Well, I apologize for it being so long since I blogged. Our motto is "nothing is easy" in Africa. Sometimes, we have trouble with our internet access, very tempermental. And lately we have been exhausted. Many late nights and full days. Hopefully we are back in full focus now.
My bone infection and teeth are healed, my new glasses are here, and all in all, we are back in business.
Why did I title the blog....."moving on up", well for several reasons.
First, Brooke and myself had to make an unplanned move. Our roommate who owned the house we were renting rooms in, decided it was best we move, she is trying to sell her home and well, lets just leave it to say, we felt it was necessary to make a move. We were only homeless (not literally, but knew we were moving and didn't know where) for about 10 minutes. We were offered a 2 bedroom granny flat on the property of some dear friends, Malcohlm and Vanessa , it is secure and has a TV (tee-hee) not that we needed that. Anyhow we will stay here until we leave to return to America in 4 short weeks, and we can leave our things here until we return in February when we will look for permanent accommadations. God is faithful.
We also are moving up in our vehicle department! You got it, we have made a purchase (thanks Jim and Jeanne). We bought a Mitsubishi Colt (4 door, truck or baakie as they say, with a canopy or topper as we say). It is silver in color, it is a 2X4 which will be good on all the potholes in Ntuzuma, and well we are pretty excited!!! Oh yeah it is a 2001 with l02,000 km. Of course it had a tracker on it (a device that if you report your car stolen helicopters and vehicles go out an locate it due to the tracking device) an anti hijack system was installed in order to get insurance in our "hood" Neighborhood that is. Which is the picture of what you see. We are thanking God for this provision and after 4 hours in the registration office (i am a foriegner you know, extra work) we are proud to say we are in operation again.
Prince is transporting patients, and we go tomorrow to get supplies for the caregivers. Again the government kits are not in so we are needing to purchase some supplies. We are Praising God for all He has been up too.
I would like to give some praises and some prayer requests.
Pray for Baby Boy in our church I call him "little man", this sunday someone asked me to come and help as the 2 month old child of one of the young girls in our fellowship was choking and gagging and having trouble breathing. I went back to hold the baby.... He was I can tell something isn't right, whether it is seizures or apnea, something was wrong. We prayed and he did better, we took him to the clinic and got medication for upper respitory issue and now we are monitoring his discomfort and gagging to see if it might be more serious. It is hard because the first thing you want to do is ask mom and baby if they have been tested. So pray for him and timing to address status with mom.
Pray for the family of the "baba" father with gangrene that we got out of a Shack about 2 weeks ago, He had his leg amputated last Wednesdayh and two days later he has passed away. He was so sick. Funeral should be Saturday but lots of family issues.
Pray for the team back in Kansas, I think there is weariness for them and the Board. So please cover both locations where the work is going on.
Pray for Brooke as she got bit by something and it is quite red.
Pray for safety for us and our families as we move abotu our lovely Ntuzuma.
Praises: For my dental work and glasses to be replaced.
Our new home and those who blessed us by giving us a place to come
Headway with the orphans grants,
Our new Baakie......it is so nice.
The counsellor Magistrates for the area, are asking the squatters to move off our property this will enablel us to prepare some rooms for emergency hospice care. The people need to move by november l5th.
Thanks for all your prayers and I hope to do better at the blogging business.
Penny
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Thursday, October 9, 2008
THE SHACK.....AGAIN.
It has been a long day, and I won't write much. In fact I think I will blog in the form of a prayer and ask you all to agree with me as I need to ask Papa for some help!!!! This has shaken Brooke and Myself and Prince. You see....the board of Ukukhanya says we should get 3 rooms ready and cut doors through to each other. Put a bed in the middle one and the rooms on either side would have a bed for our first hospice patients. Well....today we got a tip of someone, and we followed up on the one we got yesterday. Not just weary families, or poverty....today we found a man locked in his tin shack, it was quite warm...and he was laying not on the bed but on the floor, covered in feces and urine, his legs stiff, his extremities freezing, and his flesh rotting. Not only did he have bed sores, but his foot was black up the leg and the big toe was almost rotted off, someone said he had maggots, for sure he had gangrene....once at the hospital we received a call that they can't amputate due to his other health conditions, so sending home. We prayed, he is still in, the daughter is making arrangements to deal with him so he doesn't go back to the abusive wife, who isn't her mom, but drinks up the pension and leaves him to rot. MERCY, MERCY, MERCY.
