustion kicks in.
One World Watching,
T & B
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Fifa Fever
I am wide awake at 640am because the "bird from UP (the movie)" is right outside my window making outrageous noises.
Anyways, the World Cup starts today and the entire country has been blowing those audacious horns (vuvuzelas..good luck pronouncing that) for the past 24 hours. We have completed the foundations for all the projects now and the group arrives on Sunday!
Yesterday was the hardest day of manual labor that Brian and I have ever done. We started at 7am and didnt finish laying the cement until 5pm. It was epic because the last hour was completed in the rain. There are certain days that you know you will never forget and this was certainly one of them.
If you want to join in the festivities the opening game starts today at 10am Eastern time I believe. there will be 90,000 fans at the game and the atmosphere should give you a glimpse of what we are about to experience.
Thank you so much for your prayers and encouragement. Another update will shortly follow.
One World Officially Watching,
Thaddaeus and B-ri
Anyways, the World Cup starts today and the entire country has been blowing those audacious horns (vuvuzelas..good luck pronouncing that) for the past 24 hours. We have completed the foundations for all the projects now and the group arrives on Sunday!
Yesterday was the hardest day of manual labor that Brian and I have ever done. We started at 7am and didnt finish laying the cement until 5pm. It was epic because the last hour was completed in the rain. There are certain days that you know you will never forget and this was certainly one of them.
If you want to join in the festivities the opening game starts today at 10am Eastern time I believe. there will be 90,000 fans at the game and the atmosphere should give you a glimpse of what we are about to experience.
Thank you so much for your prayers and encouragement. Another update will shortly follow.
One World Officially Watching,
Thaddaeus and B-ri
Monday, June 7, 2010
Airplanes
Pray for Brian as he begins the 48 hour journey to Durban. He leaves @ 630 P.M. Central time today June 7th and arrives in Durban on June 9th @ 5:10 P.M. South Africa Time.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
The Final Countdown
As i write this the song plays in the background. Its the FINAL COUNTDOWN! classic song but the wait is killing me. The group arrives on the 13th. The world cup starts on the 11th. Madness. Controlled Chaos. Wait: minus the control.
we have now laid the foundation for Russell and Precious (the family that runs the daycare and orphanage). Their new house currently has a cement floor and partially built walls that the three little pigs would be proud of certainly. The group coming on the 14th will complete the build and put on the roof! It has been a joy to work with this family. They are so joyful. As I am digging this 9 foot deep septic tank, with blisters covering my hands (thats what i get for never holding a shovel in my life), i cant help but laugh as Thando (the eleven year old girl) shovels dirt into the pile without stopping or breaking a sweat. She smiles and laughs at me as I sigh from relief that we have come to a finish for the day. I cant help but smile back holding back tears as i have just heard her story.
You see, we can easily go through life and realize that we are blessed. We can easily sit in our homes and realize that their are children everywhere who are desperate. However, when you see their faces and hear their stories it becomes a reality.
Thando: is an eleven year old girl who i previously mentioned. She showed up at the daycare last December after he mother had beaten her the night before. Her mother is on crack and she never knew her father. Finally, after much work, Russell and Precious have gained the legal ability to be her guardians. She lives with them and runs to Russell each day and calls him "Dad". She sang a Zulu song the other day that when translated said that when Jesus finally comes back every one will be happy. I dont know what else to say.
Beau is 17. His parents passed away when he was nine. He has lived with Precious and Russell ever since. It just breaks your heart. He works and protects his younger siblings. He wants to go to a university if he can find a way to make money.
Olwedu: three years old and the coolest kid i know. he walks around in the dirt barefoot and laughs/smiles the entire day. no complaints. pure innocence.
Eric: His dad is a pastor in a nearby village but he lives with his Aunt because he has to work in order to live. His aunt lives closer to his work so he has given up living with his parents in order to survive. During his time off of work he doesnt rest. He digs with us for Precious and Russell. Then after digging for hours he leaves to go coach 3 futbol teams for free.
