Memorable Volunteers

Beautiful Gate has the honor and privilege of hosting and serving along side of some amazing volunteers. These past couple of months was no exception as we enjoyed time with 3 wonderful young ladies.

Sarah Risser, Ashley Rogalske and Mallory Boes were such a blessing to Beautiful Gate. Each of them had different gifts that we benefited from and will always cherish. But they all had loving and giving hearts.

Sarah was an intern at Beautiful Gate for 6 weeks. She lovingly served in playgroup with the children and also lovingly helped in the office with projects that needed her expertise and the available time needed for them. We really appreciate all the things she helped us accomplish!

Ashley served in a baby house for 2 months, assisting her housemothers with chores and the daily care of the children. She also was actively involved in the soft play room working with the babies on their milestones every day. Her love was clearly shown in all her tasks!

Mallory also served in a baby house for 2 months, helping the housemothers with chores and with the children. Mallory spent a lot of time with the older children in playgroup, helping them with their small motor skills and social development. She showed her love everyday!

We are so grateful to each of you for your love and your time serving the Lord in His kingdom work......investing in and blessing the children and staff at Beautiful Gate.

We know your hearts have been changed! May God bless you as you go from here. May you continue to use your servant hearts for Him!

Farewell Emily!

We want to express our deepest thanks to Emily Esquivel for her service here at Beautiful Gate.

She served a year in 2015, coming two mornings a week leading our playgroup with stories and crafts. And now she has served full time in Pula 2 for 8 months. We are also thankful for the extra time Emily put into our playgroup program. She helped the children with many crafts, read to them and shared God’s word with them. When we had mission teams serving at Beautiful Gate, she helped coordinate the team members in playgroup when they were here. This made things in playgroup run more smoothly.

Emily, we are so grateful for your love. We are so grateful for the energy you put into everything you do. You have such a beautiful gift of serving others. Thank you for caring so much!

May God bless you as you go from this place and continue to serve Him!

Thankful

Forest Hills Bible Chapel Mission Team 2016

For the past 17 days Beautiful Gate had the privilege of getting to know and to be served by 13 brothers and sisters in Christ from Forest Hills Bible Chapel in West Michigan.

This team was remarkably flexible, patient and willing to do whatever was asked of them.

One of the main focuses of their mission trip was to serve the housemother’s and children by doing chores, helping with meals and assisting with activities in playgroup.

Another focus was painting. They painted 8 rooms in the baby houses! This is no small feat as there were little hands everywhere throughout the day. They needed to be strategic and plan around the children’s schedules.

To complete their project, they painted 4 murals on the living room walls. The walls look so fresh and clean and the murals add so much joy to the room.

It was very impressive to see some of the team members interacting with the neighborhood children and teens as well. Almost everyday on their break they would go to the neighbors house right outside our gate. They would talk and laugh and play.  They also learned a dance together! It was wonderful to see the relationships that were formed and how they made such a lasting impression on these kids. No doubt, the kids made a lasting impression on the team.

The team brought a lot of hand sanitizer for the care staff to help with keeping sickness at bay. They brought baby dolls, beautiful fleece blankets, fleece sweatshirts, receiving blankets, bibs and handmade quilts for our children. Thank you for these gifts and thank you to the dedicated ladies who made them! We deeply appreciate it!

The team also enjoyed a few day trips to see some of God’s creation and the beauty of Lesotho.

Even though it was quite cold this month, the team didn’t complain. Their Christ like attitude was an example to all! Beautiful Gate is so grateful to the team for their service! We really enjoyed getting to know you and working along side of you for the last several weeks!

Blessings and thanks from the staff and children of Beautiful Gate!

New friends with Beautiful Gate's neighbors

New murals for the baby houses!

Beautiful Painting job!

Cherish Week

                                                         Here are some of the girls who participated in Cherish Week

A couple of weeks ago a group of 24 girls ages 13-21 from the community had the opportunity to come together for 5 days and 4 nights on the campus of Beautiful Gate. They came to bond with one another, support each other, to work on schooling, to laugh and play, to be pampered, to hear from the word of God, to be mentored, to hear inspiring messages and much more.

