Volunteer Love

Beautiful Gate would like to express our deepest gratitude for the memorable service of our  recent volunteers.

4 amazing ladies from around the world arrived around 3 months ago and all just recently left to go back home.

These ladies served with all their hearts!

They were hard working, committed, gracious, humble, positive, loving and kind.

All attributes that make serving together in this place a joy for all of us.

They were kind to one another, served one another and became great friends through it all.

They each expressed that they learned so much by their experience serving these children and housemothers and how much they enjoyed their time at Beautiful Gate.

Ladies, we thank you for your time, your love and servant’s hearts.

May God continue to bless you as you go on from here. We love you all!

Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. Philippians 2:3-5

Celebrating another Adoption!

Last week we were blessed with another adoption. This beautiful family comes from Canada and has been longing to adopt a child for a long time. God in His perfect timing saw fit to place this precious little girl into their loving arms.

This sweetheart also has two older brothers and loving grandparents and many other friends and family who are celebrating with them!

The ceremony was emotional and sincere but most of all, God was praised and given the glory for this perfect union.

Beautiful Gate is always very blessed to be a part of these beautiful adoptions. We pray God’s blessing on this new family and give Him all praise and honor and glory, for He has done great things!

Thank you Laura!

Yesterday we said farewell to our Australian volunteer, Laura Gibson.

Laura served in the baby houses here at Beautiful Gate for 3 months. She enjoyed caring for the children and supporting the housemothers. She also spent quite a bit of time learning the Sesotho language. This meant a lot to the staff as it showed that she cared so much for them to learn their language.

Laura always had a smile on her face and was positive in everything she did. And one thing that everyone noticed about her, was that her life in all ways, truly reflected a life that honored God.

Thank you Laura for your service here, we will miss you!

I Corinthians 10:31

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Giving Thanks: FRCZ Team

First Reformed Church of Zeeland Team

We had the joy of welcoming a team of five wonderful individuals from First Reformed Church of Zeeland, Michigan earlier this month! 16-year-old Kameron joined his mom Becky, as well as Nichole, Sara, and Nancy to serve for a week at Beautiful Gate. What a brave guy! It has my pleasure as a year-long volunteer to share in this experience, just three months into our time here.

My husband Andy -also a year-long volunteer- and I picked up the team at the Bloemfontein airport on Saturday. Having been a member at First for less than a year, I didn’t know anyone very well. I was pleasantly surprised and blessed to be received with excited greeting and hugs! Anyone who’s traveled a long series of flights and drives knows the magnitude of showing kindness and joy even after days of travel! After some humorous confusion regarding the presence of the rental van’s emergency brake, we were on our way to Beautiful Gate. After all those in-flight hours with the ladies, we weren’t surprised when Kam decided to join us in the truck!

After a tour of the grounds, the team began their service in the houses on Monday. There were no particular projects this week, just a chance to be helping hands to the house mothers and children. The team members arose early to feed and dress the children and then divided into mini-teams to help babies in the soft playroom reach milestones and provide special activities for the children in play group. In the afternoon and evening, it was back to the houses to help feed and bathe children and get them into their pajamas for bedtime.

Nancy playing with our little ones in the soft playroom. 

These days can be long, loud, and challenging as team members work through the daily tasks of caring for 12-15 children and navigating this task cross-culturally. We were so thankful that the team was able to embrace this task wholeheartedly and respectfully. They made an effort to learn both the children’s and house mothers’ names quickly and Kam even took it upon himself to communicate as much as possible in Sesotho.

The most beautiful thing about this team was their servant hearts. Lindiwe commented during their first evening here that we don’t always know exactly what to expect in terms of tasks when we come along on a trip like this: “Who knows- one moment you might think you’re caring for babies all day and then we might tell you we need you to paint the office!” Although no painting of the office was actually deemed necessary -due to other previous hardworking, helpful teams- it was clear through the gracious actions of this team that they would have taken on anything that was asked of them with a servant’s heart and no complaints.

