An Update from March

As this year hurries on, it feels like we have only just started and yet we are already nearing the end of March. I am sure this is how many people feel every year but it is really this year that I have felt this in particular. The things that have kept Morgan and I busy have ranged from end of year reporting to going out to communities and spending time with our new group of volunteers. Here at Hands at Work, very February and September we have times set aside to allow new volunteers to come and join us as part of the family. This February, we had twelve people come to join us from all over the world. We had couples, a family and singles from Australia, UK, US, Canada and Germany. It is the first time in a very long time that we have had such a diverse group within a group of new volunteers. The volunteers come for an initial 6 week orientation program and then stay on usually between a year and three years. If anyone is interested in finding out more about this then head to www.handsatwork.org/come. It is very exciting for us who have been here a few years to see what God is doing in the lives of the new volunteers. Last week we got to hear about their community stay. For those that remember, this is when we go into the community for the weekend and stay with a family. The relationships we build here can often be long lasting as you can understand by the relationship we still have with Silo. We ask that you keep these new volunteers in your prayers as they will be heading out to various countries in the next few weeks. For those who do not know, one of the couples who are part of the new volunteers are Morgan’s mum and dad. It has been great to have them around and they will be spending most of the year in Zambia helping our construction team and Regional Support Team (RST).

Over the past month, Morgan and I also had the privilege of joining some other members of the Hands family to go to a community called Share as a part of a monthly meeting called community prayer. We do this every month and visit a difference community each month and it is a time where we can go and encourage our Care Workers and children by praying and worshipping together. On this particular visit, we also had the opportunity the do home visits. The home I visited was of a young girl named Alice and her gogo (grandmother). When Alice was born, her mum did not want to look after her and so dropped her off at the door of her gogo. As a result, Alice has only ever met her mum a few times and was raised by her gogo. Alice has never met her dad. Her gogo not only cares for Alice but other children in the community who have no parents, she is a real beacon of hope in the community of Share. Alice is able to get a meal a day from the life centre in Share and gets a regular visit from her Care Worker, Doris. As we prayed and left the family, I couldn’t help but think what Alice would do if it wasn’t for the love she receives from her gogo and Doris from the life centre. We need to keep praying for our Care Workers in the community as they give of themselves every day to serve the most vulnerable children in Africa.

A couple of weekends ago, we also spent time as the Hands family having an afternoon of fun together by having a Potjkiekos and playing some Boer sports. Not through literal translation but these are Afrikaans words for a stew cook-off and Primary school sports. We had four teams and each cooked their own version of the Afrikaans stew which was then judged later in the day. We also played many games in our teams including egg and spoon race, three legged race, apple bobbing, tug of war and a sack race. Our team managed to come second overall on the day and everyone had lots of fun!

Lastly, we have been blessed and have been able to be able to buy a car. It is a Ford Focus and after a few hiccups at the beginning is now working great and we feel very fortunate to be able to have that extra bit of freedom.

- Tommy 

40 Days of Prayer for Africa's Most Vulnerable & Hands at Work

Give ear to my words, O Lord; give heed to my sighing.
Listen to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you I pray - Psalm 5:1-2 (NRSV)

40 Days of Prayer is a special time when we can unite in prayer for the most vulnerable in Africa and the work that supports them. We invite you to join with us from February 18 - April 4th. Here's how:


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 bring hope to the hopeless.

Download the 40 Days 2015 Prayer Guide

Join our daily online event in the Hands at Work  Prayer Room, or join the Facebook Event where each day you will receive expanded content on the daily prayer point.

New Year New Beginnings

It is a new year and with a new year comes new beginnings. Each year in Hands at Work, God gives us a Watchword which we use to guide our year. This year, God gave us a word from Habakkuk which says “Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, Lord. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.” We took time in small groups to reflect on this together and individually. For us as Hands at Work this year, we will go through times of struggles and times of celebration, but God wants us to be reflecting on the times which he has stood by us. In the busyness of carrying out our daily tasks and lives, we can forget how faithful God is in the small things, but this year he is calling us to remember that. We are excited to see what this year holds for us as a family.