These are just a few. There is 18 kids that come in and out of the orphanage. Each of them have their own story and thankfully Precious and Russell have given them an opportunity to survive in this life. It is after hearing about their lives that building them a home hits home with me. The kids share a room. Thats right. 13 of them live in one room. In the new house they have four rooms to divide between them. They already know exactly where they are sleeping so while we dig they stand in the very spot they will one day sleep. i am speechless.
On Thursday i had the opportunity to go to one of the school and coach some soccer. These boys play on a dirt field. I am talking African dirt. No grass. None. it was futbol at its finest. I had the privilege of sharing my testimony and the Good News with 30 of them.
My heartbeat. The Gospel. Futbol as the platform. In a place where people are desperate.
Totally abandoned to the Lord. God please shake this city and this nation.
Sorry if these thoughts seem scattered because they probably are. I encourage you to die to yourself daily. I will be striving to do the same.
One world watching,
T and B (leaves tomorrow!!)
we have now laid the foundation for Russell and Precious (the family that runs the daycare and orphanage). Their new house currently has a cement floor and partially built walls that the three little pigs would be proud of certainly. The group coming on the 14th will complete the build and put on the roof! It has been a joy to work with this family. They are so joyful. As I am digging this 9 foot deep septic tank, with blisters covering my hands (thats what i get for never holding a shovel in my life), i cant help but laugh as Thando (the eleven year old girl) shovels dirt into the pile without stopping or breaking a sweat. She smiles and laughs at me as I sigh from relief that we have come to a finish for the day. I cant help but smile back holding back tears as i have just heard her story.
You see, we can easily go through life and realize that we are blessed. We can easily sit in our homes and realize that their are children everywhere who are desperate. However, when you see their faces and hear their stories it becomes a reality.
Thando: is an eleven year old girl who i previously mentioned. She showed up at the daycare last December after he mother had beaten her the night before. Her mother is on crack and she never knew her father. Finally, after much work, Russell and Precious have gained the legal ability to be her guardians. She lives with them and runs to Russell each day and calls him "Dad". She sang a Zulu song the other day that when translated said that when Jesus finally comes back every one will be happy. I dont know what else to say.
Beau is 17. His parents passed away when he was nine. He has lived with Precious and Russell ever since. It just breaks your heart. He works and protects his younger siblings. He wants to go to a university if he can find a way to make money.
Olwedu: three years old and the coolest kid i know. he walks around in the dirt barefoot and laughs/smiles the entire day. no complaints. pure innocence.
Eric: His dad is a pastor in a nearby village but he lives with his Aunt because he has to work in order to live. His aunt lives closer to his work so he has given up living with his parents in order to survive. During his time off of work he doesnt rest. He digs with us for Precious and Russell. Then after digging for hours he leaves to go coach 3 futbol teams for free.
These are just a few. There is 18 kids that come in and out of the orphanage. Each of them have their own story and thankfully Precious and Russell have given them an opportunity to survive in this life. It is after hearing about their lives that building them a home hits home with me. The kids share a room. Thats right. 13 of them live in one room. In the new house they have four rooms to divide between them. They already know exactly where they are sleeping so while we dig they stand in the very spot they will one day sleep. i am speechless.
On Thursday i had the opportunity to go to one of the school and coach some soccer. These boys play on a dirt field. I am talking African dirt. No grass. None. it was futbol at its finest. I had the privilege of sharing my testimony and the Good News with 30 of them.
My heartbeat. The Gospel. Futbol as the platform. In a place where people are desperate.
Totally abandoned to the Lord. God please shake this city and this nation.
Sorry if these thoughts seem scattered because they probably are. I encourage you to die to yourself daily. I will be striving to do the same.
One world watching,
T and B (leaves tomorrow!!)
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Culture Shock!
