"Think less and thank more!"

This started as a FaceBook post but I couldn't stop writing so I switched it to a short blog. Lol!

In my ministry class we are going through Battlefield of the Mind DVDs series by Joyce Meyers and I am rereading her book by the same name. What perfect timing! She says "Think less and thank more!" We need to focus more on the things that are going right, what we are doing right, blessings He has blessed us with and how far we have come instead of dwelling on where we have stumbled, how we have messed up, the what ifs, the anger, the hurt, the worry. 

"Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other." Romans 12:10

I have been continually amazed this past week at how much I can love others and have peace regardless of the circumstances. It is only a reflection of realizing how much my God has loved, is loving and will continue to love me! He is transforming me and it is so cool, amazing and worthy of praising Him! If you only knew me before.......you could see that this can only be God. It is kind of weird to be shocked at how you are reacting or not reacting to situations and know it is not by your will or power or frame of mind but rather something beyond your understanding, something supernatural.

Thanks for letting me take a moment to sing His praises with a thankful heart. I hope it encourages you to see Him in the blessings and progress He has given you! As my ministry verse that I use to describe my journey in Africa says---

"Now glory be to God! By His mighty power at work within us, He is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope." Ephesians 3:20

What Next?

This is the question I am seeking God on. So far this is what I have discerned.

The first step is to finish with Children's Cup well. It is a great organization and I want to end the year with it being the best it can be. I am still visiting sites, encouraging and monitoring that registers, feeding and sponsor letters are going well.
We have Christmas parties coming up next month that require a lot of preparation and only our small staff. The great news is we have lots of volunteers lined up to help on the actual days of the parties! Joy to the world!

The next step in line is figuring out where God has for me to go. At this point I wish God would just flash a neon sign with an arrow that says "Go Here". There are several ministries I have worked with in South Africa and Swaziland and others that I have become aware of. My heart is to not be in just a place that can use me but to be where God is reflected by my actions the most. I so want it not to be about me but about Him. Sometimes that means going where I'm not as comfortable and familiar.
Currently I feel God wanting me to stay in South Africa. I feel He had His hand in my transition here this past year. 
Although I love and treasure Swaziland and my friends there, when my separation from Cup occurred I surprisingly did not feel the urge to run back there. It was a sweet revelation that I am truly more settled here than I thought. I am not upset or afraid that He wants me to remain. Wow! This is just not how I would imagine I would feel.

The other insight God has revealed to me thus far is that of a renewed vision from 27 years ago, just after Michael (my youngest son) was born. It was GABRIEL House and stood for Girls And Boys Receiving Instruction, Encouragement & Love. At that time I felt it was a call to foster parent but I never followed through and the vision faded over time and circumstances. 3 weeks ago when I was crying out to God for direction, He started pulling the vision back but not as a house but as a ministry...GABRIEL Ministries - "Bringing the message of God's Love". 

My passion is children...nurturing children....teaching and modeling ways for loving, encouraging, educating and disciplining children to other adults who interact with children. How will that look? I'm not sure yet. Maybe it will be my focus as I partner with another ministry or multiple ministries. Maybe God will lead me to start my own ministry (way out of my comfort zone). When the time is right I trust He will let me know and I will pass that on to you. 
I pray you will all continue to support me with your prayers, finances and encouragement.

 I am not asking anyone to stop supporting Children's Cup. They are a great organization, impacting thousands of children in several countries across southern Africa. 

I am asking that if you have been supporting me or wish to start, please mail your donations or change your automatic withdrawals or charges to

www.WorldOutreach.org/donations -- select Sandra Chesterman from the list. The system can process USA & International cards. You can also set up automatic monthly Gifts with your credit card if you choose the "Monthly" option.
If you want to set up automatic gifts from your bank account
you will need to simply go to your online banking bill pay site or ask your bank to help you set up an automatic bill payment to
World Outreach Ministries
P.O. Box B
Marietta, GA 20061
and put Sandra Chesterman #286 in the memo section.
The bank usually sends these free of charge and even saves you the postage.
Or you my mail a check yourself at any time to the address above with
Sandra Chesterman #286 in the memo section.