Dear Lord,
I need to pour out my heart and tell you I don't understand a place, where the hospitals (and I know they are overwhelmed with the need), can not attend to someone and the whole five hours our team was there he didn't get cleaned up. I don't get it, a dog would be treated better and more humanely than this dear man, made in your image. I pray for him and the woman who neglected him, I pray for the hospital staff, and all the family that is just finding out his living conditions. I cry for Grace and Mercy to prevail for all of us.
Lord, I come to you and say, this is so much bigger than we are, Orphans yesterday and this man today. Help us to help them. I pray for funding, the ability to hire help enough to sustain these two sick rooms we are feeling led to open. Lord we need to hire some staff 24/7 to care for these ones. You said our Project would create jobs for people, I ask you continue to bring in the laborers and the funding to pay them something. Why have you asked me with no admin skills and definately not a nurse.
Brooke too feels stretched as I am sure Prince and our team from Good News, thank you for each that helped on this side and those that have given on that side. Your kingdom come through us, your will be done. If the shack represents our hearts, mine is breaking and I believe it is the same thing that breaks yours. People too busy to care, to afraid to be involved, I am not judging Lord, but the hospitals and clinics have too much to handle, I can see they have to take each case as it comes before them. But Lord the need is so great!
you said, we had the answer....it is YOU!!! Lord help us show it, be it and give it...this answer that is you. We go to bed tonight asking that you be with this man in his hour of need, your word says you will wipe away every tear. Reveal yourself to him and his daughter. Let your glory shine in the midst of his suffering. Please take his pain, and comfort them that mourn.
You are great....and I know you see and know the need. We are asking You to move, give us wisdom and more grace. For your word says "YOUR GRACE IS SUFFICIENT." We need a hospice Lord and I believe the time is NOW.
Amen
Dear Lord,
I need to pour out my heart and tell you I don't understand a place, where the hospitals (and I know they are overwhelmed with the need), can not attend to someone and the whole five hours our team was there he didn't get cleaned up. I don't get it, a dog would be treated better and more humanely than this dear man, made in your image. I pray for him and the woman who neglected him, I pray for the hospital staff, and all the family that is just finding out his living conditions. I cry for Grace and Mercy to prevail for all of us.
Lord, I come to you and say, this is so much bigger than we are, Orphans yesterday and this man today. Help us to help them. I pray for funding, the ability to hire help enough to sustain these two sick rooms we are feeling led to open. Lord we need to hire some staff 24/7 to care for these ones. You said our Project would create jobs for people, I ask you continue to bring in the laborers and the funding to pay them something. Why have you asked me with no admin skills and definately not a nurse.
Brooke too feels stretched as I am sure Prince and our team from Good News, thank you for each that helped on this side and those that have given on that side. Your kingdom come through us, your will be done. If the shack represents our hearts, mine is breaking and I believe it is the same thing that breaks yours. People too busy to care, to afraid to be involved, I am not judging Lord, but the hospitals and clinics have too much to handle, I can see they have to take each case as it comes before them. But Lord the need is so great!
you said, we had the answer....it is YOU!!! Lord help us show it, be it and give it...this answer that is you. We go to bed tonight asking that you be with this man in his hour of need, your word says you will wipe away every tear. Reveal yourself to him and his daughter. Let your glory shine in the midst of his suffering. Please take his pain, and comfort them that mourn.
You are great....and I know you see and know the need. We are asking You to move, give us wisdom and more grace. For your word says "YOUR GRACE IS SUFFICIENT." We need a hospice Lord and I believe the time is NOW.
Amen
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
My heart was so stretched......but God ordered our footsteps!
Any of you who have prayed with me, know I usually pray.."The footsteps of the righteous are ordered of God". Today we gathered in Ntuzuma and Prince prayed God would order our footsteps. I also opened my email before we went out and Dr. Dan wrote that they were still reeling over the carjacking, and he had a scripture for me: james l:27 my translation reads: Pure and Undefiled Religion(in the message it says...the kind that passes muster before God)before God and the father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble and to keep on undspotted from the world.
