So many emotions linger.

I want to inspire.

I want to motivate.

I want to scream.

There’s a sense of responsibility I feel – the need to report back to our friends, family & online community – I’m an upbeat person, so I’ve chosen to outwardly focus on the positives of what we just experienced in Swaziland.

"Let the little children come unto Me"

I don’t want to tell you…

… that I met a child who is 11 years old, who’s mother died just a few months ago. This young lady is one of the oldest of 10 children at the homestead, caring for each other, trying to survive.  There is an ‘aunt’ that lives next door who wants nothing to do with the children. During the visit, our team members left a bag of food & supplies. The children took it into their hut – a good indicator that the aunt is not cooking nor caring for them. Thank God for Bheveni Carepoint, where there is consistent food, water, and love, and allows for the children to all stay together as a family unit.

… how at a different carepoint we visited, the children were much more street smart than the Bheveni kids who live far from the city. The fact is, being street smart is probably what protects them from the dangers that surround them. I was shocked by how aggressive some of the children were to get our attention & love and seemed to have no boundaries. I’m embarrassed to tell you that I was even angered when two of the street smart teens refused the dresses I held up for them but instead made it clear they wanted other dresses that they liked better. I was blown away, but the fact is that they are used to having to fend for themselves, used to protecting what they have before someone steals it, and used to fighting for survival. They weren’t ungrateful as I presumed, they just saw something they liked better and didn’t mind expressing their opinion. I was ashamed of the anger that welled up in me. How could I be angry when chances are they’ve not been taught or given gifts without strings attached?

… I also don’t want to tell you that in spite of the beautiful smiles & bright eyes, the Bheveni children are desperate. They are hurting, yet they smile. Just like my own children, they want to know they are loved and individually special to someone. I ache knowing many of the Bheveni kids go to bed at night without a momma’s hug & kiss. They need advocates that stand with them and say Jesus has not forgotten you. You matter! You are loved! You can grow up and beat the odds of a disease-ravaged country and I’m gonna help you do it!

… we have a young child at Bheveni who’s arm was burned due to a fight between his mother and step-mother. Taking her anger out on the child, one of them through scaulding hot water on him.

… another child who is new to Bheveni had a tooth abscess. Though the tooth itself was removed some time ago, the infection in her gumline has caused extreme swelling of one side of her face & lips. She was in a lot of pain and yet tolerating it because she thought she had no resources to fix it. I found out about her because she wrote a letter to her future sponsor saying, “We are the originals not the copies, God is great, He is so wonderful, nothing is impossible, with God all things are possible.” I had to talk with this young lady who had such great faith. It was then I found out about the toothache and infection. We gave her an antibiotic and one of the in-country staff members will be taking her to the doctor in the city today to see what can be done. I am praying for her, and ask that you do as well.

So these are things I haven’t wanted to share. Why? Because it hurts. Because I don’t really know how to cope with it. Honestly, I feel like I’ve been a mess since I returned from Swaziland, with all these issues and more weighing heavily on my heart & mind.

I also fear that when I share these stories, you will think we are trying to guilt you out of your money & shock you into helping. So I’ve held back and tried to process quietly. It hasn’t worked (ask my family)!  Truth is, your help is needed. Sure there are great things going on at Bheveni Carepoint, children are being helped and loved on, but the need is massive.

Stop right there.

What I am NOT saying:

1. Not saying we need a bunch of Americans with good American Christian ideas & programs to rush to Swaziland to try to rescue the children.

2. Not saying that the children aren’t being cared for. They are. AIM staff and volunteers are doing all they can with the resources they have to make sure the children not only have their basic survival needs met, but also are discipled every week and encouraged to trust the Lord when it seems their world is falling apart.

3. And finally, I’m not saying that you need to STOP supporting other, more local missions. For some reason, when we start talking about desperate needs in Africa people wanna use the excuse, “Well, there’s plenty to do right here in our own backyard.” Yep. There is. And we’re doing it. We are not called to local missions or global missions. We Christ-like Christians are called to BOTH. Not encouraged. Called.

