Have you ever seen a sunset so beautiful that it takes your breath away? You have to pause in the middle of life in order to bask in the beauty of colors you never imagined could exist together. In a flash of wanting to not forget, you whip out your phone or camera to document the moment for the sake of remembering the beauty of it; only to find that no matter what angle, or light setting, or filter you attempt to enhance the photo with, it fails to live up to the beauty of its reality. 

That is the fatal flaw of reality, nothing will be sufficient enough to recreate what has once been and now is gone. 

That is true of the sentiments I will attempt to relay to you all of my time at Mpholi Care Point in Swaziland last month. 

Nothing I say will be sufficient to relay the reality of my time here, but I will certainly attempt to convey my love of this place and the people I have met here. 

The feeling of home comes few and far between while on the race. Other than the farm in Nicaragua, the Rodriguez family in Panama, and the familiarity of Mission of Hope in the Dominican; there hasn’t been much that has provided an overwhelming sense of a love that connects with my heart on an unexplainable level. The Bible often notes that as believers, we should feel as foreigners in this world- and I have never related to that teaching more than I have this year. That, however, changed as we stepped into Mpholi.

I came to Africa after a tough two months in Perù, feeling drained and a bit unmotivated. The lifestyle of hopping around had gotten the better of me and I struggled to connect while letting the plans of post-race dictate my level of involvement where I had been. The Lord, in his unfailing kindness, took my empty cup and placed it in an ocean of joy, goodness, peace, and friendship upon arrival to Mpholi. 

Lulu and P lavished friendship, laughs, and encouragement upon me. I hoped to have done the same to them. Elen and Gogo (the cook ladies that acted as everyone’s grandmothers) gave me responsibility, guidance and reminded me that the Lord is faithful even through hardships. Morgan became a safe place to ask questions, talk about difficulties, and went above and beyond to fulfill the wishes for a very tired squad she adopted for the month. The kids… oh man the kids. They loved and clung on to us just because we were there. They listened and laughed at our skits. They became a constant reminder that joy is not found in material things, but in being seen and remembered. Mpholi refreshed us in a way that could have only been the Lord’s perfect timing, in his perfect way, in a perfect appointment. 

Now, I breath without thinking again- ready to go out for another two months to tell the world of a Lord that is faithful and good and gives you all the things you need at exactly the opportune moment. I am reminded of exactly the purposes in which he has called me to and am thankful that the hopping of this year lead me to Mpholi. 

This blog is a sunset whose photo fails it, but the truest reality I could snapshot for you all. The Lord has given us strength in times when we needed it most and Mpholi was the strength that will carry me to the finish line of this race. 

We are now in Lesotho, a country often overlooked that God is (yet again) reminding me he never has. Continue to pray for our squad as we have less than two months left to our commitment and although we have come up for some air, are still a very tired bunch of humans. 

Praise God for sunsets, friends that feel like family, and realities that we will remember for a lifetime.