http://elisabryan.myadventures.org Elisa Bryan - First Year Missionary en-us Fri, 4 Jul 2008 19:27:19 GMT 30 http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=unfamiliar-by-the-unchanging http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=unfamiliar-by-the-unchanging Here I am...'home' from Swaziland...yet, it really doesn't feel like home. I have begun to adventure out to see the familiar people and places I haven't seen in eight months. I talk to the people who knew me eight months ago, but have yet to know me now. I walk past building after building paved with people that walk by with nothing more than a glance...not comparable to the "hello"'s, "be my friend"'s, and "marry me"'s I have grown accustomed to. I come home every day to a house with inf Wed, 30 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=my-god-saves http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=my-god-saves Rosa- a five-year-old girl from Mozambique in the squatter camp who is abused, abandoned, and now forced to sleep outside in one of the most dangerous parts of the country. Nshloso- a six-year-old boy in RFM hospital that fell on a fire and was abandoned at the hospital in September. Calile- Nshloso's ten-year-old sister who was abandoned with Nshloso and is his only caretaker. She sleeps under his crib every night, wakes up in the morning, walks to school, walks back to the hospita Mon, 7 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=baby-moses http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=baby-moses The past few weeks we have had the World Race team staying at our house as they prepare for their next adventures. This team is a group that travels around the world for a year, ministering for weeks in all different countries. They arrived in Swaziland just a few weeks ago, and stayed in Nsoko for 3 weeks. During the team's stay in Nsoko, they met a mother who is severley sick with AIDS and tuberculosis that had a little baby boy (who they named Moses), that weighed only four pounds at six Sat, 8 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=a-day-in-the-life http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=a-day-in-the-life After a weird night of roommates yelling in SiSwati in their sleep, I woke up at six o'clock Friday morning, rolled out of bed (a sleeping bag on the floor), and prepared for the day that lay ahead. Three other girls joined me for ministry as we headed out for our mile and a half walk into town. After multiple marriage proposals from men and buying fruit from the "fruit ladies" on the street, we headed to the Hope House. At the Hope House I sit with gogo Sipiwe for a couple hours as we talk, cro Mon, 3 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=valentines-day http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=valentines-day Have you ever been awoken at 6:45 in the morning to the singing of "You are my sunshine" and breakfast in bed? Well, that's how my Valentines Day began. :) Thursday morning, the guys on our team came serving a self-made breakfast and singing to us, while promising to serve us all day. We exited our bedrooms and the entire house was decorated with pink and purple hearts dangling everywhere, and multiple valentine cards (and chocolate) for all of us on the table. It was a lovely way to wake up, Mon, 18 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=quickie http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=quickie Sauwabona umngami wami. (Hello my friend.) I do not have much time to write, but I wanted to send a quick update. I no longer have the hospital as my only internship, but I am spending much time doing street ministry and the Hope House as well. I absolutely love doing street ministry, as I basically sit on the street with people every day. Most of the people I sit with, will be in that same spot every day so I have the opportunity to build relationships with them and minister to them. Right now, Tue, 12 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=standing-in-the-gap http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=standing-in-the-gap According to statistics, the country of Swaziland will become extinct by the year 2050, due to the rapidly growing number of people with AIDS. But, what if this country is like the city of Jersualem talked about in Ezekiel? I have been spending my quiet time recently in this wonderful book of Ezekiel. I was reading in Chapter 22 about the Lord's promise of judgment, and thus destruction, of the city of Jerusalem... but, in the process of reading, one verse really caught my eye. vs. 30- "I looked Tue, 29 Jan 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=swazi-and-tongues-of-fire http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=swazi-and-tongues-of-fire So we're back in Swaziland to stay, all settled into our house, and already weird things are happening. I was spending time with the Lord last night when I suddenly became convinced that my head was on fire and went screaming upstairs because it felt like there were flames consuming my hair. I then had to sit with my head in an ice bucket for the next thirty minutes to cool myself down. I really was just having an allergic reaction to something, but it was a time with the Lord that I'll never fo Tue, 22 Jan 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=jbay http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=jbay These last few weeks, we have done our ministry in Jeffrey's Bay, South Africa. Our whole Africa team drove 14 hours down to J-Bay to a hostile called UCSA. We then had two speakers, Jim and Ben, fly in as we began a leadership and discipleship conference. For about four days, our team was split as half of us went to discipleship classes with Jim, and the other half to leadership classes with Ben. I was part of the discipleship track and I learned so much during this time. We lear Mon, 17 Dec 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=swazi-homestead-life http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=swazi-homestead-life 9 days ago, we departed South Africa and made our way over to Swaziland, once again, in our new team of 15 people. We moved into our new homestead where we were about to live the life of the local Swazis. These past 9 days have been a shock to me