CMS | Eswatini
Over the past few years Ballywillan has developed a relationship with Challenge Ministries Swaziland, (CMS) who have various ministries in Eswatini (Swaziland) including supporting 850 orphans with a home, care, food and education.
We have had the pleasure of hosting the Bulembu children's choir on several occasions. Last year a team from the congregation was able to visit and experience first hand what an amazing job they do. [Check out the blog here]
Due to the pandemic CMS experienced an 80% reduction in their overseas funding. We as a congregation have been doing as much as we can to support them through this difficult time. We will post content below related to our outreach work with CMS.
CHALLENGE MINISTRIES SWAZILAND PROJECT 21: October 2021:
It has been a very challenging year for our partners in Swaziland/Eswatini and Northern Irish people have been an essential link in the chain of supplying life supporting needs. A container is being prepared to send to CMS and this link gives full details of what is so urgently needed: https://1drv.ms/b/s!ApKUjs0Td-UKgTTFGabCwVVzhhJT Please help in any way you can.
MESSAGE FROM CHALLENGE MINISTRIES SWAZILAND: 9th September 2021
God is so good. Thank you for your message and for sharing God's grace with us.....in giving! In praying! In caring! £100,000 is a miraculous mark. God has indeed done way more than we can think, ask or even imagine!That is a miraculous feat! Thank you for sharing. Thank you for giving. Thank you for NOT giving up on us. Thank you for standing with us. Thank you for your prayers. What a year! Without you, in Christ, we simply could NOT have made it this far! Lives have been saved, restored, clothed, fed, educated.....hope has been breathed into the children and team.
Whilst the biggest and the world's most profitable businesses in our nation have been looted, burnt down, crushed, wiped out - leaving many jobless and hopeless, God's grace on us has never been more apparent. His miraculous provision has never been more clear. His protection never more obvious. It feels literally like God Himself has put us on His shoulders and carried us through the storms that even the largest multinational companies could not and did not survive here in Eswatini. More friends have died from covid just this last week. Congregants. Young people. Professionals that did not take the vaccine. I visited the covid wards several times this last week to see them. The sight of hundreds on ventilators, struggling to breath, grasping for life was traumatizing, discouraging, yet, when we pause and recognize that God Himself has protected our children, our aunties, our staff, our family.....us....that He has continued to breath His life into us, we see such grace, such provision. And we have got through the 3rd wave again protected. This is in large part due to God's grace through your prayers, your church's provision and the privilege that we have to implement your grace gift to so many. Lives have been touched. Hope has been restored. Faith has been imparted. Love has truly covered so many through you, being God's church. Thank you so much!
We celebrate God's goodness. £100,000 is 2,000,000 here! That's a miracle.
But through it, God has done exponentially more than we could have imagined. Thank you for being His hands and feet. Thank you for breathing His hope and faith. Thank you for being His love! THANK YOU FOR NOT GIVING UP ON US! THANK YOU FOR GIVING SO GENEROUSLY TO US!
Kevin and Helen Ward Challenge Ministries Swaziland
THANK YOU FROM CHALLENGE MINISTRIES SWAZILAND: MAY 2021
After a full year of supporting CMS in Eswatini we know that the support wehave given has been greatly appreciated. The latest emails from CMS include the following messages. Very, very many thanks again for your continued gifts and encouragement
Thank you also for your hearts to support. We completely understand that the high level of support may not be able to continue. We are just so in awe of all you have done in 12 months. All those ingenious ideas to raise funds, and your church family have been so wonderful in just giving, giving , giving of their time, energy and creative ideas. We can never thank them and you enough. Helen
Thank you for the incredible support we have received from Ballywillan, especially over this time where so many are facing so many challenges, it is greatly appreciated. Thank you for the opportunity to give you a brief update on what is happening in the ministry and how your support has made a great difference.
After a period where we had up to 15 active covid cases at one time and a total of 36 since December, We are blessed to be able to say that we currently have no active covid cases on Hawane but have had 7 cases in Bulembu, all of whom have now recovered thankfully. We praise God for His hand of protection over the children and care givers especially.
Our biggest encouragement was to be able to reopen schools and church after over a year of being closed, with many strict protocols to follow and additional expenses with all the sanitizer stations, thermometers for screening stations and masks it was possible because of the support received. Childcare had to bring the caregivers into a much stricter rotation with a 3 day quarantine period for each group before they can interact with the children, this brought with it additional expenses such as food for those in quarantine , transport to safely get everyone around to reduce exposure.
Overall the support we receive from Ballywillan has helped us with all these additional expenses allowing us to freely implement requirements brought about by covid. We all very much miss having the encouragement of mission teams on the ground and pray that some teams might start visiting soon if the regulations internationally allow for it.
We praise God for continued provision and protection and give thanks knowing so many around the world carry us in Prayer.
Thank you for all you do , please have a look at this short update video we have put together. https://youtu.be/unB1ERRgQXs
blessings, Kurt
CHRISTMAS CONCERT
A Christmas Concert took place on on Friday 4th December 2020 in aid of the work of Challenge Ministries Swaziland. There were lots of stories, songs and fun for all the family and it was a night you don't want to miss! Youcan watch the Webcast on demand. There is a DONATE button below the Webcast screen if you wish to make a donation to the work of CMS. Thank you.