These girls belong to a non profit organization that meets at the Ray and Sue Haakonsen (founders of Beautiful Gate) Training Center, which is located on our campus.

The organization is Mustard Seed Lesotho Society which includes Jewels of Hope which is a discipleship and skills program of the Mustard Seed.

Typically the girls come together once a week on Sunday’s where they enjoy a meal together, a time of mentoring, Biblical training and jewelry making. The benefits of belonging to the Mustard Seed reaches far into the girls lives. Not only do they get Biblical training and the mentoring needed during some tough situations, but the proceeds from their jewelry sales go toward their schooling and for some; it gets used for living expenses. Some of these girls are orphans and are caring for younger siblings at home.

But Cherish Week was unique and special; instead of one short Sunday afternoon, they were able to spend 4 nights and 5 solid days together. What a rich time for these precious girls!

I had the privilege of interviewing the girls after the week was over. I asked them what were some of the highlights of their week.

Here are some of the things they shared with me:

1. Taking a shower

2. Having hot water

3. Playing and seeing each other happy

4. Sleeping on comfortable beds

5. Having electricity

6. Sharing our dreams and stories at night

7. Hearing a Bible message from Ntate Moribe

8. Having others pray over them

9. Working on school (their dream is to be able to finish school)

10. Eating pasta (thanks for the spaghetti from the freezer Holland Christian Team!)

11. Making bread with success

12. Coloring

13. Having time to talk to an adult

14. Skyping with a big sister/mentor in Japan

15. Attending Beautiful Gate’s church service

The leader had a few things to share as well:

“ We are thankful to the private individuals whose contributions make it possible for us to reach these girls. We are also thankful to the community of Beautiful Gate. You allowed us to use your team housing with such amazing facilities. The girls were overwhelmed with the luxuries they received while staying at the Maroon House. As a leader and the cook, I appreciated the kitchen facilities, they were so amazing and so convenient. We were so thankful for the food that was already in house for our use, as our donations for Cherish Week were not as much as we were hoping for. We are thankful that the community of Beautiful Gate prays for us and supports us. We are also thankful when you admire the jewelry that the girls make; it’s such an encouragement to them when someone gets excited about their jewelry.

God has blessed us richly through Mustard Seed donors and through Beautiful Gate.”

What a joy is was to interview these girls and their amazing leader. They truly are beautiful young women of God, seeking to follow Him and make a better life for themselves and their families. Please pray for them as they have some big challenges in their lives. But praise God for this organization that mentors and encourages young girls to be all that God wants them to be!

~Karen Boersema

                                                                           GIrl Time!

God Ordained Adoption

(Our deepest apologies to the family; this blog post was written back in November 2015, but never made it to publication. So please enjoy the record of this momentous event!)

Adoption Day is one of the most beautiful celebrations a person could witness. To see a family welcoming a child into their hearts and lives and a child now receiving that unconditional love of a forever family, is moving to say the least. A place of belonging for the child! A true picture of God adopting us into His forever family!

Today we celebrated with a beautiful family from Sweden the adoption of their almost 2 year old precious little boy who has been with Beautiful Gate since he was just a newborn. This little boy quickly bonded with his parents, it was evident at the ceremony the love that has already begun to form there. The ceremony included singing, prayer, sweet words from the child's housemother and the "handing over" of the child from the housemother to the mother, gifts, touching words from the parents, and a message and blessing from our Beautiful Gate Chaplain.

What a day! Incredibly moving and many tears of joy! Congratulations to this beautiful new family and blessings to you with love from Beautiful Gate!

We give God the glory for the great things He has done!

Rejoicing in Adoption

We celebrate again the joining of a precious child to a loving family! 

