Being topsy turvey ‘down’ here does not reflect just the seasons, though my whole body and mind still says it is August even though the calendar says February. (The days are getting shorter, and the heat of the summer is giving way to the cool of fall). But, 'down' here another adjustment relates to the world of sports.
For those of you who have been following international cricket, you know that the South African National Cricket team recently returned home from Australia having soundly defeated the Aussies to claim the number one ranking in the cricket world. At Beautiful Gate I work with both Aussies and South Africans, so it is hard to remain oblivious to the goings on in the world of cricket. Having just won the World Cup of Rugby last year and now ranked #1 in Cricket the South Africans are on the verge of becoming unbearable.
Needless to say, I am learning a bit about cricket and now know the difference between a Test Match, a ODI*, and a Twenty20 cricket competition. I also know what an ‘over’ is. Such as, in a Test Match there are as many overs as required to complete an inning, whereas in a Twenty20 match, the match is completed after each team bowles 20 overs. There are even ‘maiden overs’. I also know what an ‘lbw’ is, though the ruling of a lbw can be rather complex. Among the many things I still need to learn, is what exactly the ‘stump’ is, and where the ‘3rd slip’ plays.
And while most Canadians may know even less about cricket than I, it was apparently not always so. Let it be known to all trivia buffs that the first ever international cricket match was played between “CANADA” and the United States, obviously in some year long before hockey was even invented. (It must have been a team from Upper or Lower Canada as the match was played prior to 1867.)
But now that we have entered the height of the curling season I have the shinny on my colleagues. I know what the hack is, a freeze, a raise, a runback, even what a port is. Sadly, they seem less enamored than I by the intricacies of throwing a granite stone down a sheet of ice, and are getting pumped for the next round of cricket. Late last week the Aussies landed in Johannesburg, bent on reclaiming their #1 world ranking.
Oh well, while in Rome do as the Romans do. So, while I am keeping one eye on CurlCAST, tracking up to the minute results in curling, I am also anticipating taking in an ODI in Jo’burg. In April, I may be heading to Jo’burg with a number of guys to take in a match between the Aussies and South Africans. Will my world ever be the same??
~ Benno ~
* ODI - A One Day International match comprised of 50 overs per team.
Tuesday, 24 February 2009
Monday, 9 February 2009
Reflections
Early this month I went back to the mountain. (Actually, I have two mountains, one a forty minute drive from home, the other a 40 minute hike to the top from home.) December we were moving, and January we were away, so I have missed my time on the mountain. It was an interesting this time on the mountain. My soul was very quiet, and God too seemed very quiet. As I reflected and rested and waited a couple of words came to my thoughts.
The first word was “awe”, and that led me to the little book of Ecclesiates. There the writer admonishes that when one goes to the house of the Lord, “go near to listen”. He further invites us to let our words be few, and “stand in awe of God.” Also in my thoughts were the words, “be still”.
“Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him.” A thunder storm passed by to the east of where I sat. The wind gusted and blew. I found a “hollow”, an overhang, overlooking the city, where I could shelter, be still, and stand in awe.
The thunder rumbled and cracked, now closer, then further. The storm passed by. “Be still, and know that I am God.” And so I reflected.
I reflected on the Khasapane family. I remembered the day they asked for money to see a traditional healer to remove a curse that had been placed on them. This was over my head, so I called our pastor. That led to a conversation where I expressed my concern that while I was assisting with the family’s physical needs, I was doing nothing for their spiritual needs. His words of advice, “If God was asking me to assist with there physical needs and to show interest and concern, do that, and leave the rest to him.” Be still, in other words.
That was some months ago. Today, Sunday morning sees my car packed with Khasapanes and others, driving them to and from church. And, during a recent service, one of the Khaspane girls expressed a desire to be a follower of Christ. I did only what my pastor suggested. The rest God orchestrated. Be still - and stand in awe of God.
I reflected on the young orphaned women God has brought across my path. I have reflected on his prompting and provision. His prompting that there is a role for me to play, a path to follow in supporting girl orphans. I reflected on his provision. A few dollars here (God bless my mother), that allowed a few local women to do research on services available to the girl orphan. A few dollars more (God bless my mother’s sisters), that have assisted five girl orphans to continue in school. Three of the young women from the project, orphaned each, are continuing to work with me to see what more might be done. And these women want to make a difference. When I suggested meeting every second month, they asked why not every month. In a land where resignation is so prevalent, how can I but stand in awe.
I reflected and marveled at the generosity of those that we have been able to help. The little they have received has been a source of hope and encouragement and they have not kept the blessings to themselves. One family, in great poverty, but seeing others in greater need, gave of that they had to support others, sending maize meal from their fields. Then, when I offered money to buy additional maize, they referred me to another person they saw as in even greater need, and asked that I buy the maize from her. The Khasapanes - once five living in one small room, now though God’s grace living in a two room flat - have taken in a little nephew to assis a family they see as even less well off. So now they are seven (one of the girls had a baby). These two families, and others, are sharing their blessings, lighting the candle of hope for another, making the world a better place. Be still and be in awe, I reflected.
