Smooches and Side Ponytails

Last Monday I left Hout Bay with toddler smooches on my lips and a ponytail on the side of my head, energized and filled with the love that the kids there shared with me.  Working with children, whether in the townships of Hout Bay and Sir Lowry's, rural Limpopo and Transkei, or the urban and suburban midwestern United States, often fills me with a similar feeling.  That feeling is such a blessing, but I have to be careful not to let it be the only thing that keeps me going.

When I first came to South Africa in July 2010, I was deeply touched and filled with joy by the children I met, particularly at a care center for children with special needs called Sinethemba in the Transkei.  There were the universal things that children all over the world share - the joy, the love so freely received and returned - but there was something else that can be a little dangerous for a person like me.  There I was, in Africa, playing with African children.  Exciting and exotic.  Those are not necessarily bad things in and of themselves, and I don't think that it's wrong that I really enjoy experiencing and learning about different cultures by working with kids in Cape Town, Limpopo, and the Transkei.  However, the "It's Africa!" factor becomes risky when it starts to be my main motivation.

I returned from South Africa in 2010 with this "I have to go back!" feeling, but I soon realized that it would be selfish to return just to play with kids in an exciting new environment.  It took some tears, but I finally accepted that it might not be God's will for me to return to this beautiful country.  My prayer became that I could return if it were His will, and that if it weren't He would help me accept that.  And now I am SO grateful that He led me to the opportunity to spend 5 weeks in Cape Town doing an internship through Truman State University and then spend the next 5 months working with Jabulani Africa Ministries!

So what motivates me to be here, half a continent and an ocean away from my comfort zone in the midwestern United States?  Part of it is precious moments during kids' ministry with JAM, where I get to love on kids from beautifully diverse cultures and receive immense love and joy in return.  And yes, part of it is the fact that it's Africa and I think that Africa is amazing.  Another part of it is how deeply I was touched by the love of South Africans in 2010, and I wanted to do all I could to give back to the people of this country.  All of those things got me across the ocean, and help energize me when I'm feeling homesick.  But those things aren't what sustain me.

I need something more than smooches and side ponytails when I see kids fighting with each other because that's what they see at home; when I see broken glass all over the playgrounds, the muddy streets of the townships, and the dirt roads of rural villages; when I see kids with clothes and shoes that are falling apart; when I hear about corruption in the government that perpetuates so many devastating situations; and when I hear from my fellow intern at Thandokhulu or my fellow JAM team member about the sexual exploitation that haunts so many young girls.  And I need more than smooches and side ponytails when I ask myself, "Are we really making an impact on these communities?  Are the kids' lives really affected long-term by what we do?"

I believe that the answer to those questions is yes, but not because the kids play with my hair and give me kisses when I leave.  I believe that we are making an impact because I believe that the man who inspires what we do at JAM is God's Messiah.  I really believe that Jesus of Nazareth said that the greatest commandments are to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind" and to "Love your neighbor as yourself," and that in doing so we can help bring God's kingdom to earth (Matthew 22:37-40 NIV).  I really believe that Jesus' message of unconditional love, for your neighbor whether you see them as a friend or an enemy, changes people's lives.  And I believe that God is using us to help bring His kingdom to earth when we share love with different groups of children and try to help them connect what the Bible says with their daily life.

When I am overwhelmed with the problems and the heartache around me, whether it's from walking through the townships or reading about the untimely death of an amazing son, husband, and father over facebook (see my last post), this is the only thing that really sustains me, and even then it's challenging.  Sometimes I still turn to God in anger that He lets these devastating things happen.  But I am also beginning to piece together a picture of hope for the communities I've spent time in.  I have the priviledge to work with South Africans who are passionate about letting God use them to make a difference in their own communities - people like Prudence and Phumla who want to point people in Mavhuza and Bambisana to Jesus and his message, and people like Lifter who leads a soccer team in Mavhuza where he teaches young men about integrity (among several other projects to benefit his community).  My hope is that more and more people like that will rise up in the townships of Cape Town and across South Africa - people who let God use them to build sustainable change in their communities.

In the meantime, in the midst of broken glass, tight hugs, untimely deaths, smooches, tiny fists fighting, and ponytails, these words from Paul help remind me that God is at work in the beauty and the heartache:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4, NIV)