Anchor Your Life

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South Africa

A little bit more

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Christmas doesn’t come from a store, maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more….” – Dr. Seuss

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We want to bring Christmas to the kids in Southern Africa by providing our children with new backpacks containing toothbrush and toothpaste, deodorant, soap, shampoo, Vaseline, face cloth, and a special treat for each of them to enjoy.

Would you consider helping us bring the gift of Christmas to these children in Southern Africa? $20 will cover the cost to purchase, assemble, and distribute each pack.


Secure online donation.

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A Place To Play

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The Need: A Place to Play in SyferfonteinDSC_3801 DSC_3806

The Need:
 
“By far the biggest concern and problem that we picked up during these evaluations is a lack of stimulation between children and parents.  We found that this is mainly due to the fact that families lack books, toys, games and parental knowledge and guidance.  Children that are not in school yet hang around the streets playing with dirty water or with anything they can find in the streets.
Because of these circumstances we found a big delay in reaching their milestones compared to other children their own age. We found low muscle tone and muscle bulk, poor balance, core stability, coordination and proprioception. These toddlers all appear smaller than their age, weak and with very little muscle strength. They are cognitively behind and struggle with concentration.
Children learn through playing and get stronger through repetition.  Due to the vast number of children that we have seen in Syferfontein, we feel that putting up a playground with the correct and necessary equipment to address the above mentioned problems it would be a good start to help them develop.” – Bertha DuPlessis and Karen LeRoux

The Beginning: photo 2 photo 5 The Challenges:
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The Progress: DSC_6028

Shaded Area

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Fence completed!

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Low areas filled!

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Equipment starts to arrive

You can help us with the playground…

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Winter Faces

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2013 winter pack distribution.
2013 winter pack distribution.
2013 winter pack distribution.

These are the faces of some of the children who benefited from our 2013 winter pack distribution. There are many more children like this who are in need of support for the upcoming winter months as they face temperatures below freezing.

Help us provide new winter packs for 250 children in Southern Africa by visiting our webpage here.

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Special Delivery

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In addition to the winter packs which were given to each of the 100+ children involved in our weekly Bible Study in Lesotho, we had the chance to give a few of our children some very special blankets designed by the women at Loving Covers.  These blankets were individually made and uniquely created by the women involved in the ministry, and each one included a matching backpack and stuffed animal to go with it.

These are cherished blankets that share the love of Jesus by bringing warmth, hope, and comfort to those who receive them. What a special moment for our children in Lesotho…

The kids were so excited to receive their blankets – you could just see it on their faces! For kids who have shown tremendous dedication to growing in their walk with the Lord and doing well in their school studies, this was a reward for a job well done…

Thanks to the ladies from Loving Covers who have poured out their hearts and their time to making a child feel special…

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Delivering Winter Packs

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On our second day in Lesotho, we were ready to go! We were excited to deliver our winter packs to all of the kids!

The next few months (May-September) are rough for our kids in Lesotho as they start getting into the winter months and face the tough reality of having to live in freezing cold temperatures with very little to keep them warm. As I’ve spent the last few years in Lesotho I’ve seen first hand many of the conditions these children have to face … sleeping on cold cement floors, no heat in their homes to keep them warm, and little in the way of warm clothes to wrap themselves in … with this comes the responsibility to help care for these children.

Last month, the students from Up with Down’s helped package 200+ winter packs (blankets, hats, gloves, and scarves) and we were ready to start handing them out!

After receiving their bags, the kids pulled out the blankets and started putting on their hats, gloves, and scarves.

Bags so full of goodies, that the little ones could hardly even carry them!

As always, Nic and Wendy did such a great job loving on our kids and making them feel extra special.

And these two, along with many other kids, walked away with new blankets to wrap themselves in and gloves, hats, and scarves to keep their little bodies warm this winter.

James left us with these words in the Bible … “If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” (James 2:16-17)

… We want to heed this call and meet those needs! As we strive to make a difference in the life of one child at a time… Thanks for helping us provide winter packs for the children in South Africa!

For more pictures visit our facebook page at (www.facebook.com/anchoryourlife/).

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Come!

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DryWe live in Sarasota, Florida where we experience droughts and floods. Our summer rainy season is either in short supply or in abundance. When the afternoon rains do not prevail, the scorching sun dries out all the vegetation. Lawns turn brown, flowers wilt, and the water table recedes with imposed water restrictions. When it’s dry, it’s very dry.

Refreshing rainsIn contrast, when the afternoon thunderstorms are prevalent we view a very different creation. The grass is green and grows frantically. Many times we have to cut our lawn twice a week. Plants, flowers and weeds grow profusely. When it rains, it is wet!

In our spiritual lives we all experience droughts. Our time and experiences with God are in short supply. When the fresh rains of God’s presence don’t prevail we dry out. Our hearts wilt, our hope fades, our love withers, our faith runs in short supply.

When we’re in a spiritual drought we need the fresh rains of God’s presence. It takes time in worship to experience God’s refreshing of our souls. It takes time in prayer seeking His heart to have our love for Him flourish. And, it takes time in God’s Word to satisfy the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.

Lesotho has experienced a physical drought. Crops are scarce and the consequences are life threatening. But, nothing is more eternally threatening than their spiritual drought. We are asking God to pour His refreshing rains over Lesotho.

For only God can say:

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. Revelation 22:17

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His Word

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Bible studyOne of the most powerful lessons I learned during our trip to Lesotho was experiencing first hand the power of God’s Word. I have been teaching Bible studies for the over 18 years. During that time I have stated the God’s Word is sufficient. That it’s all we need for life and godliness. My conviction was challenged last year in Lesotho…

On the first day of our trip last year I had 7 hours of teaching to do with the adults of the Maseru United Church. As the time approached I began to question…What if after 10 minutes I lost my audience? After all I have no cross-cultural training. I knew little about the people I was teaching and less about their culture. We had little in common. I didn’t even know their names. I was responsible for teaching some 20 adults, most of whom were the elders and leaders of the church.

But, today I am more convinced than ever that God’s Word is sufficient in Africa, in the US and around the world. It truly does transcend time and cultures. And, it literally transforms lives. It was amazing to watch the people’s faces light up as they studied the Word. I watched as the Spirit of God took the Word of God and imprinted it on their hearts and minds and revealed to them how it directly applied to their lives. I can’t do that. But, God can. And I know that His Word is sufficient today.

How about you? What is it that you depend on for your life and godliness? I deliver 4 messages in Lesotho this year and I’m praying that His Word goes out with power, knowing that it never returns without accomplishing His purposes!

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