The adoption ceremony at Beautiful Gate was a joyous event! There were a few tears and also there was plenty of dancing and singing! It was obvious how much the family loved this little one and how much he has bonded already with them. We praise God for such wonderful adoptive families for the children that we love and care for so much, it makes our saying goodbye so much easier.

Adoption is such a beautiful picture of what God has done for us...God adopting us to be His sons and daughters welcoming us into the family, providing love, security, instruction and a future. What a gift!

Days like this one are what we work for here at Beautiful Gate, this is why we do what we do! It's such a joy to see the progression from a orphaned, vulnerable child, to being whole and belonging to a complete family. 

Congratulations to the family! We are so happy for you! May God bless you as you go from this place!

Planting Seeds

Every week, the staff and most of our children, attend a Wednesday chapel service called Time with God. We sing, hear a Bible story and a short message from Ron. We pray and then make any necessary announcements. This is a valuable and wonderful time to come together as a Beautiful Gate family.

On Sunday's, the weekend staff and a few of our older children, enjoy a more formal church service. There is singing, a call to worship, a message, prayer and a blessing.
Beautiful Gate cares for a handful of children who are over 5 years old. These children are the ones who often attend these Sunday services.
Last week I was observing these older children and wondered how much of an impact this small Sunday service has on their young, challenging lives.

Our children don't have the opportunity to learn a lot of in depth Bible knowledge since they are most often in a group of 30-35 kids of all ages. They may get a short lesson and singing at playgroup but our older children are seemingly ready for more.

On Sunday's I watch how they seem to be paying attention. I watch how well behaved they are. (of course they are surrounded by BoMe who will keep them in line!) Every once in a while they will look around the room to see what the adults are doing. They are learning by example.
I wonder when they come, how much are they understanding? Are they actually listening to Ron's message?  How much do they relate to their own lives, which happen to be very different than most children's lives.
They don't necessarily have the foundation that most children have who belong to normal family units. Their realities are different than most kids.

We pray each week that the Holy Spirit will do what he does and bring clarity to the truth of God's word. Not just to the care staff that attend but to these precious little ones that attend as well.

I believe these older children are ready to be asked the basic questions like...Do you know that God loves you? Do you know that He is so big and mighty, that He will take care of you no matter what? Do you know that God has a plan for your life? Do you know that you can talk to Him whenever you want to? Do you know that God cares about all the big things and little things in your life? Do you know that God sent His son Jesus to save you and make a way for you to be in heaven and live forever?

Because of some of the language barriers and the fact that we have so many younger children, I don't believe these older kids have been asked these specific questions.

I do know that these truths are being shared each Wednesday and shared a bit deeper on Sunday's and I pray that the seeds that are planted there will be watered, take root, grow and bloom as God has intended His word to do.

Please join us in praying for the spiritual well being of our children, especially the older ones.
Our desire is to take the older ones aside and ask those questions that I believe they are ready for.
Ready for water!

(Written by Karen Boersema as shared on the Boersema blog)

Adoption Blessings

Beautiful Gate is proud to congratulate again, two new forever families! Two beautiful boys were officially welcomed into these beautiful families today with much joy and celebration!

It was a wonderful ceremony with a lot of singing and time for sharing.... Sharing from the housemother's who cared for the boys and an opportunity for the families to share as well. 

Parents who have a heart for adoption have longed for and prayed for this special day for months and some for years. The adoption process can be an emotional roller coaster. So as no surprise, the actual adoption day can be very emotional for the new parents. But the tears that are shed are tears of joy!

Praise God for the love He gives His people to pour into the children He has placed in their care.

What a blessing to see the bonding and the love already taking place. As we observe these two families we can see they are a perfect fit! It is truly a God ordained placement for these precious boys!

"May God bless you and keep you, may He cause HIs face to shine upon you and may He give you His peace."

~With love,

The staff at Beautiful Gate

Thank You Holland Christian!