On the way home from afternoon playgroup- so many people to love our children!

One team member commented how many many mission trips are service projects with a particular goal in mind: paint these houses, clean up this building, sand and re-finish these walls. These projects are important and also easy to understand; folks know the job and the directions and they are ready to dig in and work, start to finish. She went on to say that this kind of trip was different; it required a willingness to step in wherever need, to be ready for various tasks and directions during the day, and to have enough flexibility to serve each child and housemother with compassion. Throughout this week, the compassion of this team was clear.

Kam getting down to the kids' level to play (and enjoy the allure of the clover, a favorite of the children).

We, as staff and volunteers, experienced the compassion of this team, as well. Part of their ministry included toting extra suitcases to transport items from the US that are difficult or expensive to purchase here. There were new shorts for staff kids, scrapbooking supplies for the adoption scrapbooks, quality new resources for the school here, and a carry-on of necessities and early Christmas gifts for Andy and me. When one is far from home, things like this really warm the heart, especially when one isn’t yet used to living in a new place. We have never been so happy to see Reese’s peanut butter cups in all our life! This gesture of love meant so much.

This team was so fortunate to be able to experience an adoption ceremony! Many tears of joy.

As we celebrate Thanksgiving, we give thanks for the First Reformed team. From their expressions of laughter and joy, to Kam’s first dirty diaper change, to a daring trip up Lancer’s gap ending in torrential downpour, this team was a blast to host. Although we feel terrible that three of the team members left with food poisoning (!) we trust that their time here was meaningful and we praise God for their safe travels home. We give thanks that they were able some ‘home’ here and for their cheerful servant hearts to all of the Beautiful Gate family.

Kam's initiation to diaper-changing. What a champ! (Don't worry...Nancy swooped in for assistance).

Kam, Becky, Nichole, Sara, and Nancy- thank you for answering God’s call and showing his love. We also thank God for Cyndy and Jackie; though they were not able to be physically present, we know that their prayers and support helped to bring you here and sustain you. We praise God for your willing hearts and pray that God continues to shape you through your experience at Beautiful Gate.

Happy Thanksgiving!

~Carlie Shults

“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else.  And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!"

2 Corinthians 9:7-8 ; 12-15

Adoptions

A couple of weeks ago we celebrated a beautiful adoption ceremony for a sweet little girl!

God had planned this special day from the beginning and we rejoice with her and her new family.

The staff at Beautiful Gate sang songs of joy and covered the new family with prayer. The housemother of the child shared her thoughts and blessings in the customary handover from housemother to adoptive mother, which is always a meaningful moment in the ceremony. It was a wonderful time to see God’s hand and goodness!

Beautiful Gate is so thankful for parents who feel called to adoption and we pray God’s wisdom and blessing on this new family.

Also, last week we celebrated another local adoption of another little girl. This couple was so thankful for the privilege to adopt a child who needed a family. What a beautiful picture of our adoption as Christian’s into God’s family.

The love and bond already shown between parent and child was beautiful to see and we are thankful that this little one has a wonderful home to grow up in.

Praise God for answered prayers and more adoptions!

Matthew 18:5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me.” 

Art Prize Reflections

Over the years we’ve had many cool opportunities to share about the work God is doing in Lesotho at Beautiful Gate. This year is no different! In addition to hosting volunteer teams from all over the world and traveling to meet with different churches, schools, and individuals, our North American Ambassadors were able to engage in a new and unique awareness-raising opportunity!

For those who are savvy in the art world and familiar with Southwest Michigan, you’ve probably heard of ArtPrize. For those who haven’t, it is a massive art competition in Grand Rapids, MI, USA in which nearly 1,500 artists are able to share their work, ranging from paintings to sculptures to music. For two weeks this event takes over the greater Grand Rapids area in over 140 different venues.