Acts 1:8 says, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Your family and neighbors are your Jerusalem. Your state and country are your Judea and Samaria. Swaziland is, for us, our ends of the earth. The country has done nothing to help its growing population of nearly 200,000 orphans due to the spread of HIV/AIDS. There is no foster care, state run orphanages, allowed adoptions, or even free education for the children of Swaziland. Pardon me for screaming, but WHAT IN THE HELL ARE ALL THESE CHILDREN SUPPOSED TO DO WHEN THEIR PARENTS DIE???

Well, that’s where two great organizations step in that are coming to the children in their communities with safe havens called Carepoints. Adventures in Missions and Children’s HopeChest have sought the Lord and partnered together with the native Swazi people that are doing effective work to first & foremost get thousands of orphaned and at-risk children fed everyday. But the vision hasn’t stopped at just feeding the children. The carepoints, including Bheveni, serve the children holistically – body, soul, and spirit. Through AIM & HopeChest’s support as well as the daily diligence of native Swazis such as the bomake (cooks) and the discipleship team, the children are fed, cared for, taught about Jesus, and know where to come when their world starts to fall apart. This is a vision I can get behind. This is a vision I love. This is a vision I will shout about til I can shout no more. Why? Because there is so much that can still be done. Awareness is needed. Education is needed. Funding is needed. Sponsors & advocates are needed. Needed because it’s working!!!! I’ve seen with my own eyes that what we’ve already done is working!

Future goals of these ministries are to make the communities self-sustaining. We don’t want to create dependency. The Swazi’s deserve their dignity, and often what they need is just an opportunity to learn, to have the right tools, to brighten their own future and improve their communities.

It truly starts with one child at a time. That is done through sponsorship. Bheveni Carepoint has about 60 children that need new sponsors (I like advocate better), out of 160 kids. It’s $34 to a friend to a child, to give them a hand-up, and encourage their hearts that they are not alone!!! $34, writing a few letters and praying for the child.

Going forward, we need even more workers with heart, servants with courage, and Americans who will sacrifice a few comforts of time & resources to continue the vision of seeing a nation of Swazi children given every opportunity to be who God created them to be!

In 2012 our #1 goal is 100% sponsorship. All profiled kids (appx. 140 of the 160)  kids will have an advocate and friend by the end of 2012.

Join us in helping to change their reality. Be a Bheveni Advocate. Be a part of changing your world – even to the ends of the earth!

Stay tuned as we share pictures & stories of the 60 children who need a friend.

Update: 

*Follow this link to view pictures of many of the children who need an advocate. Their ages range from 2-20.

Advocates Needed: Bheveni Carepoint 2012

*Follow this link to youtube to watch several videos of our Bheveni kids singing & giving thanks!

Lift Jesus Higher, Higher

Shine On!

I'd sorta like to wipe that big grin off her face... geez!

Already you have Olivia Newton John singing in your head, don’t you? Lets get physical… Lets get physical… I wanna get…

…well, that’s where she lost me. I don’t want to get physical! If Miss ONJ is referring to exercise (of course she is!) that explains why she was/is the movie star and I am not.

I don’t recall ever enjoying exercising, in fact I nearly avoid it like the plague. This is where the NEED for prayer comes in  ~ nice segwa, hey?

The mission field can be very demanding emotionally, spiritually, but also physically. Especially when you’re traveling with 40 suitcases for 10 team members across several thousand miles. Especially when you’re going to visit children who have lost parents and have very little adult interaction in their lives, much less adults who will play with them. We’ve already prepared the guys on our team that they will quickly be climbed, ridden, and scaled like a jungle gym by about 350 very happy children!

The last time I checked I don’t have any superhero powers nor do my team mates (though I’m pretty sure Steve would hesitate if you asked him, and Britt has been known to wear underwear on the outside of his clothes I’m told). In order to keep up with these travel demands and amazing children, we need your prayers.

• Pray that the Lord does infuse each of us with supernatural strength, that we are able to sleep when we can and are able to play hard when we get the opportunities.
• Speak the word of the Lord over us that we are healed by Jesus’ stripes and no weapon formed against us spiritually or physically can prosper.
• Pray for no injuries or illnesses, that would try to stop the work we have been called to do.

Richard and I in 2008... being silly as always

SPECIAL ALERT!!!!

