The latest from Beth Elwell serving with YWAM in Jeffery's Bay South AfricaHi all! I am just going to start off this news by thanking you all for your prayers for rain. We have been through a long drought to the point of desperation – farmers are not surviving, people are getting ill from unclean water due to all the dams drying up, including over 10 members of the base. As I write this letter now we have finally had a breakthrough – a complete downpour! Thank you Yahweh!
Life and the Joys in Living!
Ok, well quite a lot has changed since last month. The first of which is moving house. I love Grace, who was my roommate on the base, to bits, and I get along with the staff really well. But I soon realised that the immense need on the base, my abilities to help out, and my willingness to do that, were going to become a problem. I have several responsibilities on the base and living on the base meant I was getting asked to do this work at silly hours of the night (i.e. 11pm) simply because I was around. Yahweh has amazingly provided me with a flat within a safe 5 minutes walk of the base with my good friend, and at the same accommodation cost I had budgeted for. Since this move, my family, my friends and everybody here have noticed increased energy and a greater ability to do everything I need and really want to do – and I do not work outside of the hours I agree to. PRAISE THE LORD!
In every single situation I go into, Yahweh has been providing an answer and breakthrough for me. I am seeing miracles in my own life and in others’ in such practical ways, and, best of all I love what I am doing and it gives me such joy! I wake up every morning knowing my purpose and why I am here and knowing that, though I miss my family and friends, I have an amazingly loving community surrounding me here who are there for me when I am down and mentor me through my mistakes, difficulties , sad times, but all the fun times as well J . I want to take this opportunity to specifically thank Yahweh for my amazing friends and Spiritual family in Norman, Megan and Amanda. My amazing friends here who are always there for me, and are so honest with me even when sometimes it hurts and I don’t really want to hear. I also want to again thank all of you for always being at the end of a phone, webcam, email or even our connection through prayer. It does make the most immense difference and, though you are not here physically, it feels like you are here with me spiritually. I can feel your support behind me and that is more encouraging than you guys could ever imagine. Thank you!!!
PRAYER REQUESTS
· Praise God for my family in the UK being so supportive and my YWAM family being so open. It is hard being away sometimes so please pray that I continue not to miss home too much.
· Praise God for my amazing friends here. Please pray for all the staff here and for good relations continue so we can work well as a team.
· Praise God for the direction He has already given to me. Please pray I am able to know His will and that I am guided in the actions I should take.
· Praise God for the people already in place to help with the kids work. Please pray God will raise up more people to support the work and be part of the team.
· Praise God for the ministries I am involved in. Please pray for them that God will use them to reach more and more children and to have an impact on these children’s lives.
· Please pray for Nozuko as she struggles with so much at such a young age.
All your prayers are so appreciated. For prayer request updates, my rough daily schedule and more pictures, please see betheafrica.weebly.com
The Beautiful Young Futures of Jeffrey’s Bay and SA!!!
Wow wow wow wow wow! I think that sums up this month. I don’t know how I will try and summarise everything up quickly but let’s give it a go.
I will start with last month’s prayer request for leaders and volunteers to arise. The DTS has been great actually and finally pulled together and helped us out. This has allowed the 3 leaders, Mirjam, Hannes and myself to focus more on teaching these children rather than focusing all our energy on the misbehaving few and not reaching out properly to the children who are able to actually hear and learn. We have now created small groups, divided by age. I am currently leading a large group of children aged around 9 to 14. It is a challenge and they can be very difficult, but we are having good conversations and they are definitely respecting me more and more as time goes on. Today was particularly hard as I was on my own with 13 of them due to the DTS being busy learning a dance in preparation for their outreach which is now drawing close. But God was there and made a way for me to get through to them and get them to listen and give me some good feedback. Kidzone has also grown immensely with us now receiving between 37 and 49 children a week. An immense growth since last month – very exciting and encouraging for us!
iThemba is great. It is a huge responsibility but I really enjoy it. I find myself now being given my own class of students where I am now becoming the teacher and have to set homework. A completely surreal experience and a challenging one, but the other teachers give me lots of training and support and are always there for me. I also have some gorgeous children in my class who are even teaching me the 2 languages of ‘Xhosa’ and ‘Afrikaans’ and I can trust enough to give certain responsibilities over class supplies and books. 
Some of you may have seen from my online blog that Angel Girls is now fully revived as the newly named ‘BUS (Beautiful Unique Special) Girls’ (see betheafrica.weebly.com for further details). We have a good laugh together and, although I still have no assistance, they are respecting me and we have, in just 3 days of hard hard work, got together a good drama that they will be performing on this coming Friday night (26th Febuary) at a big event the base is hosting. They are hard working and, although they drive me mad sometimes, I enjoy being with them and we have a lot of fun as a group.
Please really keep praying for Nozuko. At the age of just 16 she is now pregnant. She is very ashamed and, although I have told her I love her and am not angry at her etc, she seems to have distanced herself from me. All I can do at the moment is pray for her, be there for her and to point her to her Heavenly Father. It has been so difficult but I am grateful for my friend Amanda’s (co base leader) leadership and wisdom in the situation where she has known what to do and has guided me as to how to act and where how to talk to Nozuko. Amanda has also taken a lot of responsibility on herself in regards to the family due to her friendship with Nozuko’s mother. I really praise Yahweh for her and her support of me and what I am doing.
Office and Learning Boundaries – Very Important My Friends
Well, its definitely more organised this month. Now I have (finally) set VERY clear boundaries as to WHEN I will work, WHAT I will work on and that is it. Everyone in the office is now aware that I do PowerPoint’s, the website and the telephone bills and that is it. I now also have routines organised so that things like the telephone bills can be covered in one day, once a month, saving me several hours, a lot of stress, and meaning I have much more time to focus on the children’s’ ministry I do. I love my work mates and think they are great. I also now have power over the music that we play from my laptop that suits me just fine. Hehe! We have fun and a good laugh and often have kids playing round our feet driving us insane and trying to break the equipment (unintentionally...I think). I have a feeling the coming week could be hectic though what with the DTS outreach teams returning on Friday (tomorrow – the 26th!!!), a bad clash of a visiting team from also to stay on the base, and lots of projects and outreaches being prepared for during this coming week. HECTIC amount of organisation. Oh I am sooooo glad people know what I will and won’t do so I don’t get too tied up with that.
Yes, my life on the base is still hectic as ever, but Yahweh has given me time for everything, and I even now have a full day off most weeks where I can stay off the base and have some time out on my own or with my friends. During the week, occasionally I can do my morning office work from my flat on my bed if it doesn’t require internet access. That is always a nice treat when i want that bit of extra peace and quiet. Yay! I feel so boisterous and full of energy and, although kind of tired now, I can’t wait for another crazy, insane, fun filled day tomorrow. Every day is different and exciting in some way. Let’s see what this day will bring! (Oh yes – and it’s still raining! Halleluyah!)
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