Hello All,
Well the weeks have gone by, time has
past so fast, and in just a few days Harvest School 21 will be
heading into its third week of school. Unbelievable really how busy
and consumed I can become.
I have been in Johannesburg South
Africa for the past 2 months. Staying at the Iris base, Footprints,
falling in love with the kids and the family here. Having to share
all of it with 250 more people, after the rest of the staff and all
the students arrived, has been difficult.
Now in just 2 short days (on Saturday)
we will be moving on to Nelspurit, South Africa, also called White
River. Where we will be renting a camp ground to have the next three
weeks of Harvest School at Pastor Supresas Sithole's base.
In the past 2 weeks all the staff have
been trained by Chester and Betsy Kylstra and there top Directors of
development, Dave and Marylin, in RTF (Restoring the Foundations
Ministry) Issue Focus training. Also all 220 students have received
healing from this Issue focus format! It has been a crazy two weeks,
but its amazing how much God has done. In class time we have
testimony time and God has brought so much and so many people have
been healed of broken hearts and set free from things holding them
back! This School is marked for FREEDOM and purity of heart. WHAT a huge honor it has been to learn from the people who founded one of the most influential inner healing programs I have ever wittnessed. I am truly humbled!
Last week it was time to break up into
our Color groups and go out on outreach, after all this is still a
mission school. We went to 8 different townships. Some of the
townships having over 1million people living in complete poverty. My
group however, was chosen to walk to the smallest one of all.
Literally and appropriately called Tiny Town, only having about 7
families in a small strip of houses not a mile from our base. It took
footprints over 6 months to be able to have some kind of relationship
with the people in this township to the point of being able to send
food and provide pre-school for there little ones. So it definitely
was an honor to be able to go and spend time with these families.
We had so much fun while we were there
and made immediate connections with these beautiful yet skittish
people. We played soccer, we captured a run away pig, handed out
sandwiches, prayed with people, cleaned out their community garden
and just had community. It was a beautiful time and great break away
form base.
WHAT'S HAPPENING NEXT?
After Harvest School I
will be returning state side to lead the outreach to the inner city
of Jackson Mississippi. We will be going to one of my heroes in
life's bases, Mrs. Amy Lancaster of We Will Go ministries. Jackson
Mississippi is one of the hardest places in America to live and is
absolutely a mission field! If you ever want to learn how to do real
missions in America you need to visit this base. Amy and her family
exemplify the true meaning of becoming like Jesus. They minister to
some of the hardest most stubborn druggies and homeless men and women
you will ever meet. And their hearts only grow bigger and bigger. It
is such an honor to be able to lead this outreach plus it will put me
home for Christmas for the first time in many years!
This is an extremely
bitter sweet time for me as things are changing so much. This will be
my last Harvest School to staff for a while, but not the end of my
involvement with Iris Ministries. After 4 staffing Harvest Schools I
think God is finally releasing me into new and wondrous things.
Praise to God alone I was finally able
to book my flight to Pemba. Please be praying we are able to get our
visas for Mozambique in Nelspurit!
However, I have no tickets to outreach
yet and no way home. I have been pricing tickets and the cheapest I
have been quoted from Pemba all the way to Jackson is about $1,500
dollars. I know to God this is absolutely nothing. But when you only
have $100 left in your account to last you the rest of the month it
is a big opportunity to trust the Lord. This is always my favorite
part because He always comes through, even if it isn't in the timing
I would like.
If you would like to be apart of
supporting me and the people I poor into there is a donate button at
the top of my blog page that will direct you to my paypal account. Or
you can email me or facebook me directly and I can give you the other
options.
Thank you so much to those of you who
have been ket supporters of me and the places God takes me!
I wouldn't be where I am today without
you!
Love & Blessings,
Rachael Michelle
