Where are They Now?

Lynn and I arrived safely back in the United States yesterday after a wonderful month with our children and friends. For those of you who have followed Project HOPE from the beginning, I thought you might enjoy an update on a few specific children you may remember.

Back in 2004 eight sponsors were located to help place two young children in boarding school after the death of their father (see Benji and Chipo, 2004). It is hard to believe that Chipo will be turning 13 next month. She is in her final year of primary school and will take her exams at the end of the year to see if she qualifies to go on to secondary school (junior high). Chipo has many friends and her smile can light up a room. Benji turned 16 last October and is in his second year of secondary school. He has grown into a polite and hardworking young man that we can all be proud of. They are both very thankful for those who have prayed for them and contributed to their schooling.

In 2005 while visiting children in the villages, Mai Chimbo and I found a very malnourished little girl named Faith. She was so weak she had to be carried out to meet us. Some of you may remember the miracle of her recovery and how we found her only one week later running around and playing with her friends after she received some healthy food from the nutrition program. Faith came to visit this January with her brother and uncle who she now stays with. She is now part of the HOPE education program and collects school fees and supplies each term. Faith has grown into a healthy 12-year-old who likes helping to care for her twin cousins that live nearby.

In August of 2006, Baby Janine was born, the daughter of one of my friends here. I was the first one to visit her in the hospital and had the privilege of carrying her up the mountain to her rural home when she was ready to leave the hospital. We traveled back to see Baby Janine last week, although she is no longer a baby:) She loves dancing and singing and it was evident that she is well-liked from the many people shouting to her as we walked back to the main road at the end of the day. She will start preschool next year and I am amazed how quickly time passes.


Project HOPE continues to assist children with nutrition and educational needs. Each Monday morning, children who are malnourished or HIV positive gather to receive food and soap. Each term, more than 100 children come to the office to receive school fees. They are all working hard in school and are very grateful to be receiving an education-an opportunity that many children are not given in Zimbabwe.


All the children are growing up so quickly, and I truly miss not being able to see them every day. Although we had a great time visiting everyone, the trip also served to remind me of where I have been called to work and what I have been called to do. I love working with the children of Zimbabwe and hope that it will be possible to return on a more permanent basis sometime this year.

Thank you to everyone who helped to make this trip a success. Even with increased school fees this term, we had enough to keep all the children in school. Your continued prayers and support are greatly appreciated.

Waiting for the Rain

Hello from beautiful Zimbabwe! Irikunaya...it is raining, storming in fact, and I love it. I have been waiting for the rain:) Lynn and I arrived safely in the capital city of Harare last Friday and began our journey to Fairfield Children's Homes the next morning. Everything is so green with beautiful flowering trees everywhere. The feel of the soft, warm breeze and the smell of rain in the air that I remember so well were a perfect way to begin our trip, but the best was yet to come.
As we turned onto the mission road, McDonald, one of the children from Fairfield was walking toward us on the dirt path. We stopped the car and as soon as he saw me he came running and jumped into my arms so forcefully I was literally knocked to the ground!
We continued on to the children's homes. Mai Mari Jeni was the first one to see us. She dropped her hoe into the garden and came running with arms open wide...followed by every mother and child at Fairfield...one after another after another. That must be what a welcome into heaven feels like...waves of love washing over you again and again and again. We sang and danced and I could see that all of our children here have grown big. Many of them are now young men and women and I am so proud of them.
We are managing this week with no electricity and no water in the homes. The children collect rain water in buckets for us each day when it rains. We are very fortunate that cholera has not arrived yet, but in other areas people are suffering.
The inflation finally hit an all time high of multiple billions to one US dollar last month, so everyone is using foreign currency now. People trying to get a ride to work or purchase food for their families have to use US money, but very few people have access to it, so they are forced to go without. How long can a country exist on someone else's money? Things here are extremely expensive now.
Please continue in prayer for Zimbabwe and the children. We are very happy here and God is continuing to bless each of us in the middle of the difficulties.

Merry Christmas!

Dear friends, Merry Christmas!

I hope you are all enjoying the holidays and will have time to spend with family and friends over the next few weeks.

I will be leaving for Zimbabwe in less than three weeks and am very excited to see the children. Many of you have expressed concerns about the current cholera epidemic in Zimbabwe. Although cholera is a very serious threat, the Children’s Homes where I will be staying have a safe water supply and we will be taking extra precautions to ensure a low risk of infection.

