Lesotho

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Lesotho
7/11/06

Today I went to Lesotho but this time we went in one entrance and out another. Meh and Ntate needed to renew their passports at the US embassy in Masero, which is the capital of Lesotho. On the way in we went through Bute Bute and on the 100 km route I saw many interesting things. Some of these things I have seen before but I have not shared with you, so this time I took note so that I could share. We left early this morning and went by a few ladies who had gone down to the river to get water to port back to their homes, they carry it in five gallon pails on the top of their heads. It was rather chilly and most everyone that we saw was wrapped up in African blankets, later on in the day when it gets warmer they wrap these blankets around their waist (women, but only if they are married) and the men just leave them on. We passed a few shepherd boys with their oxen pulling carts. These carts can have almost anything on them but typically they would have firewood, containers of water, or food for the cattle. If it was not oxen pulling a cart of wood it was a boy pushing a wheelbarrow full of wood, they work for their livelihood and you never know how far they are pushing those wheelbarrows. I also must add that wheelbarrows in this country are not like wheelbarrows in America. In America we must worry about pumping up the tires on occasion but not here the tires are rock hard, no cushion for the bumps. There were many cattle along the road, this time of year the shepherd boys are struggling to find food for them and so they walk all over. We went by several fields which had bundles of corn stalks which had just been harvested and a few houses had piles of husked corn outside to be then bagged and taken to the grinding mills where people can take their corn to have it ground for mealies, a main staple in the African diet. Outside of these mills there were several donkeys tied up. Donkeys are used more often than horses around here it seems, they are used for transport of people and goods.

Another thing that was interesting that I had heard about but not seen until today was a widow. When a husband dies it is a cultural ‘custom’ that the women dresses in black and apparently she is supposed to dress in all black for a year. This lady had a black head scarf and all black clothing. I don’t think that I would ever where anything black ever again if that was the only color that I wore for a year. Speaking of colors you could definitely tell that the people of Lesotho (especially the country folk) don’t see many white people because everyone that we passed gawked at us like we were some spectacle. There were many children still on their way to school when we were passing through with their uniforms on, every school in South Africa and Lesotho has school uniforms and each school has a distinct one.

The status of the country of Lesotho is very humble as a whole. Every month South Africa pays Lesotho for the water it supplies R20 million and this is aside from other foreign aid that comes into the country and yet the common people still live in shambles, poor development, poor infrastructure, humble houses, inadequate facilities and utilities. How does a person make sure that the money that is intended for a certain project gets to that particular project? Somewhere between donation and utilization it is missing the people that it is intended for.

We had a very blessed day when we got to Masero. We first had coffee and toast because not many days start effectively without it. We then went to get Meh and Ntate’s passport pictures taken. We met a muslim man there who was the owner of the store and had a very nice talk with him. At first he would not take any of our literature but then when we invited him to come, bring his family, and visit for tea he accepted the literature for the address. Please pray that he will read the literature and understand the truth.

Then we went to the embassy and it was a real pleasure for Meh and Ntate to be able to talk to Americans, so that was a joy for them.

Next was lunch and we have to be careful where we eat because Africans have an amazing immune system due to the conditions in which they live. We went to this very nice hotel and found that it had very nice food but the price was not so very nice but we stayed for the buffet. This turned out to be an awesome opportunity because the hotel was hosting a government conference or something. We handed out probably well over 200 tracts and booklets of John and Romans in all throughout the day. The seeds have been planted, now we must pray that they will grow.

In the bathroom when we first got to the hotel I was washing my hands and the literature was sitting on the sink and this lady asked me where I was from with this literature and then Meh and this lady got talking and the lady (Yvonne) told her that she has a radio show and she is looking for people to preach on it. After lunch we went to visit the studio and find out what it is all about. There are a few things that were a little sketchy about it but if nothing else this could be an awesome opportunity for Meh and Ntate to share their testimony on the radio which can reach hundreds of thousands of people.

Today was the first time in the last two months that I have ever been turned down when handing out literature and this was on the street in Masero. I guess that I didn’t really think of it a whole lot until then. I mean I knew that people were much more receptive here than in the states, but never really appreciated their hunger until I was turned down.

On the way home we went a different way and I was able to see some rhinos in a field next to the road. God’s creation is beautiful and amazing!

A few of you have asked me when I will be returning to the states. I leave here on Monday evening and will be arriving in the states on Tuesday afternoon, your thoughts while I travel are much appreciated.

Ecclesiastes 1:9

That which has been is what will be done, That which is done is what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun.

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