Tomorrow is my last day :(

I am very sadden that I have to leave this beautiful place.  I leave from here, Mokopane, Limpopo at 12:00 pm to be at the airport three hours early.  I am excited to see my family.  I can't wait to share all the wonderful stories with everyone.  I want to make a video or a power point of my trip.  It may take me a while cuz I have so many pictures.  Yesterday, we went on a game farm in Shakaru. We saw lots of animals!  We drove up the mountian and got to see the sun set.  BEAUTIFUL!!! God is really amazing and magnificent!!!!  Today, we went to Ebentni Game Farm.  I saw Lions, giraffee, waterbuck, zebras, wildabeast, enlayla, ostriage, and cheetahs!!!!  Very beautiful!  We were in the dark surrounded by Lions!!! oh my!!  Fun fun!! I love the adventure!  Got to go.  I am going to play Rummicube with Beth....I am going to miss that....Love you all.  See you soon!!

My time is almost up. :(::

I am going to really miss this place. It has really been an amazing experience. I wonder what God has in store for me? Where does He want me to go now? I must be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him. Right now my team and I are in Vryburg, North West Province in SOuth Africa. We are in the middle of no where. THe scenery is so beautiful. I keep taking it all in along the many drives we take. Every time we go to a new school it just breaks my heart when I see so many hurting children. I have passed by grave yards and there are so many fresh graves. At least my grandmother did not have to die so young. She was blessed with a long life. I miss her so. I wish I could share my stories with her. I only have ten minutes left....oh no...I have not even begun writing! This school district has had major communication problems. When we were in the Freestate, the Department of Education was very good. They were so good to us. THe Dept. of this area was suppose to have accomadations ready for us. Well...we had no where to rest our heads. Finally, we were taken to Castello Guesthouse. It is a dirty place. Lisa and I were moved to a different room. But it could have been worse. I have been so blessed!!! So many children are blessing my heart. I am so very thankful for everything God has given me. Everyone is well here! Praise God! We leave Vryburg this Friday and head for Limpopo. It is going to be a LOOOONNNGGGG ride! But much fun! I can't wait to share all my pictures. I have almost 500. Are you ready for stories? I can't wait to share. I might need naps in between to rejuvenate my energy. Got to go! Love you all very much! God bless!

Car Crash

There has just been a car crash right outside of my window.  I am surprised I have not seen one sooner.  It does not look like anyone is hurt. Praise God!!

