Swaziland to Taiwan - we are all the same, just different.

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It’s Saturday morning and I am in South Africa on my last leg of an 11-day trip to Taiwan.  While it was a wonderful trip visiting old friends and making new ones, there is no place like home and I will be home soon.

The past eleven days has been spent raising money through the 2^nd 100 KM Walk for Water campaign with the students of Changhua Senior High School and other students from Canada, Japan and the United States who joined in.  It was encouraging to see so many businesses join together with students from around the world to help us with funding for the water dam at Project Canaan.  I also enjoyed the opportunity to share about Heart for Africa with the teachers and students from Morrison Academy and applaud all they are doing to serve the Lord and point their students to a life of serving Him. 

I hesitate to attach those first two paragraphs with the rest of the thoughts on this blog so please know that these two topics are not connected in any way other than geography and time. _____________________________________________________________________

Now a few other thoughts from last week.

On the surface, Taiwan and Swaziland appear to be vastly different worlds. Taiwan is stacked high with people living in densely populated high-rise buildings, tens of thousands of motorcycles and food being cooked up and down every street you see.  The opposite is true of Swaziland where 90% of the people live in rural homesteads, walking is the primary mode of transportation and food is scarce due to drought, poverty and unemployment.

One of the similarities of the two nations is the kindness of the people.  I find the Taiwanese and the Swazi people to be kind, gentle, polite and very loving.  There are people in both countries whom I would consider dear friends and those who are family to me.

But on this trip to Taiwan I discovered another similarity and one that was unexpected, and disturbing. 

While sharing with people about the challenge we face in Swaziland with the increase in “baby dumping”, I learned that there was a challenge in Taiwan of a similar, but different nature.  It is abortion.  A couple of women working with Pregnancy Crisis Centers (which are few) told me that it is reported that 90% of all single women who get pregnant have abortions, and many of these women have multiple abortions in their lifetime. It is a growing problem and the total estimated numbers are staggering as women continue to be educated, enter the work force and have options that weren't always available to them.

Unwanted pregnancies are not a new phenomenon and neither is abortion or child abandonment, but the growing awareness of these things must bring us all to our knees in prayer for the mothers, fathers and babies.

If you read my blog dated May 23, 2012 you will know that I am adopted and that my birth mother was 15-years old when I was born in 1963.  As we continue to receive babies in Swaziland who have been dumped I am reminded daily of the gift of life that I, and our new babies have been given. Once again I give thanks that my birth mother chose life for me.  Now I have the opportunity to help others choose life.   

I am thankful that I have the opportunity to meet people all over the world so that we can share our challenges with each other and pray for each other. People are people no matter where you go.  We all have struggles in our lives, in our families and in our communities.  We live in a world full of pain and suffering, but we must remember that there is a God who sees all (El Roi) and loves us through our pain and in spite of our sin.  For all of you who are followers of Jesus and who read this blog, please join me in praying for the children of this generation all around the world, that they will rise up to be strong leaders for righteousness and show love towards others.

Live from Swaziland … I arrived home on the top of the mountain at Project Canaan in Swaziland and am thankful.

Janine 

What if I had said "NO"?

In 16 days our family will be getting on a plane to Africa.  My head moves quickly from having no thoughts to write down to having too many thoughts to write down. Maybe that is an aging thing?  A woman thing?  A mama thing? Or maybe just the reality that we are moving to Africa in 16 days?

Five and a half years ago we moved to Alpharetta, Georgia.  To explain it in "Christian-ese"  I thought I had "given it all up for Him", but down deep I really did love my house, my yard, my neighborhood and my life in Canada.  If I was going to move ANYWHERE I thought it would be to Africa.  Didn't God know that I wanted to move to Africa?  Wasn't I really clear with Him on that in my prayers and daily conversations?  Had He forgotten the children living on the streets that HE introduced me to?  Had He forgotten those that I longed to care for, encourage and love?  Instead, He moved us to a wealthy, (largely white) suburb of Atlanta - this from Toronto, the largest multi-cultural city in the world.  I was not pleased.  We moved into a beautiful house in a beautiful neighborhood, and I was miserable.  I was angry.  Why America (no offense meant to all my American friends), but why not Africa? 

As I look back on the past  5-1/2 years I am in awe of the people whom we have met, the places we have gone and the miracles that we have seen.  If we hadn't moved here, and moved straight to Africa (my plan) we would have missed so much.  I am thankful for North Point Community Church and for Chloe's small group and small group leader (shout out to Alyse!) who have come alongside Chloe to encourage her to be the most amazing young woman she has become.  I am thankful for the theater department at Milton High School where Spencer has been able to thrive, grow, create and learn.  After watching the incredible Cirque Kuwa performance (over and over again) I thought to myself, "what if I had said NO to moving here - Spencer would have missed this opportunity."  You see, our plans, our desires and our obedience have direct implications for everyone around us - especially our immediate family.