Prince and I headed out about noon from the property, we were going to Lindelani to pick up the youngest of the orphan boys (Brooke and I call him "YES", because when we went clothes shopping for him everytime i said do you like this, he said "yes"). He is seven and we noticed he had a huge mark on his head that was oozing, his brother thought it was a reaction to sap on a mango tree, but it looked infected and prince thought we should take him to the clinic, so today we headed up to pull him out of school and go. Prince missed the turn and where we needed to turn was the street we turn down to pick up the kids that live with Laurah (the 8 orphans in a house we fixed this past June). We hadn't seen them in a couple of weeks, so we planned to check on them this week. I said, we are right here, lets just check on things.
We turned down their road, parked the car, and Prince and I got up, he was ahead of me and walked up to their house, I saw the little Indian/Zulu girl Pela in the yard in front, she was so dirty and didn't look good, then I noticed her lip was so swollen a HUGE fever blister, maybe more lots in a cluster, so pussy and swollen and her little eyes looked sick. I walked her up to the house where Prince had gone and said, "Penny,this little one is throwing up" there in the house was the 6 year old Amanda, the one that has come to the ministry with her grandma (before she passed). I've know her since she was about 2. the age of my Emily.
Prince asked where her mom was (who we never see there) and she said not here, hadn't been there since Sunday. Even the older Cousin who is l8 was Portia was not there. I went over and felt her head and she was burning up. One of the other children went and found the l8 year old from another house, we made her go with us to the clinic. We picked up "yes" and then back to them and then the clinic!!! Oh the clinic. The Drs. were out to lunch, here we were 3 orphans, waiting. Both Pela and Yes got medicines for their sores and antibiotic. Amanda was so hot...(can't tell you her temp, it was in celcius I think didn't know how to convert, but the nurses said it was high). She just sat on may lap and almost fell asleep.
The gave her a big shot and she cried and cried on my shoulder, it broke my heart as I didn't have zulu words to say. Then they put her in short stay to hydrate her. She fell asleep. Then we took her home, the cousin had all the medicine, and I phoned her mom. It was so hard, I just wanted to comfort her and stay take them home, they are so neglected.
Then we took the medicine to the big brothers of "yes", and the boy looked so handsome in his new uniform as did "yes". When Prince picked him up at the school, the teacher said she was so grateful to see him in his uniform, and she had no idea his mom had died(6 months ago). Isn't that unbelievable that a childs parent dies and the school doesn't even know??? We have been instrumental in getting id's and hopefully we will see the new social worker get them a grant. The older brother might become the guardian as they always feel it is good to keep them in their familiar surroundings. We will work along side the brother and take one of our moms there to build relationship with them. We found out they had no food, when I told Prince to tell them to make sure the boy ate with the antibiotic. So we had soup made from our feeding of tb patients this morning so we went back with that and a loaf of bread. Prince and Brooke and Lynel went and two zulu ladies fundi and pretty that work with us (both have sons). They found the boys wearing their new clothes and washing their uniforms. It was good. Fundi told them to clean the house and they were doing good. The older boy said Gogo (that is me) and Umcoolu (spelling wrong, which Brooke calls Prince who is 37 "grandpa in Zulu). the boys had laughed at this, but that is what they call us now. Pretty funny.
Well, we aren't dispising small beginnings, everyday we are trusting the Lord to order our footsteps. yesterday we had a pastor his wife and elders from a church in durban (white) come up and say they want to get involved. It was most encouraging, we also met a Dr. who works nearby in the township she is Indian and a christian and said she wants to be involved and help us. It was most encouraging.....one week after the carjacking. I also got an email that funds might be coming to help redeem the lost items, this was very enouraging too.
God does take care of us all. He is a father to the fatherless whether you are 55 or 5. I don't have resources or answers to all the things and needs I see, but I know the ONE who does. Pray we can draw close and know....His will for each life He draws us too. He is the LIFE we have to offer. We appreciate your prayers as we Love with the Love He gives Us.
Prince and I headed out about noon from the property, we were going to Lindelani to pick up the youngest of the orphan boys (Brooke and I call him "YES", because when we went clothes shopping for him everytime i said do you like this, he said "yes"). He is seven and we noticed he had a huge mark on his head that was oozing, his brother thought it was a reaction to sap on a mango tree, but it looked infected and prince thought we should take him to the clinic, so today we headed up to pull him out of school and go. Prince missed the turn and where we needed to turn was the street we turn down to pick up the kids that live with Laurah (the 8 orphans in a house we fixed this past June). We hadn't seen them in a couple of weeks, so we planned to check on them this week. I said, we are right here, lets just check on things.