An anonymous donor has stepped up and will MATCH ANY donation up to $1500!!!! Please give a double blessing!!! See below for giving instructions – glory to God! 

Father Knows BEST.

Ever question that? I have a few times in the last 10 months. Yet, when doubt creeps in with questions like, “God! How could this happen? What am I going to do? Why? Why? Why?” the answer remains the same..

Our Father is faithful and He truly knows best, even when life doesn’t make sense.

He knows how to take care of His children. God’s highest & best is for us to be so consumed with His love that we allow it to flow through us to the world – to truly be His hands and feet all over the earth. We are to be conduits of His love & provision.

September 16th, 2010 ~ Two days before I was to depart on our first trip to Swaziland, Africa, excited for the opportunity to be the ‘hands and feet’ I found out my daddy died of a heart attack. He was 57 years old. The world stopped and didn’t make sense anymore. Like most people who lose a loved one the images of that day, the heartache, and the fear of having to live life without him is still so fresh & overwhelming.

We were in Africa during Richard’s funeral. I brought home some African soil and spread it over his grave. I wanted him to know that his compassion & love for the African children many years ago impacted me greatly. Good soil brought together.

I knew that Richard would still want me to go and love on the orphans at our Bheveni Carepoint there in Swaziland, so I did, but only God’s grace got me through. Twice (once by a pastor friend, and once in a book) I was reminded of what Jesus said to the man who wanted to go and bury his father before following the Lord, “Let the dead bury their own dead. You follow Me.” It sounds offensive, doesn’t it? Wouldn’t Jesus want me to honor my father by attending his funeral? God made it clear that like the man in scripture, my life was to take a different course, and my dad would be more honored by continuing on the trip.

Mid-October I was finally able to visit Richard’s gravesite in Kentucky, (and also visit my grandfather one last time – he died two weeks after my visit).  I even brought Africa dirt home and spread it over my dad’s gravesight, because he never got to travel there himself.

The employees who worked for Richard at Hershey’s signed 3 tag boards with special messages to him & to us, about how great he was.

My mom took extra special care to share with me all the ways people had shown their love for my dad at the funeral. I even got to hear the audio of his funeral, which was so special. I heard person after person tell how Richard blessed their lives. How good of a friend and boss he was to those that worked for him at the Hershey’s company in Virginia. My sister Dana read “King Richard” – a short story I had written about my dad when I was in 8th grade, so that people would know how much I loved him and he loved me.

I have been praying for a way I can honor his life & legacy, asking myself, “how would he feel the most honored?” If there’s one thing I remember about my daddy, it was his heart for the kids in Africa – always standing up for those without, and having a empathic heart for them.

I believe the Lord has given me an idea of how to leave a legacy he would be proud of. We are traveling again to Swaziland, Africa with a new team this September. I’ve created the B.E.S.T. fund – Bheveni Educational Scholarship Trust. Swazi government does not pay for children’s schooling. Instead a family must pay between $40-$700 per year for a child to get an education, which is nearly impossible. Our goal is to see ALL the children at our carepoint be able to go school. Many of them are orphaned, and have no one to pay their tuition each year. It saddens me to know money is the only thing standing between them and an education.

Father really does know BEST!

I would like to invite you to give towards the B.E.S.T. fund in honor of the joy Richard Lee Fortner brought to so many lives. I’m calling it “Father Knows B.E.S.T.” The fund will provide tuition and the required school uniforms for 150 Bheveni kids in Swaziland, thru Children’s HopeChest, which is the non-profit organization we travel through.

Our current goal is to raise $4,500 for school uniforms. Any additional monies that are given to the B.E.S.T. fund will be used for school shoes as well as tuition grants to those who need it, not as a handout, but a hand up.

Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Intelligence plus character; that is the goal of true education.” Lets give this “Nation of Orphans”, as Swaziland is known, a chance for true education as we seek to provide the tools necessary for life, intelligence and Godly character; for He really does know BEST!

To give the BEST:

www.hopechest.org/give 

Select: Designated/Sponsorship: One Time Gift

Reference Number: SZ110902T – B.E.S.T.

Shine On for His Legacy,

Danielle Brower

If you’d like to read more about Richard’s influence on my life read this two part series  ~ An Orphan Spirit