I’m in the city of Nampula in the country of Mozambique. If you haven’t noticed the address of the website, then yes, Mozambique is in Africa. More specifically its on the Indian Ocean on the east coast of Africa opposite of Madagascar, north of South Africa, and south of Tanzania.
What do you do?
I live and work at the Evanjafrica Orphanage with these guys. Victor is from Mozambique and is married to Christina who is from America.
Don’t ask me how I fit into all of this, its too confusing. Their life’s work is running this place, and I’m just along for the ride. We have about 50 kids that live here right now ranging from 3-20 years old. I’m able to advise and assist with the never-ending construction that happens here, teach and tutor the kids in their impossibly hard schoolwork, cook and serve food for 50 hungry mouths, lead bible study, play tag, and be the best goalie these kids have ever seen. And in case you're wondering, that's me on the right side of the page. ======>>>
How did the kids get here?
The kids here come from a wide range of backgrounds. Some of them are true orphans, who have no parents or relatives to care for them. Many have had a parent die or a father leave and find no support in their family. Some have been told to just go live in the jungle or the streets because they have a better chance of surviving and finding food than staying in their home. Some have had parents or relatives abuse them to where the only choice was to leave.
One thing is for certain: all of the kids here come from very broken backgrounds and the only person that can and is saving from the physical, mental, and emotional toll of the past is Jesus.
How did you get here?
I took an airplane. My parents are still alive and love me very much. Hi mom. Hi dad.
Why are you there?
I’m here for no other reason than this is exactly where Jesus wants me to be. Getting to live with these kids and know that we are impacting their lives for positive change is one of the best things I’ve ever done. It’s a challenge at times—sporadic electricity, scorching heat, lack of clean water, rowdy kids absolute poverty all around me—but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
How long have you been there?
I was here for about 3 months in 2009 and liked it so much I came back. This time around I’ve been here since September 2010 and plan on staying for at least 2 years. Hopefully I can afford to go home in the middle to see family/friends, but if not, this isn’t such a bad place to be.
What’s it like?
That’s kind of a loaded question. If I had two words and one picture to describe it, the two words would be crazy and Jesus-tastic. And this would be the picture.
I'm not sure what about this is funniest. The Darth Vader mask, blowfish guy, the crazy lady, or the guy in the background dancing with his shirt off. This is a riot after a soccer game several years ago.
Can I support you?
Heck yes you can! Generally, you can pray that I stay sane and that the normal hazards of life living on the edge (disease, famine, drought, the usual). If you’d like to know some specific things to be praying for, just send me an email and I’ll let you know. If you want to support financially, click on over to the support page for information on how to do that.
What’s the one thing I should take away from reading your blog?
The one thing I want you to know is that this is not me doing something nice or doing my part to “give back” or me feeling guilty about living in a country with running water. This is solely because Jesus is transforming lives here. Each of these kids was in a situation where they were left for abandon or had everything stripped away from them. Here at our orphanage these kids know their hope is not in me, its not in Victor and Christina, and its not in the people that support our ministry and help put food on the table. They know that Jesus is the one that truly saves them and truly gives them hope.
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