Overwhelmed with compassion

Today was a wonderful day. The tears keep coming. If only you could see what I have been seeing. We will continue to stay in Bolenfentain till Friday. On Monday, we went to Ladybrand. It was an hour and a half away from Bolenfentain. The mountains and the scenery are just gorgeous!!! Along the way we passed by grave yards that are so full that the tombstones are right next to each other. There is so much dying. I have only seen two older Africans. That's it! They were probably in there 50s or 60s. Near the grave yards is a settlement. Thousands of people live in these settlements. If anyone saw the size of my bed room in Pastor Bob's house, many of their homes are smaller than that!! About 5-10 people live in one shanty. Can you imagine? That means these people practically sleep on top of one another. Rape is so common. I can understand why. The children learn all about sex at such a young age. They are so curious, they will go out and experiment themselves. Many of the rapping's are from family members such as mothers, fathers, step parents, uncles, and aunts. Drugs is another thing that is common. The children get bored and don't know what to do with themselves so they go and experiment. The government used to fund the schools to give the learners food, but now the government can not afford it. Majority of the learners are not getting any food. Blessman Ministries asked that the children we were seeing get a package of food. I feel so guilty eating in front of them. But the thing is, I do not have enough food to give to the hundreds of children around me. It is so sad. In town, they have a mall and some nice buildings. I wish the government would use more money for the poor than build such fancy buildings. There is no money for the schools because it is going towards the WORLD CUP!!! Lots of people here are looking forward to that. I just don't get it. This government is really corrupt. Doc just found out yesterday that the health government funding are going bankrupt. Now if someone has two children HIV+, the parent must only pick one child to go on antireteral medication. The medication is supposed to help delay terrible symptoms. How terrible is that? In Ladybrand, it was a challenge to minister because of the language barrier. So many of the students are behind in their education. They are supposed to start to learn English in the fourth grade. But many 17 year old I could not communicate well with. I had a translator but sometimes I wonder if they are correctly translating everything I am saying. It was a very stretching experience!! It was good for me! The Zion Christian Church is very deceived. It is the fastest growing church in South Africa. These people are open to believe just about anything. In this case, that is not a good thing! Lord, break down the walls of deception. Let them see the truth!! Some of the translators are apart of this church. That is why this concerns me so. Tuesday, we went to Thaba-Nchu. That was about an hour drive from Bolenfatain. We were completely surrounded by a settlement of shanties. This venue was a college that is no longer used at a college. It is a beautiful place, if only they could put it to good use. The need is great!! Compared to Monday at Landbrand, I greatly enjoyed Thaba-Nchu. I think it was because there were slightly more English speaking learners. Not only that but we could hear each other fairly well. Some of the venues or classrooms we use are small and get very loud with lots of people. I pulled out on of the learners that knew English to help us interpret. Her name is more original than the others, Abigail. She specifically wanted me to pray for her mother because her mother drinks too much alcohol. Olebogeng is twelve and her prayer was to pass school and be a social worker and some day own her own business. I told her she would have to work hard but I believed that she could do it. Lerato just wants a friend. Many others don't even have a mommy or daddy. I saw a down syndrome boy and took a picture of him for Julie. He looks like Scoob but with dark skin. He was so cute!! Today, we did not have to travel far for our venue. I can not remember where it was at though. Again, the primary school was right in the center of a squatter camp or shanty settlement. Pop, means doll, told us that there is much thievery and it is really hard to keep the school nice. There were lots of broken windows. Bob, one of my fellow missionaries, took a couple Book of Hope to cover the broken windows. It was very cold today. I thought that was pretty clever! They believe that we are to get some snow. YES, you heard me right. I wore five layers of clothes today. Today I experienced challenges with learners who are supposed to be of age to read but can not. They thought it was an eye problem but it is actually a reading problem. The schools in this area are not teaching the learners well. It seems they are just passing the learners through even if they can not read. I gave many elementary versions of Book of Hope out today. There are three different versions: Elementary, pre-teen, and teen. Xola is 14 and in the fourth grade. He can not read at all. He was one of the one who thought he needed glasses but did not. He told me he was a Jehovah Witness. I just kept telling him about Jesus and the Book of Hope tells about the truth of Jesus. One thing I love to do is pray for the learners even if they can not understand me. I pray against deception and disease. It is wonderful! The Department of Education gave us all gifts. One of the Educators said she learned so much from us. She mentioned that we not only help them with their physical eyes but their spiritual eyes. YES, she is getting it!! Praise the Lord! The gifts were extra special because they were made by Mentally Challenged Learners of Pholoho School. It is a coffee mug that you can use chalk to right on. Inside of the mug is coffee and brown sugar. Attached to the handle is a beaded bracelet. It is very special indeed! I am very blessed! Tonight, we are meeting with another Department of education to go to more schools and reach more children. We are handing out hundreds of glasses. God has been so good! Thank you for all your prayers. I hope you can read all of this. I know it is a lot but it is not nearly enough!!

Swine Flu

Please pray against the Swine Flu.  WE have just recently got a report from the department of Education here in Bolufintain that there has been two deaths because of it!!! 

Pastor's Conference

THe Pastor's Conference that Missionary Terry Richardson led had a great turn out.  There were more than 12 different denominations that attended.  About 30 pastors there.  It was so neat.  THey were so excited for the conference and very blessed. Pastor Bud spoke a few times as well as other African pastors.  THey are trying to unite the pastor's church as one church working for one purpose!! Praise the Lord!!  Pastor Bud was praying for one man and he was so filled with the spirit that he was slain in the Spirit.  Many went up for prayer and healing.  God did amazing things!!  The Pastors kept saying they dont want anymore hand me downs but fresh vision.  THey want to experience the Holy Spirit and an intimate relationship themselves.  The conference lasted until Friday.  Friday we had a bon fire talking about the happenings there and sang songs.  It gets sooooo dark here.  I have to use my torch (flashlight) every night I walk from the Blessman house to my Rondolve.  I get kinda nervous being in the wild.  At least there are no meat eatters to get me.  The stars are so beautiful.  They shine so bright at night.  Well, I have to get up bright an early for outreach.  I better get some sleep.  Thanks for your prayers.  Holy Spirit move!!!  GLORY!!

Monkeys, Ostriage, Lions, wildabest, giraffes and more!

