prayer – Page 2 – The Rousehouse

Prayer, Life, and All The Happenings, March 2019

Posted on April 18, 2019April 18, 2019 by Spanky Rouse

Needing Prayer for Physical Healing…

Sometimes in life tough stuff just happens. And sometimes in life it just can’t be a coincidences that certain struggles all fall on you at once. When it rains it pours, right! I definitely don’t believe that ever struggle is an attack of the enemy but evil is hunting us daily, especially when we are pursuing God and his plans for our lives.

We believe that the enemy is attacking and trying to distract us from what the Lord is up too. This past month we have had a bunch of physical issues. Lara and I have had touch of Giardia or as it is called here, runny tummy. Lara and I also had some major back, hip, and shoulder pains. Elly injured her back on a scooter and she is having some pains with her teeth. Mac had a crazy bad ear infection that messed his equilibrium up for a few days which made him throw up when he would attempt to walk around. Grey suddenly woke up one morning with his eye swollen up from a weird stye. Unfortunately for him it lasted for about a week. We have definitely dependent on your prayers and the Lord’s protection!

God is doing up to something new…

There are those moments in life when you sense that God is up to something but you can’t quite put your finger on it. Right now is one of those moments for us. We can’t see the full picture but we are beginning to sense some of His plans that are to come. Will you partner with us by praying over us this next week? We want to hear the Lord clearly, know His heart wholly, obey fully and continue on the mission God has created us for.

East Mountain Partners…

I had the opportunity to meet with an East Mountain Partner recently in the township Kyamandi. It was fascinating to hear about all of the after school programs for children and youth they are running. I am excited to be able to help build a bridge of partnership between East Mountain and Prochous for this coming year. They are changing lives and communities!

Where are they now?

We have the opportunity to spend time with some of our past residents from time to time and we love it. We talk about life, encourage one another, laugh together, and dream of what the Lord has next. These people are close to our family’s heart and when I think about the fruit of my life many of them come to mind. Some of them we have had little investment in and some of them we will forever be closely tied too. Just the other day I got to spend the day with Siya. He is one of our residents from last year and lives near us in the township of Khayelitsha. I am proud of the man he is and excited for the steps he is taking to write a different story for himself, his family, church, and his community. He is a true agent of change and man of God! If you would like to hear more of Siya’s story and see what he is up to today, please read this article written by another resident from last year, Lindsay. Where are they now?

Speaking Opportunity…

This past week I had the privileged of speaking at a weekly worship and prayer time for our local church. Our church staff were on a retreat together and they asked me to lead the evening prayer and worship gathering. I had my message all laid out and then the Lord pressed on me a new word, just hours before. I had been wrestling in my heart with letting go and letting God handle somethings. Elly had been reciting her bible verse for the week to me regularly for days but I honestly was too distracted to truly hear her. The morning before I was to speak she asked if she could tell me again her bible verse. As she did it was like the Holy Spirit pulled back the blinders from my heart and I heard the Fathers voice speaking directly to me. 1 Peter 5:7 “Give all of your cares and worries to God because He cares most for you” I knew right then that this was God’s message for us that night at church. It was a powerful evening and I am grateful for the opportunity to serve our church in this way!

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Visitors…

We have had a flood of wonderful visitors recently and we LOVE it! One of Elly’s best and oldest friends, Brinley surprised her! Elly thought we were picking up a visitor for East Mountain but to her amazement Brinley came walking out. She was shocked! They enjoyed 10 fun filled days of beaching it, monkeys, sight seeing, penguins, eating, dress up, watching shows together, and lots of talking.

Lara also had 3 or her closest friends come spend time with her. These ladies came to love on her, speak life into her, spoil her, and laugh a lot with her! It was a blessing to see friends that are closer than sisters just be together! People traveling all the way here and going through all it takes to come to Africa, never stops amazing us! Those who are loved by so many have loved so well!

Updates on March prayer request and April needs:

Please be praying for new supporters and new churches to come along side of us to help sustain the work and our family’s needs. We need to raise about $500 more a month. If you would be able to join our monthly financial and prayer team we would be grateful! Your generosity will make a lasting difference in our lives and the lives of those the Lord is reaching here in Africa. Click here to sign up, http://uwm.org/missionaries/11084/
Pray for the Lord’s clear vision and direction for life and ministry here in Africa.
Pray that we will encourage and invest in the Life Church interns well this year.
Pray for Hope, Wisdom and Obedience
East Mountain Partnership: Pray for favour with leaders and open doors to how the Lord is leading East Mountain.
Friendships
For safety in travels
Romero’s wedding next weekend, April 27th

We would love for you to join us on Instagram and Facebook to see daily adventures, ministry sites, and family activities here in South Africa.