This year at ArtPrize there was an exhibit featuring many of the children at Beautiful Gate! Mary Westrate, a phenomenal local artist from Holland, MI, painted 14 breathtaking canvases from photographs she originally saw on our BG website and Facebook page. Her artwork absolutely captured the heart and soul of what life is like on our campus. Her paintings featured bright colors, reflecting the bright hope and joy the kids and staff at BG have. Several of her pieces showed the children holding hands and hugging, emphasizing the importance of relationships so inherent in the Basotho culture. Displayed as a playground, the exhibit expressed BG’s mission to provide a place for kids to just be kids.

We are so grateful to have had the opportunity to share the good news about what God is doing in Lesotho at Beautiful Gate in this way! Beautiful Gate’s Ambassadors were able to share stories about the staff and children at BG, as well as have many meaningful conversations about adoption and the great depth of God’s love for all His children. Not only was this an opportunity to bring awareness about Beautiful Gate’s ministry, it was also a wonderful opportunity to bring glory to God and make His name great!

We say thank you to Mary for the beautiful work she did on the paintings. We also thank ArtPrize and First (Park) Congregational Church for selecting and exhibiting the pieces.

~Tyler Robbert

Andrew's Service

Beautiful Gate has been privileged to get to know and work along side of Andrew Pimm for the last little while!

We are so grateful for the love and time Andrew put into everything he did and into everyone he interacted with. 

He was very good at seeing what needed to be done and just jumped right in. He helped in the baby houses with the daily care of the children, in playgroup, in the library, and helping wheelbarrow food across campus with multiple trips.

We also saw him several times jump up from what he was doing to assist a housemother with her arms full of children or give up his chair in chapel for a housemother. 

Thank you Andrew for sharing your caring heart with the staff and children of Beautiful Gate! We can't wait for your visit again!

Andrew and his housemother in Khotso

Thank You England Team!

Last week we enjoyed the presence of 10 women from England who came to give of their time and hearts to the staff and children of Beautiful Gate.

They served in whatever way was needed. They helped: feed babies, change nappies, hang laundry, wash dishes, play with children, read to children, and they took children for walks, just to name a few!

Another task that needed to be done was to clean our last 2 newly constructed houses at Beautiful Gardens. 5 of the women worked tirelessly for days to get these houses ready for someone to move into. We are so grateful for your help ladies on this huge job!

What many of us noticed about this team was their joyful willingness to serve and for their gracious hearts while serving.

Thank you team for all you did for Beautiful Gate. Thank you too for the amazing donations for our children, they will certainly get used!

We pray that your time here was blessed and that your hearts are forever changed for the least of these!

An amazing testimony - One year later

I would like to share an amazing story from a family who adopted from Beautiful Gate one year ago. Their story was very unique, and was filled with "mountains" that they needed to climb in order to bring their precious boy home. Please take some time to read their story because it is an encouragement to all and a testimony of perseverance. We at Beautiful Gate are so grateful that they persevered because another of our precious children has a home and a loving family. Please click the link below in order to read the words from his new mother.

http://laughingonthewater.blogspot.com/2016/10/mohale-one-year-later-beautifully.html?m=1

The Power of Prayer

When our children pray at Beautiful Gate, they are asked to fold their arms and close their eyes...this sweet boy is ready to pray. 

Prayer is vital in the life of a Christian and also in the life of a Christian organization. Many of us have experienced the power of prayer and seeking God’s face with deep sincerity and we have seen God respond to the cries of His people.

Beautiful Gate has been privileged to have a prayer team in past years. This team has gone through some changes and we are hoping to jump start a prayer team again.

We know there are some of our readers who have a passion for prayer and maybe belong to prayer groups that are faithfully and fervently interceding on the behalf of others.

We are asking if anyone would like to be on a prayer team for Beautiful Gate Lesotho.

If you are interested, please send an email to Karen opsmanager@beautifulgatelesotho.org

Karen will send prayer updates, praises and requests periodically to your emails as well as periodically on our blog page.

Thank you for considering this and thank you to those who are already praying for Beautiful Gate!  May God receive the glory!