If you have questions or concerns or word of insight or encouragement, feel free to email me at my new email addres
sandrachesterman07@gmail.com
(The'07 is for the year God rocked my world by blessing me to be a missionary in Africa)

As unsettling as it has been sometimes, God continues to show up faithfully through it all!
Thank you for joining me in this amazing journey!
I couldn't have done it without you and I look forward to what lies ahead!

When Your Life Takes An Unexpected Turn

If you had asked me 10 years ago, I never could have even imagined being a single missionary in Africa. In fact I would have laughed at the thought of it. But here I am and I feel blessed and thankful for God's faithfulness on this journey. Having been with Children's Cup for 6 years I can't imagine being anything else, but evidently ...... God can!

As of the end of this year, I will no longer be a Children's Cup missionary. God seems to have other plans. I still support Children's Cup and their amazing work with orphan and vulnerable children throughout Southern Africa. However, like Paul and Barnabas, we have chosen to minister differently and take different roads.

I was not planning this and honestly, my world felt upside down at first. This is not an easy decision for either side but I am fully at peace that God was and is totally in this. I am not sure who I will be partnering with next year, but I do believe God has confirmed to me to stay in Africa and to continue using my passion for children as well as my gifting in administration.

On the practical side, my email is changing to sandrachesterman07@gmail.com  and my support that was going through Children's Cup will need to be changed to World Outreach Ministry which is www.WorldOutreach.org/donations  (then just select my name to donate online). Their mailing address would be

World Outreach Ministry

P.O. Box B

Marietta, GA 30061

And designate it for me.

 They are an administrative agency whose ministry if being the office support for missionaries in the field from a variety of organizations. They are a 501 3C and will be issuing charity receipts for all donations made under my name. I will pass on the new information as it is fully in place next week.

Please lift me in your prayers. As I said, I know that God's hand was in this change but I am unsure of what the future holds. My focus at the present is to finish the year strong with Children's Cup and to assist in making it as smooth a transition as possible. I love the children and workers at our different CarePoints and want them to continue strong. I will also be connecting with other ministries that I know of and praying for confirmation of which one I can serve the best.

For anyone else whose lives are taking unexpected turns, hang in there. If I have learned anything in these last 10 years, it is to trust Him and obey no matter what. The turn will probably send us on a incredible journey beyond what we can imagine our lives will be like 10 years from now.

I Can't Imagine

Even after living here (meaning Africa) almost 6 years some days it still hits me that as much as I know about and interact with the culture, I really can't imagine what it is like.

It was a couple of weeks ago when I saw for the umpteenth time people waiting out in the rural area for a kombi "comb-bee" which is the local mini van/bus system.

But then it hit me, can I even imagine having to walk long distances to stand and wait for a ride that might come in 5 min or 2 hours or not at all that day? How would I plan my day or my life if that was my reality? I honestly, couldn't imagine.

Then, my list started to grow.

Could I imagine sleeping on a mattress or foam pad on the ground?

Could I imagine coming home after a day at a CarePoint with a layer of dust all over me and be unable to take a shower or bathe to get it off?

Could I imagine only bathing or doing laundry or dishes from water collected at a neighborhood tap?

Could I imagine being cold and scared and not be able to do anything about it?

Could I imagine not having food to eat?

Could I imagine not being able to see a doctor when I was ill?

I can't.  

And I never will. 

Even if I tried to go and live in the rural area I would always know I could walk away. 

It wouldn't be the same.

Many of you, I'm sure, can't imagine living in Africa.

But then God took my eyes off the physical and made me go deeper.....

Could I imagine going through my life without having a personal relationship with Jesus?

Could I imagine being confused and not having the Bible or the Holy Spirit to guide me?

Could I imagine being alone in Africa, without Him?

Could I imagine living without the joy, the peace or the lack of worry because I trust Him?

Could I imagine dying today not knowing what is after death?

I can't imagine.

I am thankful beyond what I can describe, that I don't have to.

But what about you?

Can you imagine? Or is this your reality?

I'm relooking at the world around me differently. Not that I didn't think of it before but because I have let myself be distracted by the cultural and economical differences. I need to refocus on the eternal differences. I don't want anyone to not know Jesus intimately. I couldn't and wouldn't be where I am today without Him in my life. I don't want to be in anyone's face but I do want to be a better reflection of Him. 

I want to be more conscious that some people live a life I cannot imagine.

I want people to know the One who is not from my imagination. 