https://www.instagram.com/spankyrouse/

https://www.instagram.com/lararouse/

https://www.facebook.com/spanky.rouse

https://www.facebook.com/lara.rouse.7

https://www.instagram.com/causing_wonder/ – Mac’s Instagram

Partnerships, Wedding Weekend, Interns, Loadshedding, and Updates

Posted on March 21, 2019March 21, 2019 by Spanky Rouse

At East Mountain our focus has shifted back towards partnerships. East Mountain exists to empower national pastors, leaders, and ministries so that they can effectively and sustainably impact their communities through the Gospel. We know that long-lasting change will not happen if it is dependent on us but when it is lead by local leaders. Spanky spends his days meeting with partners to build stronger relationships, dream together, and to make plans for how East Mountain can effectively come alongside them and serve with them well. This month in our staff meeting Spanky highlighted the Eden Project and the Mustard Seed house where Chelsea, one of our interns from last year is serving. Chelsea has a heart for social justice, community development, and helping woman rise above the poverty that surrounds them. This year she is able to do just that with this partner and they are grateful to have Chelsea on their team. The Mustard House is a home for homeless woman that have been subject to prostitution, drug abuse, and neglect. They clothe them, feed them, give them a safe home to live in, and life counciling to help them get ahead in life. The Eden project is a team of people that are missionally moving into communities to be good neighbours by caring for the needs of the neighbourhood, building community among the people, and sharing the love of Jesus through home churches. We love these ministries and love seeing how they are having such an incredible impact in the name of Jesus!

This past weekend Lara and I took a trip to some friends wedding. The wedding was in a small fishing village about 4 hours away from our home so we decided to make a long weekend of it. Years ago we learned the value spending time together just the two of us. We love getting away and connecting! We listened to a book in the car and had great conversations. We laughed and held hands. We took a walk on the beach and drank coffee. We found the best places to eat and stayed up later then normal. We talk about life and dreamed about what God is doing in our lives. When it is just the two of us we can have a really fun time! On our last day, we took the morning to hike the coastal cliffs, jump into the cold tide pools, watch the waves crash up against the rocks, and just sat together in the warm sun. This type of day always fills my bucket up!

Our church here in South Africa (Life Church) has a gap year intern program for young students within the church. This year we had 9 students join the program. They get hands on experience in ministry, increased life skills, and a deeper bible understanding. The Rousehouse gets the chance to host the students at our home every week for dinner and a small group time. We are talking through their life’s story, issues that may arise in the house where they live, how is their heart, and simply have a fun time every week. Spanky also mentors the 5 young men each week and takes them out to chat more about God’s plan for their life and who He has created them to be as men. It has been a blessing to have our week and home filled with young people that we can love on and encourage.

A recent blog on some of the things we have recently been learning: How do you define poverty? Would you consider yourself poor? Who is the poor?

Loadshedding. No one can really explain why we are experiencing it now and why it is so random but it happens never the less. The definition of loadshedding is: The action to reduce the load on something, especially the interruption of an electricity supply to avoid excessive load on the generating plant. Our electricity can be turned off each day for 3 hours to 3 times a day for 3 hours each. Then you may not have any interruptions for a month. Just when you think you got the schedule figured out, it changes. Here recently is the most electrical interruptions we have experienced since moving here. This past week it has been going off 3 different times for 2-2.5 hours at a time. Part of the reason is due to the massive disstruction in Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi caused by a mighty cyclone (hurricane). South Africa gets much of its electrical power from these countries power plants. We believe that this schedule of loadshedding is probably going to be the new normal for us for a while. Please be praying for these countries where 1000’s have died and many more are missing!

Mac, Grey and Elly are doing well. They are moving right along with school and extra curricular activities. This week is a term break in South Africa and since we don’t have power for big chunks of time they are taking more breaks in their work. The boys are becoming pretty skilled in surfing! I think they are already better than I am and are definitely ridging more advanced boards than I could even think about riding. Elly is doing well in her dance classes. She had fallen off a scooter on to her back a few weeks ago but she seems to be back to normal now. All three of them seem to be thriving in life!

Updates on February prayer request and March needs:

Please be praying for the East Mountain residents as they are starting to get involved with local ministry partners.
Pray for the Lord’s clear vision and direction for life and ministry here in Africa.
Pray that we will encourage and invest in the Life Church interns well this year.
Please be praying for new supporters and new churches to come along side of us to help sustain the work and our family’s needs. We need to raise about $500 more a month.
The Lord’s continued work in our own hearts. He is speaking and moving and we don’t want to miss out. Wisdom, sensitivity, and obedience
East Mountain Partnership: Pray for favour with leaders and open doors to how the Lord is leading East Mountain.
Friendships
For those cleaning up after the cyclone in South East Africa

We would love for you to join us on Instagram and Facebook to see daily adventures, ministry sites, and family activities here in South Africa.

https://www.instagram.com/spankyrouse/

https://www.instagram.com/lararouse/

https://www.facebook.com/spanky.rouse

https://www.facebook.com/lara.rouse.7

https://www.instagram.com/causing_wonder/ – Mac’s Instagram

If you would be able to join our monthly financial and prayer team we would be grateful! Your generosity will make a lasting difference in our lives and the lives of those the Lord is reaching here in Africa. Click here to sign up, http://uwm.org/missionaries/11084/