And then there is “Hope and a Candle Lesotho”. God bringing together, weaving events and contacts so that “Hope and a Candle Lesotho”, a trust to be set up in Lesotho, is moving through the legal steps to becoming reality. It will be a trust, registered in Lesotho, which will focus on providing hope to girl orphans, including inviting them to share that hope with others, to be a candle sharing the light with others.
These are but a few of the stories of God at work in Lesotho. My day on the mountain was a reminder to be still and stand in awe of what God is doing, and to anticipate being in awe of what he will do further. And so, our tickets are booked to return home to Canada this summer. (Two years slides by so quickly.) We fly out of Africa on 04 July 2009, but our tickets are return and will see us flying back to Lesotho the third week of August. Our God is an awesome God, and I am afraid of what I might miss out on, if I didn’t come back.
~ Benno ~
References: Eccl. 5:1,2,7; Ps 37:7; Ps 46:10
The car full, back from church.
(I recently met a woman who just returned from Scotland. Her passion and burden is to work with the street boys here in Maseru. We looked at what we each were doing and wondered if maybe we should switch. But maybe God knows that street boys need a mother, and girl orphans need a father. Oh, I am still at Beautiful Gate for now. These reflections are on my extra curricular activities.)
The first word was “awe”, and that led me to the little book of Ecclesiates. There the writer admonishes that when one goes to the house of the Lord, “go near to listen”. He further invites us to let our words be few, and “stand in awe of God.” Also in my thoughts were the words, “be still”.
“Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him.” A thunder storm passed by to the east of where I sat. The wind gusted and blew. I found a “hollow”, an overhang, overlooking the city, where I could shelter, be still, and stand in awe.
The thunder rumbled and cracked, now closer, then further. The storm passed by. “Be still, and know that I am God.” And so I reflected.
I reflected on the Khasapane family. I remembered the day they asked for money to see a traditional healer to remove a curse that had been placed on them. This was over my head, so I called our pastor. That led to a conversation where I expressed my concern that while I was assisting with the family’s physical needs, I was doing nothing for their spiritual needs. His words of advice, “If God was asking me to assist with there physical needs and to show interest and concern, do that, and leave the rest to him.” Be still, in other words.
That was some months ago. Today, Sunday morning sees my car packed with Khasapanes and others, driving them to and from church. And, during a recent service, one of the Khaspane girls expressed a desire to be a follower of Christ. I did only what my pastor suggested. The rest God orchestrated. Be still - and stand in awe of God.
I reflected on the young orphaned women God has brought across my path. I have reflected on his prompting and provision. His prompting that there is a role for me to play, a path to follow in supporting girl orphans. I reflected on his provision. A few dollars here (God bless my mother), that allowed a few local women to do research on services available to the girl orphan. A few dollars more (God bless my mother’s sisters), that have assisted five girl orphans to continue in school. Three of the young women from the project, orphaned each, are continuing to work with me to see what more might be done. And these women want to make a difference. When I suggested meeting every second month, they asked why not every month. In a land where resignation is so prevalent, how can I but stand in awe.
I reflected and marveled at the generosity of those that we have been able to help. The little they have received has been a source of hope and encouragement and they have not kept the blessings to themselves. One family, in great poverty, but seeing others in greater need, gave of that they had to support others, sending maize meal from their fields. Then, when I offered money to buy additional maize, they referred me to another person they saw as in even greater need, and asked that I buy the maize from her. The Khasapanes - once five living in one small room, now though God’s grace living in a two room flat - have taken in a little nephew to assis a family they see as even less well off. So now they are seven (one of the girls had a baby). These two families, and others, are sharing their blessings, lighting the candle of hope for another, making the world a better place. Be still and be in awe, I reflected.
And then there is “Hope and a Candle Lesotho”. God bringing together, weaving events and contacts so that “Hope and a Candle Lesotho”, a trust to be set up in Lesotho, is moving through the legal steps to becoming reality. It will be a trust, registered in Lesotho, which will focus on providing hope to girl orphans, including inviting them to share that hope with others, to be a candle sharing the light with others.
These are but a few of the stories of God at work in Lesotho. My day on the mountain was a reminder to be still and stand in awe of what God is doing, and to anticipate being in awe of what he will do further. And so, our tickets are booked to return home to Canada this summer. (Two years slides by so quickly.) We fly out of Africa on 04 July 2009, but our tickets are return and will see us flying back to Lesotho the third week of August. Our God is an awesome God, and I am afraid of what I might miss out on, if I didn’t come back.
~ Benno ~
References: Eccl. 5:1,2,7; Ps 37:7; Ps 46:10
The car full, back from church.Thursday, 5 February 2009
Bugs ...
At the beginning of December we moved. The landlord's daughter married and she and her husband decided they would move into the house that had become our home. Looking for a new home was a challenge. The market for rental homes is very tight, and prices are high. Talk about blessings, the house we had been in, rented far below the market value.
Well, we did find another house - smaller, in need of a bit of work, and without a coal heater, something we will miss greatly when the winter weather comes. But the house did come with something else …bugs. Maybe it is the green space around the new house, maybe it is that the previous tenant did not often wash his dishes, maybe it is just that this house has no screens, and maybe it is a combination of all of the above, but we have bugs.
