Zimbabwe is a life-altering, God glorifying, fantastic country!

Hello everyone!

I just got back to South Africa on Thursday after a 26-hour train ride and am just letting you all know that I made it OK. As soon as we arrived back at the base the two other American girls and I went out for a Thanksgiving lunch although mostly we were going for the coffee that we missed so much (if my Grandma and my Dad read this I blame my coffee addiction on your side of the family). This morning I left the base and got on a train again to come to Cape Town and hang out with the girls in my school. Starting this Monday we have some more health teachings to do at a school here in SA for a week. I am praying that God will give me the energy for this last bit of outreach...

Thank you to everyone for my birthday wishes. It was wonderful! To celebrate my 23rd year I got to give massages to about 50 old Zimbabwean women who have been working incredibly hard their whole life and now have back and joint pains. I loved it!

I will be graduating on the 10th and will leave to return to NH on the 13th. See you all later!

Isimbi Johanna

Last Zimbabwe Update

Hi,

I am almost out of internet time but I wanted to let you all know quickly that Nqobi is doing better. He came to stay with us for a few days and it was very good for him. He ate like a king and fell asleep in my arms 3 nights in a row. When his father came to get him and walk him back to the people he stays with he cried. Please keep him and his father in your prayers.

I am just outside Bulawayo for the rest of the weekend and then we are driving to Nkayi where we will do ministry and get some teaching on mother-child health from the hospital there. After 2 weeks we will go and stay in the village to provide some healthcare for them. I am excited for that. You can see the stars with awesome clarity when you are in the bush with no electricity. I will be back in South Africa in a month and then heading home for Christmas. See you then!

Isimbi Johanna

I love my life

Hi dear people,

I am borrowing my lovely Lissia's computer but she is from France so her keyboard is a little strange for me; if there are any typos it's because of that. The plus side is that I get to listen to fantastic French music as I write this. Someday I will be fluent in French.

Seriously, anyone who thinks that being a Christian means you are always going to lead a boring life full of rules is missing out on so much. I can barely begin to list the amazing things I get to do just because of where following Christ leads me. I'm going to Zimbabwe in 6 days because of Him. I wanted to remind you all of one of the ways that our God blesses us; by giving us adventures. He's so cool!

I and my classmates had a wonderful time in Knysna as I said. We had some interesting days together learning more about our personalities and differences but it was good. We are spending this week cramming in some last lectures before we leave. Our teaching is on the nervous and endocrine systems which I didn't realize I would like so much. They are such delicate and incredibly important systems that are created so beautifully how could you study them and not glorify our Creator God. Really amazing. On Monday we are on our way. We take a bus from here in Worcester to Johannesburg which will be about 16 hours. We'll stay in Joburg overnight and then take a combi to Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. Please be praying for safe travels and that we can get across the border as soon as possible. The police can take a rather long time checking everyone's bags and then visas take time as well. Still I've driven across borders in Africa before and it is really fun. It's a great way to see the nitty-gritty of a country. I have been learning whatever I can about Zim before we go and God has blessed me with some great opportunities to talk with people about it. I'm so excited to go!

I will talk to you again before we leave. Thanks for your prayer!

Isimbi Johanna

Introduction to Primary Health Care

Hi everyone,

How are you all? For those of you from MCC who are about to leave for Rwanda I am soooo excited for you and I will be praying that you have a life-changing time there. It is a beautiful country with fantastic people. Imana iguhe umugisha!

