Bomake Camp Update: Truly in Awe of the Lord!

At the end of our camp we got a group photo. Out of our 108 cooks, 103 were able to come! - This was a HUGE answer to prayer! We praise God for the spiritual fruit that we believe was stirred in their lives while at the retreat & that the Lord will continue to work out in them! All we can say is, "THANK YOU LORD!", "SIYABONGA NKULUNKULU!"


The theme for our camp, "Created for Life, Designed to Heal" written in siSwatti on the banner

After all the time of prayer & planning, the day finally arrived to welcome our dear cooks for some spiritual, emotional & physical renewal! I was SO EXCITED... and thoroughly ENJOYED every minute of it! 

Nelly & I welcoming the women to the camp

Praising & worshipping - it was awesome to be a part of this!


This may have been my favorite part - the women worshipping in dance! Before each session we'd spend at least half an hour singing & dancing before the Lord - Swazi style!


The women in small groups praying over each other.


We had a "store" for the women - donated clothes that each small group had 20 minutes to choose 20 items, free of charge!


A special gift we had for the women were brand new Nike tennis shoes that had been donated! These weren't just any shoes... they were like Air Jordan's & others in that price range! They were very blessed.  NOTE: If you read my last blog... Siphiwe came!! A HUGE ANSWER TO PRAYER! She's 3rd from the right in the white hat.  PRAISE GOD!


The Cook Discipleship Team... Karabo, Nelly & myself.  We were so in AWE OF GOD & how we saw Him work from the moment he dropped this idea of the camp into our hearts all the way through. SO MANY ANSWERED PRAYERS!  It was amazing... and the JESUS IS AWESOME!! 


We did games with the bomake (sorry you have to twist your head to see it!) Here's a picture taken while they were doing the limbo! The Swazi women are so fun - many of them participated - and we all laughed SO HARD & SO MUCH!


Me & 'Mama' Elizabeth, our speaker who came from Johannesburg. When I used to live in Pretoria, South Africa, I would go out and minister with her in the squatter camps. She's such a blessing & a dear woman of God. I'm challenged by her faith... and so were the women!


The women once again dancing! The Lord impressed on my heart after the camp that many of them were "dancing over their graves"... places in their hearts & lives where there has been brokenness & death BUT where the Lord instead wants to bring healing & LIFE!

Ezekial 37:12-14
"...Thus says the Lord God, 'Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, My people;... Then you will know that I am the Lord... I will put My spirit within you and you will come to life..."

This is what the Lord had put on our hearts for these women - and we believe in faith that this is exactly what He's doing!  It is He who started the work in the women's lives, it is He who stirred it in their hearts during the retreat... and it is He who will continue what He has begun!

In a word, the camp was AMAZING! When it ended, the best way I could describe how Nelly, KB & I felt was IN AWE OF GOD.  Words can not express... it truly was "exceedingly, abundantly more than all we could ask or think..." (Eph. 3:20)  It's been a journey of faith, and many, many answered prayers!  (** See the answer to prayer about Siphiwe from my last blog in the pictures above... one of many!)

The 3 days were jam packed with all sorts of great things...
- sessions that directed the women toward the Lord, healing &spiritual growth
- praise, worship & dancing Swazi style
- small group times to share & pray together
- games (musical chairs, limbo)
- a movie: Passion of Christ
- a special meal where the men who help out at the CP's joined us
- a "store" with donated clothes
- a special donation that we got - brand new Nike's!
- a precious time of testimonies at the end... I wish y'all could've heard what they said - encouraging one another & sharing things they'd learned and been challenged by.

At the end of the retreat the women were saying, "Our spirit's are full, and so are our stomach's!" - The latter is an especially big compliment coming from a Swazi!  Different people who would stop in and help observed that there was a genuine joy coming from the women!  Thank You, Jesus! 

A COUPLE FUNNY THINGS...
- You know it's a great women's camp when even the guys who came to help said they didn't want to leave! :)
- We had to explain that the silicon packets in the boxes with the new Nike shoes WERE NOT SALT PACKETS and that they shouldn't be eaten! :)

We are believing that seeds have been planted in our women's hearts, that they would be transformed and that what has been poured into their lives will in turn be poured out into the children's lives they care for everyday.  And we're believing the Lord for the promise in JOHN 15:16:
"You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain..."

Today's the day!

After all the prayers and planning and hard work, the Bomake Camp starts today!! it's truly been a journey of faith & we're excited about all that's yet to be seen in the Swazi women's lives!!

I thought I'd quickly tell you one last story of how God is working in one of our women's lives... so you know how to keep praying...

** On Friday I found out that when one of our cooks, Siphiwe, asked her husband if she could go to the retreat, he beat her.  I, along with 2 other Swazi friends spent Friday afternoon at the police station.  We reported the incident (it's not the 1st time this has happened) but all they can do is go & warn the man that the community knows this is going on - without Siphiwe's consent, they can't press charges - and she's unwilling to do so. 

As you can imagine, I was broken-hearted -- it is for precisely for women like Siphiwe I believe the Lord is leading us to have this retreat - so He can bring healing to the broken-hearted & bind up their wounds.  So we started praying and asking the Lord that she would be able to come - I was determined that she come!  I, along with another member of the community were planning on going on Sunday to personally invite her, and even her husband, to come to the camp - so he could see that she was not lying to him.  BUT when we arrived on Sunday, the LORD HAD ALREADY GONE BEFORE US and changed the husband's mind... we never even had to go to the house!! Siphiwe told one of the women that he was allowing her to go to the retreat!! THANK YOU, JESUS!  So, we are believing in faith, that she will be there later on today!  When I saw her on Sunday, she smiled and pointed to her eye & told me in SiSwati that it was healing! 

And we are praying that he same will be true for her soul! 

We're heading down now to the retreat venue now to set up & decorate & prepare for the 107 coming! When Nelly called all of the Care Points yesterday to see how many women were planning on coming, ALL but one were coming!  YAY GOD!!

Bomake Camp Update & A Story about someone who inspires me!

Nelly & I, and the two of us with Karabo at one of the Care Points to meet with the cooks

PRAYER FOR THE BOMAKE CAMP: 

I, along with my Cook’s Discipleship Team (Karabo & Nelly) are gearing up for Children’s Cup first ever Bomake (Women’s) Camp, next week April 28-30^th!  And it’s been quite a faith ride! (- see last 2 blog entries below)  Tomorrow, Tuesday, April 21^st, we’re having a day of prayer & fasting for this camp.  At the beginning of this year, we sensed the Lord placing on our hearts the deeper work He wants to do in these almost 110 women’s lives that we disciple – healing of deep wounds in their hearts & freedom from strongholds that keep them from living the fullness of life that Christ intends for them.  We’re not saying that it’s all going to happen in just 3 days, but we are believing & asking for the Lord to do a powerful work in their lives that He will continue to build on.  – And that ground that the enemy has stolen in their lives would be taken back!  Please join us in prayer for this!  We believe that things happen in the spiritual before we see them in the physical (2 Corinthians 5:7; Ephesians 6:12)

ANSWERS TO PRAYERS FOR THE CAMP IN THE LAST WEEK:
* Just last week (only 2 weeks out) our speaker was confirmed - WHEW!  Our speaker, is my "African mama", Elizabeth, who I've known since I lived in Pretoria, South Africa.  She is originally from Botswana but has spent much of her life in S. Africa - and more importantly, she is a mighty women of God!  For weeks I had been trying to get a hold of her & when I finally did, she told me she'd pray about it.  Then last week she said yes, that the Lord had released her to come! I'm so looking forward to her coming.  I learned much from her when I would go and minister with her in the squatter camps in Pretoria... about how the Lord works here in southern Africa & about what the Africans believe about spiritual things.  
* In just the past couple weeks, the exchange rate has gone from 10 to 8.5 thus making the donations we’re receiving from the U.S. less than what we’ve budgeted.  BUT, the Lord in HIS faithfulness had already seen to this detail and laid it on my home church’s heart to take an offering for the camp - thus placing us above our budget, in spite of the loss due to the exchange rate!! 
These are just TWO of the many answers to prayer we’ve seen the Lord come through on... at just the right time! 

A STORY ABOUT SOMEONE WHO I'M ON THE "FRONT LINES" WITH:
I’m learning what it is like for people who have HIV/AIDS from people who are close to me – one in particular, my dear friend and co-worker, Nelly.  She is definitely a woman of faith, who challenges me to take hold of Jesus more and more everyday! She shared this with me, and with her permission, I’m sharing it with you:

The other day I received a text from her that read: “Just thinking JZ, I’m grateful for the people God has sent in my life.  You guys are great (meaning also our co-worker, KB.)  I love you and appreciate you.” 