Retreats, Pool parties, visits, and updates, Nov. 2018

Posted on December 13, 2018December 13, 2018 by Spanky Rouse

Before I share about our monthly updates I want to remind you, ask you, and plead with you to PLEASE send us a Christmas card! We love them and keep them hanging up in our home year-round to remind us of all the special people back home. Even if we get it late we still love getting them in the mail! Please mail your Christmas cards to:

East Mountain Leadership Development

Rouse

Post Net Suites #318

Private bag X5061

Stellenbosch 7599 South Africa

November in South Africa means you are planning for the holidays, having exams, looking towards next year, busy with lots of celebrations and getting excited for Summer.

Retreat weekend!

With the year coming to an end, Lara and I wanted to do something special for the residents that we have had the privilege of investing in and spending lots of time with this year. When we were on staff at Ridge Church we use to go on these amazing staff retreats. Lara said she wanted to do something like that and thought we should go all out in planning a trip like that. We booked a big house on the beach about 3 hours away, packed the car full of food, and invited all of the residents to come and let loose for the weekend. It was such a good time! We laughed, ate great food, danced until late, walked on the beach, and just spent time together. Mine and Lara’s favourite parts of this weekend were the one on one conversations we had with many of them and hearing how they felt like they were able to sit with the Lord and exhale. It’s been a long year and we believe this was the perfect way to celebrate with them.

Look what I found in Africa! They don’t play basketball nor have any idea what a TarHeel is

Community Centre kids

With the school year coming to a close our programs at Heldervalley Community Centre are also coming to a close. We are so excited to see that some of our students have improved greatly this year in their studies. Kelly (on the left) went from 39th in her grade to #1! MacNeil (middle) had his father pass away a couple years ago and this year he lost his mom as well. Even with all of this in life he still improved and out performed most of the other students in his class. Having a people who invest in a life can make more of a difference than we even know! Louise, the lady we serve under at the centre, is doing a great job and we are praise God for her influence and leadership there.

Kelly

MacNeil

Lesnique

We had a celebration party for the end of the year and invited all of the kids from the community centre out to East Mountain. They had a blast swimming (even if the pool was green), playing soccer and rugby, dancing to music, and eating hotdogs! It was a fun day!

Furey Fest 2018

We LOVE when people are able to visit us! At the end of the month we had our good friends the Furey’s come stay with us for 12 days. It was a busy, fun filled time of showing them around Cape Town and our everyday life. You can check out all that we did by clicking here (Furey Fest 2018).

Here are a few random photos and updates of life in South Africa for the Rousehouse:

As we are stepping into a role of partnerships here at East Mountain we get to meet with and learn more about ministries and people who are making a difference. Lara had the chance to have breakfast with one of these partners to hear more about their work…and hold some babies. She feel in love with them…and the babies! Her Voice is a local non-profit in a black township offering support to mothers physically, spiritually, and practically. Their vision is to see strong Christian mommies that are having a huge impact on their community. They are doing amazing things!

Mac is doing well! This kid loves life in South Africa, his youth group, riding his bike, coffee, and people! He is working hard on his studies from Liberty homeschool online and serving at church all the time. He is just awesome!

Grey is the easiest person ever. Nothing bothers him, he will eat anything, and he will go with whatever you want to do. In life he only needs a few things. Family, Matthew (his bestie), a book, and nature. His day usually consist of walking barefoot, being outside, reading book series, playing with the bunny, practising guitar, and watching Youtube. The slower pace of life in South Africa suits him well!

Ellyana is becoming her own person! She is opinionated, stylish, and has plenty of words to express her self! This girl is so much like her mom in the way that she is the life of the party! If there is no party she will start one!

As for Spanky, if you haven’t seen he has a new hobby. Click on the link here, Christmas came early, to check out his early Christmas gift from a bunch of his friends back home in America.

Things to be praying for during December:

We are still in need of a few more monthly supporters to partner with us to help us accomplish all that the Lord has planned for 2019. Will you pray about being a monthly supporter or giving a special year end gift? To give you can click here, http://uwm.org/missionaries/11084/
We are still praying about going on a trip as a family to Uganda in January to work with some friends that we served with years ago. We have been wanting to do something like this for a long time and believe that it would be impactful for all 5 of us. There are lots of details to think through, so we are asking for wisdom, the extra finances to be able to join them, and the logistics of it all.
Be praying for our residents as they graduate from East Mountain and head back into their communities, cities, homes, and countries.
Pray for the Lord’s clear vision and direction.
The selling of our car. Our car will NOT sell!
I still need to get my Land Rover fixed from the accident I had last month.
The Lord’s continued work in our own hearts.
We are taking Zuzu, Lara’s mentee home next week and it is a 9 hour drive up the coast. PLEASE pray for safety and that all will go smoothly.