What an incredibly blessed month of service June has been for us here at Beautiful Gate Lesotho! Over the last several weeks we’ve had the opportunity to once again partner with
Holland Christian High School in Holland, Michigan, USA.
This year we’ve been blessed with not one, but two teams from HC! Their time here was jam-packed and crazy busy, but full of love, service, and compassion for the people and country of Lesotho. While here they cared for our Beautiful Gate children and housemothers, gave fresh coats of paint to the exterior and parts of the interior of our administration building, ministered to teen moms at the Good Shepherd Centre (another local ministry in Maseru), built benches for both BG and GSC, and shined the Light of their Abba everywhere they went! We here at Beautiful Gate want to express our overwhelming gratitude to Holland Christian for your continual support in so many ways. We feel so fortunate that you continue to come alongside us in honoring the Father through loving His children in Lesotho! May our good, good Father bless all the members of these teams as they head home and continue to be ambassadors for Jesus Christ!

Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through him.
- Colossians 3:17 - 

Double Blessings

On Friday we experienced the blessing of not one, but two adoptions!

What a day of celebration for these new forever families and for Beautiful Gate.

We said ‘farewell’ and ‘go well’ to a five-year-old boy and a 2-year-old boy. They both met their families just over a week ago and already have begun the beautiful bonding process.

The children here at Beautiful Gate love their housemothers and are deeply bonded to them as their primary caregivers. For many of them, these mothers and Beautiful Gate are all they know. Yet, after spending just one week with their new parents, there is an obvious bond and security these children feel with their new families.

There is a part in each adoption ceremony where the housemother holds the child and speaks about the child. Then as a symbol of passing the child from one mother to the next, the housemother hands the child over to the new mother.

This ceremony was not unusual in that the child wanted to quickly get back to their new mother, even with a few tears.

Not that they don’t love their housemothers but now they are in this God ordained family and they seem to know it’s right.

We are happy to see the boys adjusting so well already to their new families.

We celebrate with and pray God’ blessings on these two families as they go from here and live their new, abundant lives together!

I prayed for this child, and the Lord had granted me what I asked of him.” ~Samuel 1:27

Released

Back home with her housemother!

Our little one has been released! 

We had asked for prayer a week ago on our facebook page for a little baby who was very sick. This child was admitted to the hospital on June 11 for diarrhea and dehydration. The child was sick for a week prior to being admitted to the hospital. 

When we asked you for prayer for the child, our nurse had just visited her and was quite concerned that she was not getting better. At that point she had been in the hospital for 5 days. She was still experiencing diarrhea, had lost a lot of weight and was still dehydrated. She was so tired and weak that moving or even crying took too much effort.

Praise God for answered prayer! With the proper IV and feeding tube, the child gained strength and all of her symptoms improved. Today she came back home to Beautiful Gate!

We never take a normal childhood sickness like the stomach flu lightly. Especially here in this country. Especially since we recently lost a child, our anxiety about any sick child is definitely heightened. 

Thank you for praying. And most of all, we thank God for His healing hand of mercy on this precious child.

Psalm 91:15   When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.

Amazing Volunteers

Beautiful Gate would like to extend our deepest thanks to Annie, Elizabeth and Sarah.

These 3 young ladies served at Beautiful Gate for 3-4 months with joy, dedication and most of all, an unending love for the children and the housemothers they worked with.

We enjoyed their laughter and smiles. We admired their persevering spirits. And we will always remember how they showed such love and grace each day.

Thank you girls for all that you did for the children and staff at Beautiful Gate! We will always think of you with joy!

We ask for God’s blessings on your lives as you go from here. May He be the center of your lives and guide your every step.

Whatever you do, work heartily,

as for the Lord and not for men,

knowing that from the Lord you will

receive the inheritance as your reward.

You are serving the Lord Christ.

Colossians 3:23-24

Thank You Christina

In 2009, a young woman set off for an adventure that would change her life forever. She did not know the radical way that God was going to interrupt her life, but she trusted Him. Many lives have been changed and it all started with a mission trip and a prayer for God to “break my heart for what breaks yours.”

