419 South Africa

2011-07-18T18:14:00.001-05:00

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Current Gate Information

2011-07-18T13:27:00.001-05:00

Make sure to check AA.com for the most up to date info.

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Back in the USA

2011-07-18T09:51:00.001-05:00

We have landed in Washington...we are about to go through customs. I will be updating Gate information ad we get closer to our departure time.

Almost home!

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Updated Flight

2011-07-18T09:25:00.001-05:00

Hey parents!

It looks like the updated flight information is:

AA 1875
Depart Dulles at 4:25 PM
Arrive DFW at 6:40 PM

Check back to the blog for the latest updates..

I know you are ready to see your students!

Thank you..

Brian Bunch

Last day...

2011-07-16T10:26:00.001-05:00

Today was our free day. We started out at the beach for pictures and souvenirs. Lunch was at the waffle house...the chicken a al king waffle was pretty popular. And then we spent our afternoon at Lake Eland looking for animals and braving the infamous suspension bridge.

It's been an amazing trip, and we have been blessed by God immensely. We are ready to come home though and excited to tell all the stories of what God did in our midst.

After church in the morning we will drive to the airport for that short hop across the world.

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Friday

2011-07-16T01:48:00.001-05:00

Today was our last day at Murchison, and it was incredibly difficult to leave. In just a short time we have really grown to love these kids and the Hope to Africa team, not being with them is going to be hard.

Despite the cold and rainy conditions we woke to, the kids came out in droves. They showed up wearing coats and gloves if they had them, most though had no shoes. They come running, and immediately want to be held..it seems the affection our students show these kids is something they don't get alot of at home. Many of them live with a single mom, many however are alone with their siblings because mom and dad have passed. So our students this week have selflessly sacrificed our necks, backs, and hair to love on these kids with these simple words...."put me to your shoulders."

These kids have heard about Jesus all week, and we pray they have seen Him in us too. Despite their many needs, He is the source of true hope, and He is all they need.

Jenna and the rest of the students who help organize the Go Hungry campaign were able to meet with Pastor Joseph today. He is the pastor at Khula, and oversees the feeding program there. A portion of the money raised will be going to continue the feeding program at Khula and the rest will be used to start a similar program at Murchison. As a result of the hard work and faithfulness of the Go Hungry team, and the people of Lake Pointe, they were able to raise nearly $24,000 to alleviate hunger in this area.

Wade and I were also able to determine where the money from Murchison Medics will be going. We were made aware of a need in the Khula community for mobile clinics from Murchison hospital. This is such a rural area that access to good medical care is difficult. They are wanting to partner with Murchison hospital to bring doctors to that area to treat the sick. Wade and his team were able to raise $750 and this will allow them to start that program. What a huge impact that is going to have on that community!

We spent our afternoon at Rehoboth Children's Village (they don't like the term orphanage)...what an amazing place of hope. Although most of these kids have AIDS, you would never know it by looking at them. Before we went out to play with the kids, we were shown a video depicting the before and after shots of the kids at Rehoboth. Some of the images took my breath away. I have known these kids for over 4 years and to see how far they have come is truly amazing. Our time at Rehoboth was a fitting end to a truly life-changing week.

We had the chance to worship with the youth at Norwegian Settlers last night. They have a growing youth group and it was fun to hang out with our peers this side of the world.

I am so incredibly proud of our students and they way they gave of themselves sacrificially all week. They are tired but filled. I consider it an honor to have served with such an amazing group...I may not give them back :)

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Thursday

2011-07-15T00:40:00.001-05:00

Another great day at Murchison and Khula! Our Khula team finished their leadership training. They were able to give all the kids that came Bibles and journals to continue to study and learn...they were so grateful.

We took another group of students to the Genesis Care Center today to minister and pray with the patients. We were sad to hear that three of the patients we prayed with on Tuesday passed away last night. Though we are sad, it is comforting to know that their last days were in a place of peace and comfort and now they know perfect peace with God. It was difficult for most of the students today as it really pushed them beyond their comfort zone, however they did an awesome job encouraging those people.

We have seen many kids come to know Christ, and it is so encouraging to know that when we leave these kids will have a place to go and grow in their faith. The community center at Murchison is so well run and God is doing amazing things in that place...it's a real privilege to work here!