We turned down their road, parked the car, and Prince and I got up, he was ahead of me and walked up to their house, I saw the little Indian/Zulu girl Pela in the yard in front, she was so dirty and didn't look good, then I noticed her lip was so swollen a HUGE fever blister, maybe more lots in a cluster, so pussy and swollen and her little eyes looked sick. I walked her up to the house where Prince had gone and said, "Penny,this little one is throwing up" there in the house was the 6 year old Amanda, the one that has come to the ministry with her grandma (before she passed). I've know her since she was about 2. the age of my Emily.
Prince asked where her mom was (who we never see there) and she said not here, hadn't been there since Sunday. Even the older Cousin who is l8 was Portia was not there. I went over and felt her head and she was burning up. One of the other children went and found the l8 year old from another house, we made her go with us to the clinic. We picked up "yes" and then back to them and then the clinic!!! Oh the clinic. The Drs. were out to lunch, here we were 3 orphans, waiting. Both Pela and Yes got medicines for their sores and antibiotic. Amanda was so hot...(can't tell you her temp, it was in celcius I think didn't know how to convert, but the nurses said it was high). She just sat on may lap and almost fell asleep.
The gave her a big shot and she cried and cried on my shoulder, it broke my heart as I didn't have zulu words to say. Then they put her in short stay to hydrate her. She fell asleep. Then we took her home, the cousin had all the medicine, and I phoned her mom. It was so hard, I just wanted to comfort her and stay take them home, they are so neglected.
Then we took the medicine to the big brothers of "yes", and the boy looked so handsome in his new uniform as did "yes". When Prince picked him up at the school, the teacher said she was so grateful to see him in his uniform, and she had no idea his mom had died(6 months ago). Isn't that unbelievable that a childs parent dies and the school doesn't even know??? We have been instrumental in getting id's and hopefully we will see the new social worker get them a grant. The older brother might become the guardian as they always feel it is good to keep them in their familiar surroundings. We will work along side the brother and take one of our moms there to build relationship with them. We found out they had no food, when I told Prince to tell them to make sure the boy ate with the antibiotic. So we had soup made from our feeding of tb patients this morning so we went back with that and a loaf of bread. Prince and Brooke and Lynel went and two zulu ladies fundi and pretty that work with us (both have sons). They found the boys wearing their new clothes and washing their uniforms. It was good. Fundi told them to clean the house and they were doing good. The older boy said Gogo (that is me) and Umcoolu (spelling wrong, which Brooke calls Prince who is 37 "grandpa in Zulu). the boys had laughed at this, but that is what they call us now. Pretty funny.
Well, we aren't dispising small beginnings, everyday we are trusting the Lord to order our footsteps. yesterday we had a pastor his wife and elders from a church in durban (white) come up and say they want to get involved. It was most encouraging, we also met a Dr. who works nearby in the township she is Indian and a christian and said she wants to be involved and help us. It was most encouraging.....one week after the carjacking. I also got an email that funds might be coming to help redeem the lost items, this was very enouraging too.
God does take care of us all. He is a father to the fatherless whether you are 55 or 5. I don't have resources or answers to all the things and needs I see, but I know the ONE who does. Pray we can draw close and know....His will for each life He draws us too. He is the LIFE we have to offer. We appreciate your prayers as we Love with the Love He gives Us.
Friday, October 3, 2008
ALOT OF MONKEY BUSINESS GOING ON
Okay, maybe tomorrow we can post the picture of me with a monkey in our backyard, just to remind you I am not in America anymmore (in case the carjacking didn't do the job). This blog, I am writing for prayers as it has been the end of a long week.
We are moving forward on so many things:
Facillitor checking on the caregivers patients
Social Worker with the Orphan Boys (but we did get to take them shopping)
Next Week, we start feeding scheme for TB patients.
need to take a few to the clinic, and help another orphan family of girls.
Anyway, today I woke up l:00 am with a horrible tooth ache. bottom line I had a root canal, and need two crowns to the tune of $1,000 for it all and on several antibiotics as the infection was bad.(pray no reaction)...I know $l,000 isn't bad for all that,
but on top of the car needing rekeying I have to pay the excess of $3800, about $450, and glasses will have to wait. I know God is able and will, it just is alot of stuff to deal with as we are trying to launch so much.
I realized the enemy was wearing me down through no sleep. I hope to get rested and have some wonderful time with Him tomorrow and NOT leave the house. Please keep brooke and I in your prayers as we take a step forward and get slammed back again.
