Hello!

Since my last newsletter a lot has happened.  In August, I flew back to Zimbabwe for the month to check on the HOPE programs.  I was able to see many of the HOPE children as they came to show me their report cards from the end of second term.  They are all doing so well in school.  Our first University student, Samuel, has completed his education with top grades in mechanical engineering and is already on the job search.  His final project was selected first by the Ministry of Higher Education and he returned home with a gold medal! Congratulations Samuel.

Six of our students have just started their Grade 7 exams that last throughout October.  There are 12 additional students taking Form 4 and 6 (end of high school) exams this month.  Please pray that all their years of hard work will pay off and they can move on to University next year!

Just a few days before I left for Zimbabwe, I found out that I had been hired as the Director of Global and National Missions at Chapelwood United Methodist Church in Houston, TX.  I came home from Zimbabwe and had four days to finish the packing my mom had so generously started for me.  After driving my moving truck from WV to TX, getting an apartment and buying a car, I started work in mid-September.  In my position, I will be working to equip short-term teams that are sent to various mission projects around the world each year.  I will also have an opportunity to educate the congregation on God’s heart for missions and invite missionaries and local pastors we support to come share with our congregation as well.  A definite plus is that I will be using vacation time once a year to travel back to Zimbabwe and see my babies. 

Grace and Abby are growing and so joyful under the care of their loving house mother, Nyasha.  They are enjoying preschool, can count to 11, say most of their ABC’s and turned four on October 5^th. We are able to talk on the phone once a week so I keep updated on their favorite songs!

Wenyu Munashe,

Janine

 Special Prayer Request:

One of our Fairfield children, Chris, was diagnosed with a brain tumor a few years ago.  He has had multiple scans and radiation, and many months of hospital stays.  Currently he is back in the hospital and his usually tiny, frail body has been bloated because of the medicines he receives.  His health has been going up and down.  Please pray for his full recovery and for Tambu, the house mother that has been staying with him at the hospital for up to 4 months at a time.  She cannot see her own family during this time and has to sleep on the hospital floor.  Prayers are appreciated for the entire situation.

 

Dear Friends,
At the beginning of the year, I asked for prayers to discern where God wanted me next since I can no longer live in Zimbabwe. I spent three months in Cape Town, South Africa and started helping in a township there. I was then able to go visit Abigail, Grace and all the Fairfield children for a month in May. The girls are happy, healthy and enjoying preschool. I came back to the States fully expecting to apply for a work visa in South Africa and return there for full-time mission work.

After attending a week-long program in Colorado in June that is specifically designed for missionaries changing fields, I started to realize that God may have other plans.  I realized that Cape Town is not where I am supposed to go for this next part of the journey.  It is time to come home and support the ministry in Zimbabwe as best I can with your continued help.
I am applying for jobs in the US (which makes my parents very happy!) and am hoping to find one that will allow some time each year to go visit Grace and Abby and to check on the HOPE programs. My mission organization, CornerStone, has been so supportive and agreed to continue to receive donations for the HOPE Project - education, nutrition and medical programs
in Zimbabwe. I have been approved as a part-time missionary so that I can return to Zimbabwe and make sure everything is running smoothly each year.
Please, especially if you are currently sponsoring a HOPE child, continue with your donations so that we do not have to close down these life-changing programs. Everything will continue to function as it was when I was there full-time. There are strict checks and balances in place to ensure that all funding goes exactly where it was intended. Any assistance you can offer toward the goals for HOPE will be greatly appreciated.
I will return to Zimbabwe for another month in August to help make sure all the children have their fees paid before the third school term. Hopefully by the time I come back, I will be able to tell you where I will be living next!
Thank you for your continued support!
Wenyu Munashe,
Janine

Can you tell they have very different personalities?!

A Letter to South Africa

Dear South Africa,

I know we didn’t start off on the best of terms. I came to you not long ago with a broken heart. You accepted me without any questions, allowing me a safe place to grieve. At first I thought that was all you were to me, a resting place to decide what was next. But then I started to open my eyes to everything you have to offer. Each morning I see the sun begin its work, reflecting off the ocean waters and causing thousands of sparkling diamonds to dance upon its surface. Your church family accepted me without hesitation. You welcome people of many colors, languages and cultures to live together and learn from each other. You have a rich history that was difficult at times, but seems to have only made you stronger. And if all that wasn’t enough, you seem to have a fairly constant supply of electricity and water! You are beautiful both inside and out.

Although you have much to offer me, I began to wonder if there was anything I could give back to you. One day I visited your township, Masiphumelele, which means “we will succeed!” I met your children there. They remind me a lot of some other children I know in a country not too far from you. Some of your children are growing up in difficult circumstances, but it has not yet taken away the smiles on their faces or the joy from their eyes. If you think they might need another person to love them and teach them for a while, I have had some practice                                                                                                                                                     with that.

Yes, my heart was broken when I arrived, but I can feel it being stitched back together a little more each day. It is stronger and more resilient than it used to be. You see, South Africa, I used to think my heart was only big enough to fit two countries inside: the place of my birth and the place where my daughters were born. Those two, I will never stop loving. But it seems that before my heart had time to heal completely, you found your way inside. So if you will have me, I think I would like to stay. I might make a lot of mistakes in the beginning since everything is new to me, but hopefully that will be okay. I serve a God whose strength is made perfect in my weakness, so I think we’ll get along just fine.

Yours Faithfully,

Janine

(I will be returning to Zimbabwe on April 13th for a visit and then home to the States for speaking engagements before returning to South Africa, full-time in September. Please pray for the visa application process, which hopefully will be a bit easier than past experiences! I am still working through CornerStone and the HOPE programs in Zimbabwe will continue. Think of this as an expansion of the old to include the new!)