That young woman is Christina Terpstra (Terp). She came to Beautiful Gate Lesotho (BGL) in October of 2009, and then returned in April of 2010 to serve the house mothers. She became close to the house mothers and the children as she lived and served them daily for 4 months. It broke her heart to leave that year, but God had other plans.

Terp led a few teams from Holland Christian High School as well as Haven Christian Reformed Church. It became clear that she still had a purpose with serving at Beautiful Gate. She became our North American Ambassador in 2013. For 6 months each year, Terp prepared teams and volunteers to come to BGL, fundraised all over United States and Canada, had weekly meeting with people interested in coming, donating or leading teams, spoke at churches around North America, and took every opportunity to share the story of Beautiful Gate. Then the other 6 months a year she came to BGL and served.

Her time at BGL was different each year, but much of her time was spent leading teams from work projects to devotions. She also worked in the office and would volunteer for whatever projects needed to be completed. She cared for sick kids, visited children in the hospital, drove our nurse and social worker around when needed, played with the kids, made everyone laugh on a rough days, and shared her love for Christ to everyone she met.  There are so many things she did for Beautiful Gate and we have all been blessed by her service to God.

In 2015, it became clear that she was being called to leave Beautiful Gate, and with a heavy heart, she gave her resignation. Her time in Lesotho came to a close on May 25, 2016, but she is still working hard for Beautiful Gate until the end of December 2016. She is taking a furlough for the month of June, but then she will continue to meet with people, speak at churches and train Tyler Robbert who is stepping into the role as the new North American Ambassador.

We are so thankful for all you have done, Terp. You have made a huge difference in our lives. We are praying that God will reveal the next plan He has for your life. We wish you well as you finish the year, and thank you for letting God break your heart for the things that break His heart. You have done well as you served His children. We all miss you so much and we don’t tell you that to make you feel bad for leaving, we tell you that because you are loved by many, and you made a difference!

Anita Geurink

A Day of Joy!

On Friday we celebrated the beautiful gift of adoption. There is always so much joy and so much to celebrate when a child is placed into a forever family!

This special family adopted their son from Beautiful Gate several years ago and again, now, have adopted their daughter from Beautiful Gate. What a testimony of a positive experience here in Lesotho and here at Beautiful Gate.

The parents had the opportunity to share what this day meant to them. They expressed their thanks to the staff at Beautiful Gate for taking such good care of their children during their time here. They said that people will often tell them that they are doing such a wonderful thing through adoption. But they wanted to be clear that it's not so much that they bless the children by adopting, but that the children bless them... That their lives are richer and fuller because of the precious children that have come into their family.

We love to witness adoptions! To see the families bonding and the gift of life given on both sides is a joy to see!

Congratulations to this beautiful new family! May God bless you richly!

Katleho Gazebo

Photo Credit: Jackson Barense

“Lord, you are my God;

I will exalt you and praise your name,

for in perfect faithfulness

you have done wonderful things,

things planned long ago.

You have been a refuge for the poor,

a refuge for the needy in their distress,

a shelter from the storm

and a shade from the heat.”

Isaiah 25:1&4

For years, Beautiful Gate has been known as a “haven” or an “oasis” for those that come on our campus. The grounds and services that we have desire to provide hope and dignity for those that need a place to pour out God’s love over them. This includes not only the children, but also our staff and the numerous volunteers that come onto our campus.

In 2007, a family from Michigan came to serve at Beautiful Gate for 5 months to help finish some projects on our current campus and help the move onto this campus. The Kroll family, Keith and Lori and their three children Tyler, Zach and Morgan, served very well not only in those five months but they have continued to serve well when they went back to their lives in Michigan and pointed key people that are in leadership at Beautiful Gate to the organization. The Krolls have continued to serve through short term mission teams through their church, Haven Christian Reformed in Zeeland, Michigan. Tragically on February 1, 2015, Zach Kroll passed away from this earth and entered eternity in Heaven with Jesus.  