The last 72 hours has been absolutely incredible. Let me see if i cant paint the picture for you in words although i know it wont do it justice. I leave IAH with a load of people and I am probably the only white skinned person on the plane. So immediately i am thrust into the Islamic culture. I sit down and a man named Abu sits next to me and tells me about his family and life in Kuwait. He is 30 years old but I guessed he was only 23. Haha bad start for me. But not really. He laughs and says ya i do look young in broken English. Then he shows me pictures of his two kids. I then tell him I am the oldest of four and he asks about my siblings. After a few minutes he says, I am the youngest of seventeen kids. I laugh again. Wrong move number two. He was serious. Haha. Then he crashes and since I am wide awake I stay up. Next thing I see is pure dedication but breaks my heart all the more. A man lays down a rug so he and his son can pray facing Mecca. I have no idea how they knew Mecca was that direction on a plane that is flying 30,000 feet off the ground but while they are praying, I am praying that little boy dreams about Jesus when he goes back to sleep.
When I finally land in Dubai I get checked like three different times on the way out of the airport. And each guard decides it would be hilarious to check every item in my bag in slow motion. So out everything comes. They flip through my book, THE IMITATION OF CHRIST...i laugh to my self. this is awesome. then through my BIBLE. and this is a slow motion check of my BIBLE. even more divine. so finally when i get through the airport i make it to the shuttle which takes me to my hotel.
i go to the restaurant in the hotel and i end up sitting with a family from south africa who is on my flight the next day. they tell me about their church in Durban and invite me to come whenever i have time off from the orphanage. then im off to bed.
i wake up at like 3am cause my circadian rhythm is completely out of wack. but go get breakfast when it finally opens at five and then pack up and head for the airport.
so it is here that i meet kev and his wife and daughter who are from england. so by now i have experienced four cultures in less than 24 hours. Our own, England, South Africa, and Dubai. i laugh to myself as i hear kev's accent. i love it. im pretty sure i have picked it up by the time i get off the plane in durban. When we arrive it is sunset and beautiful. then we hop in a car and head to the valley of a thousand hills and trust me please....they are not lying. there is a hundred hills in sight from every vantage point. it is absolutely breath taking. the sunrise and sunset are full or color and because my body is still adjusting i have seen both every day. i fall asleep at like ten and wake up at like 5. haha it is hilarious but i am almost set i hope.
So how is life like living with 12 englishman in South Africa you ask? well its incredible because everything is outside my comfort zone. i spent the last 48 hours doing manual labor at an orphanage but it is incredible. I am neither good at shoveling or digging holes but it doesnt matter as long as i work hard. haha and trust me i am awful at shoveling. every time i threw some rocks the first day the South Africans laughed at me...so funny. one told me today that everyone walking by said to him in Zulu that they didnt know white people dug holes and they should make a movie "White man cant Dig".
If you could only see the kids in the orphanage your heart would break. They smile so big and their teeth are so white. I took a video on my flip and they laughed for twenty minutes when i played it back for them to see themselves on camera. This one boy kept winking at the camera and it was hilarious. Russell and Precious are married and run the orphanage. Their son Olwedu is such a goober. He is three and today he sang amazing grace as he sat in the dirt with the same clothes he has had on yesterday and the day before that. He owns no shoes but yet has smiled every time I look at him. He skips around in the dirt all day long and seems perfectly content. He is my motivation when I get tired from shoveling. I just think...if this kid gets a roof over his head where he can sit and be taught about Jesus then it is all worth it.
Another boy who lives at the orphanage is named Beau. He is the hardest working seventeen year old kid that i know. he never stopped working all day. just kept swinging the ax and digging with the shovel. he takes care of the younger orphans and plans to go to a university somehow someway when the Lord provides him with money. I had the opportunity to give him a pair of futbol cleats and he nearly cried with joy. he hugged me so long and hard and i am pretty sure it was his first pair ever. it completely made my day and i think i could have hopped on a plane and came home after i shared the Gospel with him. He was so grateful.
so mostly the group i am with now are just preparing for the big group to all arrive on the 12th of june. we have laid the foundation for two homes and dug ditches for septic tanks for bathrooms. i cant wait to see what God is going to do. the atmosphere here is almost like everyone is holding their breath. waiting for the kickoff of the world cup. waiting for God to show up in the valley and stir hearts if he hasnt begun to already.
i know this is long but if you have read this far i appreciate it. i just want to follow christ wherever he leads. i dont want to try and fit him into my plans for myself or confine him to this spot or that. Jesus said come and follow me. take up your cross and follow. that is my goal. just follow. so simple yet so profound. i love each and every one of you and pray we each come to know the Lord more each day. take up the cross wherever you are today. in him we live and move and have our being. in no one else and certainly not ourselves. goodbye for now as i have a cup of tea..
