Last month, our squad had an all-squad ministry month in Eswatini. We stayed at the Adventures in Missions base in Nsoko. Each day, we would split to 4 different Care Points, so my team was partnered with half of Team Othy 4:12. Care Points are places in villages around the country where kids can come after school for a meal, games, and discipleship. They are run by Shepherds, who are locals that grew up coming to the Care Points and have been invested in and discipled into being disciple-makers in their communities. At Care Points, we would follow the lead and planning of our Shepherds.
The pace of life in Swazi was much slower than we were used to. We got to help spruce up the Care Point by weeding and raking, and even creating a border out of rocks for their playground. Sometimes we’d walk miles (usually 2-4) to visit the homes of families in the village and pray for them. Other days, our Care Point Shepherd didn’t have anything for us to do, so we would sit for a couple hours in the shade of the big tree and spend time together as we waited for kids to arrive. Usually playing dominoes, dancing to music, or talking with the Gogo (a term of endearment for the grandmother figures who cook at Care Points) would help pass the time. This country and ministry really challenged the productivity in my bones and taught me more about slowing down and being okay with not having much to show for my time.
My favorite part about ministry in Swaziland was cooking food for the children. Each day, I would help Gogo sweep, start a fire, boil water, and make the rice mixture. We used food boxes, the MannaPack, from Feed My Starving Children. Through this cooking time, I got to know and love the Gogos so much. I also loved getting to be a small part of these children getting a nourishing meal for the day, knowing that if they had gone home instead, they would have arrived at an empty home with no meal prepared. Many of their parents work far away or all day in the fields and don’t have the ability to prepare a meal until late at night for their children.
This was also such a special part of ministry, because a couple weeks in to serving there, I called my grandma and found out that she had just led a team of friends at her church in packing food bags for the same organization, Feed My Starving Children. We were both so excited that we each got to be a part of the process with FMSC. I promised to make her a video of preparing the food for the children so she could show her pastor and friends. What a full circle moment! I remember packing similar food bags with my family in high school and it is such a privilege to be on this side of it! So, here are some pictures below from ministry at Care Point, and HERE is a link to the food making process video!
With love,
Kara Grace Perrault
