Childlike Faith

Among the many different things that I've been learning here, the unique situation you get when children find there way to church on their own has been one that I've been spending some good thought time on lately.

Last Saturday I had the blessing of getting to spend the afternoon at the Johannesburg Zoo with about 15 kids from Saint Nicholas (most who live in and right around the parish itself and who attend services without their parents regularly).  The majority of the kids where sponsored by loving parishioners hoping to give them an opportunity for a day of fun and fellowship with each other and some children from other local parishes.  It was really wonderful to spend time with them, see them learning about the animals and enjoy a picnic in the park together.

The group outside of Saint Nicholas

A "BIG" hit with the kids, especially when it peed… (so gross)

Waiting games

The situation on hand at Saint Nicholas is this:

The parish itself is situated in a neighborhood that is… let's just say "less than desirable."  Break-ins are commonplace, it's not unheard of for cars to be stolen, and I've been told more than once that I am just to drive straight to church and straight away once my business is finished.  It is South African quaint and quiet from what I've observed (located relatively close to the University of Johannesburg and the University of the Witwatersrand) but I've only been here for a month and those who have been around longer would advise that my observations are a bit ill informed.

The loyal parishioners of Saint Nicholas are mostly Greek (as it's a Greek Orthodox Church, this isn't surprising), generally live some distance from the parish itself, and have for one reason or another seen value in having the church located in the Brixton area.  One unique thing is that there are a handful of children (6-12 years old) from the neighborhood itself that hear the sound of church bells and come running each and every Sunday morning.  The children obviously live within earshot of the building, come dressed in their Sunday best sans parents, and patiently sit through a rather "non-seeker friendly" liturgy.  They attend a Sunday school class, are allowed some after service refreshments and then sent on their way.  To my knowledge, only one of these children is currently baptized (I could be wrong), but many have recently shown interest in joining the Church.

I was approached by the current Sunday school teachers and asked to come up with some kind of program to prepare these children for baptism, and this week I will begin just that.  The thing is, it's not such a simple process.  Since the Orthodox faith is one that allows for infant baptism and almost assumes that there will be a family example at home to model how to live out a life in Christ, things get tricky when parents are not involved.  Yes, we will be obtaining the parent's consent before baptizing these children, but more than that, I'm trying to figure out what information is key for them to understand at their young age before beginning their walk within the Church (as the Church-the body of Christ- isn't one only for those able to intellectually understand history and complex theological concepts).

I will be meeting with these children tomorrow during their normal Sunday school class time and learning about them; trying to figure out where they come from, why they come each week and what kind of thoughts they have on being baptized.  If you have any thoughts on the matter, feel free to email me at kayciesimmons@hotmail.com and please keep my impending conversations with them in your prayers.

Making Sunrise Matter

For those of you who know me well, it will come as no surprise to you that sunrise is my favorite time of day.  The stillness, the quiet, and the time alone with God is my absolute favorite…

Most days back in the states I would find myself up around 4:30am, spending my time preparing for the day; showering, reading, eating breakfast, composing emails, going for walks, and even watching movies in order to give myself enough time to face the day with a smile.  Here, things have been a bit different.

Since I don't have a typical 8am-5pm job, I find myself sleeping in a bit later.  I wake up with the sun instead of ushering it in.  Most days I have been staying up later, so I'm not completely wasting my time with sleep, but it is a change in my norm nonetheless; except for on Wednesdays.

Every Wednesday morning at 6am there is a Divine Liturgy service held at Saint Nicholas.  At first I was a bit apprehensive about being around other people so early in the morning (hoping not to be an absolute mess), but I've quickly become fond of the early service as a midweek time for communion.  They have the service so early to accommodate for morning traffic, but I like to think God made those accommodations with my preferences in mind as well.  :-)

Does This Come With Directions?

So far so good.

I've been to various church services at Saint Nicholas over the past 2 weeks; love the parish, love the people, love the mission and all of that.  I have plans to serve in at least 2 other communities within the coming weeks already; one in Eldorado Park (which I've already been to twice) and one in Mamilodi with Father Stephen (in conduction with serving at Saint Nicholas).

As I hit the ground hoping to get to work straight way, I think my mindset needed a bit of adjustment.  While I'd love to share pictures and stories about what I've been doing, to be honest, most of what I've been doing is just trying to gain my footing.  Yes, people are people everywhere, so I have that working to my advantage; but this is a whole new culture, there are so many new things to learn.

Currently I'm putting a lot of effort into securing a car, and in the meantime I've been getting little ideas right and left about things that I could do in support of the church once I'm mobile.  I will likely take initiative with the kids first; spending some one-on-one time with the older girls and planning group meals for the younger ones in the neighborhood.  For now, I've been attending every service available, learning the music and structure of the Divine Liturgy and trying to take in as much of my surroundings as possible.

It seems that every day I'm growing more comfortable and that I'm also beginning to understand the culture somewhat better.  It is probably a blessing that I don't have a car yet, forcing me to take this first bit of time here slowly, really getting to know the area, assessing the current situation of the church, and looking for Kaycie-sized opportunities before I go in and try to do anything major.