So I wanted to explain a little bit more about my school for you. I didn't have a lot of details for you before I left and a lot of you were asking me why I didn't just go to nursing school in the U.S. My school is a second- level school with YWAM (Youth With A Mission) called Introduction to Primary Health Care. As far as medical schools go it is very basic but what makes it unique is the emphasis on health care in developing nations where sometimes you are all people have. There a eight main areas we focus on:

-Food and nutrition
-Water and sanitation
-Disease control
-Mother and child health
-Curative care
-Essential drugs
-Health Education
-Community resources

We have one teacher each week who comes in and focuses on some aspect of those eight issues. Some of the teachers in the school are medical professionals while others are lay health workers with a lot of hands on experience. My school leaders are all from different parts of Africa and they have a great deal of wisdom to impart to us. We have a small class with 3 Americans, 1 Canadian, 1 Nigerian, 1 Ghanaian, 1 from France, and 1 from New Zealand. We have been in classes now for a month and we have two months left before we go to really start learning by experience. In September we are going to a different part of South Africa where we will be assisting in a long-term care home for two weeks. After that we are off to Zimbabwe. We are going to a village in Zimbabwe called Komayanga. We will be working some of the time with a clinic in the area and some of the time we will set up a temporary clinic under a tree somewhere so people can come to us for help.

I am really enjoying this school but it is most definitely challenging as well. Not only is the school itself quite time consuming but the topics are really heavy. This past week we were learning about HIV/AIDS. Let me tell you, learning about it while you are in South Africa is sobering. 26% of the population in SA is HIV positive. Most of southern Africa is over 20% and in some places over 30%. As a health care worker here you face HIV/AIDS as a daily reality. The other thing is just the simple responsibility that comes with this school. I am scared at the mere thought of a desperate mother bringing her severely malnourished child to me and expecting me to save them. But I will most likely face that and more in Zimbabwe.

Obviously I can use prayer for this! We also have no idea what we will have as far as medicine when we get there because the current situation in Zimbabwe does not guarantee much of anything. Fortunately I serve a God who provides. Well, that is a little about my school...Talk to you in a few days. Bye!

Isimbi Johanna

Football and Smiles

Hi all,

I have some free time at the moment so I thought I would try to give you more of an update. Actually, I should be doing my teaching plan right now but I need a break from working.

South Africa is fascinating but way too cold for me right now. It is winter here and usually around 55 degrees or warmer when the sun is out. I know it's not that cold but I much prefer weather in the 80s or 90s. It is interesting to be in a country that is in the process of having everything, including mindsets, restructured. Apartheid just ended 15 years ago which is really not very long. Although it is no longer legal, the daily reality for people still reflects a strong division of races. South Africa is separated into white, coloured, and black when it comes to people. During apartheid your quality of life was very much determined by your race with the whites having the best and the others getting the leftovers. The coloured are basically people who have a mixture of white and black blood plus some Indian blood. They were treated better than blacks but not as good as whites. From what I have seen there has been a lot of progress but it will be a ways to go before these attitudes are restored back to the truth.

There is something God has shown me about myself in the few weeks I have been here that is really cool. I was thinking that people here on the base were really friendly because they were always smiling. But then a few different people made comments to me about how I was always smiling and one guy told me that my face was full of laughter.To add to it the first teacher we had was a wonderfully smart woman named Minette. She would say these things in class about Africa that resonated with me and apparently every time she did I would smile because she started stopping and saying "there's that smile again." One time she said "Oh Johanna, you have such a beautifully expressive face." Finally one afternoon it hit me and I realized that all those smiling people were smiling back at me because I was smiling. My face was expressing joy. I don't know if I can explain to you all how profound it was for me to realize this. Not all of you have known me very well for the past ten years but I had depression for a while when I was younger and I never smiled. I mean seriously my face had almost no expression for such a long time because I didn't have any joy. So for me to see this difference in myself I am essentially seeing a part of me that God has restored back to what he originally intended me to be. He's the reason I smile so much now and I love that other people can see it.

I could use some prayer for this weekend. I have my first test tomorrow and it might be up to 3 hours long. It's practical and theory. Another thing you might want to pray for is this Sunday. The girls in my school and I have arranged a football (soccer for the Americans) match Sunday afternoon between our school and the girls in the English Language School here on base. It'll be fun but unfortunately for us most of the girls in ELS are from Brazil. So basically we are setting ourselves up for a football match against Brazilians which I think means we are either really courageous or just plain dumb. Hopefully I survive to write to you all again!

