alicia brown everybody!

...and the fun just keeps on coming!

the day after my mom left, i got to receive another visitor. one whom i love so much!

ALICIA BROWN. my dear roommate from the epic apartment 307.

alicia was sent from norman community, my beloved church community from home.

it was such a joy to get to minister in masi with her. she brought so much life to my heart. getting to catch up on each other's lives. getting to hear all about life in norman that has been happening while i have been gone. getting to hear fun testimonies from what the Lord has been doing in her life...getting to receive fresh faith and excitement for the outpouring of God's presence and goodness, and for his great commitment to the redemption of his people.

we have dreamed of being in africa together for a few years now. so needless to say, it was such a joy to be with her in africa!

i am thankful to God for our friendship. can't wait to see the glorious paths he leads us on...i just know they will cross a million times in this life!

my mommy.

there is no time like momma time.

i am one blessed girl.

i got to spend 15 whole days with my mom.

i got to introduce her to this place that i love so much.

i got to spend hours talking and telling stories,

and just filling her in on the little, unimportant details of my day to day that just can't be shared on weekly skype dates.

i enjoyed so much seeing her love on the kids that have taken up such a special place in my heart.

what a joy to introduce her to those that i have been loving and praying for for years and years and years...the ones who are so important to me.

and what fun it was for us to get to take this little one for her second excursion outside of masi. to get to watch her take in the sites outside the car window and to see the utter joy on her face as we pulled up to the crashing waves and sparkling blue ocean.

and how priceless were the hours of walking along the beach, talking and, of course, if you know my mother, picking up seashells.

i never pick up seashells, but since she went home i have found my self finding the most amazing seashells. i am starting quite a collection.

there is just something so restful about being around my mom. i think it is the comfort and security of being around someone who loves me so fully and unconditionally. my mom always laughs because i get so sleepy when i am with her. its just that i can let my guard down with her. its just so nice to be around a momma's love.

oh how i love that mommy of mine!

rainbows.

i never cease to find such delight in rainbows. aren't they just so fun?!

lets be reminded of the good and sure promises of God today.

vison & dreams come true

God is releasing so much vision over my life in this season. two areas he has been giving me vision for is church planting & seeing children healed, raised up and released into greatness.

church planting

the vision:

seeing people experience the love and power of God through relationship with him. sharing what they are discovering with their friends and family (those they are living life with); going on a journey together, in community, towards Jesus. being transformed by his love and grace. learning to love God, listen to him and respond to what he is saying.

seeing broken & hurting children restored in the Father's love

the vision:

seeing kids experience the Father's great love for them. learning to hear His voice for themselves. seeing the lies of the world and the evil one removed from their sweet hearts and replaced with the truth and love of God. seeing the 'least of these' raised up to be influencers and leaders in their generation.

i have been sensing from the Lord that these vision are to be married and that it is what the Lord is calling me to in the future. i have also been sensing that it is a season of seeing glimpses of these dreams that the Father has put in my heart come to be...

Lily*. a sweet, sweet church planter.

this child has been experiencing Jesus in powerful ways. she lives in the poorest part of masi. she is a bright girl, a natural leader. and she loves the Father because she knows him well. she knows his goodness, his love, his mercy. she has experienced his healing in her and through her. she has seen Jesus in dreams. she knows the Father's voice and receives his words for others. and she wants her friends to know her Father like she does. so she has asked me to help her start a kids club for the kids in the wetlands where she lives because they need to know about Jesus too! tomorrow will be our first kids club. and it will not be me leading this thing. she is partnering with me to lead this group because, although she is a child, she knows the Father well.

i am thanking the Father for giving me a glimpse of what it will look like for the visions He is placing deep in my heart to come together. i am so thankful for dreams come true and for the glorious future He is leading me into.

*name changed

wedding bells...a happy time!

wedding bells are ringing, ringing, ringing...

not for me :) but for many of my friends!

in this past month i got to celebrate two people who are very dear to my heart...two of the girls i have lived with in south africa!

i am celebrating ames, my dear spice, who got engaged to joel a few weeks ago!

what a blessing to spend the last six months with amy; six months filled with adventure, joy, and fun. there is constant sunshine when ames is around. it truly was an honor to live life with my spice and to get to see how much love and respect she has for joel...and now they are getting married! happy day!

and oh! amanda sperle, my sister. as an honorary bridesmaid, i celebrated (from a far) her marriage to tyler this past weekend...

words can not express how much i love amanda. after traveling to africa together twice and living together last year during church planting school in SA, she has become my sis. what a joy it was to be with amanda as her story with tyler began to unfold...to get to see it from the very, very beginning. i could not be happier for amanda and tyler. so perfect for each other. God has so much for their marriage...and now they are officially mr. & mrs. happy day!

thank you Papa for the beautiful gift of marriage. what a picture of your love and covenant with your Bride. we are a blessed people!

abundant blessings: camp in africa

summer camp in africa.

we laughed, we played, we basked in the Lord’s blessings. his ABUNDANT blessings.

from start to finish, this camp was blessed by the hand of God. it was his idea and he was so faithful to see it happen. and not only just happen, but be extravagantly wonderful! from having the team from Shepherd’s Fold Ranch summer camp (inlcuding my mom, one of my closest friends and many other friends), to the miraculous number of kids that were able to come, to having the Lord provide over and beyond the funds needed, to the heavenly weather...we were lavished upon by the Father!

of course. when the Lord has an idea and we are faithful to partner with him, the miraculous happens!

and the Father loves to lavish his love and goodness over his children, his special treasures. and that is what these kids are! all week, over and over and over, we spoke this very truth over our kids...

you are His special treasure!

you are pursued by the God of the universe...he is after YOU!

and he is worthy to be sought after because he is SO GOOD!

after weeks and weeks and weeks of growing excitement (and words can not express how pumped they were), these kids were READY for camp! they played hard, danced, sang, received lots of fun treats, performed dramas, went on hikes, played at the beach nearby, ate great food and just enjoyed being together.

and this camp was priceless for me and the other mentors because it meant non-stop quality time with these kids we love so much. i feel that we received such new insight into their lives that we never would have received by visiting them weekly or at kids clubs. trust and friendship deepened during the camp, for us and the kids, as well as, between the kids themselves.

and we are already seeing the fruit!

• at our weekly friday gathering in masi the following day after camp, we were blown away to see the difference in relationships. family and deeper community was formed and barriers broken down amongst the kids. ndiyabonga! (oh i am so thankful!)

• i visited the mama who takes care of five of the kids who were at camp. she went on and on, recalling their stories. this mama has been struggling with a lot of knee pain, so i asked her how it was feeling. she said, “oh the pain is gone! the kids prayed for it when they got back from camp and i was healed!” dumiso uThixo! (praise God!)

• i also was visiting with a family of one of the kids from camp. i asked them if she enjoyed the camp. they said “oh yes! she loved it! when can you come and do bible study with us?” the testimonies of what God did through this child has stirred up a spiritual hunger in her family! ndiyabulela! (i am so grateful!)

we were truly showered in God’s goodness and my heart is still praising God!