Survivor Lavumisa?

As you know by know, Lavumisa CLC is being established in a rural area of Swaziland. Lavumisa lies in the south-east corner of the country in what is known as the "low-veld region". It lies approximately 650 ft. above sea-level. It is primarily an open plain, with gently undulating hills and a volcanic rock bed base with significant levels of erosion. The climate is semi-arid with summer drought often being a concern. Rainfall is frequently less than 21 inches a year. The average temperatures in the low-veld region range from 63 degrees F in the winter (our July) to 81 degrees F in the summer (our December), however it can get as high as 100 degrees. Grasses are the predominant plant life, with clusters of Acacia trees frequently seen. It is this environment that our team will call "home" for the next 7 days.



As you can see, there is no Holiday Inn; no Best Western; not even a Motel 6! Our team's accommodations will be a well apportioned campsite which has been set up under the roof of what will become Pastor Sabelo's house. The campsite includes:

* A dinning area with two 10 ft.tables and 12 plastic chairs. This area is secured by a shade cloth for privacy.

* A sitting area with 12 camping chairs and a fire pit area.

* The kitchen includes a gas fridge, gas freezer, gas cooker rings, two scuttle braais (barbecues?) utensils and dishes for 12. Bottled water (water coolers) will be available for drinking.

* In the evenings, the campsite will be lit by two gas lights, five battery lights, 12 battery torches, two electric generator lights.

* Showering will be done using two suspended bucket system showers.

* Two portable toilets have been brought to the site.

* The sleeping units are five tents. A shade cloth area surrounds the tents. The tents can each accomodate 4 people, but we will only house two people per tent. A ground covering has been spread beneath the tents and thick bed mattresses were put in each tent, on which a sleeping bag can be placed.

* A security guard is on duty twenty fours a day.

* Only the ten members of our CLC & Potter's Wheel teams will be allowed in the campsite area.

While these accomodations are a bit more rustic than the cabins at Hawane, they are much better that what would be available if this was Survivor Lavumisa. Better yet, no one will be voted off, no one will have to participate in challenges, there are no hidden immunity idols and ...... no one will be competing for 1 million dollars! Instead, there will be a greater reward made available to all of our team members as they serve with our brothers and sisters of Swaziland to build the church, stake a claim for Christ and store up their treasures in heaven.

May the ground on which they live and work be blessed by God. May He protect the team from the elements of nature and spiritual forces. Most importantly, may God be glorifed through out this week.

Swaziland Sweet Swaziland!

Well, the team finally set foot on Swaziland soil - approximately 38 hours after leaving Dayton! They had a full day and are settled in to spend the night in cabins at Hawane CLC.



Sunday morning, they will arise and head to Potter's Wheel Church to worship. Our ICBC partner, Pastor Kevin Ward, is the Senior Pastor at Potter's Wheel. The mission of Potter's Wheel is "To know God, be His people, value others and change our world" (sound familiar?). Their vision is to WIN-TRAIN-SEND:

"Winning the un-churched of Swaziland through partnering with like-minded individuals, churches and organizations, to preserve the future by Training up a remnant to become an accurate representation of Christianity, being lived out amongst a communit of believers and Sending out from a restored Swaziland to a world in need."

After worshipping at Potter's Wheel, the team will head off to Lavumisa. Five members of the Potter's Wheel congregation will join the team for the week-long construction project at Lavumisa. On the way to the site, the team will stop for dinner at Martie's home. This will allow them to fellowship with their new "teammates". Once the meal is finished, the team will continue the journey to Lavumisa - complete with a packed lunch so they won't have to worry about cooking at the campsite their first night.

Upon arriving at Lavumisa, Pastor Sabelo will greet them He is the current pastor of the small community church on the site and will be the pastor for CLC Lavumisa. He is very excited about what God is about to do in the Lavumisa region and we are thankful for his leadership.







As you lift this team up in prayer, please pray that they stay focused on the opportunity God as presented to them and for the amazing things God has in store for them. May they realize how blessed they are to have lives filled with hope, worship, thanksgiving and prayer! We also pray for health, rest and peace. Thank you for interceding on their behalf!

