Feliz Navidad.

I hope that all of you had as wonderful of a Christmas as I did. On Christmas day we went to church for a beautiful service with the team. We sang "Feliz Navidad" in church which I just had to laugh about because we were singing a Spanish song in Africa.....there is something just strange about that. Haha. It was a rainy day here on Christmas and so we laid low for the afternoon a bit which was actually really nice. I was able to travel around and visit the baby houses only to get tackled by 15 kids wanting to show me their Christmas gifts. Seeing the way the kids cherished a little wooden car or a baby doll put a smile on my face. At night we had a braai at BG with the Azusa Pacific team and a few other missionaries in Lesotho. It was such a fun night filled with beautiful conversation and delicious food. To finish the night, I skyped into my family's Christmas party. As much as I would have loved to be home with my family on Christmas I am humbled by their never ending encouragement and support. Skyping with them is such a blessing because they always make me feel like I am there with them with how they joke around and laugh with me. Through the whole day I could see the Lord's hand working. From the laughter and joy I experienced with my friends here to the heavy hearted moments when I was wishing I could be back home the Lord was faithful. The Lord was so good to me this Christmas and I am so thankful!

delivering Christmas gifts to the baby houses

watching "Brave"

hey look, a crab

Christmas day rainbow!

my first Christmas cracker

da group

Mercy :)

On Monday I blogged about a little 5 year old orphan boy who we went to go visit in the hospital. I wrote about how when we went he was in so much pain and it hurt me to watch him have to go through that. A few hours after I posted that I found out he had gone into a coma. One of our nurses had been visiting him a lot and doing whatever she could to help. She treated him and cared for him like he was her own son. Today we found out that he had gone to be with the Lord. As much as that news made me sad I couldn't help but think of how he was now in heaven with no more tears and no more pain. He is no longer an orphan, but instead he is dancing and praising with  his heavenly Father!

Vacations can be challenging for me. I LOVED going on vacations with my family back in the States and taking time to relax but here it is different. I find that I lose my sense of purpose and become very homesick when I get off campus for a even a few days. This week we went to Malealea lodge which is a very nice camp ground type thing a couple hours away in the mountains. It is a beautiful place to go and ride horses, hike, or just relax. We took the Azusa Pacific team there for a few days away. When we arrived and I started feeling really down wanting to go home I realized that vacationing was always something I did with my family. So, when I am on a getaway with people that aren't my family I find that I miss my own family a lot. Also, I came to Lesotho to help at Beautiful Gate and build relationships with the staff and children here. When I am away from Beautiful Gate for a while I more than anything just want to get back here to see my kids again to continue the work I came here to do. As challenging as it was emotionally to be away this weekend, I really was able to enjoy myself at times by getting to know the girls on the team, gazing at the gorgeous scenery, and spending time talking with God. I came back spiritually filled and ready to smother these 60 kids with Christ's love.

"For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace"  -Isaiah 9:6 

peace and love. 

Christmas is coming!

Merry Christmas Eve! I just wanted to so a quick post today and then I will post again later this week after Christmas....hopefully.

Today we have officially made it to 61 kids. CRAY. One of our children is currently in the hospital so I guess there is 60 on campus. The boy who is in the hospital is about 6 weeks old and half the weight he was when he was born. I have never seen such a tiny baby! He hasn't been able to keep his bottles down so in the hospital they are feeding him through a tube so be can get back to a normal weight. Yesterday I went along with the Azuza Pacific team to the hospital to visit him. While we were there we were able to visit with some of the other children and mothers that were there. There was also a 5 year old boy there who is also an orphan but is staying at a different care center. You tell he was in so much pain and it just broke my hear that there was nothing I could to to make him feel better. We took some time to pray over a few of the kids and its amazing how saying, "I trust YOU, Lord!" can ease some of your hurt. I left the hospital yesterday with mixed emotions. I was joyful knowing the Lord was still watching over these children even through this hard time, yet sad that these children were going through so much pain without many people around who really care about them. I remember when I first got here I didn't know how exactly to react when my heart was constantly aching for people around me. The burden became very heavy and it made me just want to be sad all the time. I thought being sad was how I was supposed to react even though I didn't like it. I have learned to be okay with being sad sometimes but also how to find little pieces of joy to cling to when I hear about or see things that are hard. In a place like Lesotho if you only focus on the negative it can really get you down. Instead focus of the joy of the moments and the beautiful promises in scripture.

