Get to Know Ntokozo

Sarah and Ntokozo made a video together that will help you to get to know our new family member:

A Little Fun with Kieren

Some people may not be interested, but if you LOVE Kieren you will ADORE this!

Digital Nativity

Check out this video, pretty interesting.

Special Night Out!

Tuesday night we were able to celebrate Christmas with a fun group of friends.  We are a fun mix of Americans, Zimbabweans, and South Africans, all living, working, and serving in this great county.  One of the couples planned the entire beautiful night, as it was catered and decorated to the nines!  It's special to just get dressed up, and we had a great night talking, eating, and laughing with our wonderful friends.  We totally lost track of time and got home very late - a rare happening for these parents.  Good times!

Kieren and Sarah saying a last goodbye before some time with friends

The happy couple ready for a night out!

Happy Granny getting a night with her baby.  They always have a great time too!

Perspective

Yesterday was a CRAZY day - seriously - around here with Christmas and the 'end of the year' (because the school year just ended and it's 'summer' holidays) there seem to be a MILLION things going on!  With one car for our family, sometimes I feel like a shuttle service this week (hello moms, I know you hear me on this one) but luckily all the things we are involved in are so excited and life-giving.  Amidst the chaos of yesterday, I stopped by my friend Bernadette Terry as  she was hosting a Christmas party for the HIV support group that we lead together, with our friend Naomi.  We were snacking away and chatting by the 'braai' (barbecue) as our hosts were making a 'potkie' which is a South African traditional dish, like a stew, but made in a big cast iron pot over a fire.  SO YUM.  Yesterday was one of those days, however, where my conversations with these women, who are living lives with HIV, really stopped me in my tracks and touched my heart deeply.  When we are together for gatherings like that, we are laughing and talking and eating and we are all equal.  But the moment they walk out of that home, they are sick, ostracized, ignored, looked down upon, and living lives of struggle every single moment.  They are mothers, daughters, sisters, and friends, and definitely have their own issues in life, but are so brave and beautiful.  They humble me and give me a new perspective on the ABUNDANCE of blessings I have in my life.  There is so much to be thankful for, and they make me want to live my life in a way that honors them and our friendship.  It's a challenge to love them because they make bad choices that hurt themselves, their bodies, and their families.  But really, we ALL do that.  We ALL need grace and a great God.  So we do life together, none of us perfect, all on the journey. 

Perspective.

Love,
Sarah

Launch of Something Great!

Antoine and Mathy Musemena with their kids Onesie and Christ

I have shared many times about my great Congolese friends Antoine and Mathy.  2010 has been an excruciating year as they lost their 10 day old daughter, Lauren, who died suddenly at their home.  Even in the face of tragedy, this amazing family has continued to follow God and have been working on a plan to move back to the Democratic of Congo to start a ministry.  They feel that the time has come and plan to move there January 2011!  I will be so saddened to have these friends so far, but couldn't be more proud of what they are doing for God.  They have just launched their new website (below) for their ministry Good Shepard.  Check it out and if you are able, please support them in prayers or donation.  They are going to do incredible things!

http://www.goodshepherd.org.za/get-involved.htm

Love from the US

In this world there are many ways that people give and receive love.  There is a Christian book called 'The Five Love Languages' and it's about these ways.  One of them is 'gifts' and some people feel loved when they receive gifts - they don't have to be big or extraordinary, just something meaningful.  

I AM ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE.

SO IS MY MOM.

We like holidays and sharing our love with each other!  We received a package yesterday from her (and I'm sure my dad helped... in spirit) and it was filled with little Christmas gift!  I am so excited!!  Thanks Mom and Dad!

You too could love the Princes's!

