Ok, this is in
fact my last blog entry. Please don't cry or anything about this, I am sure you will find other (and admittedly less interesting ways ;) to fill you time on the internet.... so sentimentalities aside, let's get started.
2. Interaction with locals through soccer and basketball
During my time in Cape Town, the thing I looked forward to most each day was playing soccer with the Ocean View kids. To be honest, it wasn’t always easy to get up out of bed day after day, trying to find the energy to do what I went there to do. Life was often very busy and stressful and it certainly took a toll.
This toll was most often more mental than physical. One thing that kept me going was the fact that I had this wonderful opportunity to play soccer in Africa with many kids who I had grown to care about and love. I really can not think of two things that I love doing more, playing sports and ministry. Combining the two was such a natural and effective way for me to connect with these kids.
Every Wednesday night for several weeks I would go and play basketball with some of the locals in Ocean View. This was also a great way to connect with some of the people in the township. Unfortunately, I only had the opportunity to play with them a couple of times because renting the court became too expensive. If you want to read more about the Basketball, here is a link to an early blog entry talking about it in a little more detail:
http://jsheptosouthafrica2010.blogspot.com/2010/06/cheap-bottomless-coffee.html
(my experience while playing basketball starts on paragraph 5)
Sometimes I fought with the kids. Play fights, but they were still very tiring. If a kid stole the ball from me while we were playing, I would sometimes pick them up and twirl them around to get the ball back. Often times play would then stop and all the boys would attack me. Each one wanting to get picked up and twirled around, thrown over my shoulder, or held upside down. They would throw punches at me and I would throw them back. They would jump on my back (several at a time) and I would flip them over and proceed to the next child. It was all a very tiring experience and these kids seemed to never ever run out of energy. I would literally need to run away from them in order to stop the play fighting, there was never a time when I could have claimed that I won the fight! So I tended to avoid fights with dozens of Ocean View boys (and a couple girls)... But nevertheless they happened often, and the kids loved them. But soccer, playing soccer with the kids, giving them high fives and doing those overdramatic World Cup celebrations after scoring was so memorable. I love how God gave us sports.
For those of you who play sports, you know in sports the connections you make with others is so unique from other areas in life. It was such a great way to connect with and love on these kids, and that’s why its an easy choice for my #2 of my top 10!
1. Samaritans Feet & Cape Point in the same day
This summer was easily the most meaningful and enjoyable summer I’ve had. There is one day that stood out for me among the rest and it was the day I got to partake in Samaritans Feet and climb Cape Point. Samaritans Feet is a great organization that gives shoes to kids in poverty while sharing the relevant message of Christ.
I had the opportunity to share with the kids a story which hopefully ignited some kid of curiosity about Christ for the first half of that Friday morning. In the second half of the morning, I got to sit down in front of each kid and wash their feet. While I was washing a child’s feet we would talk about their future hope and dreams. It was a great opportunity to be intimate with someone and share in a very real and direct way the gospel. I absolutely loved this chance to tell the kids about how my Savior Jesus loves me and died for me, but he didn’t just die for me. Their creator, the one who made the sun, the moon, the earth, and the sea decided to come down and spend some time with us and even die for us. It was a beautiful thing.
Later on in the day, My friend Brennon and I decided to go to Cape Point.
We hiked up a path to Cape Point and saw where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet. We decided to hike some paths that we weren’t supposed to hike. You see, there was this shirt hanging over the no entry sign and it -somehow- fell down to cover the sign up, so we could hike the trail! Good times. After exploring Cape Point, we decided to head over to the Cape of Good Hope. This is the most South-Western Point on the continent of Africa. I can honestly say that I have never seen anything so beautiful. The massive clear waves crashing up against the gorgeous cliffs during a sunset was enough to take your breath away. Brennon and I then proceeded to rock climb up the face of the cliff. It was definitely an unforgettable experience. We encountered an Ostrich on our way back. In fact, one Ostrich even popped out of the grass and ran along next to our car for about ten seconds while we were leaving!
Seeing the beauty of God’s creation in both the stunning cliffs of Cape Point and in the hearts of his children makes an easy choice for #1 in my Top 10 memories!
As you may know, this is my last blog entry for this summers mission trip. The purpose of this blog was designed initially to help me raise support and then give those of you who gave, a way to keep track of where and how the money you gave was being used. So to those of you who supported me, whether through finance or prayer, this whole summers blog is dedicated to you! Don’t you feel special? But seriously, I know this mission trip would not have been possible if it were not for all those who helped me get there and stay there. Money is tight these days and I am so very thankful and appreciative to those who gave of their hard earned cash!
This trip was life-altering. Some people have asked if it was life-changing, but I don’t think I am a different person. But it has certainly helped me gain a much more accurate world view (or at least I think it is more accurate). I have gained significant missions experience and have learned a thing or two about how to more efficiently minister to others.
I hate kids, or at least I used to hate kids until this trip. I thought I was going to be hanging out with and ministering on a relational level with teens, and that didn’t happen. At first I was upset about that fact but eventually I started getting closer to and learning how to interact with the kids. Now, kids don’t scare me anymore, I know how to interact with them and have fun with them, and I certainly don’t “hate kids” anymore! This and so much more has been a part of my growth since leaving for Cape Town nearly three months ago.
It is so hard to put into words or sum up all my feelings about the trip. I had so many wonderful (and not so wonderful) experiences there is no way I can write about them or even remember them all! In the ten weeks I spent there I grew to care about and love the people of that country. I can only hope that I have had some kind of lasting impact for Christ on these peoples lives, but I know they have influenced me more than I could have ever influenced them. I thank God for the opportunity he presented this summer and I look forward to what he will do for the people of Ocean View, Living Grace, Living Hope, and all of South Africa in the coming years!
If for some strange reason you have enjoyed reading my blog this summer and would like to read more of what I have to say. I am starting a little blog where I will write down my Beliefs, Ideas, and Thoughts (b.i.t.’s) that are in my mind throughout my normal daily life. I hope this blog will continue my ministry in a more subtle but thoughtful manner. Here’s the link if you want to check it out sometime: http://joshuasheppard.blogspot.com/
Thanks once again for your overwhelming support!
See you next time and God Bless,
Josh Shep
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