one world watching,
T and (B: in spirit for now)
When I finally land in Dubai I get checked like three different times on the way out of the airport. And each guard decides it would be hilarious to check every item in my bag in slow motion. So out everything comes. They flip through my book, THE IMITATION OF CHRIST...i laugh to my self. this is awesome. then through my BIBLE. and this is a slow motion check of my BIBLE. even more divine. so finally when i get through the airport i make it to the shuttle which takes me to my hotel.
i go to the restaurant in the hotel and i end up sitting with a family from south africa who is on my flight the next day. they tell me about their church in Durban and invite me to come whenever i have time off from the orphanage. then im off to bed.
i wake up at like 3am cause my circadian rhythm is completely out of wack. but go get breakfast when it finally opens at five and then pack up and head for the airport.
so it is here that i meet kev and his wife and daughter who are from england. so by now i have experienced four cultures in less than 24 hours. Our own, England, South Africa, and Dubai. i laugh to myself as i hear kev's accent. i love it. im pretty sure i have picked it up by the time i get off the plane in durban. When we arrive it is sunset and beautiful. then we hop in a car and head to the valley of a thousand hills and trust me please....they are not lying. there is a hundred hills in sight from every vantage point. it is absolutely breath taking. the sunrise and sunset are full or color and because my body is still adjusting i have seen both every day. i fall asleep at like ten and wake up at like 5. haha it is hilarious but i am almost set i hope.
So how is life like living with 12 englishman in South Africa you ask? well its incredible because everything is outside my comfort zone. i spent the last 48 hours doing manual labor at an orphanage but it is incredible. I am neither good at shoveling or digging holes but it doesnt matter as long as i work hard. haha and trust me i am awful at shoveling. every time i threw some rocks the first day the South Africans laughed at me...so funny. one told me today that everyone walking by said to him in Zulu that they didnt know white people dug holes and they should make a movie "White man cant Dig".
If you could only see the kids in the orphanage your heart would break. They smile so big and their teeth are so white. I took a video on my flip and they laughed for twenty minutes when i played it back for them to see themselves on camera. This one boy kept winking at the camera and it was hilarious. Russell and Precious are married and run the orphanage. Their son Olwedu is such a goober. He is three and today he sang amazing grace as he sat in the dirt with the same clothes he has had on yesterday and the day before that. He owns no shoes but yet has smiled every time I look at him. He skips around in the dirt all day long and seems perfectly content. He is my motivation when I get tired from shoveling. I just think...if this kid gets a roof over his head where he can sit and be taught about Jesus then it is all worth it.
Another boy who lives at the orphanage is named Beau. He is the hardest working seventeen year old kid that i know. he never stopped working all day. just kept swinging the ax and digging with the shovel. he takes care of the younger orphans and plans to go to a university somehow someway when the Lord provides him with money. I had the opportunity to give him a pair of futbol cleats and he nearly cried with joy. he hugged me so long and hard and i am pretty sure it was his first pair ever. it completely made my day and i think i could have hopped on a plane and came home after i shared the Gospel with him. He was so grateful.
so mostly the group i am with now are just preparing for the big group to all arrive on the 12th of june. we have laid the foundation for two homes and dug ditches for septic tanks for bathrooms. i cant wait to see what God is going to do. the atmosphere here is almost like everyone is holding their breath. waiting for the kickoff of the world cup. waiting for God to show up in the valley and stir hearts if he hasnt begun to already.
i know this is long but if you have read this far i appreciate it. i just want to follow christ wherever he leads. i dont want to try and fit him into my plans for myself or confine him to this spot or that. Jesus said come and follow me. take up your cross and follow. that is my goal. just follow. so simple yet so profound. i love each and every one of you and pray we each come to know the Lord more each day. take up the cross wherever you are today. in him we live and move and have our being. in no one else and certainly not ourselves. goodbye for now as i have a cup of tea..
one world watching,
T and (B: in spirit for now)
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