We would love for you to join us on Instagram and Facebook to see daily adventures, ministry sites, and family activities here in South Africa.

https://www.instagram.com/spankyrouse/

https://www.instagram.com/lararouse/

https://www.facebook.com/spanky.rouse

https://www.facebook.com/lara.rouse.7

https://www.instagram.com/causing_wonder/ – Mac’s Instagram

Celebrations, New Opportunities, Living Life – October 2018

Posted on November 9, 2018November 9, 2018 by Spanky Rouse

At the beginning of October a friend/co-worker of ours got married. We were able to attend our first South African wedding and it was so much fun. We arrived at 2:30 and the party went on until after 10! It was a beautiful outdoor wedding with good food (spit braai lambs), many different people and cultures, and lots of dancing and laughs! Oh yeah, it was also the hottest day we have had yet! No shade either! #Sweatinglikecrazy

Since the sun is coming up earlier and the weather is heavenly lately, we have restarted our regular group workouts. Working out as a group is always more fun and a passion of Spanky’s! Our gym is coming along nicely. We have some basic equipment and hope to be able to add more to it over the next few months. We call it East Mountain Sweat!

We are currently helping East Mountain with the project of surveying our ministry partners here in the Western Cape of South Africa. Lara and I have the privilege of meeting our different partners, seeing how their ministries, schools, churches and projects are loving and impact their community. We then get to ask, “How can we (East Mountain) come alongside and support you?”. We have been exposed to many wonderful people and powerful ministries! They consist of justice movements, children ministries, sports outreach, churches, schools, life skills projects, Bible schools for African pastors, and more. It is a great privilege to serve alongside these nationals doing amazing things for the kingdom. We are honoured to play a small part in making a big difference around the city!

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The warmer weather means we are out and about a lot more. If you know the Rousehouse, you know we love spending time with friends, having fun and exploring, so we have done a lot of that this month!

Mac, Grey and Benji being crazy at the market

Lara and Tori at a secluded beach we found with some friends

Grey and his best bud, Matthew picking flowers out of the garden

Hardings and Rouse’s having taco night!

Elly and Caroline enjoying the shade by the dam

Lara kept her Halloween party traditions going strong again this year! We ate hotdogs, dressed up in costumes, and had fun around the fire pit ! Our neighbourhood had a lot more trick or treaters this year! I think maybe some of these crazy American traditions are rubbing off. Yes, I was the bearded lady from the movie The Greatest Showman and NO this is not Lara’s dress! It was an actual costume. Lara and Grey were Mexicans, Elly was Cinderella before she became a princess, and Zuzu, Alechia and Mac were the Flintstones.

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Updates from prayer needs last month:

We are in need for 4 more new monthly supporters at $100 – We did gain a new monthly giver but unfortunately we also lost 1 due to job situations, so we are still praying for a few new supporters.
Lara and I are taking the 11 residents on a weekend retreat this month. Be praying for the right place and for strengthened relationships – It was an amazing house the Lord provided for us and everyone connected well! We are well pleased with the weekend away! We will share more in next month’s updates.
We are needing to sell one of our cars soon. Pray for the right buyers to come along soon. – We still haven’t sold our car yet. Praying that happens soon!
Be praying for Elly to gain a better understanding in her reading skills and desire to read – She is improving in reading and spelling but continue to pray that she gains a love for reading.
Be praying for healthy partners here for us to serve alongside. Lara and I will be meeting with many of the East Mountain partners this month to build relationships and look for ways we can best serve them. – The partnership meetings with local ministries and projects have been going exceptionally well! We are enjoying learning about new ways we can continually come alongside locals that are doing wonderful work for the Kingdom and be a blessing to their neighbours!
Evil is hunting our family everyday. Please be praying for the Lord’s protection over us physically, mentally, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually. – We can see ways that the enemy is trying to distract us and we keep praying for the Lord’s power, wisdom, and protection. I was just praying through Ephesians 6:10-20, join me.

Things to be praying for during November:

We are still in need of a few more monthly supporters to partner with us to help us accomplish all that the Lord has planned for 2019.
We are praying about going on a trip as a family to Uganda in January to work with some friends that we served with years ago. We have been wanting to do something like this for a long time and believe that it would be impactful for all 5 of us. There are lots of details to think through, so we are asking for wisdom, the extra finances to be able to join them, and the logistics of it all.
East Mountain is recruiting for and evaluating candidates for the 2019 Residency. Who does the Lord want to impact through our ministry and lives here in South Africa?
Healthy relationships with existing and new partner ministries here in Africa. Where, how, and with who does the Lord want us to be working with?
The selling of our car.
Pray for our current residents as they are wrapping up their time here and planning their next steps in life and ministry.
The Lord’s continued work in our own hearts.

Be on the look out for blogs and stories between monthly newsletters. Just last week we posted about the “WHY” behind what we are doing here in Africa and how we believe making disciples can have a great impact. You can read it by clicking here, Explosion of Christianity in Africa.

