The Team Arrives!

Saturday morning the "real" trip began!  We went to the airport to rent our two vehicles and then waited for the team to arrive!  We had lots of time to wait so I managed to make a sign for every peron on our team.  I mean after a 16 flight across the world you do deserve a sign with your name on it!  

We were pumped to welcome the team to this beautiful country.  Sadly when we got to the arrival area we realized that their flight from Joburg to Cape Town had been cancelled. ugh! Good news though!  they were on the next flight and it would arrive only 1 hour later.  Good job SA airways! 

This gave us time to go eat lunch at Wimpys burger joint and be back with our signs to welcome the team!

It was so fun welcoming the team, but for their sake I spared them on pictures.  I mean who wants their picture made when you've been traveling for 24 hours. We went back to our home for our stay, Atlantic Point (in Green Point) and got settled.  It was so fun and exciting to have everyone together in South Africa.  We had been planning for months, so it was such a cool reality to finally be here!  

We decided for our first dinner together to walk down to the water front and eat outside in the warm and beautiful Cape Town weather.  Although some of us knew each other well, some of us were new friends. It was great to be together and begin getting to know each other better

It was such a great first night out as a team until we came home to this...  

We had been told Cape Town was not a safe place.  I guess this was a good reality check for us.  Thankfully we had insurance and the rental car company was great!  What was not so great was Dria and I driving down the interstate in a car like this when we had to get it back to the rental company.  Thankfully this was our only theft issue during our trip!

Sunday was a great day of getting oriented to Point Community and the work we would be doing.  It was such a priviledge and delight to worship with this amazing church plant Sunday morning.  This was the beginning of a wonderful week with these sweet people.  We started the morning off by standing outside the church talking to people on the street and inviting them to church and ended the morning off with a picnic lunch with the all those who attended church.  

My favorite moment on Sunday was when we sang 2 zulu songs that my team had sung so often when I was in SA in 2004.  It brought back such great memories of my summer in SA and made me really excited and thankful to be back in this beautiful country 7 years later!  

The afternoon was filled with a orientation meeting and hearing Jacques testimony (which was one of the most powerful testimonys I think I have ever heard!  such an example of the Lord's grace, mercy and faithfulness)  His testimony was another example to me of how much bigger God is than us.  He has the complete power to change lives. It is not about what we have to offer, but the Lord using his sinful children to further his kingdom.  We ended the day with a short tour around Cape Town, a trip to the grocery store, and dinner as a team.

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