Blignaut Family

Jared and Kelley Graham arranged for me to spend a couple of days and a night in the presence of this couple, Fredrick and Abby Blignaut. He is on the worship team at their church and they together head up an outreach program called Project Hope for children and youth. It is a combination of humanitarian aid and gospel outreach.

They live in a neighborhood that is in between the wealthy and privileged few and the masses of poor. They took me to a youth service on Saturday night and to their church Sunday morning. They shared with me lots of things including racial issues that they and their church seek to help eradicate. They talked about growing up in the different cities in South Africa and their heritage --for Fredrick, French and South African, for Abby, Indian and South African. In South Africa there are three primary races: Black-- which includes many people groups. White-- which includes Afrikaans (descendants of Dutch settlers) and British. Colored-- which includes people who were the result of interactions between the blacks and whites. They were not accepted into either race and so are a race of their own--each bringing portions of their mixed culture and traditions.

After church on Sunday, Fredrick and Abby took me to the beach which is only about 20 minutes from their home. This was their son Nahum's first trip to the beach though they live nearby and visited it regularly when they were dating. I had the impression that they work so hard, and are so focused on ministry and Nahum, that they take little time for themselves.

They were curious about my family, life, work and trip to Malawi. We spoke for some time about the degree to which America is a Christian' nation.

At the time I was there Abby was expecting their second child who has arrived and is pictured here with Abby. His name is Daniel.
I was so impressed with their hospitality and generosity. Abby fixed an amazing evening meal with many components that are common both in America and in South Africa. The portion of the meal that was a surprise for me was the lima beans cooked with tripe. Tripe is sheep stomach that is boiled for several hours and flavored with curry. Since the trip, every time I smell or taste curry I'm transported back to Abby's table.

Abby and I have maintained contact via email. Hopefully one day I will be able to host them in my home.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together. --Martin Luther King, Jr.

Port Elizabeth, South Africa

Port Elizabeth is a coastal city of southern most South Africa. It is the home of the Graham family--through whom I was able to connect with the Eden Family and serve in Malawi. The Grahams work with a local church and do crusades in other parts of Africa. More about them in a post to come.



Port Elizabeth has two beatiful beaches and a thriving tourist industry. It also has some of the most poverty sticken areas I have ever seen. The Grahams drove me around and allowed me to see the best and the worst, the rich areas and the heartbreakingly poor, the beautiful beaches and the trash strewn alleys. Downtown I was offered drugs because we were driving slowly and I had my window down. Everywhere in Africa I saw the expected extreme poverty but in this city I saw concentrations of it. There are several neighborhoods similar to this one. Some of them have no electricty or water and have thousands of people living shed like homes make of tin, tar paper, plywood or plastic or a combination of these materials and cloth. The unemployment rate is unbelievable. In the nicer areas of town I felt like I could be in a costal city in the US but in the slum areas the contrast was marked.














Port Elizabeth is a working port and the city leaders have plans to greatly expand the port in the next 10 years which will bring a great deal of revenue to the area--I only hope that the income does not go to the already rich as it usually does in Africa.



It was winter and about 37 degrees Farenheit when I flew into Port Elizabeth in August but a few days later there was an unusually warm day when the mercury climbed to around 75 and I swam, shivering in the Indian Ocean. I love the power and passion of the ocean. There is nothing like it.

I stayed eight days with the Grahams in their guest room in Port Elizabeth following 2 1/2 weeks in Malawi. I am so grateful for the impact of their friendship made back in Springdale, Arkansas in 2004.

My friend Lazaro

Lazaro is the eldest male orphan at Grace Farm. He is extreemly bright and has a competative leader type personality. He was the primary translater for me during my visit. He has a bright future. I do not doubt that he will be able to have any profession he chooses in any country he settles in. He excells in school is a great help around the orphan home when he chooses to be. He vacillates back and forth between being a energetic and mischeivious boy and being a mature young man with knowledge of people and the Word. He is fluent in three languages, very perceptive and confident. Please pray that he will make good choices in his faith and relationships. He has so much potential.

My friend Mary

Mary is the eldest female orphan at Grace Farm. She carries a lot of responsibility in the home and is a top student in her class. She is a quiet, introspective girl who I was drawn to from the start. Bronwyn had shared some of her tragic history with me and broke my heart, which was even more breakable than usual while on the African Continent. I won't tell Mary's story without her permission--let's just say that in her 15 years she has faced hardships and demons that most of us in the West never imagine. Yet she is a gentle and tender soul.
One day Mary was singing quietly as we worked with beads. I told Bronwyn about it later and she called it a breakthrough. Although Mary behaves impeccably and works hard she is been very closed emotionally and verbally to the missionaries. While I was there she not only began to sing aloud while working and doing crafts, but began to talk in the presence of the missionaries. We learned that she's knows more English than they thought and she was able to translate for me when Lazaro was not available.
The orphans are given a small piece of land each to farm each year. Mary worked very hard on hers in 2005 and earned enough money with her crop to purchase a bicycle. A child owning a bicycle is very significant. Most adults in the area do not own bicycles (much less cars). I had a difficult time letting her go when I had to say goodbye. She has written me since and I treasure her letter. She is a precious wounded soul in whose life God is doing beautiful work. I'm excited about her future. Her life is such a proclamation of grace, forgiveness and hope amidst seemingly impossible odds.

Mary (upper right) and others enjoy a snack of peanuts.