Just over a year later, on April 6, 2016, The Kroll family along with the Beautiful Gate family dedicated the Katleho Gazebo. (Katleho, meaning success, was Zach’s Sesotho name.) This gazebo serves as a gathering place for all those that use it. It is a “shelter from the storm and shade from the heat” as it says in Isaiah 25:4. This gazebo serves as a gathering place on campus for people to come together and enjoy the blessings God has given them in each other. It serves as a place of joy and laughter. It also serves as a place of personal reflection and a place to spend time with our Abba. Zach knew and believed the promises in John 3:16 which says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Ultimately, this gazebo serves as a place of acceptance. May those who use it either as a place to sit and reflect or a place to be with others, know the deep love of our Father that Zach knew and may they not only feel God’s love, but Zach’s love as well.

During the dedication the Kroll family said, “Today we dedicate this gazebo to God first, in memory of Zach.” To the average eye, the gazebo is a structure of concrete and thatch, but to those that use can feel the presence of the Lord. The swings and picnic tables, that were constructed by Zach’s friends, serve as a place to sit and take refuge in the One who has the world in the palm of His hand.

To Zach, thank you for being such a great friend to so many. Thank you for serving those in your path and loving them the way God loves them. Thank you for all the joy that you spread through your life.

To Keith, Lori, Tyler and Morgan, thank you for sharing Zach with us and allowing Beautiful Gate to be a part of your family. Thank you for continuing to be faithful to God’s leading in your life.

To those that donated the funds for the gazebo, we promise that this structure will provide the community and support that we all need and long for.

Last but not least, thank you Lord, for providing a place on campus that allows Your family to come together and find hope and shelter from the routines of their days.

For years to come, may those who sit and swing or those who gather in community, know that they are resting in the promises of God as they use the Katleho Gazebo.

Farewell Grace

It was a bittersweet day as we said goodbye to our long term volunteer and friend, Grace Boersema.

Grace served in the baby houses for more than one year. Her heart was 100% invested in Beautiful Gate and these beautiful people of Lesotho. She served with such grace and patience every day. Her housemothers appreciated her respect for them and her willingness to step in and do whatever was asked of her.  Grace, you will be missed! Our lives have been changed for the better because of you! Thank you so very much for serving the Lord by serving the staff and children of Beautiful Gate.

~Karen Boersema 

“Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”   ~Matthew 25:40

Haven CRC

This past week Beautiful Gate had the distinct pleasure and privilege of hosting a team from Haven CRC in Zeeland, Michigan, USA. Haven teams are an annual regular here at BG and it’s always such a pleasure to see people return and reconnect with our children and staff. Each time Haven comes we see new relationships formed and old ones strengthened. This year was no different. The tears in many of our staff members’ eyes as the team departed were a testament to the amazing ways God used each team member to bless and love us so well.

This year the Haven team served in the baby houses, caring for the children and loving and encouraging our house mothers. They also built picnic tables and bench swings for the newly completed gazebo on our campus. We also took the time to dedicate the gazebo in honor and loving memory of Zach “Katleho” Kroll, a member of both the Haven and Beautiful Gate families (more on this in a separate post). Overall it was a week of selfless service, encouraging one another, and doing all things for the glory of God.

Haven team, thank you for another year of unwavering dedication and support. Thank you for how well you care for all of us at Beautiful Gate both while in Michigan and here in Lesotho. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your story and thank you for being a part of ours. Until next year, God bless!

Bittersweet Reunification

            Yesterday we had the opportunity to see two beautiful twins reunited with their biological father. Since I’m not on the management team here at Beautiful Gate I’m not always aware reunifications are happening until moments before they do. Yesterday was one of those situations. About twenty minutes before the father arrived I was told the children were going home and I was able to sit in the office, holding one of them until dad came.

            This man doesn’t have a lot. The brutal honesty of the situation as that the quality of care these children receive from here on out probably won’t be as good as what we were able to offer them. Realizations like that make reunifications difficult for me. I can’t help feel like we’ve failed on a certain level. But then I handed one of the kids over to the father. As he held his baby in his arms he was visibly choking back tears. As we prayed I heard him sniffing, trying to hide his emotion in that moment. Perhaps these children won’t have the same kind of care they received while at Beautiful Gate, but they have a father, and a father who loves them very much. He’s going to provide them with the best he can.

