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Lesotho RECAP

Month 6

Where I was?

There is this little country inside South Africa called Lesotho. They say it is the Switzerland of Africa being enclosed with mountains. Me and my team were in a town called Mokhotlong, Lesotho.   

My sleeping accommodations:

We slept in the pastor’s childhood home with a young couple expecting their first child. Lesotho is known for their wool blankets and that’s what we had on foam pads as beds. My room however, was also an uninsulated tin roof. Meaning it was an oven when it was hot and a fridge when it was cool. Not needed information for sure, but just an interesting fact.  

The ministries:

We worked with Harvesters Church and primary school. Our day typically looked like splitting into two groups to give devotions to the kids at school and to the people waiting to go to the hospital outside. Then we went back home for breakfast only to go back to the school and pick rocks. Then we would break for lunch only to come back and pick up rocks again. I loved it! Because everyday we were out there and the school kids would come out and help us with such enthusiasm and joy. I love those kids!! This was really the first month we had a heavy speaking expectation with all the devotions and speaking in church at two different churches on Sunday. It was honestly so fun!           

People I met:

  • Pastor Obed was my first contact in Lesotho! We had so much fun with this pastor and his family who are so kind and caring.

  • Matsolo is Obed’s wife and a wealth of wisdom I wish we could have heard more from. This woman led the worship from the crowd but always brought the party to the stage in dancing!

  • Tsolo is Pastor Obed’s son who turned out to be our driver, water fetcher, translator and all around friend to the team. 

  • Detay is such a fun high school kid living with the Pastor and his family, he brought so much laughter and joy to this team. 

  • Tsepo was our overseer for the hospital devotions and prayed for each and everyone of us, so sweet. 

  • Joshua was Tsepo’s little son that was a little ball of fire!

  • Jerry is the most photographed of Lesotho because he was a six year old kid with the disposition of an old man. 

  • Matowa and Lasema were the couple that stayed with us in the house. They were newly wed and a month away from having a baby! They cooked traditional food for us and loved to watch movies and play games with us. 

  • B.K. was the first kid we knew and broke all of our hearts for sure when we left. He was the first to come out and help us pick rocks, eventually he would bring us a wheelbarrow, pick-ax, and shovels to help with this goal. He wants to be a doctor, a pilot, and I believe he could achieve that and more!

  • Tabello was another child living with the Pastor who was such a little spit fire. When her family wasn’t in the room. 

  • Stingo was a character around the town that some of us ran into a crazy amount of times that we would pray for and encourage.

  • Khutso was our faithful driver that took us on our first 24 hour van ride from J-Bay and back to Nelspruit, South Africa. 

  • Wayne is one of the high school group leaders that taught us a dance and was so fun. 

  • Mulabatsi was a teacher and very dedicated young adult leader in the church that had the passion for the love of Christ to change his generation in Mokhotlong, Lesotho.      

Adventures:

We had a crazy schedule for speaking and work that ended up with only one day off. Some also fell sick and we didn’t always feel or could figure out a way around this place. But we did go to the iconic Sani Pass and South Africa’s highest pub for some pizza!

Travel: How and what type of transportation

Our drivers came from Lesotho late two nights before and stayed in another house on the GLA campus we were staying at. We got our COVID test two days before and everyone was good, but two. So we had no idea if some of us were even going to be able to go Lesotho because of COVID and that it was so difficult to obtain transportation to our sites. The day of the two that tested positive tested again and crazy enough it was negative!! So we packed again and left at 3 am the next morning. My team didn’t make it to our destination till 2 am the next morning due to the treachery of the mountain pass getting into Mokhotlong.     

New Experiences:

  • Collecting rainwater in the tubs they wash clothes in because we were out of water. 

  • Cooking the Lesotho way.

  • Preaching for the first time.

  • Watching shepherds herd their flocks throughout a fenceless land. 

  •  First Braai!!

  • Throat COVID test

  • Seeing so many round hut type houses.

Food:

  • Steambread made on a gas stove

  • Aromat seasoning that I LOVE! I may or may not be bringing some back home…

  • Pop and cabbage with curry and a boiled egg, is a corn substance that you eat with your hands.

  • Braai!! It’s their version of BBQ and it is so stinkin good!

  • Samp and Chakalka is another corn thing and this is a sauce with beans you buy in a can. 

  •  What they called pancakes but were the size of the plate.

  • Sunday jello and custard with condensed milk or what they called desert milk over it. 

  • FIRE DORITOS! Purple bag!! 