Here are some items that we humbly ask you to pray for..…………

Ongoing prayer items:

•     Health for our children
•     Forever families for our children
•     Emotional and psychological health for our children
•    Salvation for our children
•     Strength, energy and health for our care staff

Current prayer items:

•       For the little one who was reunited with family last week and is old enough to understand and experience the unknowns and fears.
•       For the adoption ceremony that took place on Friday and for the bonding process to be strong and healthy.  We praise God for this new family!

Thank you again for your prayers and support of Beautiful Gate!

Philippians 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

           

Working at the Car Wash

We want to extend a huge thank you to the Youth Confirmation class and all who helped them from Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Grand Ledge, MI, USA! After hearing about Beautiful Gate Lesotho and our mission to care for abandoned, orphaned, and other vulnerable children, some of the youth at Good Shepherd decided they wanted to do something tangible to help the kids at BG. In order to raise some funds to send to Beautiful Gate the Good Shepherd youth and some other generous volunteers put on a car wash where they were able to raise $700 (~R10,000)! Thank you so much to our brothers and sisters in the Good Shepherd Lutheran community! We are so grateful for your generosity, your compassion, and your partnership!

- Tyler Robbert

"Lemonade For Sale"

Beautiful Gate has friends all over the world. Sometimes these friends do the most beautiful and unexpected things. Recently, we were given a donation from Evelyn (Evi) Hulls, who is a missionary middle schooler in Lesotho. She went on furlough during our winter (her summer) and while she was there, she and a friend decided to have a lemonade stand. It was not just a way of making money to go buy ice cream or make-up, but it was a lemonade stand for a cause. They took their time and sat in the hot sun to raise money for the children at Beautiful Gate. They raised M1550 for the children at Beautiful Gate! That was a pretty successful lemonade stand.

As volunteers, staff and children at Beautiful gate, we are so touched by such a sacrifice by two young teens. Giving up a day that could be spent doing all sorts of fun things, and spending it raising money for those who don’t have parents to provide for their needs. What a gift! Thank you Evi and Carly for your thoughtful gift to Beautiful Gate. Thank you for being a friend to children who really need a friend and advocate. May you both be blessed for the love you have shown to God’s little children in Lesotho. I hope others will be encouraged by your thoughtfulness, and even inspired to find ways to bless the kids at Beautiful Gate. It does not matter what age you are, you can always do something special for a child in need.

 “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.” 1 Timothy 4:12

Here is a picture of their lemonade stand as well as a picture of Evi handing money to our office assistant, Thato, and Evi and her brothers meeting some of the BG children.

~written by Anita Geurink

Welcome To This World

Welcome to this World

You probably have no idea
how special you are.
For years and years you
will carry a scar.
Unwanted, unloved, abandoned
at birth,
People will tell your story with
careless mirth.
Was it a pit toilet, a garbage bag, 
or buried alive?
Unwanted, unloved, until at our gate
you arrived.
Our eyes well with tears as we
hear your story,
Knowing you will be safe now-
we give God the glory.
It breaks our hearts that you came
to us this way,
Unwanted, unloved, and abandoned
until today.
Welcome to this world, my sweet
little child,
This day of your birth has been
anything but mild.
We will give you love, care, and even
your first meal,
As you wait for your new family,
we hope you will heal.
                     Anita Geurink

Reality

There are some days that the reality of this place affects us in deep ways. 

There is a precious child here at Beautiful Gate who arrived recently for a temporary stay. The child's mother was ill and in the hospital and the child could not be around her for fear of the child getting sick also. So we were going to be the caretakers until the mother was better.

This was a difficult separation for mother and child, as the child was old enough to know what was going on and has never been away from mom.

The child has been quite sad ever since arriving to Beautiful Gate. We are concerned because even eating has been affected.

We were informed that the child's mother passed away. 

We will need to tell the child this news. We don't know what the future is, whether or not there are family members willing to take the child. But since the child has already needed a place during the mother's hospitalization, this may be an indication that there may be no one to step forward.

