If you follow the ministry news on social media then you know that last month we received 2 new little ones and filled the house with laughter, some crying, and lots more diapers! That brings the total to six wonderful children in our care.
Joshua ( 2 year old ) - He came very malnourished and needing a place to love on him and bring him back to health. His father was doing the very best he could to help his little boy but was struggling as a single parent to provide. Joshua has been in and out of the hospital several times and each time he came in worse. One more visit could end up being his last. Social welfare called and we picked him up from the hospital. When he arrived his stomach was bloated, he had sores on his tongue, diarrhea, his arms and legs were tiny and he could not walk. Just in the short time he has been here his skin is healthy, he is eating alot, and is running around challenging the aunties every day.
James (Age hidden for security) - James came to us very young and needing a place to live and be cared for. He is growing every day and we love watching him do new things. He is growing into a beautiful little boy.
Millie ( 5 months ) - She came to us very mistreated and abandoned. It was known that her mother would lock her up in a house all day and go about her business leaving her all alone with no one to care for her. When she came to us she would cry a lot and jerk herself awake. We learned through reports that the father would give her strong alcohol to keep her from crying at night. She has been with us for a couple of months now and we are finally beginning to see improvements. She is crying less and smiling and laughing and interacts with us when we talk to her.
Ellie ( 6 months ), Mercy A.K.A. "Peanut"( 5 months ), and Blessing ( 8 months ) continue to grow every day and are definitely receiving lots of care and love!
Security of the Children
You may have noticed that we don't share pics or a lot of information on social media and newsletters. When we started with our first baby a local social media company picked up our story and published it for all of Eswatini. Their intentions were good as they were only trying to promote those who are trying to take care of abandoned little ones. But at the time the baby's situation did not need to be exposed and we made a decision to create a better way of sharing information about the children. If you have access to Facebook we currently have a page called True Hearts Babies. It is a page you have to join and agree to the rules. We control all information and pictures on that page. If you would like to keep up with the daily activities of the kiddos, find the page and join. You definitely will enjoy all the fun pictures!
Discipleship
On Saturday Jen began her women's group again. It has been difficult to get together since the Baby House opened and Saturday was a perfect and beautiful day to begin again. The numbers were low because a community meeting was called that morning. But for those who did attend they were definitely blessed and hungry to hear the Word.
Garden ( A ministry Need )
Most of you are aware of the situation across the world with high food prices and lack of access to fresh produce. We grow most of our vegetables and don't rely on local markets to provide. We've done well to grow what we can all year long. Since the winters here are mild we are still able to grow a lot of things during the cold months. We don't own a tractor to plough or till the gardens. Currently no one in our community owns a tractor as they don't have the money to purchase one and keep it serviced or running.
Our current prayer for the ministry is for a tractor. We would be able to expand the gardens and grow an abundance of food not only for the baby home but for those in our community who don't have enough land to even grow a vegetable garden. With the dollar rate versus the local currency right now we are looking to raise $25,000 to purchase a new tractor. Please be in prayer and contact us if you would like to be a part of meeting this ministry need.
Justin
In September Justin had planned to visit the U.S. in hopes of raising funds for the ministry. We have been so blessed with 6 wonderful babies and 10 staff that help care for them. It comes with a financial price that can be at times challenging. Justin was hoping to help raise those funds by visiting with donors when he noticed a new hernia appear pretty rapidly. A quick trip over to South Africa with his doctor and it was confirmed that he needs to have that repaired very soon. This Thursday he will go into surgery and stay a couple of nights in the hospital to make sure there are no complications. It should be a routine surgery and all prayers would definitely be appreciated. It has been 2 years since the closure of his colostomy. He had a hernia repair last May and still struggles with them because his abdomen was open post op for so long due to complications from his colon surgery. For now his trip is cancelled but we will update everyone when we know he can travel again.
Prayer Request:
* A new Tractor ($25,000)
* Justin's Surgery
* Financial Support for Baby Home 2023 ($70,000)
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