Below are a few words I received from the administrator of the HOPE programs. As you will see, even in the middle of the chaos in Zimbabwe, God is still very present. May these words remind you during this Christmas season that no matter what your situation, God is very present with you as well. Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year!

Wenyu Munahse,
Janine

From the administrator of HOPE:

Thank you for your support that has so far enabled 80 vulnerable children and 280 HOPE Outreach program children as well. We only wish if you were around to see for yourself how happy and well fed and kept the children are. There only way to say thank you are the smiles on their faces, but behind those smiling little faces there are sad stories to tell of the pain they passed through before coming to Fairfield Children’s Home.

Only this morning two HOPE Outreach boys who had just finished sitting for their “O” and “A” levels exams, Shepherd and Samuel respectively, came to our offices to say thank you for the great assistance they received from our HOPE outreach program to enable them to go this far with their education. I only wished if sister Janine was around with us to see the happiness written all over the two boys’ faces. After Samuel had left my office I said to myself truly God is merciful. Why I said those words to myself I don’t know, but I shed some tears of gratitude to you people at both FOSA and GBGM. I was emotionally affected by Samuel’s gratitude.

Hello everyone!

Plans are moving along for my trip to Zimbabwe in January. I will leave on the 8th and come back the first week of February. Please continue in prayer for the country. I have just received notice that the main hospital in Zimbabwe closed their doors and shut down because there are no medical supplies in the country and most doctors have left. The patients were all sent home. There has been a cholera outbreak in the capital city, Harare, because the drinking water is no longer safe. Many people have not had any water for over a week in their homes. Imagine not having water to drink, wash dishes, or flush the toilet for that long. This is all along with drought. The political sharing talks that were supposed to occur between the current president and the opposition leader have not worked so government is at a standstill.

Sounds hopeless, right? Good thing our God is big enough to overcome all of these tragic situations. Please pray that He will bring justice for His people in Zimbabwe. Remember God listens to the requests of His sons and daughters (that would be you:) If you ask Him for something He will be faithful to answer in His own timing (which is always best) and in His own way (which may be a solution we didn't think of). We can trust Him for an answer.

Wenyu Munashe,
Janine

Hello Friends of Project HOPE!

It has been a great summer for me in Kentucky, but I have been missing my children in Zimbabwe for over a year now. Fortunately, I will be returning for a one-month stay in January 2009.

This trip has multiple purposes.
To see how much my children have grown! (and to make sure they are ok)
To check on Project HOPE and determine how we can best assist our friends living in extreme poverty.
To determine the political and economic climate, so I can make a decision about returning long-term in the future.


You may have noticed Zimbabwe in the news a lot this past year. Elections for the president in March caused much violence, and a final decision still has not been reached. Inflation has spiraled at such a rapid rate that the Zimbabwe dollar no longer has any value at all. The last rate I received was 100 trillion Zimbabwe dollars for every $1 US. Imagine pulling 50 trillion dollars out of your pocket just to buy a coke!

Please be in prayer for the children of Zimbabwe and for the talks between the government parties to end peacefully so there can soon be some positive change in the country.

Thank you for your continued support and prayers!

Love at First Sight

She loved me from the very first moment, although I did nothing to deserve her love. I met my new little friend only a few weeks ago when she was being tested at the AIDS clinic with her mother. She was sitting outside on a wooden bench waiting for her results. As I came around the corner the eight-year-old girl lit up and immediately wanted to sit beside me. She wanted to go to my house, ride in my car, and even asked her mother if she could come and live with me. Her bright smile contrasted greatly with her tiny, frail body. Her mother had been walking a very long distance carrying her every morning to make sure she received her daily shots to fight the TB coursing through her body.

The results came back-both mother and child were positive. Melissa and I drove them quietly to the bus stop passing through our place first. My little friend had only one simple request while she was waiting for us to gather our things. "Ndinoda mvura" she said asking for cold water. I didn't see her for the next few days. My friend Melissa had to return to the US after a month-long stay in Zimbabwe. While I was returning from the airport, I received a call saying my little friend was in the hospital. As I entered the children's ward, she stood up on her bed spreading her arms wide in excitement. I hugged her gently only now realizing just how tiny she really was. The first time I had seen her, she was wearing sweat pants, but this time she wore a pale yellow dress, her skeleton-like frame exposed. I delicately lifted her onto my lap feeling as though she might break at any minute. She excitedly asked to call her dad. "I want to tell him to come see me. I want to tell him I am sick so he will come."