I knew I had reached a new low, when I had to rejoice that I was alive to feel the pain in my tooth. The monkey in our yard, gave us a bit of distraction this afternoon as well. It was symbolic to us, that there had been alot of monkey business going on this week and we were over it, ready to move forward and overcome the hinderences and the robber of our joy.
Thanking God it is Friday and ready for those mercies...those new mercies that come every morning.
We are moving forward on so many things:
Facillitor checking on the caregivers patients
Social Worker with the Orphan Boys (but we did get to take them shopping)
Next Week, we start feeding scheme for TB patients.
need to take a few to the clinic, and help another orphan family of girls.
Anyway, today I woke up l:00 am with a horrible tooth ache. bottom line I had a root canal, and need two crowns to the tune of $1,000 for it all and on several antibiotics as the infection was bad.(pray no reaction)...I know $l,000 isn't bad for all that,
but on top of the car needing rekeying I have to pay the excess of $3800, about $450, and glasses will have to wait. I know God is able and will, it just is alot of stuff to deal with as we are trying to launch so much.
I realized the enemy was wearing me down through no sleep. I hope to get rested and have some wonderful time with Him tomorrow and NOT leave the house. Please keep brooke and I in your prayers as we take a step forward and get slammed back again.
I knew I had reached a new low, when I had to rejoice that I was alive to feel the pain in my tooth. The monkey in our yard, gave us a bit of distraction this afternoon as well. It was symbolic to us, that there had been alot of monkey business going on this week and we were over it, ready to move forward and overcome the hinderences and the robber of our joy.
Thanking God it is Friday and ready for those mercies...those new mercies that come every morning.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Toto, I don't think we're in kansas anymore.
Wow, I will try to blog tonight. 2 days after a very terrifying experience.
Tuesday morning at about 9:30 I set out from our office in Ntuzuma. Prince was out taking people to the clinic and I took two of the girls working with us Hilary and Pretty (Hilary is receptionist and really a personal assistant to Prince, and Pretty is the facilitator for our home based care workers) and her job is to visit the patients of our caregivers to verify they are having the services done and being seen by our caregivers. This was the second day of us doing this.
Day one, we visite 3 orphan girls the youngest being 7 and HIV+, then a young lady with a 5 year old daughter who has AIDS and something on her face I think cancer or shingles. And two brothers in their 50's with TB+ as they call it TB + HIV. we were drained.
Day two, was Tuesday morning. We visited one patient, and the car was parked on the street so I stayed in the car while the ladies went out to check up the caregiver's work. I was reading my word, 1Corinthians 13...one of my favorites. Then we went to a second home and it was on a side street not so good, then from that patient we went up to Lindewe (I shared about her during our outreach time, I thought she was close to death, we kept visiting and praying with her and today she is walking around again, cleaning her home and raising her son). She was so bad she went to her sisters, but now she is great. Then we quickly went to our last patient's house. We were running late to take the oldest orphan girl to the hospital to get the 7 year old's ARV's...I said lets just finish this caregiver's patients. One more and we would get the girl and meet up with prince.
We pulled out on a road that is kind of main, for those of you have been to Ntuzuma it was the main road going toward Hillary's neighborhood, G Section. One lane going down and two lanes coming up. I dropped them off and decided I should turn the car around because I was waiting in the one lane on a curve going down hill. So I pulled around and pulled up in front of the patients house. A block home with two old parked cars on the side yard. I pulled with two wheels off the road and waited, we were going to hurry. Well....I got out of the car (not a person on this street (busy street). I rearranged the wheelchair in my hatchback so I could put the back seat upright so we could pick up the girl. Then I climbed back in the drivers seat. Opened my bible again to finish reading Corinthians, with some worship music playing and waited I think I locked the door. Suddenly someone came up beside the car (drivers side) and I turned thinking it was the girls and I needed to unlock, instead it was a man, who flashed me a pistol and said, get out I am taking the car,...at first I couldn't believe it, but as I opened the door (of course i was going to give him whatever, he stood between me and the door, with the pistol at his side (below the window so nobody could see it, and said get out now, I said "okay, I will...with my small bible in one hand I was "clutching it hard", and then I reached for my cell phone instinctively as it sits in the cup holder and I usually grab it when I get out of the car. He said "leave the phone", the cocked the pistol.....I dropped the phone on the seat and said, of course take it whatever just don't shoot. (IT WAS the biggest pistol I have ever seen, very long barrel and kind of had to slide it to cock it like a rifle). I moved past him, expecting a shot and moved toward the back of the car, he jumped in, and then I dashed over behind the junk cars, wanting metal or something between myself and his bullets. He slammed shut the door, and gunned it, my tires where in a dirt pile and my hand brake was on, so he spun out and it really squealled as he took off. The ladies in the house, pulled back the curtains and I dashed and I heard them screaming, what is it...My God, and I ran to the door, saying help he took my car, he pointed a gun at me, I was shaking so bad, Pretty just held me and kept her arm around me as we walked to the door. I said call Prince....nobody had airtime.