If we had not moved I would never have met the amazing Birk family and seen God's glory pour through a family's worst nightmare.  And of course, without that nightmare, we would not have the El Roi Baby home today.  Without the loss of little Jared Birk, our five little babies (Joshua, Esther, Caleb, Levi and Anna) might not be alive today.  Oh, what I would have missed.

So I repent again and give thanks, again, for His plans are not our plans, but they are BETTER than our plans, every time.

I continue to find it interesting how others perceive our move to Swaziland.  We are not moving there to be missionaries just like we didn't move to Georgia to be missionaries.  We are just a family moving to serve in another country at this time.  But this time I feel like I won the lottery.  I get to go and spend time in a beautiful country, serve with people I love and respect and serve people who are in desperate need.  "Religion that God our Father considers pure and faultless is this; to look after the orphan and widow in distress and keep oneself from being polluted by the world."  James 1:27

For the past 5-1/2 years I could look after orphans and widows from Georgia, but it was a daily struggle to keep myself from being polluted by the mall, Starbucks, Macy's one day sales and NCIS marathons on TV.  You know what I mean?

I look forward to long walks around the farm, driving Chloe to her really cool International school, sipping coffee with Ian looking out at our amazing view of the fields, Skyping with Spencer to hear about his life at FSU, having philosophical conversations with Kaleli, rocking babies to sleep with Helen and visiting orphans and widows in distress with Pastor Mike.  I have won the lottery, no doubt in my mind, and I am so VERY thankful that I didn't blow it by saying, "no, I don't want to move to Georgia." 

Is there something that you are doing because you want to, not because you believe God has asked you to?  Are you avoiding doing something that you know you are supposed to do?  A phone call perhaps?  A move?  A job change?  Don't put it aside for another day.  Don't blow it.  His plans are better than our plans, I promise.

Thankful in Georgia.

Janine

Janine's ramblings at day 79

Moving to the US in October 2006 seemed like a bigger thing than moving to Africa. The move from our home in Aurora, Ontario was traumatic on so many fronts. It was the home that we designed and loved. It was perfect in our eyes. We had a big piece of land, large gardens, a fabulous custom designed pool and great neighbors who were Chinese, Spanish, Italian, Indian and just a few WASPS. The hospital the children were born in was close by and everything they knew was right there. Healthcare was free, my cousin was our dentist, the restaurants were diverse and my mom was just down the road. Our community was very safe and the small private school the kids attended was lovely.

We were happy (well, content might be a better word). We were certainly COMFORTABLE with what and who we knew. Moving to Atlanta was crazy because we didn't know anybody, we had no friends here, AND worse, we were heading south to be in full time ministry, which was WAY out of our comfort zone.

But God is faithful and He connected our family quickly and for 5 1/2 years this has been home.

Now it's time to move again, and for some reason this seems much easier. Well, "easy" would be a gross overstatement, but we have such peace about this move and every day Chloe says, "I can't wait to move to Swaziland! I wish we were going tomorrow!". Wow. I never thought I would be hearing that from my beautiful 15 year old daughter. I know that I would not have been saying that to my parents at that age (actually, that was the age I was shipped off to boarding school because I had a bad attitude :)

79 days from today the Maxwell family will be driving to the Atlanta airport and getting on a plane. This blog is just an update on where we are in the process, just in case anybody cares.

Our house in Alpharetta is on the market now, but we haven't had anyone come through and see it yet. We are in the process of building a house on Project Canaan in Swaziland and it is coming along nicely. Above is a photo of the house and the view from the front porch The doors and windows are in, the view is great and the electric/security fencing will be going in soon. There is lots of landscaping to do, which is critical to try to encourage all the neighborhood poisonous snakes to relocate. Landscaping will also remove of all the marijuana plants that seem to have cropped up wild all around our house. Sheesh.

I maybe should be feeling panic, but I am not. I have peace about our impending move and our new lives. I found out today that I will have to iron ALL our clothes that dry outside (too expensive to run the dryer except during rainy season) because of grass tics and itch bugs that might be living on your clothes when you bring them back inside.

We don't have a water filtration system installed yet for any domestic use, but that too is underway. We have started our Typhoid pills just in case of an outbreak - strange to have to take a live virus in a series of four pills over eight days to prevent possible illness. I am so thankful that malaria is not an issue where we are living so we don't have that to deal with.