Sometimes Uncle Spanky is the tackling dummy

We would love for you to join us on Instagram and Facebook to see daily adventures, ministry sites, and family activities here in South Africa.

https://www.instagram.com/spankyrouse/

https://www.instagram.com/lararouse/

https://www.facebook.com/spanky.rouse

https://www.facebook.com/lara.rouse.7

https://www.instagram.com/causing_wonder/ – Mac’s Instagram

September 2018, 1 year Anniversary

Posted on October 12, 2018 by Spanky Rouse

At All airport about to board our first plane heading to South Africa 2017

Some days it feel like we have lived here for years and some days it feel like we have just arrived. Just a couple weeks ago, we had our 1 year anniversary of moving to South Africa. To think of all that we have been privileged to experience, people we have met, and things God has taught us is unbelievable. It hasn’t been a cake walk for sure but it has been memorable. We have learned so much over this past year,lessons we will take with us for the rest of our life. Some of our learnings continue to shape who we are as Christ followers. Some have shaped how we see people who don’t look or talk like us. Some have changed how we value and communicate with people. Some have created more compassion in our hearts. Some have grown our faith through days and weeks of struggles and uncertanties that force you to trust in God in new ways. Some have shaped us as a family. Some have created a deeper sense of gratitude in our hearts and minds. Some have taught us how we can love, serve, care for, influence, and impact peoples lives. There have been times of extreme highs and even deep lows. We have learned a lot, grown a lot, laughed a lot, pondered many things, studied our bibles probably more than ever, and prayed as if our life depended on it. God has proven his faithfulness time and time again.

One realisation that is more indisputable today than ever before is the fact that we have an incredible community of friends, family, and partners! We knew that we had an amazing group of people that love and support us but we really had no idea how unusually awesome our community was. We have felt your support and love for us even half way across the globe. This (you) have been the fuel that kept us going on our toughest days. Our experience of love and support from community is something that we are passionate for others to get a taste of. Our mission is to be that community for others and offer hope as we walk alongside others in this journey called life!

Grey and his BFF, Matthew

Sunday afternoon vibes

Taking a walk through the gardens

Elly taking swing classes

Mac had a birthday in September! He turned 14 years old.

We also celebrated Lara’s birthday on September 30th with a big party outside on a super warm day!

Her girls!

Mini me

Birthday people

Uncontrollable

A boy and his bunny

Yes that is snow!

crazy guy!

Updates from prayer request last month:

the kids schooling – This year’s schooling seems to be going smoother than last year. Lara has been doing a great job and the kids seem to be learning a lot.
the last few months of the resident program. Our heart is for the residents to gain a greater understanding of their identity in Christ and passion for all that God has next for them. – The residents are doing well and are growing in so many ways!
Deeper relationships – It does seem that the Lord has been blessing us with more friendships and better relationships this month. September has been a relational refreshment for Lara and I and we are grateful.
for Romero (the young man that lives with us) to have success and influence in his new job. – Romero got a new job! He is managing a coffee shop that also supports the local homeless shelter which provides some great ministry conversations. He has already made some wonderful changes to improve the shop.
Alechia went on her first mission trip with her school to Lesotho. It was life changing and eye opening for her! She was taken out of her comfort zone and God blessed every moment for her!
We gained 2 new monthly partners!!!

We would love for you to be praying for:

We are in need for 4 more new monthly supporters at $100
Lara and I are taking the 11 residents on a weekend retreat this month. Be praying for the right place and for strengthened relationships
We are needing to sell one of our cars soon. Pray for the right buyers to come along soon.
Be praying for Elly to gain a better understanding in her reading skills and desire to read
Be praying for healthy partners here for us to serve alongside. Lara and I will be meeting with many of the East Mountain partners this month to build relationships and look for ways we can best serve them.
Evil is hunting our family everyday. Please be praying for the Lord’s protection over us physically, mentally, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually.

We would love for you to join us on Instagram and Facebook to see daily adventures, ministry sites, and family activities.

https://www.instagram.com/spankyrouse/

https://www.instagram.com/lararouse/

https://www.facebook.com/spanky.rouse

https://www.facebook.com/lara.rouse.7

https://www.instagram.com/causing_wonder/ – Mac’s Instagram

Rousehouse, June 2018 “USA here we come!”

Posted on July 3, 2018July 3, 2018 by Spanky Rouse

Summit is over and we are packing to head to the US!

Summit Graduates! Will, Billy, Okue, Jordan, Jannon, and Ashley. Tori is upfront leading the way!

Summit, East Mountain’s 6 week program ended with graduation this past Friday night and it was a wonderful celebration. It was a great group of people and we fell in love with them quickly. During the 6 weeks we had bible classes, spiritual formation exercises, cultural workshops, adventures, and team building activities. We are thrilled by the transformation that took place in the lives of these 6 people. Not only were the 6 students impacted but the rest of us that had a chance to play a role in their lives were blessed greatly. It was a good time and God did great things!