"I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you" -John 14:18

On Friday we had the staff Christmas party and I have never experienced such a joyful celebration. Everyone was dancing, laughing, singing, and praising the Lord. I just didn't want the party to end! All the staff got little Christmas gifts and a small bonus. One of my house mothers was sitting next to me and when she saw her bonus she turned to me and said, "Ausi Paige, its too much!" I told her that she is such a gift to Beautiful Gate and that we love her and appreciate her a lot so she must accept this gift as our way of saying 'thank you.' After talking with her a little I got to thinking that if I would ever say that a bonus was too much. I honestly don't think I would. And here is this woman who probably lives in a 1 or 2 bedroom cinder block house with no running water saying that she doesn't need more money. In that moment I was not very proud to be an American. In a country where almost every body's dream is to get rich and famous....yea I don't know if I want to be associated with people like that. I don't think people in America understand the word 'need'. Most people here have food, water, shelter, love, and the Lord and that is all they need to live. Yes, the water may be dirty and their house might not have electricity but their needs are being met so they are happy. Why do Americans think they need so much more? I don't exactly know what I am trying to get at here but these were just some thoughts I have been reflecting on. 

On Sunday I opened presents with my family via skype which was so fun! Skype is an amazing thing my friends. 

Well there are a few thoughts from the week. I will hopefully post again soon!

 a few of my friends from church

tessa's new alarm clock

sweeto hat bray!

oven mitts!

I love them. 

peace and love. 

full.

What a crazy week! Well, I guess every week is crazy here, but its a good kind of crazy :)

Three children were transferred to Beautiful Gate from a different orphanage on Monday. They were coming from the orphanage I visited a few months ago. Click HERE to read about my experience there. All three of the children were not getting cared for or fed enough (all three are malnourished) at the other orphanage which is why they were transferred here. The oldest boy got assigned to my house and when he got here and I went to cuddle him like I always to with the new children. The next day when I took the kids to play group I could tell he was already very attached to me. He followed me around all morning whimpering and wanting me to hold him. he was being stubborn and wouldn't listen with the bo'me would tell him to do something. Since he was new and I knew the adjustment was probably hard for him I would often pick him up, carry him around, and help him eat. After a little while the play group lady told me I could no longer hold him because he needed to learn to do things on his own and learn how things work without my help. Though I was kind of sad I couldn't be there for this boy I understood where she was coming from. For the rest of the week I restrained from showing him any extra attention and prayed and prayed that he would adjust quickly. I was really worried about him because whenever I saw him he would just cry and cry and I could not figure out why.  Monday morning when I went to my house I could tell he was finally adjusting. He was playing with the other kids, laughing, and eating all of his food. He no longer followed me around and listen to bo'me when they told him to do something. It is so crazy to me how much this boy's attitude changed in a week's time. I thank the Lord for answering my prayer so quickly and I am excited to start seeing this boy gain a few pounds. :)

Last week Sue, (the co-founder of BG) her son Dillon, and his wife Amelie (did you follow that? haha) came to visit Beautiful Gate. Amelie had come for a week earlier in September but it was my first time meeting her husband and mother in law. It was so great to hear stories about Beautiful Gate from Sue and be able to hear about how much it has grown since her and her husband started it 11 years ago. It was great to catch up with Amelie again too. She volunteered for 8 months at Beautiful Gate a couple years ago, so I love talking to her and comparing experiences. She is always so encouraging and open and willing to talk. I was grateful for their wonderful visit and I hope to see them again someday soon!

On Thursday of last week I got a new roommate!! I have very much enjoyed getting to know Lois and working with her in the houses. Lois is from Pretoria so we have fun comparing cultural and language differences. I have been wanting to organize the play group craft room for a very long time but was afraid to tackle this big project by myself. She agreed to help me clean it today and it has never looked better! There was so much craft supplies and toys in there that I didn't even know we had. I am hoping that now that I know where everything is I can pull the craft stuff our more with the older kids and teach the bo'me how to use some of it too. It is so great to have another person who is also in the houses everyday around. In Pretoria she works with kids so I really enjoy hearing her perspective and thoughts on some of the kids' situations. Lois will be here for about 2 weeks so pray that she enjoys her time here and is able to grow and learn about the Lord through the kids.

