We first met Thembi in 2009. She joined the Hope2Africa Masi team and it didn’t take long for us to learn of her incredible story of faith and courage. Thembi had been sent to Masi by her mother in search of a better life for her younger siblings. She quickly became acquainted with Masi’s overcrowding and for over a year, her younger brother and younger sister and cousins were essentially homeless inside of Masi, living on the streets and fending for what food they could scrounge. They eventually found a shack they could rent.
On the April 2010 Hope2Africa Masi trip we learned that Thembi and her siblings were being evicted. They could not afford the rent and had no where else to go. God provided the financial resources for our team to purchase a shack for Thembi, her sister, brother and cousins. They were so excited to have a shack of their own and tears of joy were shed as she exclaimed “we have our very own shack now, just like everyone else.”
The beautiful part of Thembi’s dark story is her very emphatic message that God has always been with her, especially when she was afraid at night. She calls herself a “blessed girl” and she is currently working hard to finish her Senior year of high school. Her family continues to live in poverty, but Thembi possesses a calm joyfulness that comes in knowing that God has plans for her and more than that, He is with her each step of the journey.
By the way, Thembi’s name means great HOPE, we couldn’t agree more.
So what can YOU do?
1- Pray
•Pray for the HOPE of Jesus to be experienced by the people of Africa. Thembi’s story is all too common. The youth of Hope2Africa are living in poverty and are surrounded by HIV/aids. Their sense of hopelessness is overwhelming as they simply try to survive in tough conditions and crumbling families.
•Pray for us as we pour the Hope of Jesus into these kids.
2- Donate your Status (Facebook or Twitter): Be a part of pouring Hope into the life of teenager living in poverty in the squatter camps of South Africa. There are so many things YOU can do: Pray, give, come on a trip. www.hope2africa.com
3- Spread the Word: Forward this message to 10 people today!
4- Get Involved - Ask the Lord to show you how you can be involved. There are many Thembi's that need to hear how Jesus loves them.
Thank you for helping us reach more youth in South Africa. Thank you for growing HOPE....
7 DAYS OF HOPE team
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