Elly and Micha having fun at the Friday Braai

We leave Wednesday the 4th to head to the US to visit church, family, friends, and ministry partners. We are busy packing bags, planning our time away, and spending time with some of the people we love here. I think we are going to miss these people a lot over the next month but we are very excited to see everyone back home… and eat a lot of MEXICAN food! As we travel this month we would love for you to come along the journey with us by following us on Instagram and Facebook.

https://www.facebook.com/spanky.rouse

https://www.facebook.com/lara.rouse.7

https://www.instagram.com/spankyrouse/

https://www.instagram.com/lararouse/

One of the guys that I have the privilege of discipling is Zach. He is a talented writer, free spirited young man from South Carolina that I love spending time with every week. He is a mess many days much like me, but regularly finds ways to see life through a special lens. I would love for you to travel along with Zach to get the vision for what a regular visit through a township, that many of us often take, through his point of view. Be ready to be wowed by his gift of story telling!

Zach, Lara, Spanky, and Zuzu taking a family pic

Smiley, by Zach

“We were making our way through the tight, winding streets of Kayamandi – Stellenbosch’s premiere township, a living shrine to the injustice cast upon black South Africans during the regime of apartheid. Tin roof shacks spread as far as you can see, one on top of the other, yet their detail and integrity boast of mankind’s ingenuity in the midst of hardship.” To continue reading https://zachinsouthafrica.wordpress.com/2018/07/02/smiley/

Lara, Zuzu, and Alison with Zach photo bombing as usual

Prayers:

PLEASE be praying for our trip back to the US…flights, luggage, children, and good health
PLEASE be praying for good visits with those we will have a chance to see.
PLEASE be praying for new financial and prayer support opportunities. We would love to share our vision and ministry with new people.
PLEASE be praying for rest and renewal for our family.
PLEASE be praying for our residents, mentees, community centre kids and friends here in South Africa

Turned my ankle really bad while playing soccer at the community centre. Feeling better now but still not 100%

Investing in people

Posted on April 24, 2018April 24, 2018 by Spanky Rouse

“The measure of your life is not in the money you made but in the people you shaped.” – African Proverb

Mentorship…This is what we believe will change the world. I believe Jesus knew this to be true and that is why He commanded us to go into all the world making disciples (Matthew 28:19). One life pouring into another creates a recipe for life change and empowerment. We are not born with all that we need to be the best we can be, so God gives us other people to speak into our lives.

Lara and I are really enjoying the opportunities we have to mentor some of the young people at East Mountain! Each week we are learning just how impactful these relationships can be. We spend time encouraging them, helping them to see all that God has created them to be, the potential they have, while enjoying loving the heck out of them. We try to imagine the difference this season will make in their lives and it gets us excited!!!

Some days we laugh a lot and have fun. Some days we talk about difficult things and cry. Somedays we lay down the law and then take them for ice cream. Somedays they join us for a family day at the beach or we braai together for dinner. Everyday we intentionally pour into them! Out of our cup into theirs.

“Mentoring is a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction.” — John Crosby

We would like for you to meet two of the awesome people we get to spend time with this year. Zach and Zuzu.

Zach is an American that is living here for the year and is going through our East Mountain leadership development program. He is a student at Clemson University, is learning the guitar, loves the outdoors, is everyone’s best friend immediately, and knows how to have fun. We have a blast together and regularly point each other to Jesus. My dream for Zach is that he will know more fully by the end of this year who God says he is…His chosen, the one He delights in, significant, capable, qualified, special, wonderfully made, and so much more!

“Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” — The Bible

Zuzu (Vazela) is a young lady from Port Elizabeth which is 7 hours east of Cape Town. She is also a part of the East Mountain leadership development program for the year. I tell Lara all the time that Zuzu is a young South African version of herself. She is fun, sassy, and scared of no one. Zuzu is such a blessing to us and has such a heart for God! Her hopes are to possibly go on to nursing school after this year and Lara is definitely one of her biggest cheerleaders. She also gives the best hugs!

“One of the greatest values of mentors is the ability to see ahead what others cannot see and to help them navigate a course to their destination.” — John C. Maxwell

Will you please pray for these two? Pray that this year will be a time that will forever shape and direct their journey as they walk with the Father.

Family update, 6 Months!!!

Posted on April 5, 2018April 5, 2018 by Spanky Rouse

Look! This place is amazing! (Cape Point Lookout)

We are thankful and excited to have made it to the 6 month mark! The first 6 months in some ways were easier than we had thought, but in ways we hadn’t imagined it was tougher than we anticipated. Lara and I regularly try to take the “temperature” of the children and ourselves to evaluate how we are doing. We try to get away and take a walk or a drive, go have a coffee, or chat while sitting outside on our patio. These times have been some of the most powerful/intimate/challenging/fulfilling/helpful moments for Lara and I.