The Christ who is alive and real and loves you!

If you don't know Him or believe in Him, message me. I would love to talk

Messed Up!

Often when teams come they get what we call "wrecked". It is not necessarily about Africa, although Africa will definitely leave an imprint that few can ever forget. It is rather about God moving in some significant way in their life. It messes them up and turns their normal upside down. It is cool to see and as I said in previous blogs it is renewing and refreshing for me to see the ministry and to see God work through a team's eyes.

The team I just helped host in Swaziland last week, was different; they ended up messing ME up! More precisely, they were the instrument that God used to wreck me and knock me off any pedestal I have set myself on. Missionary or not, I am just like everyone else who seeks God's face and wants to be more Christ like. But this team challenged me to take it up a notch; to go ALL IN! To find the grey areas that keep me from that. Not sinful things but distracting things that keep my focus off what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable and worthy of praise. And it was not by merely their words but by their heart and their actions!

This was a team that who was from two different churches, strangers before the trip, who were so prayed up for this trip and for unity among the team that I could not tell who was from which church without looking at the list. A team that got in the trouble because they kept trying to serve the servers and almost got staff in trouble because they were not doing their job of serving the guests. A team that an emergency stop for sick team members on the side of a mountain road became a ministry opportunity to share about God to kids who were there. A team who one member's highlight for the day was meeting a seller in the market and not about buying but seeing she was hurting and getting to pray with her and then staying and praising God with her right there in her booth rather than shop. A team that had men who so exemplified how husbands should treat their wife's that it was over the top impactful without them ever saying a word. The team of mostly men were an example of how men can be strong, hard working and sold out to God. In a land where the community does not have many men who go to church or who stand firm on biblical principals, they were a bright light to the women, children and men in Hhelehhele "Hay-lay-hay-lay" and everywhere else they passed through. Whether it was ministering to each other, strangers or missionaries, they were there to follow God's heart. I've never seen a team so generous and so selfless on multiple levels. It wasn't about the things, although they did bless generously all whom they came in contact with their time, their resources, their  fervent prayers and their flexible spirits. It was about God! But not God in a box but in being open and obedient to whatever God had in store.... And then rejoicing over the detour!  Don't let me put them up on a pedestal. They are everyday people with everyday struggles but they were here to be used of God and He used them to mess me up!

Let me back up a bit to tell you that I have been struggling the last few months with a sense of the enemy attacking strongly. Not me directly, but around me. I have been praying against it but feeling I am coming up short, that something was missing but that it is vital that I continue to come against it. This team unknowingly gave me the push I needed to get real with God and stop rationalizing things, that aren't sin, but things He was and is telling me the enemy is using to distract me from a more powerful, impactful path with Him. I'm ready to be ALL IN! So thank you David, Kevin, Jerri, Buddy, Kim, Eugene, Eric, Jacob, Bobby, Brant, Alita, Alyssa, Lynden and Jewelia! Thank you for being so willing to be used of God that in a year from now (yes, I am hoping you will all return) you will be able to see the impact you had on me and all you came in contact with!

Continue to pray with me for the community of Hhelehhele, for me and my journey, for Children's Cup, for Swaziland and for South Africa. God has some mighty plans ahead and I am praying that He expose the lies of the "world" and is able to use me to see His miracles unfold! May He, not the team or I, be the focus!

God Detailed

Being a cross the "t" and dot the "i" kind of person; why should I be surprised when God shows up in a precise way. I often say and know that "God's got this" in all areas of my life, so why when He was exact down to the smallest detail recently do I feel compelled to share when at other times I fail too? 

Because He made me smile! It was like He tapped me on the shoulder and said "you think you are obsessed with making sure things are perfectly accurate? No problem! Just watch Me work!" 

 It started last month. We have just started sponsorship in South Africa so we don't really have a budget yet. We can't do everything we want to do yet but God keeps providing. We received a donation of toothbrushes. Wonderful! We try to give kids a hygiene item or something they can use while also trying, in a fun way, to encourage them to attend the CarePoints regularly. So, we took the toothbrushes and decided to give them to the kids who hit the attendance goal of 12 times or more for the month of July. As we went to each of the sites and started counting the regular attenders, it seemed like we might run out. I heard the presumed count of the last site I thought, "That's okay God, if we run out, I got this. I'll just go buy a few more."  At the last site, she had miscounted. We took the register and recounted and..you guessed it....we had the EXACT number of toothbrushes to hand out. I thanked God that He was good and had provided. I even shared His preciseness with a few other people.

