Thursday, September 14, 2017

The Vilakati Journey

So we came back to Swaziland at the end of August, and to say that we have hit the ground running would be an understatement. We arrived in Swaziland on a Friday evening, and the following Monday we both went back to work. Mapile started teaching a New Testament course at the Bible College, and I dove back into nursing care of the children at Project Canaan (where we currently have 164 children).

A week after we got back, four kids from Gogo’s (Grandma’s) house came to stay with us for a week. We weren’t exactly ready to have four children staying with the three of us in our already one bedroom apartment, but we knew we needed to help out our family. Two days after dropping them off at Gogo’s house, our car broke down. Some type of problem with the gear box. We aren’t sure how long it will take to get fixed.
Our car getting towed
 Why am I giving you all these details? Well, for awhile now Mapile and I have been watching our income and expenses, and seeing how things just aren’t adding up. We make enough money through our jobs to cover our expenses of rent, groceries, electricity, gas (petrol), help with a few needs of our family and friends, but we don’t have room for things like unexpected car expenses, starting to build a fence around our new property, saving for a trip to visit America every few years, etc.

All the while we have known since we got married that God has given Mapile a vision for his home down in Mbutfu. When Mapile first became a Christian, God placed it on his heart to go back to the place where he was raised, and help to make a difference in that community. The vision that God gave Mapile is to build a community center that can be a place for youth to go and get tutoring, have access to more resources, play sports, and be encouraged/discipled along the way. We are still in the very beginning “grassroots” stage of this ministry, but we both know that the Lord has given us a special burden for this place of Mapile’s upbringing.

We have partnered with an organization called The Cause to help us in the area of support raising. The Cause is an organization that helps keep us financially accountable and provides a way for you to give that is tax-deductible. We are actually totally set up now through The Cause to start receiving financial donations! Our goal is to raise $3500 a month in monthly donations.

The money we raise will go towards:

-          Building a fence around our new property
-          Starting to build our own house
-          Saving for a reliable car
-          Travel to and from the ministry site
-          Process of getting land for the community center
-          Internet service
-          Emergency fund
-          Sabbatical travel expenses (visiting family/friends in America)
 
We’re inviting you to become a part of The Vilakati Journey with us. If you have more questions or want other details, please feel free to contact us via facebook inbox or our email at thevilakatis@gmail.com. If you can also just be patient with us, we don’t have internet at our house currently, so bear with us as we deal with that issue.

If you are interested in supporting us go to https://www.thecause.org/partners/the-vilakati-journey/.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers too!

-          Pray for the Lord’s provision in our lives as we take this new step of Faith
-          Pray for God’s continued strength and wisdom to face the various challenges and situations that come up on a daily basis here.
-          Pray for our family, that God would protect us and keep us focused on Him.

At Gogo's house, where the kids stay and where Mapile grew up. Simo loves watching the animals (which are mostly chickens and cats)

Simo with two of the kids from Gogo's who were staying with us

Playing with her toys in her tiny play pin


“May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us – yes, establish the work of our hands.” – Psalm 90:17

1 comment:

  1. This is exciting! If there is ever anything I can do to help - let me know!

    ReplyDelete