These past few months have been emotionally, spiritually, and mentally challenging for us, but also have allowed us to create some of the most beautiful memories that will be cherished for a lifetime. This time has reminded me that I am deeply thankful for my wife!!! It’s been a dream of mine, since I was 14 years old to be a missionary, but I had no idea how crucial it was going to be to have this woman on the journey with me.

Young man drinking his coffee

He is a nut!

Some of our community centre kids

Zach and mine mentor session included some waves

Children, Update:

They love playing with his hair!

How did our baby get to be so big!?

Mac is doing well! Out of the 3 of them he is the one that has surprised us the most. He is truly thriving and that is an enormous gift to us as parents. His first year of online school with Liberty University is coming to a close shortly and he has been challenged but done well with it. The Lord has been good to Mac by providing him with some great friends, and lots of them! We walk into church and people run to Mac. He has truly been loved well. Mac is taller than his mom, his shoe size is bigger than mine, his voice gets deeper and deeper, his hair is longer than ever, and his joy is still as contagious as always. Mac is really loving life in South Africa.

Bobby the African goat

Grey picking with the big boys at the Friday Braai

Grey has enjoyed many of the new facets of life here in South Africa. He loves going shoeless (everywhere), minimizing the number of showers he has to take every week, learning some Afrikaans words and phrases, and having a slower pace of life in our weekly schedule (Africa life is slower and more relational than we are accustom too in America). Grey started learning how to play the guitar and is doing pretty well so far. Homeschooling has been a great fit for Grey and he should be finishing up in the next week or so for the year. One area that Grey has struggled with more with than the other two is finding some close friends that he can regularly spend time with. He seems to be growing in his relationship with Jesus and understanding on the bible which is exciting to see. He is still the most loving little guy and loves those around him well.

Twins at the outdoor movie

Show off!

Elly is a “mini me” of Lara, therefore she has no issues with finding a friend no matter where we go. Elly walks into a room and immediately has a new sidekick to hang out with. She has a great group of girls at church, dance class, and within our East Mountain community that she enjoys a lot. Elly also loves having older girls around that act like big sisters. Being a social butterfly we are grateful for all of the relational connections for her. She has learned how to read (English) as well as she can count to 29 in Afrikaans! Elly also really enjoyed getting her nail polish collection from Nana and Marla last month. Her nail colors change daily.

Alechia has just finished her first term at University! It was a challenge for her but she did well and is enjoying it. She is taking 7 classes so her schedule is full and some classes are difficult but she is learning a lot. She is thankful for all of your prayers! We have enjoyed spending some extra time with her while she has been on fall break.

Romero’s first Sunday playing drums

Romero at the salon with Elly and Olivia

Romero is doing well! He has begun to work more with the church we attend. He is serving in the young adults ministry, the youth group, and with one of the pastors here. He also auditioned for the worship band and made it as a regular drummer! It was really exciting to see him excel in something he loves and is naturally gifted in. Romero is also busy leading at some Christian camps in the area during the school break. It is a blessing to have him be a part of our life and family (I think he likes it too :))

Breakfast and laughter at our favourite spot called Pajamas and Jam

Thankfulness:

We love serving with our church at the community centre! Great things are happening through the relationships we are building there. Read more here…We love these kids so much!
Homeschool is almost done for the year and Lara and the kids have done really well with it.
We love mentoring! We also love the young people that we have the opportunity to pour into.
IT RAINED!!! This week it rained for 2 straight days at our house and it was wonderful! Day Zero (April 2018) is the day that Cape Town was supposed to run out of water but it has now been pushed back until sometime next year! Praise the Lord!
We love our church, Life Church! Great connection, wonderful people, and life-giving ministries! It feels like home!

Prayer:

We have all been sick on the regular. Lara and Elly have had a head cold, chest cold, and snots for over 5 weeks. All of us have had stomach issues regularly for a few months. It comes and goes and is super frustrating. We aren’t sure if it is our bodies getting use to the water here or something else. PLEASE pray for healing!
Pray for the Helder Valley Community Centre families and for the Lord to give us favor with them.
Join us in praying about buying airline tickets to come to visit in July.
Pray for us to have deep relationships, big impact, fruitful ministries, and life-giving opportunities.
Please pray for these young leaders we get to mentor and invest in. Pray that they will get a full glimpse of who God has created them to be and what God has called them to do with their lives.
Pray for Lara and me as we are figuring out some new roles within East Mountain that will allow us to have a greater opportunity to love, serve, care for, and point people to Jesus.
Pray that we will find a language helper soon. We don’t “need” to learn Afrikaans but we think it would be very helpful to get a little understanding.

Oh my goodness, we love these kids so much!

Posted on March 9, 2018March 9, 2018 by Spanky Rouse

Oh my goodness, we love these kids so much! It’s definitely not always an easy, but we have yet to leave there without smiles on our faces and a full heart.