What I enjoyed the most:

We definitely were able to get close to people this month. Finally, I was in tears leaving as the kids hugged us all as we were saying good-bye. I love the people of Lesotho and learning a culture that is so radically different from ours was the experience I thought I would receive more on the World Race. I loved the ruralness, but also in on of their biggest cities. I loved how the kids loved to work with us on their breaks and getting to know those little guys.          

Memories, ASK me about them!: some of them might be funny!

  • Skipping rocks off of Sani Pass’s edge.

  • Impromptu waterfall photoshoot

  • Dancing at church every Sunday with the whole congregation on the stage

  • Shepherding Gangs 

  • The school made mugs with our whole bodies on them. I hope to be able to bring it home. 

  • Going to a church in a village where for worship one would just start singing and the rest would follow acapella.

  • Our first Sunday, the funeral of the Mokhotlong Chief brought in the Lesotho King via helicopter that we saw descend.   

  • Lunch at the Highest Pub in Africa

  • Steph saving a shepherd from his own dog at Sani Pass

  • Found out that some shepherds only wore their staple blankets and nothing else under. 

  • Dog fight that caused one of our neighbors to get bit. 

  • Not having water for most of the time we were there and Steph came up with a system to catch the rain water and fill our old water bottles for bucket showers, cleaning clothes, and flushing the toilets. 

  • Someone potentially broke in and the night we found out, Steph yelled (sounding like a drunk) “IF YOUR IN THE HOUSE GET OUT!” and to the cricket living on our roof “AND YOU CAN GET OUT TOO!!”

  • Countless games of spicy UNO-flip and exploding kittens with the Pastors family and Lasema and Matowa. 

  • Noon’s tall friend she made in the Shopwright because they were both tall.

  • Ken’s over 103 degree temperature and the subsequent clinic visit that resulted in a free mystery pill from a not looking nurse. 

  • Learned NOT to talk about a woman’s pregnancy in this culture. 

  • 21 day challenge early mornings with my overlook of those gorgeous mountains. 

  • For some reason all the doors lock from the outside and are secured in some instances with paper to cover the corner. 

  • Prayer walks with Carl throughout the town. 

  • The teachers said “Shut-up okay,” with a stick in their hand.

  • Lasema always asks if we want more steamed bread (which we ALWAYS did) by saying “Do you require some more bread?”

  • The WiFi Cafe I’m not completely convinced of had WiFi but a cardboard box looking like a router. 

  • The rain would be SO strong and heavy and the lightning would shake the house. 

  •  When I walked around their capital city needing my friends and asked a random shop owner “Where are my friends that look like me?” and they knew!

  • Jerry. Oh so many things about this little guy. The first time we met he was “helping” and… well it’s better told in person. 

  • The van we took down the mountain pass into Mokhotlong started to lose its brakes in places it was more necessary than just nice. 

  • Pastor Obed’s family showed us how to dance Lesotho with the shoulder wagging and foot stomping. 

  • Showing the youth group the church clap and them showing us their dance. 

  • Bucket hats that were too small and all the more obvious when they watched us all put them. Noons and Ken had the hardest time!

  • Shops were made of metal and sold a lot of second hand clothes.

  • Coming back from Sani Pass and in the van we showed our friends the vegetable game where you say a vegetable showing no teeth.

  • I know I’m forgetting so much already, but these I for sure will remember!     

How to pray for where I was and the ministries I worked in:

  • Matowa and Lasema for their new family and for Lasema’s second hand shop to do well. 

  • Harvester’s church grows in passion for Christ’s ability to reach who they think is unreachable. When I was there I was praying for my age group to be reached and realize their need for God’s love and provision. 

  • When we were at the clinic for Ken, there was a family that came in because their house roof fell on top of them. Pray for them and their family. 

  • Provision for the whole community, as many have been affected by COVID and political instability. 

  • B.K. who is nine years old now to achieve all his heart desires!

  • Detaye for the same reason! For provision for University in South Africa. 

  • Tabello to know her worth with God and love from him as her mother died recently and is only 8 years old. 

  • The Pastor takes in so many kids and I pray that they feel the support and appreciation from Jesus. 

  • Tsepo for wisdom or how to provide for his family.        

 

Unfortunately, Dana is not on my team and so we were not together for one of these videos. But oh my goodness such a good video.  

2 Comments

  1. I loved reading your recaps for these months and you are going to love looking back at them sometime in the future!

  2. I want to hear the backstories on all of those things, but I know there won’t be time to share them all! What incredible places, experiences, and witnessing of the movement of the Holy Spirit. Everywhere in the world is such beauty! I enjoyed watching the videos again..I never get tired of seeing what your lives were like!

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