Team Makes it to Johannesburg

Our Lavumisa team has successfully completed the first leg of their journey to Swaziland. They arrived in Johaneesbug, South Africa at 4:11 p.m. (9:11 EST), a full 30 minutes ahead of schedule. They were greeted at the airport and taken to their hotel where they freshened up and then had an evening meal. The hotel was only offering a buffet for the Friday evening meal, so every one made the most of it... every one except Angela who's stomach was feeling a little queezy after the long plane ride.

After dinner they all got a chance to relax in the hotel lobby and a few team members took advantage of the free wireless internet to send final messages home. Then everyone headed off to bed for what we hope will be a good nights rest!

The team is schedule to depart for Swaziland at 10:00 a.m. and should land just about an hour later. They will be greeted at the airport by Martie, their team hostess from Potter's Wheel Church. A visit to the Cultural Village is their first scheduled activity. You can check out the village for yourself at:

http://www.sntc.org.sz/cultural/cultvillage.asp

Following the Cultural Village, Marie will escort the team to Hawane CLC where they will get to see our first ICBC project - complete with church, pastor's home, two children's homes (see pictures below) and a third home under construction. Pastor Wafuka will give them a tour of The Lighthouse/Teen Challenge ministry, located just across the street from Hawane CLC. The team will be staying Saturday night in cabins at Hawane CLC, and will have time to get settled in before being hosted for dinner by Stever and Lizelle of Lighthouse ministries.

Outside front entrance to Hawane CLC





Pastor Augustine's Home



Entrance to Make Nomvula's Home (one of the children's home on the CLC property.




Our travelers will have a full first day once they arrive in Swaziland. We wish them well and rest assured that they are in God's hands.

Lavumisa Team Takes to the Sky

After weeks of planning and preparation CLC's first construction team to Lavumisa, Swaziland took to the sky this afternoon. When the first members of the team arrived at the airport, the ovehead music system was playing "That's What Faith Can Do" by Kutless. We took this as a very good sign. We were also grateful that the sun made an appearance today. It was a great day for flying!

This construction team will join with members of Potter' Wheel Church as well as members from the Lavumisa community to put up the sandbag walls of Lavumisa CLC. This is an exciting time for everyone involved as we begin our second ICBC (In Community By Community) church plant project in Swaziland in just over 3 years.





Surrounded by family and friends, the team left Dayton at approximately 2:30 p.m. today and arrived at Washington IAD about 3:34. After a brief layover, they departed for Johannesburg, South Africa just after 5:30. They will be air-born for close to 16 hours. This can be a long time, especially as the body adjusts to losing 7 hours as they cross the Atlantic Ocean.

In the coming days updates and other information about the team will be posted here. Be sure to check back.

We covet your prayers for the team over the next two weeks. May they stay safe and healthy; may they be bold witnesses and effective workers; may they be a blessing to others and be blessed themselves; may their presence in Lavumisa bring light and hope to the community; may God hold them in the palm of His hand until they return safely home.



The members of our Lavumisa "masonry" team include (from left to right): Angela, Brian A., George, Mark and Brian G.

One More Week in the "Kingdom"

Wow, I can’t believe I’ve been serving in Swaziland for three months already. I can’t begin to describe how truly incredible this experience has been. The first month was a time of alteration in my thoughts and way of life. The second month was a time of understanding these changes and relying on God rather than myself. The third month was a time of realization beyond what I would have ever imagined. God called me to Swaziland to not only teach but to also be a student of His word.

In January I was so excited to be serving in a foreign country and being able to share the love of Jesus with everyone I met. It was also a time of change in my life. I was able to fully grasp what scripture says about putting off the new man. In particular 2 Corn. 5:17- “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” What that means in my life is the old way of thinking has to go and this was not an easy process. We can’t expect for change to happen instantly. Yes, we can accept Christ and feel completely different by that decision alone. However, there are things that we’ve worked and built on when we weren’t walking in Christ. And these thing we have to rid our bodies off. John 15:2 says that every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. God will take away these things but you have to be willing to change your mindset and start viewing yourself the way God sees you. At this time I was sooo high on life because God gave me my joy back. I stopped listening to Satan’s lies and started to live a God-fashioned life.