The patient jumped out of bed (a healing??? I wish), but he ran out with us, as did his mom who came out, then she ran house to house looking for someone with a phone with minutes (couldn't find one). Pretty was able to text Prince, who thank God called right back. He was near lindelani as he was getting a patient from Lindelani Clinic, which happens to be near the police station. He went right up and told the police, called the car rental place and got the tag number, sending a friend "blessing" down to get us ladies. WE went to the offices dropped off the ladies and gave Brooke Mike's number and told her to call and have him cancel the atm cards and credit cards. I was then driven to the police station. We called the lady again and told her the car had been stolen, she said the had Netstar a tracking service to recover stolen cars. I told the police it was pretty identifiable because it had a red wheel chair in the hatchback part. Prince and blessing took me back to the office and they were going to drive around to see if they could see the car. When I reached the office everyone was praying, I joined them we asked we could find everything. 2 hours from the time of highjacking the car rental place called saying they had recovered the car in Kwamashu the township next to ntuzuma between some hostels. i was to go to the station and wait for it.
I gave a report, the car came and didn't have a scratch on it!!! Inside, my purse was gone, but the wheelchair was in there, my box of paperwork was still on the back seat and cd's still on visor (he didn't want all my worship cd's and wayne's book on CD He loves me. (darn I wish he'd have taken that.) The car hire place had her driver escorted in with a spare key for me.
I have been rejoicing ever since that I am alive and well and able to communicate this all to you. You sure appreciate life after an experience like that. I don't think I noticed his face, only his shaking hand after he cocked the gun and the gun, my eyes probably fixated on it.
I think God got testified too quite a bit that day, I really think he was told to kill me, but he didn't. Honestly at that point he seemed as scared as I was. I have been able to pray for him already.
Apparently what happens with a carjacking is they just grab stuff out of it, and park it for several days to make sure there is no tracker on it, then return to strip it. The poor robber. CD's didn't take, Wheelchair, didn't take, box of receipts didn't take. Broken flipflops and tennis shoes, didn't take.
What did he get??
My purse from India with my wallet from there as well, with 3 ATM cards that were already stopped. checks already stopped.
Cash (I had paid some funds out my wallet and had NO cash only a few coins... NO RANDS NOT ONE.
Usually, I have airtime vouchers in my wallet....nope, I was out and in need of buying more.
Make up (for a mulungo (that is a white person) probably wouldn't look good on his girlfriend.
My bifocals are probably the biggest ticket item as well as my brand new cell phone.
I was shaken but not turning back.
I know I am where God wants me.
I know He is able to take care of me.
I won't be travelling around without Prince though.
I will be more alert and as my friend Alan advised, probably not the best time to have a quiet time in the word, should be all eyes and ears. This is true.
Yesterday was spent sorting out things, turned in my car and found out have to pay R3800 in excess (like a deductible) to have the locks rekeyed since the robber now has a key. about $500 US
I got a new sim card which enables me to keep my same cell phone number. (011-27-72-226-2774).
Got my local bank details so we could wire money into this account (no debit cards now).
Called Emprise Bank, my wonderful International local bank (tee-hee) and had them wire money.
My cell to replace will be about $l50.00 and the excess in $500, and my glasses value about $400.
Praise God my passport was at home along with other things I normally have in my purse.
I have been thanking Him for Life and Life abundantly!!!! The sky seems bluer, the flowers prettier, and you my friends and family more precious than ever. I am blessed and protected, and very very thankful.
Pray for the team, here and there, Pray I can recoup what the locust have eaten. Pray for our project to continue to move forward. Today we resumed business as usual. We were blessed to take the orphan boys shopping for school uniforms and shoes, and street clothes (each got a pair of dress pants, jeans, 2=3 pair of shorts and about 4 shirts, tekkies (tennis shoes), and socks, underwear, and flip flops for the two youngest. I believe they were so blessed. Thank you Mr. S. for giving to them so generously (it was fun for Brooke and I to help them shop, after being robbed.
