Big Adventures Ahead of Us!

October is such a special time of year for us at Hands as we have an annual gathering in Zambia. Many of our local volunteers and leaders come together and look back on the year and plan for the next. We have people attending from Nigeria, DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo), Malawi, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. All three of us have just arrived in Zambia to be a part of this gathering and to spend some time with the community of people here, which includes Morgan’s parents. … Finn did so well on his first flight!! 

In preparation for this time together in October, we have been participating in some smaller leaders meetings in the past few weeks discussing success stories and challenges from our communities across Africa and how we can support the most vulnerable on an even deeper level next year. We talked about how we can better support the care givers of the most vulnerable children and how we can involve in the Life Centre where their children attend. 

Another highlight from the past month was our family’s visit. Mum, dad and Louis all came to spend time with us and of course meet Finn for the first time. We spent time in Zwelisha Community and did some sightseeing. 

Yesterday we had the opportunity to spend the morning in a community called New Wells. We went to encourage the pastors in the community, and Levy shared with them from Luke. After that we spent some time playing with the children. 

Our time away from Africa is coming up very soon. Our flights are below so you will know where we are and when. 
25th October – land in UK 
21st November – land in Toronto 
1st December – land in Calgary 
31st December – fly back to Africa 

We also have a fundraising evening on 28th October at Capel St Mary Methodist Church, where we will be having a quiz night and African craft market. This will begin at 6.30pm.

We would like to meet up with as many of you as possible during our time away from Africa so please feel free to contact us to find out about available dates. 

See you all soon! 

Tommy - tommy@handsatwork.org) 
Morgan - morgan@handsatwork.org 

QUIZ NIGHT + AFRICA CRAFT MARKET | UK - OCT 28TH

The Many Sides of Vulnerability

Over the past couple of weeks, as a family we have been blessed to spend time together in the communities we serve in South Africa. It is unusual for me to get to four different communities in one month, most of my time is spent in the office working with our local bookkeepers across Africa. It has been a real highlight for me this month to have lots of time getting to know kids and Care Workers behind the numbers I look at daily.

I have been reminded that vulnerability takes on many different forms.

Some can be very obvious like the Care Worker we met in the hills near Swaziland who had burnt her leg and had to walk over the mountain to get the clinic every other day to get her wound redressed. Other forms of vulnerability can be harder to see like the 17 year old girl in grade 10 who did not have a South African ID so when she completes school, she will not be able to graduate and have a chance to get a job because an ID is needed to write her final exams.

Sometimes, lessening the vulnerable was possible. Like when a plan was made for a young girl to no longer sleep in the same tiny room as all of her older brothers. Others times, it was not as straight forward. Like the man we met in his 30s, who struggled with mental illness and sat alone in the dark because that’s where he felt safe.

Some stories highlight the levels of vulnerability seen across our communities and are not unique to just one family. One of these is a pair of brothers we met last week and both had bad infections. An adult was needed to accompany them to the clinic but their mother refused to take them. Their Care Worker accompanied us as we went to the local clinic with them but the clinic workers at the lab were on strike that day. Now these boys will need to go back again next week to be treated. Transport will need to be organised and an adult will again need to be present. I witnessed the true love and commitment from our local Care Workers as they take responsibility where it is lacking.

It has been re-energising for me to be out so much in our communities. It gives me that boost that is so often needed in the middle of the year to keep pushing. Sometimes I can think I am vulnerable in my own situation but it is when I get the chance to spend time with those who struggle on a much greater level that I reminded why God called me to Africa.

July has been a very busy month. Morgan’s mom, dad, brother and brothers’ girlfriend visited us and joined on many community visits. Also, Finn had his first overnight stay in one of our local offices. We had quality family time together and many special memories were made. One of these was Finn’s baptism which was also attended by many of the Hands family.

Morgan is back at work this week and I am currently hosting one of our visiting teams from the UK.

God Keep Our Land - Happy 150th Canada!

 Happy 150th Canada!

 A great day celerbating a beautiful nation from South Africa. 

Finn's First Big Adventure

Today we made the two-and-a-half-hour journey towards to Swaziland border to visit the Community of Sthobela. Tommy was sharing at Community Prayer, and the whole family tagged along. It was Finn’s first time in the community, and he was very popular with the kids and Gogos. He had many kisses and cuddles! We had the opportunity to take him on a Holy Home visit in the afternoon. My heart was full with joy watching Finn in the community, here are just a few pictures from our day. 