because I didn't realize how much of the culture I was missing out on by not living with the people. We have faced challenges such as, no electricity, no toilets, sometimes no water, walking in intense heat and more. There have been things that just mak Sat, 17 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=hospital http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=hospital This week I spent much of my ministry at the hospital. I was really excited the first day I went because Cindy and her baby girl, Nomeeswa, were there and I had actually met them in October the first time we came to Swazi. I spent a couple days just sitting and talking with Cindy and the 11-month old Nomeeswa. It was so cool to form a friendship with her and really get to know their life. I left the hospital Wednesday telling Cindy I would be back and I couldn't wait to see Nomeeswa well again. Sat, 17 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=frustrations http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=frustrations This past week has been the most exhausting week yet, however it has been so awesome to see thew ays God has been working within our team and the people we've been reaching out to. Yesterday, I went with about 10 people from our team to Atteridgeville which is about 5 kilometers (Iyeah, I don't really know about this whole metric system thing :)) away from our house. Atteridgeville is basically a huge squatter camp, but it is my favorite place to do ministry here in South Africa. Me, Michelle J, Sat, 20 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=finally http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=finally Hi Everyone!!!! I hope this post finds everyone well! I am so sorry that I have not been able to update since I arrived in Africa. Communication is very difficult for us right now. I spent the first week of my trip in Gainseville, GA where we had training camp. I would venture to say that training camp is more rustic than Africa. :) We spent that week sitting through sessions, working on children's programs, and doing team builders. It was so much fun as we were preparing for the 9 months that l Fri, 5 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=faith-that-can-move-mountains http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=faith-that-can-move-mountains trust      / trʌst / -noun 1. reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing; faith     (fth)   n.   Confident belief in the truth, value, or trustworthiness of a person, idea, or thing. Belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence. Well, I gu Sun, 29 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=imperfections http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=imperfections "Desperation leads us here Leads us here Illumination meets us here Meets us here Revelation brings us here Brings us here Restoration frees us here Frees us here" I attended a David Crowder concert this week...which may have been the coolest thing ever, by the way. :) Lately I  have been overwhelmed in being thankful that I was created imperfect. I am so grateful that I was not created to live a perfect life, but I was created to live one that Sun, 24 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=his-mercies-are-new-every-morning http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=his-mercies-are-new-every-morning " Search me, O God, and know my heart;        test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me,        and lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139:23 I really felt like I was about to be on top of the world... I was ready to conquer. I was quite sure that I did not need anything or anyone; all I needed was me. However, a time of stress soon came Sun, 20 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=be-still http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=be-still I have been overwhelmed by the busyness of life the past couple of days. Everywhere I went I was distracted by all the things to be done and still left to do. I was anxious about almost everything including school, work, money, etc. I decided to take a day off everything, sat on the beach, and opened my Bible. I looked down and my favorite verse was staring me back in the face. "Be still, and know that I am God" (psalm 46:10). I continued to sit; ho Thu, 17 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=slow-dancing-swaying-to-the-music http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=slow-dancing-swaying-to-the-music Sometimes I feel like life is a slow dance. Those moments, those very few moments, are everything. They are the only moments that exist, they seem like the biggest, most important moments of your life. Swaying back and forth, following where the beats lead. How would you know there is more? I went to my high school yesterday. I had not been there since the day I graduated. As I walked through the doors, I was overwhelmed with a feeling of the utmost awkwardness. My first steps onto Fri, 27 Apr 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=collision http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=collision I read the book of Esther 3 times as we were told to do. I kept searching for a certain verse that would impact me differently than the others. However, there were not specific verses, or any statements that were made that impacted me, it was actually the lack of them. I will attmept to clarify. Esther was raised as a young woman who had lost all her immediate family, was torn away from her uncle, and placed in a palace where she may have very well ended up as a servant. A Tue, 6 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=open-doors http://elisabryan.myadventures.org/?filename=open-doors Hello! This is where I will be keeping all of you updated as I make my way as a FYM to Africa. God has taught me so much these past couple years that it is impossible to write it all on here. However, God has instilled a passion for missions in my heart  about two years ago. Trip after trip I prayed constantly about, always confused on what I was supposed to be doing. God is not a God of confusion though, and he shut each door that needed to be shut and opened the others wide open so I Wed, 21 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT