It’s been a couple of days since the last post and all I can say is nothing has gone according to plan and the personal spiritual attacks are on, at for me yesterday was a rough day.

Our trip to the fisherman’s camp by dug put canoe on the Zambezi was cancelled due to the waters being flooded and we couldn’t get to the boats. But these flooded waters we are told have brought an increase in fish to the area which is helping the economy.

We couldn’t make it to Kalomo to see Pastor Malala as there was a conflict in schedule, half way around the world and hours away from seeing our good friends from yesterday.

My lower back went out and cause a major pain and hinderence for me all day. Stafford, another man in our group and our group photographer, mentioned he received word I would be healed through dance, well it is definitely lessened up just praying for full healing today.

The food prepared all day contained gluten, so needless to say I had rice cakes , bars, salad and rice for lunch and dinner.

The mental attack hit me hard in my history of feeling lonely and left out, this demon from my past needs to go for I know its false.

Then my tooth ache flared up again and thronged into the night, thanking God it eased off this Sunday morning. Taking round 2 of anitbiotics now and praying for healing and no side effects.

 

Powers will try to stop you mentally and spiritually when there is Gods will at hand. There is a history of witchcraft in the area so we need to be strong and vigilant that we don’t allow anything in. If only North Americans knew how real these forces are, the stories the locals have, the forces they’ve fought. Africa is spiritually alive and is not for the faint of heart.

Last night we drive almost an hour to another village for an outdoor service, what incredible voices the locals have!! It was a powerful night with Pastor Chris, Pastor Marenga and Stafford all preaching. The message is that these people are not forgotten, they are loved and that God sent people across the world to show them. This isn’t just for Africa but the Lord loves us all and has not forgotten any of his children. Please keep praying these villagers truly feel the Love and peace of God, despite circumstances they are happy. Let that grow!!

 

Praying the Lord keeps us safe and strong against these forces! We are here to save, to help and to show the Love of God to his children. Please keep praying for us as we travel back to Livingstone today and that we are able to hear why our plans keep changing.

Driving out to Simbelele you drove through an extremely poor village. The streets are lined with trash, there’s no work for these people and dozens of half built brick homes sit abandoned. This place makes you appreciate the worst life you could have back in North America. It really hits you hard when you drive past the rock crushing fields, has an eerie vibe that makes you feel like when the Egyptians controls the Jews to build for them, straight out of a movie scene. In a country that has a 75% unemployment rate this is where people without work will crush rocks up to sell piles to construction workers. This doesn’t sound so bad until you realize that the piles of rocks you see in those pictures, that takes a 7 to 10 days to produce and are only worth 8-10 kwatcha. Lets make this more real, the exchange is currently $1 CAD = 7 Kwatcha or $1 US = 10 Kwatcha…means that week + worth of labour is worth about $1 Canadian to $1 US. Out here a pop costs 5 kwatcha, a loaf of bread costs 9 kwatcha. This is sad reality for most of this Country. The ironic part is this country is rich in minerals, gold, copper and even oil, but the industry sector left many years ago and the only real export they have up and running is tourism to Victoria falls area and Copper.

We ended up spending the day in simbelele, and man was it a toasty 35 degrees out! Sun block helps but still getting some good colour. It was good to see the installation of the water pump go in, once the borehole is dug they need about 1.5hrs to install the hand pump then lay down the concrete pad. Sadly the pump isn’t usable for 3 to 4 days while the concrete dries but after that the pump will service the village of about 300 people and their new fruit trees for decades to come.

When we first landed we had saved a few thousand kwatcha on the food we won, well we were able to take that money and purchase a pile of lightly used clothing for the village children. Sadly there were more kids than clothing but our local team will be back after we are gone to bring some for the rest of the children.

So much more to say but not enough time, we are off on a 3hr 4×4 trek to the next village so until the next post I will leave you with this….be grateful for the opportunities we have in Canada, in North America….we are so blessed so take today and be thankful for your opportunities in your life!!

 

We made it safely to Livingstone on Tuesday Aug 2nd and were welcomed in classic African style with enthusiasm and welcoming arms! It was so amazing to see Sylvia, Brian and Marenga after a long 4 years away. Being around this group and their “Agape Hands Ministries” you just see how many different things they are into to help the locals that are forgotten by the government. As part of the “Beyond the Gate Ministries” team here we are working together with them on many projects, the blessings we see on this trip are just beginning! Now up until our arrival the Livingstone area was still cool at about the mid to low 20’s, well apparently the heatwave waited just for us cause its 32 to 35 out for our entire trip. Good thing our Canadian Summers are just as hot so prepared me for the heat, sunscreen and hat in hand!
So our trip started off with surprise to get the ball rolling. As soon as we left the airport we went to the a local grocery store to pick up some groceries for ourselves but mainly gifts of food for some locals that are working with us. 3 shopping carts full later we go through the cash register and win a raffles we didn’t even know how it worked, the whole bill was zero’d out and all the food was free! We were ecstatic!! The Lord blessed us to start this trip seeing in what amazing ways he works.

 

 

We checked into the Waterfront lodge Tuesday afternoon and are staying in tents for the first few days, it’s the perfect set up that has just what we need for our team. The first night wasn’t as restful as we hoped with interruption s from a neighbouring tent through the night, details I don’t need to get into. But the Lord gave us strength and our team was off for another days.
Our official first Day began on Wednesday,
Now I want to jump right in but first I should introduce our trusty new truck the ministry bought, the Buffalo, aka the beast. This truck is tall and 4x4s without an issue. It was previously owned by a British movie documentary director but was an amazing find for us. Fits all of our gear, and is open air….who needs air conditioning when the canvas walls roll up!!

So off we went, in The Buffalo and before even leaving the road to the lodge we run into a group of wild elephants. What magnificent creatures these are, thankfully we were in the trucks cause still need to be careful with these creatures. Now to the village Siambelele. Here is where we drilled the first water well. By the time we arrived they had already hit water but it is always a sight to see the curiosity and excitement of a village when a borehole is drilled. This borehole is right at the edge of the village beside a home made soccer field that will soon be lines with 120 fruit trees. The villagers will be able to water them with the borehole and are helping to plant the trees but it will take years before the trees nature and produce fruit. We are try I.g to find more mature trees to many but they just aren’t that easy to find sadly. About 60 mango trees are planted so far. The grounds is so hard but the village boys have a lot of strength to get the holes dig for us. I as t to try to dig more but they keep wanting to do it so I don’t have too. They are truly restful for the help I just wish there was more we could do.

The key to everything out here is getting those water wells dug and finished. They haven’t had any wated. In 4 months and none in site. Its amazing how green some areas still are but its not enough to grow food and sustain the people. One thing about the locals is they are so used to drinking only little bits of water they might drink 1 to 2 bottles worth in a day. That would be in heard of back home! Yesterday it was so hot the kids were taking the non potable water from the truck tank that we use to wash our hands and drinking it. It was slight brown and something people back home would touch. How these kids drink that is beyond me, they must have a stomach of steel!!