While we were in Limpopo, we went on a game drive (safari) in Entabente.  This game farm was over 60,000 km.  A lot of land.  I saw baboons.  I saw monkeys right out side my room at the Rondolves where the Blessman's live.  THey are nothing knew.  We have to be careful because they like to get in the house and take things.  Hmmmm....maybe my lil brother is a MONKEY!  he he I love him and miss him so.  Maybe I should try and catch one and bring it home with me to give him.  HA!  THat would be impossible.  They are skiddish to humans but You can get pretty close to them.  So, I saw baboons. Lots of them in a tree and abroad.  THe zebras and giraffe are so beautiful!!  I saw wildabeast and enyala (gorgeous deer like animal).  From a distance, we saw a lioneus.  She just made her kill.  We tried getting closer but the rocks were in the way.  :( I will get another chance to go on another game drive and I am excited!!!!  Doc said that was probably the worst safari ride he had been on.  Not because of the safari man but because the animals did not want to make much of an appearance.  So I am so glad I have another opportunity!!!  I see enyala outside my window practically every day.  THey are so beautiful.  They are getting used to the humans.  Plus there is a lonely ostrich that hangs around a lot where I am staying.  Poor thing.  

Limpopo and abroad!!

I am well!!  I have my energy back!  Praise the Lord!! Thank you for all your prayers.  I have been greatly blessed by being on this trip and am already wanting and planning on coming back!!  As much as I am blessing people here, they are blessing me right back.  Some of these stories I hear just breaks my heart.  Oh how I wish I could make everything so much better.  I know I can not do it all.  I must train up leaders so more people can be touched with the gospel and with medical care.  I am so excited for this next big outreach we are about to do.  We left Molkwane, Limpopo yesterday and stayed in Johannasburg, Gaunteg at the SunRock Guesthouse.  We had to make the trip into Johannasburg because two of my team members had to leave for home.  There time here was up.  I am dreading that day.  Sorry!  I do love it here.  However, I have gotten homesick quite a bit.  I wish I could be in two places at once!!  I heard from Lisa that the trip back to Washington D.C. is 19 hours because we have to fly against the wind.  Uhhhh....My bottom is going to be so flat!!! It is all worth it all in the end.  It took us three hours to drive from Molkwane, Limpopo to Johannasburg, Gaunteg.  Today, we drove another four hours to Bolufintain, Free State.  I guess we are only 120 Kilometers away from Lestheo.  Oh how I wish we had time to go there too.  I would be so neat to see the child I sponser.  Maybe another trip to Africa. On our way to Bolufintain (I think that is how you spell it), we stopped at Maxi's Resturant.  It was not bad.  I  had a cheeseburger with chips.  Here french fries are called chips.  There fries are kinda bland.  I miss Mcdonalds fries.  THey have a Mcdonalds and a KFC here.  I have not been to either yet but the rest of the team has.  I stayed back to rest when I was sick when the rest of the team went.  :( I hope I can experience soon.  Plus, I missed out on church. :( :( I was so weak, I could hardly focus.  I stayed back then too.  BUT I know I will be going before I leave.  We are constantly moving from one destination to another.  It is fun seeing all the new scenary.  The drive is kinda scary.  I pray really hard when we are on the road.  These people drive WILD!!  They use the ledge like a lane. People are always cutting people off.  Terry says that there are only manuals here.  I must learn how to drive one.  The drive on the opposite side. Everything is on the opposite side. We drive on the Left here and the driver seat is on the right!!! Lights are called robots.  THere is not many of them though.  THey have a lot, A LOT of round abouts.  SCARY!!!  I am afraid of getting lost even though I am not driving.  We just finished meeting and eatting with the Department of Education of Bolufintain.  They are very nice people.  I love working along side such grateful people.  We will be here till Friday and will go back to Johannasburg to drop off two more missionaries and then pick up two more missionaries and then head out for another  outreach.  

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

Sunday, before Bob Thompson's grandchildren went home, we had the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Rondovles Homes. They are the missionary housing for the Ambassadors who come to work with Doc and Beth Blessman. It was a great ceremony but I really can't remember much because I was feeling miserable. I was video recording for Joe Thompson (grandson), and had to hand it off to Bud to finish. Hopefully, once Joe puts it up on You Tube I can enjoy it. Thanks to Des Moines First Assembly's funding the Rondovles were built. Doc chose Bob Thompson and his wife Leelah as the dedicators because they have done so much for the church and have impacted many lives. Leelah just passed away not too long ago but she knew that they were being built. It is called the Thompson Campus. There is three Rondovles which house Ambassadors and team members. They each have a mini kitchen and reclining area. There is another Rondovle with is like a meeting center or where the BIG meals are made for everyone. It has a nice sized kitchen and lounging area. Plus, a Leelah Library!!! In memorial of Leelah Thompson. If anyone has any books they would like to give to the Leelah Library, let me know. They have many shelves to fill!!! I have been sleeping in Lisa's Rondovle with Claire and Sammi. They are very nice. If we wanted our windows open we had to make sure they were closed before we left or else the monkeys will get in. I have seen quite a few but they are very skittish. Sunday, a squirrel was in the Blessman's house. The team played squirrel hockey to get it out. I wish I could of been there but I was resting trying to get well. So many adventures to come!! Love you all. I am going to play a game with Beth!! Bye!! Tonight Terry has his Pastor Conference tonight.