Well dear friends..it has been an exciting few days....to quote a phrase...."Toto, I don't think we're in kansas anymore".[
I have had two nights where I didn't go to bed til 2:00 AM. I will sign off now with my grateful heart, and exhausted body. I say thank you those who pray for us, I believe it makes such a difference and those who support me to do what I do...I think this shows we must be being Ukukhanya (Zulu for "light in the darkness")to the people of Ntuzuma. Bless you all. Penny
P.S. take time to make ammends with those you have ought with, forgive those who have wronged you, tell your family and loved ones how much you appreciate and love thim. We never know what can happen. And all the little stuff....falls away after a moment like this. Live Loved and Love Life.
We
Tuesday morning at about 9:30 I set out from our office in Ntuzuma. Prince was out taking people to the clinic and I took two of the girls working with us Hilary and Pretty (Hilary is receptionist and really a personal assistant to Prince, and Pretty is the facilitator for our home based care workers) and her job is to visit the patients of our caregivers to verify they are having the services done and being seen by our caregivers. This was the second day of us doing this.
Day one, we visite 3 orphan girls the youngest being 7 and HIV+, then a young lady with a 5 year old daughter who has AIDS and something on her face I think cancer or shingles. And two brothers in their 50's with TB+ as they call it TB + HIV. we were drained.
Day two, was Tuesday morning. We visited one patient, and the car was parked on the street so I stayed in the car while the ladies went out to check up the caregiver's work. I was reading my word, 1Corinthians 13...one of my favorites. Then we went to a second home and it was on a side street not so good, then from that patient we went up to Lindewe (I shared about her during our outreach time, I thought she was close to death, we kept visiting and praying with her and today she is walking around again, cleaning her home and raising her son). She was so bad she went to her sisters, but now she is great. Then we quickly went to our last patient's house. We were running late to take the oldest orphan girl to the hospital to get the 7 year old's ARV's...I said lets just finish this caregiver's patients. One more and we would get the girl and meet up with prince.
We pulled out on a road that is kind of main, for those of you have been to Ntuzuma it was the main road going toward Hillary's neighborhood, G Section. One lane going down and two lanes coming up. I dropped them off and decided I should turn the car around because I was waiting in the one lane on a curve going down hill. So I pulled around and pulled up in front of the patients house. A block home with two old parked cars on the side yard. I pulled with two wheels off the road and waited, we were going to hurry. Well....I got out of the car (not a person on this street (busy street). I rearranged the wheelchair in my hatchback so I could put the back seat upright so we could pick up the girl. Then I climbed back in the drivers seat. Opened my bible again to finish reading Corinthians, with some worship music playing and waited I think I locked the door. Suddenly someone came up beside the car (drivers side) and I turned thinking it was the girls and I needed to unlock, instead it was a man, who flashed me a pistol and said, get out I am taking the car,...at first I couldn't believe it, but as I opened the door (of course i was going to give him whatever, he stood between me and the door, with the pistol at his side (below the window so nobody could see it, and said get out now, I said "okay, I will...with my small bible in one hand I was "clutching it hard", and then I reached for my cell phone instinctively as it sits in the cup holder and I usually grab it when I get out of the car. He said "leave the phone", the cocked the pistol.....I dropped the phone on the seat and said, of course take it whatever just don't shoot. (IT WAS the biggest pistol I have ever seen, very long barrel and kind of had to slide it to cock it like a rifle). I moved past him, expecting a shot and moved toward the back of the car, he jumped in, and then I dashed over behind the junk cars, wanting metal or something between myself and his bullets. He slammed shut the door, and gunned it, my tires where in a dirt pile and my hand brake was on, so he spun out and it really squealled as he took off. The ladies in the house, pulled back the curtains and I dashed and I heard them screaming, what is it...My God, and I ran to the door, saying help he took my car, he pointed a gun at me, I was shaking so bad, Pretty just held me and kept her arm around me as we walked to the door. I said call Prince....nobody had airtime.