Then a few days later, after a meeting together, she told me: “You know, Jacci, when I sent you all that text I had been thinking how hard it is to be HIV positive.  Having HIV…it’s a war everyday, a war day by day but when I’m with you and KB, I’m alive!  I feel like I belong somewhere.  Everyday for people with HIV is a struggle. You don’t wake up feeling like, “Í’m so glad to have this disease!”, because I could wake up with a lump [or who knows what as an effect of this chronic disease.]  When I’m with you two, I feel a sense of warmth…like I have life!  [I feel] like I don’t have AIDS!  I feel like I’m well, like I’m not sick.” 

Praise the Lord!  Nelly is a woman who loves the Lord, a woman with purpose!  I told her that I believe the Lord is raising her up to become a beacon to the women in Swaziland of what it means to come thru adversity, strong in the Lord!  Her life, by her own testimony is a story of redemption.  She has walked through some extremely difficult situations, and has chosen to place her faith in the Lord.  And she continues to grow stronger in Christ each day. 

As I’ve walked along side  Nelly, as I’ve listened to her and witnessed her faith, I’m reminded of the verse in Jeremiah 17:7-8: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is the Lord.  For He will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield fruit.” – This is the kind of woman that Jesus is making Nelly into!

Please pray for her, as well as KB and myself as we press on in this discipleship ministry to the cooks.  Pray for wisdom, love, strength, protection and unity as we work together on the “front lines” of the spiritual battle here in Swaziland, and as we serve the women at the upcoming Bomake Camp! 

For His glory,  JZ 

Let me tell you what the Lord has done!

2 Corinthians 5:17 "We walk by faith and not by sight"
Proverbs 23:18b "... your hope will not be cut off."

The Lord has been reminding me that as a follower of Christ, walking by faith, with the unseen before us & believing Him for where He is guiding & what He tells us to do, is the norm.   

Well, as of yesterday, the venue is confirmed!!  And it's St. Michael's - the very school we wanted to have the Bomake Camp at, the one we believed the Lord had for us to use! (see story from last post) 
AMEN!! THANK YOU JESUS!!

I went to meet with the head teacher and he said that we had been given the wrong number of how much it cost per person... the correct number brought the cost down by 1/3!! AND he said he would keep the price of the meeting hall the same as last years price.  So when I sat down to do the figures, it all fits into our budget!! 

AND I also got a hold of the woman we want to have come speak (my African mama!) and she's praying with us about coming!  Yay God!

The Lord has been teaching & reminding me so much about faith:
How I need to keep praying, how faith & prayer work together - Luke 18 (selected vss from 1-8) says: 
"Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up... then he tells the story of the unjust judge & the persistant widow.  It goes on to say, "And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. ⁷And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? ⁸I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" -  I want to be found faithful, Lord!

How I need to be specific with my requests before the Lord - At the beg of the week I asked the Lord that we know & have a venue by week's end.  And it's not yet Friday... Thank You, Lord!

He's been teaching me about faith is that it's NOT about a  FORMULA, BUT about a RELATIONSHIP!  I don't use faith to manipulate to get what I want.  Instead faith propels me to hope in Christ, to rely on Him & depend on Him.  And its not necessarily that I get the answer I desire, but trusting Him that He will give me the answer that is best for me... and at just the right time. 

He's reminding me that His timing for giving answers is best - because as I wait, He BUILDS MY CHARACTER, making me more like Christ.  When the answer doesn't come when I want it's not that He's withholding answers... instead He will release them at just the right time.  It's like fruit growing on a tree - if you pick it too soon, it's still bitter, unripe.  But when it's picked at JUST THE RIGHT TIME, it's ripe and mature.  And so it is with faith & character.

Just today as I was telling my friend the answer to prayer about our venue (and about me selling & buying a vehicle... I'll blog about this next time), this is what she replied...
" I love how the Lord honored your faith... or that He asked you to believe in something He was already going to do... to not only PROVIDE but BUILD YOUR FAITH... you've inspired me and spurred me on!"

Oh and one more cool thing from a proud big sister... last Saturday I was talking to Peter, my 16 yr old brother and when I asked him to pray with us about the venue for the Bomake Camp he said, "You have it... by faith you already have it,  Jesus has already done it!"  I was so encouraged as he spoke those words, and above all so blessed because his whole life I've prayed that he (& my sisters) would have a real & passionate relationship with Christ - so those words were a beautiful confirmation of an answer to my prayers!

MAY THE LORD BE PRAISED ABOVE ALL!!
Blessings to you as you celebrate Christ's death & resurrection this Easter... HE IS RISEN, HE HAS CONQUERED DEATH SO THAT WE COULD HAVE REAL, LASTING, VICTORIOUS LIFE!!  THANK YOU JESUS!