 I didn't think too much about it and didn't make a big deal about it. But then this last month, we had our first mission team to focus on South Africa! (We have had other teams from Swaziland that also came through South Africa to see what we are doing but this one was coming to serve with us here .) They were awesome! (See my previous blog.) They brought  a massive amount of white socks to keep little feet warm and to use for a VBS project. We had a whole bunch left. Praise the Lord! We thought "socks can be the incentive for the August attendance". I looked at the registers and counted the kids before I went out to the sites this time. I would need 231 pairs of socks!!! It didn't look like there were that many left from the team. I started counting and making piles for each site. As I was finished the last pile....you guessed it again; I had the EXACT number needed! I recounted them as I put each CarePoints socks in a large bag (I told you I have that kind of personality) and I started laughing. I could swear God was saying, "Just in case you thought last month was a coincidence. I even know the hairs on your head and the stars in the sky. My preciseness is beyond what you can even keep up with!" Isn't God awesome!

These are pictures of the children at Sinethemba preschool getting their socks!
As you can tell I am enjoying taking lots of pictures these days.

Excited is an understatement!

 Thank you to the team that brought them!

 And thank you to our Lord who orchestrated even down to the number of socks they brought!

I give God too little credit for the things He does everyday that I never even notice.
I hope He opens my eyes more and more to not coincidences, but His plan in action.

Added side note:
 I started this blog last night but couldn't get the computer to work. Maybe it was so I could add about this morning's sermon on the book of Philemon. I think it might be the richest sermon I have ever heard. It made what seemed so ordinary, come to vivid life. But what stands out now that I am finishing this blog, was how Paul started the letter... "as a prisoner for the Lord". The preacher opening to the message shared that God so orchestrates our lives that sometimes, even when you are following His will, we end up in prison or in bad situations. Not because of the devil but because He has a greater plan. We so easily want to say that what is good is from God and what seems bad must be from the devil. But what seems bad, sometimes is ultimately, exactly where we are to be for a purpose that is beyond what we could ever imagine.
We missionaries see such poverty of the physical, emotional and the spiritual. We are aware of dreadful circumstances and often question where God is. But the socks were God's reminder, at least to me, that He does have a plan. He has not forgotten one of us; rich or poor, young or old, healthy or in pain. He does have our backs and He WILL cross all the "t"s and dot all the "i"s before it is all said and done. Even if we can't see it yet.
Go forward today knowing that if you are in a personal relationship with God and walk in obedience, He will use you to make a difference through whatever circumstances He brings you into.
And if you don't know Him personally, it isn't too late and it isn't too hard. He's there. Talk to Him (they call it prayer and it can be silent or aloud). Tell Him you want to know Him. Get a Bible and start reading the first four books of the New Testament to understand who Christ is and what He did for you. Find another Christian to study with or write me. Nothing is by chance.
Maybe the socks was all about you coming to know Him!
I know it definitely wasn't a coincidence!

The Power of a Team!

Teams are a mixed blessing. 

They are a lot of work and they take you away from your regular duties and schedule. They are a constant logistical juggle and result in extremely long days. And.....

They bring an excitement that rejuvenates. Fresh eyes to see what we experience daily but sometimes have become blind to. They bring a joy and a shot in the arm to wherever they get to work, play or love on kids! And.....

I don't know a missionary who regrets having a team come!

We had our first South Africa team here just over a week ago and they were AWESOME!!!

They loved, they transformed, they were touched, they were wrecked and they were a blessing in so many ways!

If you have never seen, heard, smelled, tasted and touched ministry in Africa or another country, you need to. I was saying this even before I became a missionary. God uses a team experience not only to touch the lives of others but to change your view of life, your perception of the world and to radically transform you!  

Your life will never be the same after a mission trip with us!!!

Here are a few pictures (maybe more than a few) from team AWESOME's trip!

Giving hope, inspiring dreams and changing worlds!!!

AWESOME!!!!

SIYABONGA!!! "SEE-YAH-BONE-GAH" (THANK YOU!)

Next time this could be you!!! (I hope so!)