The Hands at Work family at the beginning of 2015

Over the past few weeks, Morgan and I have had time to recuperate before the beginning of the year which is always busy! We had time over the Christmas break to get settled into our new house and also host people on Christmas morning which was amazing. We love having the space to be able to host people and to be able to do this on Christmas morning was very special. We enjoyed a bring and share breakfast while opening gifts from friends and family. Later during that day, all of the Hands family came together at lunch to enjoy meat from the braai (South African barbeque). It is still very strange to celebrate Christmas in the hot weather but we shut the doors at night and turned the fan on full speed to try and make it feel a bit more like a home Christmas season.

Christmas Morning in our House

Even though the Hands offices are closed over the Christmas break, there is still work to be done, but we managed to keep it to a minimum and got some rest. A group of us all headed out to Mac Mac pools, a nearby waterfall and tourist site to celebrate Mel’s (one of our Australian volunteers) birthday. It was a very hot day and even though we put on sun cream, many of us still got burnt. The water was definitely refreshing on such a hot day. Also, during the break, we had Silo come to stay at our house. We spent time playing games with him, catching up and watching some films. He is still looking for a permanent job so please pray with us for that. We also have the chance to go to Kruger Park with our friends from Zambia and their two little girls. I saw wild dog for the first time in four years! And we had a great cheetah sighting.

In terms of travel for this year, we have not got much planned yet but God knows his plans for us and so we wait to see what they are for us. We are still currently waiting for my South African visa extension to be approved, so prayers for that would be much appreciated. In terms of our roles, Morgan will continue to head up our communications team who share our stories, updates and highlights from inside Africa to our partners, churches and friends outside of Africa. For myself, I will continue to work with our finance teams throughout Africa.

That’s all for now, but we are excited to share another years worth of adventures with you soon enough!

 Tommy

2014 in pictures

It has become a bit of a tradition for me, as I reflected on the past year to choose a selection of pictures that highlight it. As I look back on 2014 I can't help but count my blessings. I'm thankful for the opportunities we have had, the stories we have learned, our family and friends across the world, the continued privileged to serve the most vulnerable in Africa and His continued grace and strength.
 
Much Love! -M

i am a witness

Builds Itself Up in Love

We are back home in South Africa now. Before we left Zambia we had the great opportunity to facilitate and participate in two gatherings of Africa leaders and international volunteers. 

Maranatha Celebrations 

A part of Hands at Work’s holistic model of care in vulnerable communities across Africa is ensuring that our Care Workers are supported in their own personal growth and care. Our Care Workers are the men and women from local churches who have taken responsibility for the most broken, abused and neglected children in their communities. However, our Care Workers were once these children. They often have inner wounds just as deep as the children they are caring for. Through Maranatha Workshops, Hands at Work is extending to our Care Workers an understanding of the love and healing that can only come from Jesus. Now that each of our communities has participated in a Maranatha Workshop we gathered together to prayerful seek God’s will in the way forward. Our Lord Jesus came to show us the way forward in caring for our Care Workers, and the most vulnerable children across Africa. It was a privilege to stand side by side with some of the most humbling and inspiring men and women. It is in these times that I am so amazed and honored that God has chosen me for this calling.   -- M 

Bookkeeper Workshop
Our African Leaders who serve as Bookkeepers have come together in Zambia. Usually separated across five of the eight African countries we serve in, this week was a time to learn from each other and be together and united in their calling to serve the most vulnerable. We come together with our bookkeepers from all across Africa to share our hearts for the most vulnerable. We took time to fellowship with each other, have times of worship and hear our Father’s heart for the children of Africa, as well as have times of training. We read in Ephesians 4:16, ‘From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.’ It was a special time of growth for all of our bookkeepers, not only in their roles but also in their understanding of our calling.  -- T 

The Bookkeepers spending time in the community.

Some team building activities during Maranatha Celebrations

Serving communion during Maranatha Celebrations