God’s Word Transforms Lives
Sitting beside a young woman, her hands in mine, she begins to share her story. Her tear-filled words form stories of heartbreak, betrayal, grief, loneliness, despair and pain. Her story, although her own, is very familiar in Eswatini. Stories of poverty, hunger, rape, incest, disease, broken relationships, single-motherhood and abuse of every kind are haunting the women and men here. She then asks me the question I have heard too many times to count in Eswatini. “Why?”. I wrestle with her question and I quickly realize I do not have answers or a quick fix. What I do have to offer her is hope. Hope in Jesus. I can point her to Him. Hope found in prayer and in the pages of a Book. I know He is the answer to every why. He is the reason we, at Project Canaan, share His word through teaching, equipping, prayer and most of all love. We know they can find Him in the middle of their questions and their minds and hearts can be transformed (changing the way they think) by God’s Word. Once they place their hope in Christ, they can exchange their pain for purpose.
Romans 12:2 says, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
Purpose. Heart for Africa is committed to raising the future leaders of Eswatini and this means we must provide for them physically, emotionally and spiritually. We have approximately 110 Caregivers on our Children’s Campus, caring for 280+ children under the age of 11 years old. Many of them with the same tragic stories as the children, or like the young woman, I mentioned. Those Aunties, Uncles, Cooks, and Cleaners pour into our children’s lives and provide the parental guidance and nurturing our children need daily. We are intentional about discipleship and breaking the cycles in the generations. We know we cannot raise bold, resilient, warriors for Christ without first educating, guiding and nurturing our Caregivers.
As a pastor on Project Canaan, it is my joy to teach God’s word to the Caregivers through weekly bible studies and equip them through prayer. We baptize them when they choose to follow Jesus and disciple them by walking alongside them in daily life. We have weekly worship, prayer, study and one on one counselling available to each of our Caregivers. We not only provide this for our employees on Children’s Campus, but throughout the farm on Project Canaan.
I have seen first-hand, the transformation God provides and how He gives hope to Swazi women and men, by turning their pain into purpose. It starts by sitting with the suffering. It ends with a generation “who have upset the world” for Christ.
Matthew 28:19-20 “Therefore go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Shelly Harp, Long-Term Volunteer
