Participant Blogs

Inhale Abba. Exhale I belong to You. Such a powerful song. Abba I belong to You! You're more real than the ground I'm standing on, more real than the air in my lungs. My Abba. Father. Wow. John 1: 12-13 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. It was a shock to me when I first heard that the holy Koran has 99 names for...

"What we do, does not define who we are. What defines us is how well we rise after falling." It has been a while since I've seen words come to life in such an inspiring way. Rwanda is a beautiful chapter in this journey. So beautiful that there aren't any words to truly express how much influence it has had in my own thoughts and especially my relationship with our beautiful Saviour. I look forward to more chapters with you in it. You have taught me so much. Not only about your people but also about myself. I loved spending...

I have learnt a lt this year. I learned that things don't always turn out the way you planned, or the way you think it should. And I've learned that there are things that go wrong that don't always get fixed or get put back together the way they were before. I've learned that you can get through bad times and keep looking for better ones. This year wasn't always pretty. It wasn't always comfortable. Some things and situations even break your heart. But that's okay. The journey changes you - it should change you. It leaves marks on your...

"Be Still." Two words. Constant and always present. Having morning coffee, I hear it: "Be Still." Swimming in the clear blue ocean. Walking on snow white sand. Watching a Fiery red sunset. "Be Still." Fellowshipping with people who have become family. Listening to music, old and new. Feeling the presence of God. Be Still. Two very simple words, put together to speak chapters. Our time in Tanzania and especially Zanzibar has taught me a very important thing. And that is to practice the pause. When in doubt pause. When angry or irritated, pause. When tired or stressed, Pause. And when...

When I first laid my eyes on you and the rolling hills you sat upon. I thought what amazing luck I have that God had created such beautiful things and gave me the eyes to see them.    I am forever changed by your existence. You are a place filled with so many stories and I feel so privileged to share some of these stories with you. I can't think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything. Suddenly you are five years old again....

  Why do we make life so complicated? Why do we so easily make mountains out of mere ant hills? It is not supposed to be this difficult and I dare say it is rather tiring to worry about everything all the time.    My stay in Egypt these past two weeks has been a time of growth and transformation. Firstly I would like to mention that all the pictures I have seen, all the history that I have read and heard throughout my years of study about this wonderful place, I could have never imagined it to be so...

Wait! What? This is not about me?    So I am selfish. Done. That's it. What else is left to say? Listen to this sentence - it tells you values that Global Challenge decided on. We share the Good news to a world in need. Guess what I concentrated on. Yup, good guess! The 'we'-part.  Luckily I can promise you this: God will reveal unto you if in anything you are otherwise (than what He wants) minded (Phil 3:15). Because He is faithful to His word, He came to show me how absolutely selfish I am. I started realizing how...

You never know what you can live without until you have to carry everything in one bag on your back -JS This week has been the craziest and probably most frustrating time of my entire life, we didn't get our Macedonia visas and had to come to Israel earlier. I have never felt the need to make notes of what happens to me until I experienced this week and knew I had to tell you guys all about it. I am currently sitting in my tent and decided I HAVE to write. Everything I am using now fits into my...

I saw a young child of arround 6 years in the isle of a busy street in Agra, India she wore a white dress but the dress was soo dirty at places that it looked black, totally contaminated with dirt. There was no one close to her, to protect her from: cutting remarks, glares and advances.She was so exposed to the world and the evil people in it. Nothing seperating her from this... There is an ever present evil as the streets in India really aren't safe!It struck me so much as every child needs and deserves love as well...

I am so thankful for:  African time; it is better than Turkish time, free public toilets, the SPCA, understanding Afrikaans, 'n lekker Braai, wearing shoes in the house, western toilets, Yum Yums double crunch peanut butter, google translater, an open window in a truck with a smoker driver for 7 hours, not having my pasta taken and hidden away by my team, not waking up to the sound of ziplock packets opening, not being called the spice girls or Charlie's angels by every merchant in the market but above all, I am so thankful for these things because they have...