59! That is the number of kids currently at Beautiful Gate. A 3 day old baby arrived yesterday and is staying my house and another newborn came today and was placed in a different house which brought us up to 59. BG easily houses 60 children but any more than that can be challenging. Though we have had many adoptions lately, there probably won't be any more in the next few months. This means there will most likely still be kids coming to Beautiful Gate but not many leaving. This also means we are filling up fast! I know the house mothers have agreed to still care for more than 60 kids if needed, but I just hope we don't get to the point where we have to start turning kids away. I cannot even imagine having to do that. The house mothers have been doing such a great job with the kids, but please pray that the Lord would keep giving them energy to keep up the awesome work. Your prayers are appreciated more than you know! Thanks!

peace and love.

flooding.

I'm back! Sorry for not posting last week. It has been busy here and honestly I didn't have a whole lot to blog about. :)

GOD IS SO GOOD! That is all I have to say after yesterday's adoption ceremony. The ceremony was for two brothers who are going to Canada. It was so great to meet their parents and see them already connecting with their kids after only 2 weeks of being together. The Lord knew these kids were meant for those parents. The thing that made the ceremony extra special was the boys' biological grandfather coming for the ceremony. He was the one that made the decision for the boys to come to Beautiful Gate and let the boys be adopted after their parents passed away. This man gave the best gift you could ever give to these boys and their new family. A coward is what people called this man for letting the boys come to an orphanage, but in my mind he is the hero of the story. Even though it was hard, he acted in the best interest of the children. I am so thankful for his decision and I know the boys' new parents are too. Because of his decision these boys will get a chance at life and be able to grow up in a family that loves them and is able to care for them. Praise the Lord!

Flooding. That is never a good thing. Especially when it happens in the building that is supposed to house 3 volunteers coming in 2 days. yeaaaaaahh. Yesterday we found the short term volunteer house filled with water up to 2 inches deep in some places. It is all tile floors so there wasn't any major damage....PRAISE THE LORD! We have 3 people coming on Monday that were supposed to stay there but now they are staying in me and Kristen's house. So, today we have been scurrying around cleaning and washing towels and sheets to get ready for them to come. Though I know it is going to be busy and probably a bit stressful this week, I have learned to just go with it. Plans change A LOT here because Africans just run on a different time schedule than Americans. At first, it was frustrating and hard for me to get used to. I was used to customer service and consistency when it comes to businesses and that is just not something you find around here. When you put your daily plans in the Lord's hands I find the day goes better anyways. Things like flooding don't phase you has much because you already put it in the Lord's care.

There have been many new children the past few weeks and probably 3 more are coming tomorrow. A few of the new ones are less than a couple weeks old. SO CUTE! One of the new girls in my house is so afraid of me! I am guessing that she has never seen a white person before so that is why she is uncomfortable around me. I feel bad because every time I walk into the room she starts screaming. I hope that she can learn to like me because she is a cutie patootie and I just want to cuddle her! haha. Please pray for the new children that arrive here and that they would settle in quickly and not be afraid of me. :)

"He called a little child and had him stand among them....And he said..."whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven"

-Matthew 18:2-4

LEARN. Learn from your children. That is what Jesus was teaching here. I must admit that I feel a lot like a mother here. I absolutely love it, but I find myself worrying so much about the little things like how they behave, if they are eating enough, and making sure none of them are getting sick that I forget to learn from them. Everyday they basically sing the same songs in play group, but there is never a day when they don't put their whole heart into their singing. I need to learn to be like that when I praise our Father. Investing every ounce of my being into that praise, holding nothing back. These kids are also joyful. I need to learn to be more like that. When I walk by their rooms at night and I see their little faces in the windows and their hands rapidly waving at me, I can't help but smile. Even though these kids don't have many toys or things they can claim to be their own, they are still happy and would much rather play with new friends than a toy anyway. I need to remember to treasure my time with PEOPLE instead of wasting time being attached to THINGS. These are just a few of the many things I am learning from these kids. What can you learn from the kids in your life?

peace and love.