In February that excitement slowly melted away and I started to look back on my past and wonder why I made some of the decisions I made. I couldn’t understand how God could use someone like me. When we look back on our past we question are very thought process that made us decide to make some of the not so good decisions that effected our lives and the way we view ourselves today. Being reminded of these things I also started doubting myself and wondering if I was even making a difference by being here. That’s when God reminded me of 2 Corn.8 when God says “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” I took this verse and ran with it! Knowing that the times I’m weak God will spring me back up and I’ll be stronger than before. I started to understand why I went through all these, what seem now, silly bad experiences prior to Swaziland. I also started seeing why God called me to Swaziland. In a past entry I explained that one of the keys is saying yes to every opportunity you see without placing your own fears at the forefront.

WHOA…March has been incredible!!! I kicked off this month with the very awesome Daniel fast. I’ll be honest; the first couple of days were terrible because I couldn’t stick to it. The next couple of days, I realized that I was fasting for the wrong reason. Then after that my body started to physically feel bad. Through all this month was a time of learning and realizing how amazing God truly is. Pastor Augustine of Hawane CLC always uses crazy stories to express a powerful meaning. Perhaps this story will explain my experience. There was this man who had worked really hard all his life. He had a huge house, a wife and beautiful kids. As time went on his children grew and his career became number one in his life. But he continued to work really hard and eventually things turned for the worst in his marriage. This still didn’t stop him for working hard. One day he woke up and found a list he had made from when he was a teenager. The list included all he planned on accomplishing in his life. He soon realized that he hadn’t came close to reaching even 1/6 of his goal. Some mysterious motivation fell upon him and he decided to try to reach the easiest goal on the list. Well, he failed with one try. He found himself old and rich. He thought surely there is no way I can do all these things in my old age. So he set out to find the fountain of youth. He knew that if he drank this water he’d be able to accomplish all the things on the list. Well, he searched high and low, too all the valleys and mountains of the world until he found it. When he drank the water, nothing happened and in that moment he realized that it wasn’t about the end but about the journey through it.

Sometimes when we are searching or waiting for things such as answered pray request we have to realize that when it doesn’t happen instantly it’s because of God’s perfect timing. And trust me God’s timing is sooo much better than ours. Maybe instead of focusing on the none answered prayer we should try focusing on the journey through it and try to see what God is trying to teach us. This is of course easier said than done. My journey this past three month has be packed with excitement, joy, and of course my favorite…fulfillment! I know that I will return to Swaziland soon but I cannot wait to see what God has in store for me in Ohio!!!

Written by Waheedah Pugh

Waheedah will return to Dayton on Thursday, April 1, 2010. We look foward to having her back "home" and hearing even more about her experiences in Swaziland.

Welcome to Swaziland CLC Dayton!

February 28, 2010

What I weekend!!! Welcome to Swaziland CLC Dayton!!!

Friday

I had a sleep over with all the girls from the farm, CLC side and even one from the community. Our topic of discussion was teenage love. Everyone shared their point of view and no one held back if they disagreed. It was so encouraging to hear what these young women of God had to say. It actually made me rethink my teenage years. This also provided the new team from Sweden with the opportunity to meet and greet their new sisters in Christ.

Saturday

Connecting with the youth seems to be my new passion. This Saturday Hawane CLC held their first youth day. I must admit I was getting a little bothered that no one showed up on time but then God humbled my spirit and reminded me of the rain at Camp Victory. Slowly but surely people started coming and it was a lot more than I expected. The day was amazing and there were testimonies shared by young people and younger people. The coolest thing was two teenagers made the decision to follow Christ. This brought me great joy…that I cannot seem to express through typing. You see, I was busy worried about the organization of the event and starting at the scheduled time that I forgot what that day was really about. Praise be to God that He is in control over my life and I’m not!

Sunday

Today, I woke up with great joy knowing that God has a perfect mercy that allows us to overcome the things we struggled with just yesterday. After one crazy trip from Dayton, Ohio to Swaziland, Pastor Stan and Pastor Rich finally arrived at Potter’s Wheel church and Hawane CLC this morning. The service at Hawane CLC was so powerful. Pastor Stan asked the leadership of the church to touch and pray for each and every person in the building. It was phenomenal! People were crying out to Lord and everyone felt the presence of the Most High King. I cannot even begin to tell you how many people came up to me after the service and wanted to speak on how powerful the service was. They kept expressing how Pastor Stan is truly a man of God. Today was a day that heavy chains were broken and the oppressed were set free. People we no longer subjected to the evil desires of Satan but were now speaking and casing out their own demons.