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Tuesday and Wednesday

2011-07-14T07:02:00.001-05:00

Our team continues to do great work at Murchison and Khula. Our numbers at Murchison continue to grow and the kids are really responding to the team.

The team at Khula is leading a leadership seminar in the afternoons. They are teaching the local teenagers theology, leadership and skills. After the teaching time on Tuesday they opened up for questions. The kids began asking tough questions about spiritual warfare and evil spirits. This culture is very influenced by ancestor worship and witchcraft, and so this topic is of great interest and importance and interest to them. I was so proud of hope our students jumped in with answers and prayers from scripture...they truly ministered to the students right where they were.

I took a small team to the Genesis Care center on Tuesday (the rest of the team will go on Thursday). The care center is an AIDS hospice built by the church to care for those dying of AIDS. We go there to minister to the patients who are literally on their final days, we tell them about Jesus and the hope they have in Him and to pray with them to provide some comfort and encouragement. I prayed with a man named Sydney. He told me over and over again that he was dying, and I continually reminded him that because he knew Jesus that he would soon be with him. He smiled every time I told him. When I asked about his family he told me of his two kids, Quanda and Lusanda, and how much he wanted to see them again. He wanted to tell them about Jesus and to make sure to follow Him...it reminded me so much of the importance of the work we are doing at Murchison and Khula.

The team at Murchison in the afternooons have been leading clinics for basketball, soccer, and crafts. Our craft team brought toe nail polish for Wenesday. As a part of their program they taught the importance of serving others. And so before they painted toe nails, our team washed the feet of all the little kids....incredibly powerful!! I am so proud of our students and they way they have laid aside their agenda this week to truly serve and meet the needs of the kids in this community....have I mentioned how awesome our team is yet??

Please pray for energy and health for our team. We are all very tired but so inspired and motivated to continue to serve. Pray for our Khula team who is finishing up their last day there Thursday, I know it will be difficult for them to leave. Please also pray for the Hope to Africa team (the local Zulu teenagers we have been working with...they have a great ministry to the local villages). They are a great group of teenagers fired up for the Lord, and they have so much that they are up against...poverty, hunger, AIDS, spiritual warfare. Pray that God will continue to bless them and that they would stay strong.

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Internet problems

2011-07-13T02:06:00.001-05:00

Sorry for the delay in the blog posts we are having some Internet issues...I hope to be more consistent from this point forward...everyone is doing great...we are heading right now to Murchison for our holiday club...pray for us!

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Monday

2011-07-13T02:04:00.001-05:00

We began our work at Murchison today. It was so great to see many of the kids that we have worked with in years past. We had over 130 kids this morning and we expect many more tomorrow.

We are leading what they call a Holiday Club here, we call it VBS. Our team is partnering with some local Zulu kids to do all the drama, skits, teaching and recreation. Our students were amazing! Typically it takes a few days to get over cultural differences and gain enough confidence to really engage with the kids...not so with this team...they jumped in immediately and did an outstanding job! I was incredibly proud. In the afternoon we split up and a small team taught leadership skills at Khula, while the rest of the team led basketball, craft, music and soccer clinics.

Some of the kids from a local orphanage (Rehoboth) joined us today at Murchison. I have always had a special place in my heart for the kids there, so when they drove up i was so excited to see them...I heard them from far away shouting from the windows "uncle Greg....uncle Greg!!" As they piled out the we hugged and wrestled and just got caught up on the last year.

The majority of the kids at Rehoboth are HIV positive, as are 70-80% of the population in this area. And though as you play with these kids, the thought rarely crosses your mind, every once in a while reality hits. As some of the kids were playing soccer, one of the kids from Rehoboth (one of the kids i am closest with) was hurt, and starting bleeding from a small cut on his cheek. His friends carried him to the side and set him down so we could care for him. Myself and one of the care-takers from Rehoboth started to clean him up. We got all the medical gear out and as we began to clean the blood from his face, his eyes went down, and my heart sank. It was if at that moment, he knew that I knew, and the shame and fear of his disease was exposed with a small cut. I did my best to comfort him and encourage him, but it was clear from that moment on, he was withdrawn and different toward us. We just kept loving on loving him, treating him as I think Jesus would have. And after he realized that, to us, he was just as special to us as every other kid, his smile returned.