Helping Lisa with input

After the outreaches, I help Lisa put in all the learner info and prescriptions in her computer. It takes a lot of work. She is so glad that she can share the load with me! I don't blame her. Here's how we are doing:

Outreach at Zamdela - Salsoburg, Freestate
Monday
130 students
109 glasses given out
31 no glasses needed
4 glasses were custom pair (someone with one eye way worse than the other eye)
3 referrals (these could be either to a specialist, therapist, or consular)

Tuesday
154 students
136 glasses given out
29 no glasses
11 custom pairs
4 Cape Town glasses (These are people with very high prescriptions that we did not have glasses for. We have to special order them.)

Wednesday
163 students
1 adult
137 glasses given
34 no glasses needed
11 custom pairs
9 Cape Town glasses

Outreach in Welkome, Freestate
Thursday
127 students
103 glasses given
30 no glasses
9 custom pairs
5 Cape Town glasses
9 referrals

Friday
154 students
117 glasses given
44 no glasses needed
5 custom pairs
8 Cape Town glasses
6 referrals

Saturday
-I do not have the totals yet. I know we saw over 150 students.

Saturday we left for Limpopo.

Personal stories and More!!

I thought it would be neat to share with you the numbers of learners we have seen and the glasses we have given out. When we meet with a child, we first develop a relationship. I usually start out with: How do you like school? What is your favorite class? Least favorite class? Do you live with your mother and father? Do you have any brothers and sisters? Many of the learners either only live with one parent because the either has died from AIDS or has taken off to another place. Some the children did not even know their father. None of the children will admit that their parents died of AIDs...they will say...they died of a sickness. Then their are other children that don't have any parents and are orphans. I love asking if they have any brothers or sisters because I get to explain how BIG my family is!! Most of them smile and laugh!!! Yet others are so depressed and all you can do is pray for them. Death is so common here and so is sex. As soon as I have developed that relationship, I talk to them about HIV/AIDS by using a Cube. It is a handy cube that has pictures on it to keep the kids attention. I go on and talk about how God created sex for marriage and that it is a gift. Some of them just looked at me. Doc said the easiest way to find out if they are sexually active is ask them if they have ever used a condom. So I do just that!! One young man admitted to using a condom but when I later asked if he was sexually active he blushed and said no no. HA! I caught him!! So I talk about absitance and reassure them that God can give them a second chance. I give every learner that I meet with a Book of Hope. Many say they go to church...yes they do...but there is a growing church...Zion Christian Church that has really twisted Christianity. They believe in Jesus and his resurrection but they believe they get powers from their ancestors. They also believe that they must make themselves vomit to get all the demons out of them. The thing that bothers me the most about this country and nation is that they are so open to anything! They will join a church and will not understand the truth! It is so sad!! So when I ask if they go to a church many say yes but then I ask which church and find out it is Zion. I make sure they know that power only comes from Jesus!!!! I have led many to the Lord. There was this one boy who was 13 but look 9 years old. I asked him if he had heard of Jesus and he said no. I talked with him about Christmas and Easter and his eyes lit up!!! They think it is sooo cool that Jesus rose from the dead!! he he :) So after I tested his eyes and got his prescription ready, I asked if there was anything he wanted me to talk to God about. He said that he wanted Jesus in his heart and pointed to his heart. I had not even asked him that question yet. I always ask the learners if they have Jesus in their heart but he was one step ahead of me!!! So I lead him in the sinners prayer. What was the neatest thing was that he could not speak English but only Sutu. So I had to have a translator. Even though there was a language barrier, God does amazing things!!!! As soon as I am done with the learner, I take them to Dispensary so they can get their glasses. If only you can see them when they get them. They are so happy!!! I am trying to take pictures of all my learners. I am sure glad I brought an extra memory card because I can only take about 40 more pictures left on my one. I have over 200 pictures already and two videos.

God is soooo Good!!!