Please Join Us in Prayer for Upcoming Bomake Camp

(this pic is from last year, but it's a good one of some of the cooks & kids from Mangwaneni Mbabane Care Point)

Ok, this is a long one, but it's been a while... and I want you to know how to be praying with us!

It's been a while cause honestly, internet has been a thorn in my flesh, one of my biggest challenges.  Either it's too slow or out (when I'm at the office) or my computer has been broken & one's not available for use... but enough about my communication woes for now!

While I do need prayer for that, I want to ask you to specifically pray with me for a Bomake (siSwatti for women's) Camp/Retreat for the women that I, Karabo & Nelly minister to here in Swaziland.  These women are the volunteer cooks at our Care Points that cook for hundreds, if not thousands of orphan & vulnerable children each day. 

I along with Nelly & Karabo have such a burden for these women!  We desire to see them blessed, refreshed, renewed, healed & set free from pain & strongholds. 

Since last year, the Lord has laid on my heart that one way this could happen is thru a women's retreat, a special time apart where they can be ministered to. 

At the beginning of this year, we as a ministry team believed the Lord wanted us to move forward with this in faith.  We didn't have the money, but knew that was a small matter in God's sight.  Since the beginning of this journey, the Lord has indicated in my spirit that it was going to be one of faith, and that there would be opposition (in the spiritual realm) that would manifest in the physical (as it often does). 

Well, in Feb, a little over half of the money was pledged!  We began moving forward, believing that the Lord would provide everything else that we needed.  We set the date, picked the venue, made plans and continued praying. 

As of last week -  5 weeks out from our target retreat/camp date (April 28-30th), the money was still not in & the venue still not confirmed, but we felt in our spirits that we must press on.
The venue, a high school that is centrally located & has all the facilities we need doubled their prices from last year, so we've been in negotiations with them to see if they'd take what we were offering to pay them (we're wiling to pay a 45% increase from last year & still be within our budget).
Well, just last Wed, they denied it. 

I'm not surprised by this obstacle.  While I feel the threat of being discouraged, I do not want to despair.  The Holy Spirit has been reminding me that faith pleases God (Heb 11:6) and I know He is asking me/us to press on & stay the course of faith. 

This morning in my Bible study, the author of the guide I'm using wrote this: " In order to run well, we must listen to God.  He has great plans for us and knows the best way to succeed."

Now, you may be thinking, why not a back up plan, why not just get another venue?  Well, the plan all along was to listen, obey, take one step at a time as the Lord directed.  And while we are checking for other venues, its a small country and there aren't many places available with the space we need (110 + staff) & that's in a good location to keep transport costs down. - And it's during school break here, so that limits us even more. 

So, dear friends, I'm asking you to PLEASE PRAY WITH ME/US!   I believe strongly that this is the Lord's retreat, that it is His heart for the women, and that all will come to fruition exactly as He has planned! 
* Please pray with me that we would listen, obey and that He would show me/us (our Cooks Discipleship team) how to proceed.

* Pray that I/we wouldn't get discouraged or despair, but that we would remain strong & steadfast in faith, in what we believe the Lord has called us to do. 

* Pray that His Kingdom come, His will be done on earth as it is in heaven, as it pertains specifically for this retreat

* Pray that soon we would see in the physical what He has already ordained in the spiritual... that the rest of the money would come in & that the venue would be secured (specifically this high school, St. Michael's!)

UPDATE on this FAITH JOURNEY towards the camp/retreat:

* On Friday, my director told me that we have the rest of the money for the camp budget approved from Cup! 

*  We still need to pray, however, because the money that was 1^st pledged to us (from another source than Cup) has not all come yet.

* We’re still looking around for other venues, but nothing has worked out as a possible 2^nd option.
* I have still not been able to get a hold of the speaker we are hoping for - my African mama (I used to minister with her when I lived in Pretoria.) 
* I went to St. Michael’s (the venue that we had originally planned to have it at that’s way over budget for us) on Monday to again meet with the head teacher.  I was reminded of the story of the persistent widow who kept going to the judge to plead her case (Luke 18:1-8 - a parable on prayer & faith!).  It really does seem that the reason they’re charging so much is because they’re water bills are exorbitant, not just because they’re trying to make extra money.  BUT, he did say that he would meet again with the committee on Tuesday (today) to resubmit our request for the amount we offered to pay. 

SO PLEASE KEEP PRAYING!!

I just keep thinking that God is setting the stage so He can get the MOST GLORY!!
And we will rejoice together when we see what He will do for His women here in Swaziland!  AMEN!!

Thank you for being on this journey with me!  Blessings to you in our precious Lord!
Much love,  Jacci