The patient jumped out of bed (a healing??? I wish), but he ran out with us, as did his mom who came out, then she ran house to house looking for someone with a phone with minutes (couldn't find one). Pretty was able to text Prince, who thank God called right back. He was near lindelani as he was getting a patient from Lindelani Clinic, which happens to be near the police station. He went right up and told the police, called the car rental place and got the tag number, sending a friend "blessing" down to get us ladies. WE went to the offices dropped off the ladies and gave Brooke Mike's number and told her to call and have him cancel the atm cards and credit cards. I was then driven to the police station. We called the lady again and told her the car had been stolen, she said the had Netstar a tracking service to recover stolen cars. I told the police it was pretty identifiable because it had a red wheel chair in the hatchback part. Prince and blessing took me back to the office and they were going to drive around to see if they could see the car. When I reached the office everyone was praying, I joined them we asked we could find everything. 2 hours from the time of highjacking the car rental place called saying they had recovered the car in Kwamashu the township next to ntuzuma between some hostels. i was to go to the station and wait for it.
I gave a report, the car came and didn't have a scratch on it!!! Inside, my purse was gone, but the wheelchair was in there, my box of paperwork was still on the back seat and cd's still on visor (he didn't want all my worship cd's and wayne's book on CD He loves me. (darn I wish he'd have taken that.) The car hire place had her driver escorted in with a spare key for me.
I have been rejoicing ever since that I am alive and well and able to communicate this all to you. You sure appreciate life after an experience like that. I don't think I noticed his face, only his shaking hand after he cocked the gun and the gun, my eyes probably fixated on it.
I think God got testified too quite a bit that day, I really think he was told to kill me, but he didn't. Honestly at that point he seemed as scared as I was. I have been able to pray for him already.
Apparently what happens with a carjacking is they just grab stuff out of it, and park it for several days to make sure there is no tracker on it, then return to strip it. The poor robber. CD's didn't take, Wheelchair, didn't take, box of receipts didn't take. Broken flipflops and tennis shoes, didn't take.
What did he get??
My purse from India with my wallet from there as well, with 3 ATM cards that were already stopped. checks already stopped.
Cash (I had paid some funds out my wallet and had NO cash only a few coins... NO RANDS NOT ONE.
Usually, I have airtime vouchers in my wallet....nope, I was out and in need of buying more.
Make up (for a mulungo (that is a white person) probably wouldn't look good on his girlfriend.
My bifocals are probably the biggest ticket item as well as my brand new cell phone.
I was shaken but not turning back.
I know I am where God wants me.
I know He is able to take care of me.
I won't be travelling around without Prince though.
I will be more alert and as my friend Alan advised, probably not the best time to have a quiet time in the word, should be all eyes and ears. This is true.
Yesterday was spent sorting out things, turned in my car and found out have to pay R3800 in excess (like a deductible) to have the locks rekeyed since the robber now has a key. about $500 US
I got a new sim card which enables me to keep my same cell phone number. (011-27-72-226-2774).
Got my local bank details so we could wire money into this account (no debit cards now).
Called Emprise Bank, my wonderful International local bank (tee-hee) and had them wire money.
My cell to replace will be about $l50.00 and the excess in $500, and my glasses value about $400.
Praise God my passport was at home along with other things I normally have in my purse.
I have been thanking Him for Life and Life abundantly!!!! The sky seems bluer, the flowers prettier, and you my friends and family more precious than ever. I am blessed and protected, and very very thankful.
Pray for the team, here and there, Pray I can recoup what the locust have eaten. Pray for our project to continue to move forward. Today we resumed business as usual. We were blessed to take the orphan boys shopping for school uniforms and shoes, and street clothes (each got a pair of dress pants, jeans, 2=3 pair of shorts and about 4 shirts, tekkies (tennis shoes), and socks, underwear, and flip flops for the two youngest. I believe they were so blessed. Thank you Mr. S. for giving to them so generously (it was fun for Brooke and I to help them shop, after being robbed.
Well dear friends..it has been an exciting few days....to quote a phrase...."Toto, I don't think we're in kansas anymore".[
I have had two nights where I didn't go to bed til 2:00 AM. I will sign off now with my grateful heart, and exhausted body. I say thank you those who pray for us, I believe it makes such a difference and those who support me to do what I do...I think this shows we must be being Ukukhanya (Zulu for "light in the darkness")to the people of Ntuzuma. Bless you all. Penny
P.S. take time to make ammends with those you have ought with, forgive those who have wronged you, tell your family and loved ones how much you appreciate and love thim. We never know what can happen. And all the little stuff....falls away after a moment like this. Live Loved and Love Life.
We
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