:)

Tuesday Thoughts

Sarah decided she would LET me blog for once (wink, wink) so here are some of my thoughts from this weekend and the Elite Christmas Clinics that Ubuntu Sports Outreach has been hosting.
Sarah mentioned this but Sunday night at Hillsong was pretty incredible.  Leaving the house, I wasn't all that expectant that God was going to do much, but by the time we arrived I knew that I needed to get prepared.  As the service moved towards the "Anointing" period, the Asst. Pastor, Jon Norman, came and prayed over Jenks and then me and Sarah.  He prayed some specific things that we've also been praying for and really spoke truth over us.  After that, since we are Connect Group Leaders, we were sent out to pray for others.  It was such a privilege to anoint people with oil and pray for them.  It's amazing the things that God would lead you to pray.  As that was finishing, the lead pastor, Phil, stopped the whole thing to share some specific thoughts with me and Sarah.  Yes, in a room of over 1,500 people he spoke to just us, in front of everyone.  He spoke a lot out the ways that God is stretching us and preparing us for ministry that is even bigger than we have experienced before.  He spoke specifically to me about not deferring to Sarah in ministry but to own my specific gifts.  It was just so humbling for God to choose us for him to speak to in that way.  He's definitely right about God stretching us.  It happened during the 5 weeks of having Ntokozo living with us.  It happens everyday living in this community.  And it's happening right now with our attempts to move forward with Ubuntu.
The clinics we've been having over the last 2 weeks have been stretching my faith, my patience, and my understanding of these communities.  We've now completed 5 of the 6 sessions and the results have been varied.  We've had a few really talented players, and some really bad ones.  We've had some that work really hard, and some that are quite lazy.  We've had some kids that are respectful and do the right thing, and some that just want to goof off.  So all of that has been stretching.  Last week we struggled to get kids involved from Masiphumelele, the black township near us.  I'm still not sure totally what the answer is there, but we need to think more strategically about how to get those kids involved.  We are also continuing to learn how to best communicate information and who the people are that we can trust to do things for us.  It's all been quite positive, but I wish I didn't always have so much to learn!!  When will I start to know it all?!?! (And not just in my own mind!)  Now we're wrestling with which kids to invite into the program.  There are a few talented kids with questionable attitudes, do we take the risk?  There are some kids that aren't great players, but have great athletic ability, do we trust that we can teach them how to play?  It's quite an interesting process and we have a lot of big decisions to make over the next month or so.
So, that's some of what has been going on my heart & head.

Casey

Weekend Update

Hey everyone!

Hope you had a wonderful weekend!  I made the mistake of going to the 'shops' as they call the stores on Saturday - a Toys R Us to be exact - and I was reminded of the FURY and DETERMINATION of shoppers during this season.  It was crazy, but I'm sure it paled in comparison to the chaos at your stores!  We had a great weekend here, but the Prince home was relatively quiet, which was exactly my goal.  We made a family dinner and hung out together Friday night.  Saturday morning, Casey had a long run with some guys and then he and Michael went to Hillsong's new building to help continue the cleaning and set-up.  I elected to stay behind and run a few errands with Kieren and Ntokozo.  I found myself longing to cherish every minute with Ntokozo knowing she was leaving for Durban to visit family for a month on Monday morning!  We visited my Congolese friends Antoine and Mathy and it was so nice to spend time with them catching up and hear of their hopes and PLAN to move to the Democratic Republic of Congo at the end of January 2011!  They are ready for the next chapter of their lives in serving their people there and are working to get that accomplished soon!  I will miss them so much but more am happy and proud that they are following their passion and call.  Saturday afternoon we hung out a bit and then Casey went off to celebrate one of our friend's birthday with a boys' night.  When I was up with Kieren at 2am he was STILL not back, so needless to say they had a memorable night.  It was good for all the boys.  Ntokozo and I hung out and just rested.  Sunday morning we had church at Ocean View which was great, until our friend Charmaine came and scolded Casey who was still at home in his pajamas!  We have a hilarious group of people at our church.  We really just hung out together and helped Ntokozo pack and prepare for Durban all day Sunday, and then left in the afternoon to go to Hillsong for church.  They had an 'annointing' service, where they anointed every single person with oil, a marker of God's presence and blessing for the coming year.  It was an incredibly powerful night for Casey and I, as we were prayed over by a few people and even given some wisdom and encouragement from the head pastor, Phil Dooley.  We are in the right place and SO THANKFUL (trite words) for this church and their support of us.  Then we finished the night with a 'family' dinner with Casey and I, Kieren, Ntokozo, and Michael Jenkins at a Mexican restaurant we all love.  Perfect weekend.  I tried to soak up all the moments with our 'daughter.'  Please pray for her as she travels for a WHOLE DAY on a bus to see her family.  We are excited for them to see how she is growing up and becoming an incredible woman - we have even seen it in a month.

What a life of joy; hope yours feels the same

Love,

Sarah

picture from Tsktsk artwork athttp://ny-image0.etsy.com/il_fullxfull.98908532.jpg.

Book Review by Sarah

"Circles of Dignity" by James Cochrane

In my new quest to fill my brain with lots of great information I have come across a recommended book written by one of the professors in the religion department at the University of Cape Town.  James Cochrane is widely esteemed Christian intellectual in his field and in the country of South Africa and he is working on some incredible ideas.  This is a VERY intellectual book, took me forever to get through, but it was extremely challenging and thought provoking.  Cochrane aims to help theological and church leaders from moving away as the definers of faith and thought in the church and allow people in the church, living out their faith in everyday lives, to define what God in life looks like.  It sounds simple enough, but the history of Christianity and even the church today proves that there can be a disconnect from the church 'leaders' and those living on the ground with God in the every day.  This book looks at expressions and insights of a group of people living in a rural township, a group called Amawoti community and church.  It is very interesting and something that I live out every day in learning among those I serve in the Ocean View township.  We actually ALWAYS have something new to learn and I love what I am learning here in our world these days!

Lots of love,
Sarah

Human Rights Day 2010

Happy Human Rights Day friends!

This is an important day to remember and gain knowledge because the basic human rights of many people in South Africa and all across our beautiful world are threatened or violated every day.  SA is a county suffering from many problems, and there is much room for growth and for people to give one another the dignity they deserve.

You can see a great website about human rights and some of the issues that are the focus of this day at http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/HRDay2010.aspx.

Also, here is an incredible and poignant site about human trafficking in South Africa, something that is growing and a huge problem all over the world.  Check it out at http://www.iom.int/Template/southafrica/16-days-of-activism/index.htm#img/16-days-of-activism-01.jpg.

Lots of love,
Sarah

Light of the World

"The Word gave life to everything that was created,

      and his life brought light to everyone.  

The light shines in the darkness,

      and the darkness can never extinguish it."

-John 1:3-4

Christmas is getting closer and closer here in South Africa, and Kieren, Ntokozo and I were able to celebrate on Tuesday night by attending a Christmas Carols night.  It was hosted at one of our Ocean View Methodist leaders' workplaces.  We dragged along a ton of people from the church to spend the evening with us, and I was asked to share a devotional.  As I have been reading and reading and READING about the gospel of John for my upcoming course I will be teaching, the theme of light and dark has been hitting my heart.  John tells us that Jesus came to be the light of the world, and no darkness is ever strong enough to overtake that light.  This Christmas is a different one for sure.  It's our second here in Africa, but last year my parents came to visit the day after Christmas and so we got special time with them.  This year the reality hits hard that we are 'alone' out here with out our beloved family and friends back in the States.  We are making great plans and starting new traditions, but our hearts long for the little things that made up so many Christmas' of our past.  As I think about light, a picture keeps coming in my head, of myself as a child (and even as an adult) laying underneath a Christmas tree that has been strung with little lights.  In the dark, looking up at the lights almost seems magical and there is a special spirit and power of those lights.  It's almost hard to put into words.  The disciple John was trying to describe something, or really someone, that also was indescribable in Jesus Christ.  No word or metaphor could fully capture the power of the Messiah that had come to earth, but something that John evidently loves to come back to is that Jesus is light among all the darkness in our world.  The 'lights' are different this Christmas and for sure, the darkness is stronger than I have ever known or experienced.  Ocean View is a harsh place, a place of violence, drugs, loneliness, hate, and confusion.  And yet John tells me this Christmas that no matter how dark it may get in our community, the light of Jesus Christ is always stronger.  The only reason I can believe this audacious claim is that I am seeing this Light at work all around us, and truly it is real.  Even though there are new traditions, songs, and look to this Christmas, the light is so much more real than it has ever been and I take that light to share and celebrate in a new way this year.  The light truly does overcome the darkness, and I am thankful to live and experience it every day, even in my own heart.


Lots of love,
Sarah

Family Update!

Hello everyone!

Casey and I went tonight to a beach in Cape Town for a leader's celebration and gathering for Hillsong Church, and seeing so many friends and giving 'updates' on our family, I wanted to make sure all of you are filled in on what is happening in the Prince home.  Everyone is still healthy and it's just nice to be happy and enjoying the days.  It's getting warmer around here, summer has definitely arrived, and we are continuing to make time outside, at the beach, and taking walks.  This city is just beautiful!  It is again strange to be celebrating and preparing for Christmas in summer-weather and climate, but since this is our second Christmas now, I feel a bit more used to it.  I feel like it just means you have to be more intentional about focusing on Christmas and creating 'moments' of celebration.  The holiday season isn't as commercialized here, which means you don't hear and see Christmas things so much, but it allows you the space to focus on what is really important.  On Tuesday night I went with a big group of Ocean View church people to a Christmas Carol night at one of our leader's workplace.  It seemed random, and really was, but it was very lovely to gather with a group of people of different religions and celebrate Christmas, even worshipping and thanking Jesus Christ.  I love my church so much and am thankful that this year they are my 'family' even more.

Ntokozo has had a couple weeks of ups and downs emotionally and I think a lot more is going on in her heart then she can even express.  Last week she was really heartbroken upon learning that her son, Jacob, who is currently living at an orphanage, will not be able to be fostered by a nearby family anytime soon.  She really has a profound and deep love for her son, even though they have spent little time together in his short life, and it's very beautiful.  But this week she was able to go to the orphanage and visit him and then today found out she passed the 9th grade, which is HUGE and one more step towards graduation, HUGELY HUGE!!  I am so proud of her and she was beaming all day; really all week.  She is an emotional girl, but very shy, and struggles to articulate her feelings, so she just shuts down when hurting.  It's an emotional rollercoaster around her sometimes, oh and now I'm talking about me because I feel so strongly for this girl now!  When she breaks, I break too!  With all the court stuff that has been happening I want to go and punch someone's lights out because they are being mean!  It's crazy what this experience is taking ME through, so who knows what she even thinks of this crazy home!  All I know is that I love her very much and really believe in her and feel privileged that God brought her into our lives.  I do notice that I get less accomplished than I did a month ago, but we have found a new balance and we all enjoy it.  Even Kieren is finally bonding with Ntokozo (she is getting OVER being jealous of her...) and they are sweet together. We hear her calling for her 'sissy' throughout the house.

We have a great life.  Full with Christmas, but so, so wonderful.  Love my life.  LML.

Lots of love to you too,
Sarah

Great Movie!!

We had a great family night last weekend and rented a movie I had been looking forward to seeing for a while, but wasn't too sure how my teenager would take it all!  We took the risk anyways and rented 'Skin,' and it was a hit with myself, Casey, and Ntokzo, WOW!  It looked intriguing because it is based on a TRUE story set here in South Africa, and has won some independent film awards.  Race is a huge issue around here, especially being a white family living in a colored township.  This movie brings up deep issues of race, love, family, and the dignity deserved by each person.  I would really recommend this film as you will learn and also be moved!

Love,
Sarah

Ubuntu Clinic Tuesday Pics

The Fields at Fish Hoek Soccer Club

Karl Ostrand, American missionary who will also be working with Ubuntu, beginning training with boys

These boys had a great start and we are eager to see how it all develops this week.  Please be praying for Casey and the Ubuntu team this week!  More updates to come!