I have gone through every drawer, every closet, every room and have purged to the best of my ability. The way I look at it is we now live in a three story home and are moving to a one story home. Simple math suggests that we need to eliminate two thirds of all the stuff we own. Slowly it is going away and I am not missing any of it. We will ship the first half of our belongings on April 4th so they are there when we arrive on June 2nd. The other half ships on May 31st as we get on the plane.

A few things that are still to be done: sell the house, drive our 2 Canadian cars up to Canada to sell them because we can't sell them here, determine what University Spencer will attend, find someone to take our 2 beautiful Bengal Tiger house cats, Chloe's 16th birthday party, Spencer's 18th birthday party, pack 2 containers, change of address notifications, get new Canadian passports for the family (they expire soon - not good) and a long "to do list" of miscellaneous items.

I have a bit more travel to do before we leave. In fact I have 14 more flights before I get on a plane to fly to Africa. Now I'm not complaining because I have an awesome month ahead with some awesome speaking engagements (Hawaii, Venice Italy, Las Vegas, Edmonton Alberta), but I look forward to the month of May when I am home in Atlanta for our last month.

Of course (ladies only read this please) I also want to get everything "checked out" before the big move since I won't have access to the same level of healthcare in Swaziland. So this month is Mammogram/PAP/Colonoscopy month and Chloe got her wisdom teeth out. Fun eh? I know, I know, WAY more information than you wanted - that was for the die hard friends who are still reading down this far :)

We left the comfort of "home" in Canada to settle in the "land of the free and home of the brave". It has been an interesting time here in the sunny south and we are thankful for our time here. But it is time to move on. We really don't know what to expect when we get to Swaziland other than change, challenges and joy. What we do know is that God is with us every step of this journey and we feel His presence every single day. For that we are thankful. Without His presence, this would just be a bad idea.

Thanks for your prayers and support and for reading all the way to the bottom. Happy Tuesday!

Janine
79 days and counting

What do AIDS in Africa and Debt in America have in common?

There has been a delay of several weeks in me writing this blog as I was unsure of backlash that may likely ensue.  But I am back from weeks of travel and ready to write, so here it goes.

I recently had a BIG "ah-ha". 

I spend a lot of time answering questions about the HIV/AIDS and orphan situation in sub-Saharan Africa. They are usually asked by well-meaning, un-informed people.  They go something like: “Why don’t they teach birth-control so there aren’t so many children?”. “Why don’t they just stop having sex so that AIDS stops being transmitted?”.  “Why don’t they use condoms?”. “Don’t they know that if they don’t stop having sex that they will all die?”.  “Why aren’t they educating people why the AIDS pandemic must be reversed?”.

HIV/AIDS is killing the Kingdom of Swaziland (and many other countries in sub-Saharan Africa).  And a question that maybe should be asked is why Swazi’s don’t want to talk about it with their families and neighbors?  And why it is politically difficult to talk about it and address it properly at the highest levels of government?  The answer is simple.  To have truthful and effective conversations about HIV/AIDS is awkward and ugly and is brings feelings of shame and embarrassment for those infected with the disease as well as for the government who has to deal with the judgment from and repercussions of the international community. No one wants to have their dirty laundry aired in public view.

Awareness and behavior have to change at an individual level, each person making his/her own choice to stop behavior that is killing the family and the nation while starting to talking about it openly and honestly.  It is repentance (regret for past action and turning away from it). 

Let’s flip it around now.

I don’t spend a lot of time answering questions about the DEBT CRISIS in America.  There are no well-meaning un-informed people in Swaziland who ask me questions like: “Why don’t they teach responsible spending to their children in America?”.  “Why don’t they just stop buying things that aren’t an absolute necessity, like food and water?”.  “Why don’t they just cut up their credit cards and put away their check books?”.  “Don’t they know that if they don’t stop spending and creating more debt that the country will die?”. “Why aren’t they being educating people why the debt crisis must be reversed?”

Consumer and government debt is killing the United States of America (and many other countries around the world). And a question that maybe should be asked is why Americans don’t want to talk about it with their families and neighbors? And why it is politically difficult to talk about it and address it properly at the highest levels of government? To have truthful and effective conversations about debt and spending is awkward, and ugly and is brings feelings of shame and embarrassment for those who lose their home/beach house/boat/car in foreclosure or who are forced to declare bankruptcy as well as for the government has to deal with the judgment from and repercussions of the international community. No one wants to have their dirty laundry aired in public view.

Awareness and behavior have to change at an individual level, each person making his/her own choice to stop behavior that is killing the family and the nation and start talking about it openly and honestly. It is repentance (regret for past action and turning away from it). 

Ironic?

Sin is sin. Whether it is sexual sin or greed, pride or gluttony or the ones hidden in our hearts that will never be revealed in public.  It’s awkward, ugly, shameful, embarrassing and has repercussions of killing our families and our nations.  Let us stop thinking that our sin is somehow different, cleaner.  That is the ridiculous religion of the Pharisees in today’s church.