Please pray for this precious one and the brokenness in such a short life. We are praying for the emotional health of the child and for a forever home.

Trusting God together!

Support

A local man whose daughter volunteered with us for a few weeks has blessed Beautiful Gate with a walking tool for our children.

We have been longing for a walking bar in our soft playroom for the children to use to pull themselves up on and walk along side of.

When this man heard of our need, he immediately made things happen so that the bar would be finished as soon as possible. The bar was installed within the next few days and has been in good use ever since!

Now with the walking bar, the children who are just learning to stand and walk have been using the bar for support and gaining confidence each day. We now have one of our little ones who was a bit behind in walking…. taking steps on her own!

We are so thankful for the gift of this bar and for the support of our local community.

What a blessing for the children of Beautiful Gate!

Forever Family

Beautiful Gate is happy to announce the beautiful union of a forever family!

Last week we celebrated the adoption of a little boy to a local Basotho family. We are thrilled that this little one will be raised in his own culture and that they love him already as their own.

The adoption ceremony was full of joy and singing as we praised God for His goodness and provision for this precious child!

Blessings as you go from this place, we love you Katleho!

A Closer Look

My friend, Tim Spykstra, has talked many times about divine appointments. It is amazing how we can look back in our lives and see God moving us, and how the people we meet have such a big impact on that movement. Peter and Lindiwe Kirstein have had their lives impacted by just such a divine appointment.

Lindiwe attended church with Ray and Sue Haakonsen (founders of Beautiful Gate Lesotho, BGL), but she had no idea that becoming friends with them would have such a large impact on her future. Through her friendship with the Haakonsens, she was able to watch them set up BGL as they took 3 infant children into their home. Lindiwe had a job working as Director of Administration and HR at a bank in downtown Maseru, but she came and visited the care centre when time would allow. As BGL moved to other houses as they expanded, Lindiwe would also visit them , and then joined their board of directors in 2006.

In March of 2006, Lindiwe and Peter were married. They had met on a mission outreach in South Africa, and he moved to Lesotho. Lindiwe shared about BGL and Peter was interested in being a volunteer. He became the volunteer and team coordinator in April of 2006, and by 2009 he was keeping the books for the building projects and serving as the HR manager.

Peter and Lindiwe were given the opportunity to become the directors of BGL in 2009, but they felt God tugging at their hearts to serve at a different ministry. Lindiwe had been working in the business realm and had not had an opportunity to be a missionary before. She felt led to leave her home country of Lesotho, leave her comfort zone, and serve God as a missionary in South Africa.

They moved to Dundee, South Africa in 2010, and shortly after moving there, they met a baby boy who needed their help. They became foster parents to Simphiwe as they served in Dundee. They served there until 2014 when they felt God telling them to return to Lesotho. They once again volunteered at Beautiful Gate, and after some time, the Lord made it clear that this time, they were meant to stay and become the new directors of Beautiful Gate.

We are very blessed to have them here because their love for the Lord is very evident. Knowing that they seek Him first gives us the peace to know that God will lead and direct them as they lead and direct His people. Their love for children is clear and their willingness to jump in and be helpful wherever is needed shows that they care deeply for this precious ministry. We could not have asked for a better fit for the new directors, and while it will be hard for Bryan and I to let go, we know that BGL will be in very capable and loving hands. Training has begun with a hopeful handover date coming in January of 2017. We all praise God for the way He crossed all of our paths. The divine appointment of friendship with Ray and Sue, going to South Africa where they were able to become parents of Simphiwe, and coming back and getting to know Bryan and I are all clear signs of God’s hand and timing. We are all amazed as we look back and see God moving. We wish you all the best Lindiwe and Peter!

~Anita Geurink

Actions Speak Louder

Actions speak louder than words.......

A group of 13 people from Faith Reformed Church in Zeeland, Michigan recently spent 9 days at Beautiful Gate showing God’s love by their actions.