The little ants are insidious. It is an all out battle with the little bug-gers. They make their move most often at night, and a trip to the kitchen at night for a glass of water can often include a skirmish involving the little creatures. When it is hot the windows are open, and that leads to all sorts of swarming night flyers including not a few mosquitoes. A cricket took up residence in one of our potted plants. Then there was the three inch praying mantis climbing a wall the other night. He at least was amenable to being escorted out a door. Then another cricket joined us in our bedroom. And bugs are not all.
On two occasions we have had uninvited two footed prowlers. Fortunately the locks on the doors held. That led to the arrival of a friend’s dog, who supposedly patrols the lot, but he has been less than stellar at the job. I was up one night to find a stray cat curled up on the couch, and another night one rooting through the garbage. It has been hot, and open windows with no screens have their limitations. (If I could find a way to screen the windows, I would make my wife most happy.)
Those little ants, though, will require a different approach.
~ Benno ~
Well, we did find another house - smaller, in need of a bit of work, and without a coal heater, something we will miss greatly when the winter weather comes. But the house did come with something else …bugs. Maybe it is the green space around the new house, maybe it is that the previous tenant did not often wash his dishes, maybe it is just that this house has no screens, and maybe it is a combination of all of the above, but we have bugs.
The little ants are insidious. It is an all out battle with the little bug-gers. They make their move most often at night, and a trip to the kitchen at night for a glass of water can often include a skirmish involving the little creatures. When it is hot the windows are open, and that leads to all sorts of swarming night flyers including not a few mosquitoes. A cricket took up residence in one of our potted plants. Then there was the three inch praying mantis climbing a wall the other night. He at least was amenable to being escorted out a door. Then another cricket joined us in our bedroom. And bugs are not all.
On two occasions we have had uninvited two footed prowlers. Fortunately the locks on the doors held. That led to the arrival of a friend’s dog, who supposedly patrols the lot, but he has been less than stellar at the job. I was up one night to find a stray cat curled up on the couch, and another night one rooting through the garbage. It has been hot, and open windows with no screens have their limitations. (If I could find a way to screen the windows, I would make my wife most happy.)
Those little ants, though, will require a different approach.
~ Benno ~
Monday, 2 February 2009
Blessings - Giving and Receiving
On Sunday (01 Feb. 2009) I was reminded again of something Paul wrote about reaping what we sow.
When Wendy arrived at Machebang College she decided to try to locate scholarship opportunities for students. One that she found was at the University of British Columbia. An application from a student at Machebang was sent and a young woman was accepted.
She comes from a poor family, and was attending Machebang College on a scholarship. Her father is a pastor of a church here in Maseru and on his salary the family had no idea how they could afford to send their daughter on to university. The scholarship was above what they could have asked or imagined. Then Wendy supported the family as they worked out visa and other logistics so that the daughter could actually get to Canada. They have expressed to Wendy how she had been such a blessing to their family though that process.
Their daughter has now been in Vancouver since August 2008, and while she stays in touch with her family by phone, they have not seen her face for nearly six months. So, Wendy invited the family for dinner with the after dinner program a connection via Skype. What a wonderful and blessed experience for us, witnessing the excitement, the laughter, the tears of joy as the family were able to connect face to face.
Crowded around the little screen.
The cause of all their excitement.
I also want to recognize my family in Canada. They have been outstanding. Two of my sisters have connected with and stayed in close contact with the student. One sister was there to welcome her the day her plane arrived. Another has visited with her often, and included the student on their family trip through the mountains to celebrate Christmas with my family in Alberta. I am so proud of my family for being a blessing, and I think that like Wendy and I, they too have been blessed in return.
~ Benno ~
When Wendy arrived at Machebang College she decided to try to locate scholarship opportunities for students. One that she found was at the University of British Columbia. An application from a student at Machebang was sent and a young woman was accepted.
She comes from a poor family, and was attending Machebang College on a scholarship. Her father is a pastor of a church here in Maseru and on his salary the family had no idea how they could afford to send their daughter on to university. The scholarship was above what they could have asked or imagined. Then Wendy supported the family as they worked out visa and other logistics so that the daughter could actually get to Canada. They have expressed to Wendy how she had been such a blessing to their family though that process.
Their daughter has now been in Vancouver since August 2008, and while she stays in touch with her family by phone, they have not seen her face for nearly six months. So, Wendy invited the family for dinner with the after dinner program a connection via Skype. What a wonderful and blessed experience for us, witnessing the excitement, the laughter, the tears of joy as the family were able to connect face to face.
Crowded around the little screen.
The cause of all their excitement.I also want to recognize my family in Canada. They have been outstanding. Two of my sisters have connected with and stayed in close contact with the student. One sister was there to welcome her the day her plane arrived. Another has visited with her often, and included the student on their family trip through the mountains to celebrate Christmas with my family in Alberta. I am so proud of my family for being a blessing, and I think that like Wendy and I, they too have been blessed in return.
~ Benno ~
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