I would have written sooner but I had no Internet access for about a week and then a just recently got sick with Bronchitis. It sure took a toll on my body! BUT I am pulling through!!! It is such a praise report....let me share. Saturday morning, I started to feel a burning sensation in my lungs and started coughing. It happened so suddenly, I thought maybe it was just my allergies flaring up. Doc Blessman told me to let him know if I get the chills. Well, I seemed to be doing okay until we got to Welkom Secondary School to do our last outreach there before we headed to Limpopo. I met with some of the learners (students) and just started feeling really weak and chilled. I did not want to bother doc right away because he was doing eye exams on some of the other more troublesome eyes that I could not help. So, I decided to go and sit with Beth and Lisa in the Dispensary Room. The Dispensary room is where the learners go to get their glasses. I sat on the floor for a little bit until Beth noticed a long table behind her and wondered if I wanted to lay down. :) I was certainly up to it and crawled under the table curled up in Beth's winter coat and using my coat as a blanket. Doc came in and said we were going to the Chemist (Pharmacy) to get some antibiotic in my body so I can be well again. So we went. It was not far from the school. It was located in a strip Mall. Yes, they have Malls here in South Africa! Doc explained he was a Doctor from America and has a Medical outreach at the Welkom School and one of his team members had bronchitis. The Pharmacist gave us the medicine and insisted that it was for free!!!! What a blessing!! God is soooo Good to me!!! Doc told me that things like that happen a lot with his ministry. They are always getting blessed. I am so very blessed that I had Doctor Blessman to care for me. Many have gotten sick on this trip, including Doc. Thank goodness they just had a cold. Please continue to pray for our health and a strengthening of our immune system because God is doing a many great things!!! Many have received healing. The enemy doesn't like us here but the Lord has shown us favor!!! There was a little boy about 10 years of age that came in and his eyes were clouded over with this whitish cloudy slimy stuff. Doc brought him over and explained what was going on. He was an orphan. His parents both died of AIDS. His eldest brother is off doing jobs and is rarely home and he and his other smaller siblings are left at home. The child was very skinny an malnourished. Doc said the reason his eyes look the way they do is because he lacks Vitamin A in his diet. If that is lacking many others are too. He seemed so sad and down. Bud, Doc, Claire, Sammi, the boy's teacher, and I prayed over him. His eyes cleared up a little. It was so amazing!!! Doc said if he does not get enough nutrition or Vitamin A, he could lose his sight. Doc found him a orphanage for him to be placed and had some go out and get some vitamins right away. The orphanage will be monitoring his vitamins intake. Before the little boy left, I gave him a big hug. He held onto me the longest time. I wish I could personally care for him but I know I was only here temporary. There was a couple more cases of lack of Vitamin A learners, but Doc treated them well. Another young boy could not see out of his right eye because his sister was combing his hair one day and accidentally jabbed his eye with the comb. Not only that but he had a cataract in his other eye. They get cataracts at such a young age over here. I have seem many. We prayed for this child and he could see so much better out of the damaged eye! It was a miracle!! There are so many stories.....I wish I could share them all...now I will share some personal one on one stories that I experienced in my next blog.

Day 1- First Optical Outreach in Sosalurg, Freestate

Hello from South Africa!!! I only have less than 15 minutes but I thought I would give you an update. Keep watching on the blog thought! :) Today was out first optical outreach here in Sosalurg, Freestate. We saw many children. I took many pictures. I wish I had a way to get them to you. God has moved in many ways and it is so neat to be able and help chilren see. So many of them know about HIV but don't quite understand how it is transmitted. There was this beautiful cheerful girl who I had the honor to tell about Jesus and her story just broke my heart. Her father has tried to rape her several times. There are still others who have similar stories. If only I could share them all. It certainly feels like home around here. I absoultly love it. I am doing quite well. Tomorrow, we are going to the same school to see more children. If only you can experience what I am seeing and hearing. They are so receptive and are longing for so much love.

I just took a walk with Doc down the street while I waited for a computer to be open. We walked down a Middle class street and saw many homes. These ones were really nice compared to the others I saw driving to the school. The Guest house that I am staying at right now is really considered high class. It is so amazing who much our cultures are different but in some ways they are not.

Well, My fifteen minutes are up. I love you all and have been praying for you!!!! Watch again for my blogs. BYE.

Less than 24 hours till Departure!!!

I am so excited to get to South Africa!!! I can not believe the time is almost here. I have been waiting and praying so long for this day. Thanks to all you have lifted me up in their prayers and who have supported me financially. You are all such a blessing!!! I thank the Lord for you everyday. If you follow this blog throughout my trip, I will share as much as I can with the time I am givin.

Many blessings,

Katybeth