All that to say, I'm on course.  I have no idea how this year is supposed to play out, but I hope to fall more in love with South Africa and be a blessing to the people here.

Qualified

I never thought I would be doing missionary work.  My thoughts on the matter were that missionaries had to know more about the faith than most, had to be incredibly charismatic and that they needed some blinding unequivocal sign that God needed them in such and such a place; but that is not the truth.

As I got off the plane in O.R. Tambo last Wednesday night, and for the second time in my life set foot on South African soil, a confidence welled up in me that I'd only partially experienced before.  Yes, I had made the decision to come months ago, and yes, I had taken big steps like quitting my job and selling my car prior to even boarding the plane, but I think in the back of my mind I was almost waiting to see if God would intervene; if he would save South Africa from the mess that is me by flight accident or something; but He didn't.

This past week I've found myself surrounded by some pretty incredible people; most of which are far more educated then myself, have had many more years living faithful to Christ than I have, and who innately know the South African culture.  Surprisingly though, I fit in perfectly because… well, because I'm me, and because some clever all knowing being has gone before me to prepare a perfect Kaycie sized place in this community.

One day last week I was driving home from Eldorado Park with Father Kobus, a very well educated, well traveled, devout and humble Afrikaans man, who has been dedicated to the parishes in this area for many years.  We had just finished a service in a "coloured" neighborhood known to be a bit rough, and I was wondering of what use I could be to these people.  Sure I could participate in the services and bring food with me to share, but I was curious where Father Kobus saw me best fitting in.  His answer touched on the confidence that I had felt at the airport.  He said, "the people here just need you," and then went on to explain how he is not the most sociable individual nor does he have the most natural nurturing side.  The Eldorado Park parish happens to have many children who attend without their families, and they have often not been exposed to the healthiest family dynamics at home, leaving them without a great tangible example of how to love well.  Father Kobus used the example of hitting to illustrate this.  At times these children will lash out in physical ways to correct each other because they have not often had someone there to teach them by other means.  "Having a woman of God around will make a lot of difference in modeling Christ's love to them," he said…

At the moment most of my days are spent trying to learn about my surroundings, the culture and the people (books do not do this country justice), and one might think I would feel useless, but I don't.  I'm a carrier of Christ wherever I go.  I still have all the same gifts I was working with at home; the ability to connect people, a unique perspective, a loving and giving heart, and I will work to put these gifts to use in my new home… Is that the definition of a missionary?  I'm not sure, but I know I'm growing more and more in love with this place each day.

Fast Forward

Obviously it's been awhile since I've posted about my trip, but that's only because planning it was quite the all consuming task.  I'M IN SOUTH AFRICA NOW!  I plan to use this blog to post about specific happenings and experiences throughout my stay here; ideally posting roughly once a week in addition to emails that I will be sending to all my supporters and anyone who is interested.  Leave your email address as a comment if you would like to be on the email list and check back for stories soon!

Step One Complete

After 4 months of prayer and organizing and being patient, I've decided to do a little update.  My last post was at the end of January and at that point I was waiting on approval from the Orthodox Church in Johannesburg for me to come and serve; that waiting lasted until the end of March…

Being relatively new to the hierarchal church structure, I'm not used to endeavors like this taking so long to be approved or having to go through such formal processing.  That being said, waiting 3 months for a response was a "growing pains" kind of experience for a girl full of so much excitement and desire.

I got the news on the eve of my birthday that the church in Johannesburg did not need my assistance; this was a bit heartbreaking but did not crush my spirit completely.  I took a moment to set aside what I had envisioned my year to look like during my three month wait and then stepped forward seeking out other options.  Even that very week, through a lucky missionary contact I made with our safari tour guide on my first trip to SA, I was able to connect with a lovely couple based in Rustenburg (a city about 3 hours from JHB) who had a position open at an accredited Assemblies of God seminary.  I Skyped with them, met with my priest and prayed, concluding that while I was very grateful to have made the connection, that working at the school was not the right move for me.

At this point I was fighting discouragement and sought out the counsel of my priest.  He reminded me that with such life altering things as this that it is wise not to press forward without a clear green light from the Lord.  I also had the chance to sit down with my former pastor for coffee and he reiterated the exact same thing to me.  Neither man's advice discouraged me, but rather they gave me comfort, for the things that God sets in motion, He brings to completion in His time.

Fr. Chris also suggested that we contact the Bishop over Pretoria/JHB and clarify my intent a bit.  From the response we were given just before my birthday, it seemed that there could have been a little miscommunication about how my trip would be funded; I intend to support raise and I think they were under the impression that they would need to pay me to come…  Long story short, with a few emails things were straightened out and His Eminence gave me his blessing to begin planning my trip to come and serve!

Gratefulness

As I sit here tonight, thinking about what may or may not come about in this next year, I'm struck by such gratefulness for what I already have.

Friends who think to pray for and encourage me.

A priest who teaches me lessons instead of growing tired of my "trying."

And this.  I mean really, what more could I ask for?