Update to follow about what the last few weeks have held for us. 

-M

Our Little Man

It's been 6 weeks since our little man entered the world! It’s been a challenging but beautiful few weeks, beginning to figure out what it means to be parents to this amazing little human. Trying to create a loving, safe and nurturing environment for this little life to grow and flourish. 

Despite some initial struggles with feeding and Finn not gaining weight, we are back on track and he is doing well! Tommy had three weeks’ paternity leave and we were grateful for that time to bond as a family. Papa and Gigi (my mom and dad) were here for 5 weeks, it was special to have them around during the first few weeks and they were a massive support to us. 

Life is settling into a bit of a routine now. I am home with Finn until the end of July. In between feeding and diaper changing I have been reading different blogs and listen to podcasts. Wanting to learn and hear from others about their experiences with motherhood. 

Recently I came across a post on website called The Fresh Exchange, talking about the journey of motherhood “ I thought in some way this whole journey would be about keeping my old self in tack. The misconception that the old self was the one that I would want to keep. For a while I did. I wanted to retain the parts of me that I didn’t realize were incredibly selfish. I wanted to hold on to the girl who saw the world as solely her’s to do with as she wished. I wanted to retain the girl (yes I say girl) who THOUGHT she knew what she wanted. Silly me.” 

Although this journey for me is just beginning, I see a lot of myself in those words. Before having Finn, and even as I write this now, I wrestle with not losing myself in becoming a mother, some days I want to cling to that girl in me because she is familiar and comfortable and I know how to navigate her world. How do I balance being a wife and mother, with our calling to serve the most vulnerable? How do I not lose that passion and deep conviction through the sleep deprivation and endless loads of laundry? … The truth is I don’t know, but I do know that I am committed to embracing the journey. I am thankful for a God who will grant me grace and a community and family who loves and supports us. 

Back to Nigeria

It is always a blessing and a privilege to be asked to spend time in Nigeria. Many people at Hands are hesitant to visit because of the environment and hectic nature of Lagos and the communities we work in. But for me, it really does have a special place in my heart, so when I was asked to go again I jumped at the chance (even with a 34 week pregnant wife). Some people thought it was a bit unwise to be travelling so close to the due date but I had faith that this was all part of God’s plan

It was a much shorter trip than usual (only about 9 days) because the visa was delayed and obviously I had a time commitment to keep, so had to be back for a specific date. My primary focus of this trip was to help the financial management and ensuring our bookkeeper (Vivian) was functioning well in her role. A highlight of my trip was actually to see just how well she was doing. It is often so difficult to asses from thousands of miles away just how well things are going. I was so impressed with how she was doing her work and encouraging others to also stay strong in the procedures we laid out.

Of course, another highlight was getting out into our communities. As I said before, our Nigeria communities are some of the ones where poverty hits you right in the face as soon as you step foot in them. But for me, this emphasises and confirms that we are in the right communities. Communities where no-one else wants be because they are seen as the least or not worthy of being cared for.

I spent most of my time in a community called Temitope, which means  ‘worthy of gratitude and thanks.’ This is so apt for this community, where many of the kids we meet do not feel that worthiness. Our local Care Workers are breaking the mold in this community by showing that sense of self-worth to our kids. This specific Care Point is focused on the younger kids (pre-school age) and caring and preparing them for them to move to Eagles Wings, our other Care Point and fully functioning community school. It is still a very new Care Point, having only started caring for children in February, but there is huge potential.

Often when we do home visits in our communities, we visit those who are not currently part of the group of kids we are supporting. The reason for this is to be continually assessing the children in our community. Ensuring those who we are serving are the most vulnerable when looking at the circumstances of others. Things are often changing and sometimes children are taken in by other family members who do not live in the same community, sometimes they move away -  just a few of many reason why a space may open up for a new child to be cared for. During my couple of days in Temitope, I went on one such home visit. I had the opportunity to visit the home of a young boy named Diola. He is 6 years old and lives with his mother, brother and sister. None of the kids have ever been to school. His mother tries to earn money by walking the local market and offering to carry people’s food they have purchased. She only gets 50 Naira (0.15 USD) per load for doing this and most people usually opt to use wheelbarrows to transport their food anyway. When we visited their home, there was very little in the wooden shack which was built on rubbish. It was very humid and it was even tougher when I thought about the four of them sleeping on the wooden floor in this heat at night with no lock on their door. Often Diola and his siblings wander the community looking for food because their mother will not have earned enough that day to get her family through the day let alone week. It is a story all too familiar in Nigeria and is why this community is exactly the place we need to be especially as we learn more and more about the stories of those who live here. 