            In the grand scheme of things I realize I ought to be grateful because these babies have an earthly father who actually cares about them and wants them. They also have a heavenly Father who loves them more than anyone else ever could, and He’s going to provide for them in ways we can’t begin to imagine. The gap between the kind of care Beautiful Gate was able to provide and the care their father will be able to provide will be filled by the Great Provider. He will not let them fall. They will not be forgotten. They are blessed and now they are home. I can’t hope for much better than that.

Getwell Road UMC

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22. NIV)

This past week Beautiful Gate Lesotho was blessed to have a team of volunteers from Getwell Road UMC (Southaven UMC) come and be doers of the Word. They embraced God’s calling to care for orphans and widows literally The team cared for the children, lead a Vacation Bible School for our older children, built two swing sets (which our constantly in use!!), fixed major plumbing projects in two of the baby houses (including new drywall) and cared for the house mothers. Not a day went by when you would find a team member stopping what they were doing and praying over a staff member. In the evenings the team cared for the volunteers by encouraging and speaking truth over them.

Getwell Road, when you volunteered to come to Lesotho and serve, as a team we knew southern hospitality would follow, but we didn’t expect the intense feeling of seeing God’s unity in the body surround our campus. You each used the individual gifts the Lord gave you to give Him honor and glory. Thank you for coming and reflecting God’s love so well. Thank you for being Jesus with skin on to our children, house mothers, maintenance staff and volunteers. Thank you for not only hearing the Word, but carrying out it’s message to all those you met in Lesotho. 

Adoption Celebration

“Meeting your adoptive baby is like being set up on a blind date with someone you will have to spend the next eighteen years with. You care about looks, because you desperately want to fall in love with the stranger who will be your child.” ― Jana Wolff, Secret Thoughts of an Adoptive Mother

I was reminded of this quote when I witnessed Tsepang, one of our oldest children, meeting his mum for the first time last week Tuesday (01/03/2016). It was so sweet observing them approach each other with those anxious, questioning faces: ‘will he/she like me?’, ‘What should I do, should I run to him/her?’, ‘Should I give him/her a kiss or a hug?’ ‘Will she/he reject me if I do/say this?’. In just a little while, it was such a glorious thing to witness the child’s anxious face, break into a big, happy, shy smile, to see him bubble over with joy when he realizes “this is it, she’s really my mum and she has come to get me and take me HOME. She has brought me toys that are MINE to play with and KEEP! My mum is also cool, she let’s me rummage in her bag, find cool things like sunglasses, and SHE LETS ME WEAR THEM”.  I think for both it was love at first site. I believe this is a day they will never forget.

Then the child’s anxiety slowly fades away and about an hour later he’s playing with the cool toys with mum, the smile has turned into joyful laughter and giggles. Then a few minutes later the Social Worker announces, “This child is ready to go with mummy”. The child is told in Sesotho: “Ke nako ea ho tsamaea joale Tsepang” (It is now time to go Tsepang), he quickly jumps up from the chair, takes mum’s hand and holds on for dear life. The trip to the car is very short as he is literally almost running and dragging mum along. He gets to the car and is the first to jump in. We try to say ‘goodbye’ but he is so looking forward to getting out of here that he doesn’t even respond to us. WHAT A JOY WITNESSING A CHILD BEING ADOPTED TO A FOREVER HOME!!!

Yesterday was the Adoption Ceremony where Tsepang was officially handed over to his mum. This is always a sad-happy occasion.  Sad for the house-mothers, volunteers and staff who have loved and cared for this boy for the past four years. Happy for everyone to experience a child going to a forever-family, where he will be loved, nurtured and have a sense of belonging. WHAT A JOYOUS CELEBRATION!