We simply hope to be the hands and feet of Christ this week...pray for us as we continue to encourage these kids and tell them of the hope they have in Jesus.

**side note to parents: we don't allow students to clean wounds of injured kids simply as a precaution, only myself, care-takers, family members, and missionaries are allowed to do that.

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Sunday

2011-07-10T09:52:00.001-05:00

We arrived in Port Shepstone yesterday. After moving into Skogheim, we began immediately with our orientation with Cala Flippo, the missionary we are working with.

Hunter Pemberton and Jacob Way joined our team. They both were a part of previous teams, and are now serving here all summer. For me this was so incredible to see our former students leading this years team. They shared their experiences with us and gave an incredible challenge to our team. Hearing about how God is using them here was an encouragement to me and our students, we are ready to get to work!

This morning we drove out to Khula to attend church with Pastor Joseph. He is an amazing man of God with a huge heart for people. He started the church 8 years ago with a tent, and now with the help of some donors, Lake Pointe and Jacob's Well (the water well that was donated by Jacob Way and our community), the church is flourishing. They are caring for the orphans, the sick, and the poor in their rural community. The feeding program they have there has grown tremendously. They are feeding over 125 kids at the creche (preschool). This was funded last year by the Go Hungry Campaign started by students on last years trip, and now they were able to expand their program.

I love going to worship in a Zulu church...and it gives a new definition to doing church! As Cala put it, there is never a silent moment in a Zulu service. Any lull in the program is immediately filled with spontaneous singing from the congregation. And the singing is beautiful. It is evident that Jesus is everything to them, and He is all they need. We shared testimonies and a few songs from home and then I preached about the cross this morning.

As the service ended they took us outside to the well that Jacob provided and presented him with a certificate from the church thanking him for his service to their community. It was a moving moment.

For lunch we had a picnic in the Oribi Gorge. It's called the Grand Canyon of the South Coast. Though i am sure it does not compare, it provided pretty awesome views while we ate our sandwiches and salad.

This afternoon our team split. Half went to Assisi Orphanage. It is a home run by Catholic nuns, and the youth here at Norwegian Settlers Church have adopted this orphanage and serve there weekly. Assisi holds a special place in the hearts of many of our team, in that every year our small groups on Sunday mornings at Pier 419 sponsor a Christmas party for the kids there. It's really cool to meet and hold the kids you sponsored and see the smile on their faces.

The other half of the team ministered at Murchison Hospital in the Children's Ward. The kids were in there for various reasons; broken legs, burns, etc... However as Cala read us a few of the charts, the symptoms sadly resembled the early signs of an HIV infection. We are constantly reminded of the horror of this disease and the toll it takes on this community.

We are meeting with our translators tonight to prepare for the Holiday Club and afternoon programs we are leading tomorrow.

Everyone is doing really well. I love this team! They are serving these people and each other well, I can't wait to see how God uses them this week!

Thanks for your prayers!

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Cape Town

2011-07-08T14:29:00.001-05:00

We had an amazing day in Cape Town today. We began our morning driving along the coast to the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point for awesome views of the ocean and bays surrounding Cape Town. We then drove to Table Mountain for lunch, road a cable car to the top for another great view while we enjoyed our sandwiches. After lunch we headed out to Robben Island to see where Nelson Mandela was held for 18 years of his 27 year sentence.

For dinner tonight we met up with the adult team from Lake POinte who just finished up their work in Port Shepstone. It was great to see familiar faces and here the stories of how God worked through them this week. It has made us incredibly anxious to begin our work there tomorrow, and though we have had a great time here, we are ready to get to work.

Thanks for your prayers! Everyone is doing great, but extremely tired. Continue to pray for rest and for God to do a great work in us and through us.

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We are here!

2011-07-07T16:50:00.001-05:00

After 32 hours of traveling, we have arrived in Cape Town to cold air, warm beds and showers! We hope to get some rest before our 6:30 wake up call.

Our local cell phone number is 00278582359

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Gate information

2011-07-05T13:40:00.001-05:00

This is the current gate info, subject to change:

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Weather

2011-07-04T07:28:00.001-05:00

Bring a jacket!

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Trip Schedule

2011-06-28T09:56:00.001-05:00

South Africa is scheduled for July 6-18, 2011 and is being led by Greg Bradford.

Check back for updates!