Monday

Lavumisa! After traveling two hours from Mbabane to Lavumisa we finally arrived to what I like to call “Real Africa.” Although it was blazing hot, the view was spectacular. On our way we even saw a crocodile. As we turned off the main road we found ourselves traveling for quit a time on a dirt road. It appeared that no one was around, then finally we approached a school. At that time “The Luke Commission” was doing a clinic and soooo many people were there. Pastor Stan was so excited to see that the new church was being planted near the school. This was really encouraging because we were able to see hundreds of people within the community. Pastor Stan even got to share the good news to the students right before they received a physical gift. I cannot wait to see all the amazing things that are going to take place in Lavumisa!!! This experience also made me thankful for CLC because we really are impacting the world. Not all of us can come to Swaziland but we as a church body have truly made a difference in sooo many lives throughout Africa. There is no doubt in my mind that Swaziland is the perfect kingdom to partner with.

Tuesday

This was a really exciting day for members of both Potter's Wheel church and Hawane CLC. Pastor Stan was able to share his experience and our vision as a church to Potter's wheel. I tell you people were so motivated and moved. Great things are happening and will continue to happen through the church in Swaziland. Also, at that time Pastor Rich was stirring up some electrifying discussions at Hawane Farm. I heard for days and days about what was shared those couple of days. And I will not be surprise if Pastor Rich has hundreds of emails from the students. We CLCers are so blessed to have the leadership that we have. However we (including myself) must remember that we all play apart in the body of Christ. We are all called to serve in several different ways. This reminds me of 1 Corn. 12:12-31. Actually, the whole chapter explains this but in short it talks about the unity of the church and spiritual gifts. For example, if Pastor Stan were the hand the body would still need a wrist and an arm to be effective. I love you CLC and thank you for sending me here.

Depend on the Lord and not on Mankind

Depend on the Lord not on mankind, because there will be disappointments.Stay encouraged because mankind is human too. Last night I went with two of the nurse missionaries to Mbabane Hospital to visit one to the TCMI (Life Skills Student) girls. The previous night she had tried to overdose on some heavy medicine. For the past week she had been stopping by my house asking if we could talk. Yet, for some reason I just wasn’t making time for her. The reason is because I felt that I wasn’t making a difference in the place that I was at, because I couldn't see any difference. Yet, just because you can’t see a difference doesn’t mean it isn’t happening. I know that now. I thought I needed to spend more time in a different area of the farm becauwe I was afraid that others would judge me for not spending time with everyone. And I must admit…that is just silly! The people on the farm wouldn’t think like that, but I was trying to be Superwoman.

Anyway, when we went to go visit this girl, the very first thing she says to me is “This wouldn’t have happened if you would’ve made time for me.” The two nurses I went with were a little concerned that I would beat up myself. But thankfully I know who my God is and I wasn’t about to allow Satan to penetrate my heart so easily. The comment bounced off as if she didn’t even say such a thing. However it was what one of the nurses said to me later that caught my attention. “Waheedah, maybe you are called to minister to suicidal people.” I instantly said NO WAY! Its funny how God may call us to things that we think we can’t do (or sometimes don’t even want to do) but he equips us with all the necessary tools. I wrote this poem shortly afterwards.



The foundations of this tree will never spoil because the Lord has placed my seed in the living water.
I shall grow like a tall plant overlooking the city
For my roots aren’t watered by natural water but by grace, mercy, love and compassion.
My fruit is a perfect plum that satisfies the hungry and encourages the weak.
But one plum can’t feed you for a life time. It can only plant another tree


There will be a time that you must let go of me and trust in Him.
For I was used for rescuing but I am not your Redeemer
I am your equal, I am your sister and sin also exists in my life
I too have a caretaker for my source in Jesus
The Amen that satisfied every bit of my endless hunger
The Comforter who has restored my body, mind and soul
And has made me strong through His everlasting love.


When water is still it keeps you in perfect peace
Not by things such as ceasing of winds but the gift of the Holy Spirit
How my soul cries for the manifestation but my flesh stands in the way
So close to touching God, my branch is growing strong and stretching out long
But every time I think it will reach the heavens it drawls back up
I am your equal and I struggle too


But That’s when I see His mighty hand harvesting what I thought was lost.
He uses us even when we give up
Because our foundation is a holy foundation
Our seed is watered by an a diamond pond
That only those who love Him can fully receive

Waheedah Pugh