Please pray for Diola and his brother and sister. Pray that the mother will be able to find more work. Pray for this family as they continue to place their trust in God’s provision for them. Pray for our SC team in Nigeria as they have the difficult task of discerning the most vulnerable kids in a already very vulnerable community.

Since going to Nigeria, lots has changed in our little family. More about that in another post

-T 

40 Days of Prayer

Join Us 
March 1 - April 16 
IN 40 DAYS OF PRAYER FOR AFRICA'S VULNERABLE CHILDREN & HANDS AT WORK 

Join the Hands at Work family around the world as we pray for 40 Days on behalf of the most vulnerable children in Africa and our work to support them. As the body of Christ, we commit to coming together to intercede and to bring hope to the hopeless. Invite your church, friends and family to participate too! 

Prayer Guide
Download our Prayer Guide + Child’s Activity Book

Prayer Points via WhatsApp
You can also sign up for our Daily Prayer Points via WhatsApp 
This year we are excited to share prayer points with you daily via WhatsApp. From March 1st to April 16th you can receive the 40 Days of Prayer prayer point directly to your mobile device. 

How Do I Join? 
1) Add +27 72 4505562 to your phone’s contacts 
2) Send '#40Days2017' and the country you live in via WhatsApp to us on the above number. 
3) We will add you to our prayer list and send you prayer points daily from March 1 – April 16th. 

(Please note this is a WhatsApp blast and not a group, you will not be able to communicate with other receiving prayer points) 

At anytime if you wish to unsubscribe message “STOP” via WhatApp to the above number.

Thank you for praying with us! 


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Morgan and her team had the opportunity to spend some time in Swaziland a few weeks back in preparation for 40 Days of Prayer. 

Meet Thandeka, she represents one of thousands of children being cared for by volunteer Care Workers across the communities Hands at Work supports.

Joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer

'Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.' Romans 12:12-13 (NIV)

This is our 2017 Watchword as Hands at Work. At the beginning of January, as per every year, we gathered together to hear the wo
rd God had given us for this year. As George shared his heart of how God gave him this word, we all reflected on what had been a tough year in 2016 and how God would continue to grow us throughout 2017.

As I reflect personally on this word, it reveals a lot to me. When serving the most vulnerable children in Africa, it is often difficult work as we hear so many stories of children who are suffering. How do I respond to these stories? There is often a wrestling in my heart to trust in our model as Hands but also wanting to ‘do’ something. In the verse above, the words say ‘share with the Lord’s people who are in need’. Notice how it references the Lord’s people. Every single child we visit in our communities is one of God’s children. So I am called to treat this child as God would treat them. How do I make it personal in my own heart? One commitment I want to keep to this year is to pray more for our children in our communities. I have the privilege of being in the ground in Africa and have opportunities to meet these children face to face. But how often do I personally pray for them? Not enough.

This was a great start to the year and since then both Morgan and I have been busy with end of year reporting. One report the communications team created was about how Hands responded to the drought crisis in the last few months of last year. You can find it here 

Morgan has the opportunity for spending three days in Swaziland next week. She will be spending time with our kids and Care Workers in two communities, Msengeni and Bhandeni. I will be continuing to finalise the financial reports for closing out 2016.

In two weeks, we will have 7 new faces joining our volunteer intake. It is an exciting time to see how God will shape them as they seek what it means to serve the most vulnerable in Africa. Baby Malster is doing very well. We had our 30 week scan last week and everything is all healthy. Only 10 weeks remaining now! The time is going to fly and we are both very excited for the new chapter that lies ahead.

Please pray for baby that s/he will continue to be strong and healthy. Pray for Morgan as she enters these last few weeks of pregnancy.

Please pray for the group of new volunteers we have arriving from US, Canada and Australia in 2 weeks’ time.