Isimbi Johanna

A Quick Update

Hi all of you,

Sorry I haven't been writing in a while. I had a bunch of stuff due today so I have been busy. They really waste no time in this school. We have another lecture tonight after supper to fit in everything we need to this week.

I have at least settled in more here so I feel a little more at home although I really wish it wasn't so cold here. We started work duties today, which we have to do on top of all our schoolwork :), and the days are going to go by very quickly now. Last week we were talking a lot about mother/child health and nutrition. Our teacher was great and I am so glad that I came to do this school. I know that God will be teaching me a lot this year. This week we are talking about counseling and how to get people to talk to us. Oh, and I have started going to a nearby gym. Really fun and really hard work since I'm not used to it. I enjoy weight-lifting the most. I go with two of the girls from my school and a guy on staff here at the base who used to work in a gym back in Colorado. Us girls are barely able to move at the moment.

Please pray if you think about it for the three students we are still waiting for. One is a guy from Liberia and then two women from Nigeria. They are all having trouble getting visas but we are really praying that they will make it in time.

OK, I have dinner soon and then lectures so I should go. Talk to you later!

Isimbi Johanna

What Can I Say

Hi all,

So I don't really know what to say when a South African doctor tells you that the Christian church has failed when it comes to HIV/AIDS; or when he points out that all the Christian countries in Africa are the ones with the highest infection rates. It prompts some serious thinking.

Our school has started of right away because we have a lot of material to cover in a short amount of time. We had our first lectures on Saturday but were able to have this afternoon off. A lot of our schedule will depend on when the doctors are available to come and talk. We also have a lot of schoolwork to do which I need to be working on right now. More of the students have come although we are still waiting on some. A lot of the people here on base are from Ghana so I have enjoyed the chance to talk about Ghana with them. I might get a chance to relearn some Twi that I forgot. Overall this place is very western compared to the Africa I am used to. While I enjoy the hot showers and the faucet water you can wash your toothbrush in without getting sick I will be glad to be back in more traditional Africa. I am very excited to go Zimbabwe!

I should go do schoolwork so I will talk to you all later!

Isimbi Johanna

Return to Africa!

Just a quick note to update Johanna's friends that on Thursday she recieved official acceptance to the YWAM school in Worcester, South Africa. The school runs from July to December 2009. Johanna hopes to spend several weeks in Rwanda prior to flying to South Africa.

You may read more about the Introduction to Primary Health Care course at: http://www.ywamworcester.org.za/iphc.htm

Johanna would appreciate your prayers as she concludes her time in Bozeman, Montana, travels to Texas for her brother's college graduation, returns home to New Hampshire for a month and then leaves for Africa.

Let's see if we can persuade her to share her heart and thoughts with us here!

Johanna's Folks

Growth

HI peoples!

So I will be back home a week from this Monday. I can't really wrap my
mind around that because it doesn't feel yet like I am actually
leaving and to be blatantly honest I don't really want to. It will be
nice to see you people though...

There has been a recurring theme for me in this school from the very
beginning and it has been stronger the last few days so I thought I
would share it with you. God has been making it clear to me for a
while now that He considers this to be a time for me to grow up. It is
His desire to use this time and experiences to mold me into a woman of
God. I am being challenged to leave behind old patterns of thought and
behavior and mature. Sometimes it is downright hard and I would rather
just not try. The best way I can describe what I am trying to say is
that God is in the process of re-potting me. You know when a plant
grows to the point that it needs to be moved to a bigger pot in order
for it to grow even more. That is me right now. It isn't easy because
God is getting to my roots and digging up things I don't really want
to deal with which I can share more about one-on-one when I get back
if you want.

I've had a tendency for the past few years to just look back at how
far I have come which is considerable and be content with that. God
transformed me from what I used to be like and the danger for me is to
think that He is done now. The truth is that He wants me in a
continual state of transformation. It excites me the more I think
about it. God will never take His hands away from me and say there is
nothing more to be done. He will stay personally involved in my
growth. No matter how wise or godly I may become He can still do more
to make me a woman who reflects Him. So that is what I have been
reflecting on recently.

