…My heart became completely open to whatever He wanted to do and a deep desire to return to South Africa filled my heart along with joy at the thought of being His hands and feet to the most vulnerable. Throughout that journey, God taught me to have faith far beyond my own expectations and also how He is so faithful to listen to our heart’s deepest desires.
Hands at Work begins each year with a Watchword; a guiding scripture that our leadership team shares with the Hands family. This scripture is a promise, a challenge, an inspiration, an encouragement and an opportunity to invite God to lead us throughout the year, expectant for what He will do in and through us.
Hands at Work begins each year with a Watchword; a guiding scripture that our leadership team shares with the Hands family. This scripture is a promise, a challenge, an inspiration, an encouragement and an opportunity to invite God to lead us throughout the year, expectant for what He will do in and through us.
The community of Katembe is located in the mountains, several hours from any medical facilities. By God’s grace, Lina’s mother, with support from strangers, managed to get to a clinic where they did an emergency caesarean section. Though Lina survived, her mother did not have the capacity to care for her daughter on her own, resulting in a quick decline in Lina’s health….
“Everything may be different and yet, stepping out of our van into the community of Maranatha, I was greeted by faces I knew and people I could greet by name. I even recognised some of the kids and greeted them by name, even though it has been four years since I saw them last. I felt joy in seeing them again and, by the faces, I believe this was mutual….”
The purpose of building resiliency is to equip them with the resources, tools, and understanding that they need to provide for their own families, so that when challenges come, they are better equipped to stand. One way that this is done is through the provision of both Care Worker and Primary Caregiver community gardens….
“We didn't know any South African Christmas traditions so instead we hastily cut the shape of a baobab tree out of two pieces of cardboard and slotted the pieces to make a tree. We wrote the first name of all the children in Zwelisha on pieces of card, tied them with a ribbon and hung them on the tree….”
Over this past week many areas in Southern Africa have experienced high winds and heavy rainfall particularly Zambia in the Kabwe and Chisamba regions have been hit very hard.
There has been significant damage caused to a number of homes within the communities we serve. In some cases, homes collapsed in the night, leaving families with nowhere to go.
