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.