An update from this past week

A phone call finally came in from the team!!! Below is an update of what's been happening this week and what is planned for the next few days.

Living and working in Banket with the OM team has been an amazing experience for all of us. It's hard to know how to begin to share an experience that goes far beyond words. Our construction team has been able to accomplish so much in just a few short days. Working with the local hardware store (which is a very small business, but has been helpful in ordering supplies) we've been able to acquire and install toilets all throughout the OM facility. Real toilets. Not the kind that require you to stand and squat! We've also installed a hot water heater in the kitchen providing needed hot water for cooking and washing. And we've completely redone, restored and painted the nursery that cares for AIDS babies. Two of our team members are gifted artists and plan to paint murals this week of bible characters to make it a special place for the kids. We've done lots of minor repairs to the facility as well....sort of taking on all those projects that the missionaries just were not able to find time or the skills to complete. It's been such a blessing to them!!

The rest of the team has been working with the kids at the daycare center. We've enjoyed laughing, worship, games, learning their language, doing dramas, meeting and developing relationships with their families, and becoming part of this community. The local word for "teacher" sounds like "auntie"....so the kids have begun to call our team by "auntie". The laughter we hear and the smiles seems so out of place at times for a country that is so without hope. We had a polaroid camera with us, so the children have so enjoyed getting a picture with their faces painted and a hug from our team. As much as we minister to them, they are ministering to us through their love.

A few of the girls on our team were invited to be part of an HIV Support Group attended by about 50 women. It's a bit sobering to be surrounded by these women who will all die from the AIDS virus. The government offers testing for the disease, but it costs money. Then after they find out they are infected, they have to decide if they want to pay again for their children to be tested. And if they find out that their children are also infected, there is so little money for the drugs needed. Does she use the little money she has to purchase drugs to treat herself? Does she use the money to buy the drugs for her children? Or does she use the money to buy food to feed her entire family. It's heart wrenching to see the despair and the pain these women experience. The girls from our team plan to attend again on Wednesday. God provided the team with bags and bags of extra supplies, and we've been praying about how to distribute what we have. We've decided to put together "care bags" for the women who are a part of the HIV Support Group...toothpaste, soaps, clothes, shoes, kids toothbrushes, nail polish, lipstick, etc. Each of us will write a letter of encouragement to include with some scripture and pray with each women as they recieve the bags. It doesn't seem like much when there is so much that needs to be done. But the Lord is providing a way to express HIS love to these women through us, and we are so honored to be able to touch their lives in some way.

The team has also had several opportunities to speak in the community. Billy spoke at a church in town on Thursday night, and the church enjoyed him so much that the recommended that the Salvary Army Church invite him to come. So Billy will have the chance to speak at their church on Monday night. John Mark and Tiffany were invited to speak on Monday night at the Chyoni University. They are really excited to have an audience with young college students. The team visited 3 separate churches on Sunday, performing their dramas and sharing testimonies at each. John was invited to give the Sunday message at one of them. And over the next few days, OM leaders are arranging for us to perform and speak in several High Schools and a primary school. Please be in prayer for all of these events. Having this open door is exciting and we want to be able to communicate a message of hope and love to this community.

Lis and Seretha, our two nurses on this team, just headed out on an amazing adventure on Sunday morning. They loaded up in an SUV with sleeping bags, food, medical supplies, rubber gloves, and a few other necessities for a 7 hour drive out in to the "bush" to work along side Vicki. She's a nurse that is caring for hundreds of villagers....all by herself! She is the only medical professional for hundreds of miles and travels from village to village 6 days a week to host medical clinics. She cares for the sick, the dying, men, women, children...and shares the Good News every single day at the clinics. She's a close to a modern day "Mother Theresa" as you will find. Liz and Seretha will be there from Sunday through Thursday to assist her with the medical clinics. They will be living in a very remote and rustic location....no electricity (only a generator), no running water (a bucket of water hanging from a rope is their shower), no rooms (just a tent), not bathroom (an outhouse with a resident bat that flies around)...and they are going to have the time of their lives pouring themselves out along side Vicki to meet the needs of the poor, sick and needy. Be praying for their safety and that they remain healthy during their time in the bush.

Until later this week, keep us in you prayers daily.
The Zimbabwe Team