Anyway, our class has our graduation ceremony this Friday. Everybody
is graduating which makes me very happy. That means that the only one
we lost is Selassie. Speaking of which, I have tried to reach him and
not succeeded yet. I would appreciate continued prayers for him and
for the chance of seeing him before I leave. I only have 8 days left
in Rwanda. I don't want to dwell on that thought. See you soon. Bye
for now!

Isimbi Johanna

Muraho!

So first off -- no I did not get to see the President when he came this past week. We live right by the airport though and we could hear his planes and helicopters arriving while we were sitting in class. And I went to town that day to pick up a package and there were policemen and soldiers all over the place.

Alrighty, about Kenya...What our school is planning to do is go to Soroti, Uganda for the first month of our outreach and then if God is still calling us to Kenya we'll go there for the last month. It's kind of cool actually because our DTS staff heard from God to do that and the base leadership also felt God was telling them to wait and then they found out that God was telling them the same thing. Even right down to going to Uganda first. We will, therefore, be leaving to go to Soroti on March 11th which is coming up so fast. This week will be our last week of classes. Time flies! I don't know what getting to the internet will be like there but I'll keep in touch as much as possible. That's something to keep praying about and as always my dear twin Selassie. I have still not heard from him.

There is actually something else. Something I was hesitant to tell everyone because I am not sure it will happen at all but I think it would be good for you all to know. That way if you happen to think about me during prayers you could mention this little thing. Some of you know that a major reason I did this DTS was to get into YWAM's Primary Healthcare school after graduating. [Note: see previous post from December for more details...] I was looking into possible places to do this school before I left. I really like it a lot. I feel like it was designed perfectly to match what God has put in my heart for developing nations. There were two places I have been considering. One is in Perth, Australia where they have an excellent IPHC school (Introduction to Primary Healthcare). But I really wanted to do this school in Africa somewhere because I knew I would likely get more practical experience. So there is another one in Worcester, South Africa. The problem was that the South Africa school starts every July and that wouldn't give me enough time after DTS ends in May.

Well, I was sitting in a meeting a few weeks ago and all of a sudden I just started thinking about where to go for the school and this thought dropped into my head. A scary thought that I had never even considered before; " Who said you have to go home first?" And I was like, whoa God! No way! But my mind kept considering it anyway. Think Johanna, your DTS ends in May. There is a school that you know you want to do that starts in July. The school is in South Africa. You are already in East Africa. Just go straight down to Worcester from Rwanda! To tell you the truth I made a big commitment while I was sitting there. I told God that if He wanted me to do that school and do it this year then I will. It excites me and scares me. I love adventures but I like to plan them myself so part of me wants to tell God to just wait and let me go home first. I'll go back and see family and friends. I'll make some money since I don't have any for the school yet anyway.

Fortunately, I realize that I don't want to be comfortable with my own decisions like that. What I want more than anything is just to follow Christ. I don't need to take breaks in between or refresh myself for my next trip to Africa because following Him, no matter how radical it looks, is the most restful place I can be. If Jesus is leading me to South Africa that soon then I want to follow. Anyway, dear people, for all I know God just wants me to be ready to obey Him all the time and I won't actually be going yet or maybe I will. Either way is OK with me. There is such freedom in following Christ! When I am focused on Him it doesn't matter if I'm in Africa or America because He is the first thing I see anyway! I sent an e-mail to the South Africa base to find out the details and I'll let you know more as soon as I get them.

Sorry for how long this is but you try to fit the story of your life into a once in a while blog post and keep it short:) I will see you all when I see you! God bless you (or as Selassie would say Jah Bless)!

Isimbi Johanna

Final month in Rwanda

I [Dad] spoke with Johanna earlier today with a good quality connection. Johanna seemed more energetic and her voice did not seem quite as tired as the previous Sunday. Whwn I mentioned it she laughed and said that maybe it had something to do with the three cups of good Rwandan coffee she had drunk that day! She also said that she had just returned from an evening worship time that she likes to go to on Sunday evenings where they sing a lot of the music from Hillsong (in Australia) in English and that always gets her energy level up too.

