Living in South Africa

I’m really excited that I get to update you all on life in South Africa!  Things here are definitely different than life in America, but they also share many interesting similarities.  I think one of the biggest adjustments for myself has been the South African concept of time.  For instance, if a South African says that they will be there, “now now” they mean that they will be there in 10-15 minutes, and if they say they will be there “just now” it could mean that they will be there in an hour.  It’s definitely been a challenge to adjust to  that difference.  I would say that for myself, the food has not been very difficult to adjust to.  There are a lot of differences but I have not really had anything so far that has been difficult to eat, because it tastes pretty good!  One of the foods that we have seen over and over again has been “pap” which is a thick cornmeal that you eat with your fingers. 

As a driver (this is Katlyn) I would say it has for sure been a challenge to adjust to the roads here.  Not only are we driving on the side of the road that we are not used to, but the traffic signs and roads are really difficult to get used to.  You will frequently have two or three lane roads turn into a one lane road without any warning, and all the cars will try to quickly merge.  It is definitely getting better and I believe by the end of our time here our drivers will be really used to it, but it is definitely different than driving in the United States.

                                                                                                -Katlyn Yoder

            Fences run into fences. Walls block civilians from viewing residences and businesses beyond the gated barriers. On top of these fences and walls spikes and/or electric wire become the common accessory for most of the homes in Johannesburg. A security sign warns a wandering passerby that an alarm system is in place. If these sytems are breached ferocious dogs bark their final warning. These images and sounds replace the memories of green lawns meshing into neighbors verdant grass at home in the states. The lawns at home communicate a sense of trust and community. Here faith in the neighbor seems is severed similar to the barbwire that separates neighbor from neighbor.

The residents of Johannesburg who live behind these walls of Johannesburg are gated from freedom. Their eyes communicate their bondage behind bars. We can see their hunger for fulfillment as homeless people beg for food and money outside of our car windows every day when we drive to the campus of Witwatersrand. Then, from behind their books and exams the students at Wits yearn for life. I see God has sent us as a team  to “…proclaim liberty to the captives, and opening of the prison to those who are bound.” (Isaiah 61:1)  

 Each day we leave Sunbury bed and breakfast to go to campus we open a 20 foot steel door that protects us from the outside world. We travel in three’s wherever we go. We have a guy with us at all times.

            I am learning these boundaries are for our protection and freedom just as God’s law is for our protection and freedom. Having boundaries has actually compelled us to live as a deeper community. I learn that the dependence and trust I put in my brothers and sisters is a smaller picture of how I need to be secondly dependent on Christ. The way we serve each other by cooking meals, traveling together, and cleaning for one another depicts a picture of Christ coming to serve and not to be served. I am continually sanctified as I grow in community with these men and women.

            Thus, living in Johannesburg has pushed me to cling to the law of the Lord. The more we are slaves to his righteousness and obey his commandments, the more Christ lives in us to bring us freedom. “Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom.” As my pastor from college says, freedom lies not in “how far from God we can stray but how close to Him we can stay.” Living here has shown me how close I need to cling to Jesus. I need to desire to be in His presence, to remain behind His shield, and under the shadow of His wings.  In James 4:6 he says, that if we “draw near to God He will draw near to us”. I pray that as a community we continue to draw near to God, and slowly, person by person the inhabitants of Johannesburg will be transformed into inheritors of the Kingdom.

                                                                                                -Rachael Newmister