The next night she went with her mother to the house of the clinic coordinator, Mrs. Chimbwanda. My little friend asked again for cold water-very cold water from a refrigerator. Mrs. Chimbwanda went to the next-door-neighbor and returned with the water. As our little friend drank, Mrs. Chimbwanda talked to her.

After a while she asked, "Do you know who Jesus is."

"No," the little girl replied.

"Jesus loves children and He is always with them when they are sick. Jesus loves you," she told my little friend.

Just before she fell asleep, my little friend whispered back, "I love Jesus."

Two more days passed as we watched her physically deteriorate. She no longer stood and smiled when I came into the room. When her mom tried to sit her up to eat, her head would drop back and her body would slump back down. Finally she could not even respond to anyone. Her father came that night and slept on the floor next to her bed. Her mother curled up beside her and told us she fell into a deep sleep. When she woke, our little friend had passed away.

As we walked with the parents to get a ride back to their home, I remembered her asking for cold water. She always asked for cold water. When I told Melissa that our little friend had passed away, she also mentioned this and reminded me of the following verse:

"And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward." Matthew 10:42 NIV

Sometimes our purpose in life is to give others the opportunity to choose to do God's work. My little friend fulfilled this purpose. She shined with Jesus' light through her immediate and unconditional love and acceptance of us. We did nothing to deserve it. Then before going home, she allowed us to follow through with Jesus' simple request. For you see, we would not have had the opportunity to give her cold water unless she had asked. For this I will be ever grateful for our brief meeting. For this, I will keep going.

Bubble Boys

Well, it’s official. I have become an overprotective mother hen. Three of my favorite boys here are HIV positive, and I find myself following them around all the time saying things like, “It’s cold outside. Where are your patter-patters (flip-flops)? You need to be wearing a hat. Why are you coughing?”

I worry about them constantly, most recently evidenced by what I like to refer to as “the chicken pox incident”. All someone had to do was mention that a few of the children at school had chicken pox and the whole of Fairfield Children’s Homes was in a panic, convinced that the boys would catch it. With already-weakened immune systems, it is important that they stay clear of these kinds of outbreaks, so the staff decided to keep them home from school. Julia and I were happy to spend some quality time with the boys while the other children were at school. In fact, it was during this particular week that the miracle happened…

One of the boys had become very sick during the first part of November. I was very upset because it has been over two months since we began the process of starting him on ARV’s (AIDS medication) and the doctor in town still had not given us the pills. He was going downhill and hadn’t been able to go to school for about two weeks. Everyone was worried as we watched his body swell all over, his appetite disappear, and his cough increase. What worried me most was that my usually smiling, talkative little guy had decided to quit speaking completely. We couldn’t get him to say one word for over a week.

On Friday of that week, the staff gathered in his room to pray. He no longer wanted to get out of bed. That night I couldn’t sleep. I was so afraid that something would happen to him. Around three in the morning, I finally decided to call one of my friends, who fortunately challenged me to start reading 3-5 chapters of the Bible every day and see what God had to say about the whole matter. What I found when I blew off the dust from my book was this:

Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid-John 14:27b.

I had been filled with those two things: worry and fear. Since it resonated so well, I decided to read on. In chapter 15, Jesus states that if we remain in him and his words, we can ask for whatever we wish and he will give it to us. I remember distinctly staring at the wall and saying in complete unbelief, “Fine then, heal this child.” I fell sound asleep for the first time in weeks, and woke an hour or so later to a knock at my door. Dragging myself out of bed, I opened the door to find my boy standing there. As I stared in disbelief, he gave me one of those smiles I know him best for, and stepped into my front room. “Can I have a drink? Will you cook me an egg? Can I have some peanut butter?” I had almost forgotten the sound of his voice. I ushered him inside, willing at that point to give him just about anything he asked for.

Over the next week, all of us at Fairfield watched amazed as he continued to improve until yesterday when his “mother” stood and said the words we had been waiting to hear. “Today I sent him to school.” God had heard us. God was faithful in answering us, and every day as our little boy shows up at my door, I am eternally grateful for the extra time God has given us to spend with him in good health.

This Thanksgiving, let this story be a reminder of God’s great love for His children. You are one of them, and the single most important command He gives us is to spread this love to others. John 14-15

Happy Thanksgiving! I am especially thankful to my friends and family members who are a constant reminder to me of God’s unfailing love.

Wenyu Munashe,
Janine