Because of the difficulty that she has been having accessing her home e-mail account via the web, we have set up a new Gmail account for her with which she hopes to be able to post a bit more frequently on her blog.

In only a month the class will leave for their time in Kenya. There trip to the Athi River location in Kenya will take a couple of days of travel. The exact nature of what service they will be doing there is something she still does not know in detail.

Meanwhile she and her classmates are experiencing many heavy situations. You may wish to read about an incident that her roommate, Laura, writes about in her blog post and which happened the first of the month (read down about four paragraphs about the young boy of 9 or 10). I asked Johanna about the incident and she said that some of the YWAM personnel thought that they may have seen the boy several days afterwards with one side of his face a mass of bruises but that it was hard to be certain. Johanna often (usually?) participates with Laura in the outreach to the street children and their needs are part of the reason she has returned to Africa.

She was able to meet a family from here in NH who were here last fall speaking in several of the churches. Johanna did not get to meet them at the time (but her mother did) but they have ministry in Kigali. Johanna thought that she might get to spend an evening with them before her class left for Kenya.

Johanna hopes to check out her new e-mail and post some news herself sometime this week -- so stay tuned!

Nurture and don't Kill

The following is a 12/21 editorial in the Children's Times a weekly publication of the New Times of Kigali in response to certain educational materials that do not strongly condem the ideologies that led to genocide in 1994.

It is very disappointing to see future Rwandans being tarnished by the very people who are supposed to be helping them.

These rising cases of genocide ideologies which are continuously taking place in primary and secondary school should be seriously fought against.

Teachers or parents who are spoiling their children with such ideologies should be punished because they are not nurturing.

Since we all know the horror that befell our country in 1994, why then should we try to make history repeat its self by poisoning the minds of our innocent children.

And why can’t we leave the evil deeds of the past remain as history and never to be mentioned again?

Dear teachers, parents and guardians, if you say that you are nurturing children into future leaders, why then do you want to spoil them with ideologies which are of no help?

Let us have a sense of humanity. Why should we continuously reflect on a terrible history and yet we benefit nothing.

You had better empower children with developmental ideas rather than giving them worthless knowledge which will lead them to turmoil.

Rwanda is a developing country; it has come from far and still has a long journey ahead. Help the government to build instead of dismantling what has so far been put in place.

See also: BBC Article

Johanna's Vision...

Is to attend the Introduction to Primary Health Care School (IPHC) in 2009. This is a six month training programme (that's the way they spell it in Perth, Australia where the course is held) that will give students a heart for the poor and needy and involve them in the health needs of poor communities.

Did you know that there are 8 essential basic health care needs that you can be trained in and then be effective? These are:

1- Disease control
2- Mother and child health
3- Curative care
4- Essential drugs
5- Food and nutrition
6- Water and sanitation
7- Health education
8- Community resources

Why would someone like to be involved in this?.?

• Every day 6000 people between 15 & 24 years of age become infected with the HIV virus. That is 4 people every minute.
• In as many as 35 of the poorest countries, 30 to 50% of the population may have no access to health services at all.
• Half of all children under 5 years of age in South Asia are malnourished. 60% of women there are underweight.
• Malaria affects 300 million people in more than 100 countries each year.
• There are still 30 million infants not protected by routine vaccination in developing countries. 11 million children die from preventable causes each year.
• Tuberculosis is the main cause of death from a single infectious agent among adults.
• Acute respiratory Illness is a leading cause of mortality in young children killing nearly 2 million children under the age of 5 in developing countries each year.

Just think…in less than one year you can get out there,
Into communities,
Educating children
Doing ante natal care
Cleaning wounds
Working with safe water projects
Weighing children
And sharing the gospel with everyone you can?

You will be TRAINED in practical health care which you CAN use in rural or city areas.

{Taken from the website of the Perth, Australia YWAM school.}