They served the children and the housemothers every day by hanging clothes on the line, sweeping, washing dishes, changing diapers, preparing food, feeding children, playing with children, reading to children, they played soccer with children, painted the office interior, spent more time loving on the children, and they gave our entire staff new shoes.

All of these actions showed God’s love without a word.

Not that this team didn’t express love through their words, but their actions stood out and were so obvious to those of us who were watching.

All of their acts of service were equal in level of importance and impact. But we'll now focus on just one of them… the gift of shoes for our staff:

The entire staff was gathered for a Braai to celebrate Women’s Day last week.  After the celebration, while we were still seated, Faith’s team leader stood up and spoke to the staff.  He said how much they appreciate the people of Beautiful Gate and their commitment to caring for orphans. He expressed how much Beautiful Gate has meant to individuals from their church and community and that they had wanted to bless the staff in some way. They decided to raise money to purchase a new, good quality pair of shoes for each staff member; which their church eagerly contributed to. At that moment, our staff cheered, whistled, sang, danced, cried and celebrated in such a way that most of us have never seen before. There was so much joy in that moment, we were all overcome with emotion watching them. 

One of our Beautiful Gate employees stood up and thanked the team for their generous gift, concluded by more singing and dancing. And without much hesitation, the first round of employees hopped into the team’s rental vans and were taken to the local shopping mall where they could pick out their own shoes. They sang the entire way to the store. They each picked out their shoes and then sang all the way home. The following day the team brought 2 or 3 more van’s full to purchase their shoes…again, more singing and thanking God for the amazing gift!

One of the staff members said that shoes were so important to him because he didn’t have shoes for much of his growing up years. This was truly a blessing!

The staff continued their celebrating and dancing across campus as they went back to work with joy in their hearts.

We all learned a lot that day….how to truly show thanks and how to truly celebrate God’s goodness.

Thank you Faith Reformed Church for showing Beautiful Gate the love of God through your actions.

For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. ~James 2:26

Building for the Lord

                                        Allan on the left, his 2 grandsons and Murray (who has been here for the 4th time)

We would like to thank our long time friend, Allan Long. Allan has been involved at Beautiful Gate since coming on a mission team in 2006. He has done the construction management and the coordinating of most of our buildings on campus here at Beautiful Gate. Allan has also helped with the landscaping and has worked along side of our head of maintenance, Ntate Francis, over all these years.  He has also brought various teams of specialized workers several times to help with specific tasks. He is basically a missionary builder, who has lived here in Lesotho for extended periods of time as he continued his projects for Beautiful Gate.

Allan was also the building manager and coordinator for Beautiful Gardens, our new rental housing facility about 5 miles from Beautiful Gate.

Allan and a team of 3 men came last month to finish our two largest rental homes at Beautiful Gardens. They mainly worked on the cabinets in the houses and finished any last items that needed to be done.

Beautiful Gate would like to acknowledge and thank Allan for all of his work at Beautiful Gate and also his work at Beautiful Gardens.  Allan, we are grateful for your service, for your Christian leadership and for your friendship.

Thank you also to the team who gave up your time and served the Lord as you worked on these houses. They are beautifully done! This is such a valuable project, as the income from these rentals will help provide for some of Beautiful Gates needs.

We pray you were as blessed by your time here as we were by you!

May the Lord bless you!

Amazing Grace

We praise God for another adoption! Last week we celebrated with a wonderful couple and their son, the joining of their new family!

Again we were able to see a picture of what God did for us by adopting us in His family. It truly is God's grace and is a blessing to be a part of!

As is always the case, we were witnesses to a beautiful union as we saw the obvious bonding process already beginning. This little boy already has a brother who is, ironically, just 3 weeks younger than him!

We are grateful to God that one of our precious children will be taught to love the Lord as he grows and matures in Christ with his brother and parents.

Congratulations to this beautiful new family! May you live in that amazing grace and may God bless you on this new journey!

~God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. Ephesians 1:5 (NLT)