Joel 1 (Message Bible translation)

Get in Touch with Reality—and Weep!

^1-3 God's Message to Joel son of Pethuel: Attention, elder statesmen! Listen closely, everyone, whoever and wherever you are! Have you ever heard of anything like this? Has anything like this ever happened before—ever?  Make sure you tell your children, and your children tell their children, and their children their children.  Don't let this message die out.

⁴What the chewing locust left, the gobbling locust ate; What the gobbling locust left, the munching locust ate; What the munching locust left, the chomping locust ate.

^5-7Sober up, you drunks! Get in touch with reality—and weep! Your supply of booze is cut off. You're on the wagon, like it or not.  My country's being invaded by an army invincible, past numbering, teeth like those of a lion, fangs like those of a tiger. It has ruined my vineyards, stripped my orchards, and clear-cut the country. The landscape's a moonscape.

^8-10Weep like a young virgin dressed in black, mourning the loss of her fiancé.  Without grain and grapes, worship has been brought to a standstill in the Sanctuary of God.  The priests are at a loss.  God's ministers don't know what to do.  The fields are sterile. The very ground grieves.  The wheat fields are lifeless, vineyards dried up, olive oil gone.

^11-12Dirt farmers, despair!  Grape growers, wring your hands!  Lament the loss of wheat and barley. All crops have failed. Vineyards dried up, fig trees withered, Pomegranates, date palms, and apple trees— deadwood everywhere! And joy is dried up and withered in the hearts of the people.

Hosea 6:1  

"Come on, let's go back to God. He hurt us, but he'll heal us.  He hit us hard, but he'll put us right again.  In a couple of days we'll feel better. By the third day he'll have made us brand-new, alive and on our feet, fit to face him.”

Lord, please shine light on darkness.  Please call your people to repentance and have us listen, again.

I hate snakes!

The next year may be the longest of my life.  I would like to pack up and move today, but alas, that is not the plan.  Spencer needs to finish his last year of high school.  Chloe needs to finish grade 9 and we have to build a house to live in on Project Canaan.  Plans are well underway and we will start construction when I get there in July.

But for now, let me give you a glimpse in to a day in the life of Janine's mind (a scary place to be at times). Yesterday our local Member of Parliament (in Swaziland) came by the farm with a list of children in our community in desperate need of help. Some were living alone, some with a grandmother, all had buried one or both parents due to HIV/AIDS.  There is very little that the farm team can do for those children because they have the HUGE task of developing the farm, but I realized again that if I were THERE I could go and visit these children, get to know them and see how we could assist them directly.  And then I could come back home and blog about it so that you too know what is happening and maybe could help.  Soon, that will happen - 355 days from now.

The next thing that happened in the sequence of my day was seeing the photo that I have posted on this blog.  It was on Peter Mulli's facebook page (Peter is the youngest brother of Charles Mulli and Peter is living at Project Canaan handling building construction).  YUK!  That snake photo reminded me of the harsh reality of where we are going to live.  THAT, my friends, is (or was) a python, and not a very big one either.  I am guessing that it had slid up that green water tank that is situated beside the Farm Managers Building.

Pythons, Cobras AND Spitting Cobras, Puff Adders, Black Mambas and Green Mambas are only a few of the creatures that we will be sharing land with.  We recently had a crocodile make its way to the farm and is now residing in the water by the fire pit.  The leopard had a baby last year (or cub or whatever you call it) and now there are two leopards living on the land.  So, what to do?  Well, we use common sense and don't walk through the thick brush (stay on the path).  We are having a "Crocodile Whisperer" come and remove our new friend (we would hate to lose a child at Litsemba as they walk past the pond to get to the event), and we cling to the knowledge that the leopards don't want to see us anymore than we want to see them.  Staying out of the thick brush should also eliminate bumping in to the wild pigs and warthogs that have lived there long before we bought the land.  It's about living in peace and harmony, with our human neighbors and the critters who live there.  This could be a great area of prayer for you, if you are a "pray-er".  Pray for protection of our family and the people we are serving with.

For those of you traveling with us this summer DON'T freak out.  The good news is that you are there during the dry season and the snakes are hibernating during that time.  Honest.  And our neighbor and friend, Prince Guduza, has never in his whole life seen someone get bit by a snake.  Of course I believe him ... don't you? 

Today I am pondering life in Africa while sitting in the safety of my home in Georgia. I think about the children who live with snakes and spiders every day, with no parents to teach them or console them if they are afraid.  Lord, go before us and make the way clear so that we may see your glory at every step.

Janine