Antonio and Andrew making funny faces for the camera

In moving to South Africa, Lara and I knew we would quickly become busy with different roles and ministries but one of our top priorities was finding a way for our family to serve together. Serving at Helder Valley Community Centre has been exactly the kind of place our family wanted to get connected with. Every time we show up and kids run to each of us, jump into our arms, and squeeze our necks so tight we know we are exactly where we need to be!

A couple of our little Muslim friends that love to eat candy and laugh

If you were to come and observe what is going on one afternoon it would probably just look like all we do is play games, eat snacks, read children’s bible stories, do art projects, tutor and help with homework, dance, listen to music and have fun. Well, that is exactly what we do! In doing just that, we [As you, who support this work and pray for us please know that we are including you in all of the “we” statements here. PLEASE don’t miss that! You are making a lasting difference here.] are able to provide some consistency in these kids lives. We are helping them improve in reading and math. We are teaching them the Bible! We are providing them with a opportunity to laugh in the midst of the reality that, life is a struggle and “I am not sure how are we going to survive today”. We give them one on one attention that you can so vividly see they hunger for. We are giving them love. We are offering them hope, life, and a better future. Together, we [Jesus, You and the Rousehouse] are transforming a community through this small group of children!

Marlyn, and East Mountain resident is teaching dance classes each week. This is one of their favourite activities!

Lesnique, Chloe and Elly playing spot it

Grey and Siyavule talking about what they are going to draw from the bible story that we just read about.

“The greatest legacy one can pass on to one’s children and grandchildren is not money or other material things accumulated in one’s life, but rather a legacy of character and faith.”
— Billy Graham, evangelist

“It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.”
— Frederick Douglass, abolitionist and statesman

“Children are great imitators. So give them something great to imitate.”
— Anonymous

“If I could relive my life, I would devote my entire ministry to reaching children for God!”
— Dwight L. Moody, evangelist

“Hugs can do great amounts of good, especially for children.”
— Diana, Princess of Wales

And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. — Jesus, Matthew 18:5

¹³People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. ¹⁴When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. ¹⁵Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” ¹⁶And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them. – Jesus, Mark 10:13-16

Lesnique is one of my special girls that seems to be tough but really just wants some attention and to be loved on. She always needs a hug!

Jesus is going to do a great work through our small investment in the lives of these children! This could be the start of a whole new life for these kids and their families. Our family is praying that this entire community will be made new and that the doors to their hearts will be opened wide to all that God has stored up for them. Our dreams are that: families will start to follow Jesus, kids will get a better education and more opportunities in life, there will be less abuse, more joy, better attitudes, faithful dads, healthier lives, freedom from addictions, and a hope filled future for the generations to come. Big dreams for a Big God!

Jenga and the Rouse boys are a favorite around the centre!

Naam is a little sister of one of our kids that has started to come hang out with us. She loves Grey!

Today we have the opportunity to show them that God is always with them, that Jesus loves them, and that they have some friends that care for them. That is a legacy that will last and a life worth living!

From Spanky, Lara, Mac, Grey and Elly we want to say thank you for playing such an important role in this great mission and in our lives!

You must have candy if you want to have everyone sit down for story time!

So many updates! Feb 2018

Posted on February 14, 2018February 15, 2018 by Spanky Rouse

It’s hot! Feb is the warmest month here in the Western Cape of South Africa. It is also super dry. Praise the Lord we did have a night this past week when it rained significantly!!! I mean it was a down pour! People at the store were standing at the windows just starring outside with grins on their faces. Praise the Lord! KEEP PRAYING for rain! We are working on recycling water, reusing gray water, and planning for the future needs. Even more we are trusting and asking the Lord to provide all the water that is needed.

This is at the local homeless shelter that the church owns and operates in our city.

Life Church is one of the greatest connections we have personally made since living in South Africa. We love the preaching and the staff we have gotten to know. The worship time is spirit filled and wonderful. They are serving the poor and needy all over our city in remarkable ways that truly speak to our hearts. But the real reason we have gotten connected at Life Church is because Mac said, “This is the church we have to attend.”. They have an amazing youth group and have loved on Mac so well! It is the highlight of his week for sure.

Taking in God’s creation on a drive down the coast

Super Bowl paaarrrttyyyy!

Elly and Olivia, her friend

Grey with some of his buddies at East Mountain

Our whole family has began serving together at the Helder Valley Community Centre. It is located in a farming community where all the parents work on the large commercial farms nearby and have created a cluster of homes in close proximity to one another and the farms where they work, similar to a village. Most of these communities are very poor and are made up of very busy parents trying to provide for their family. One of the biggest concern is under educated children, that have too much unsupervised time at home. Life church came alongside this specific community a few years ago and committed to coming alongside them to help children learn, feed them lunch after school, and give them a structured and safe environment to be a part of until their parents get home. They also enjoy dance class on Thursdays thought by another member in our church. Our family is enjoying serving under Loise, a local coloured lady who has been running the centre for the past 4 years. We are helping to tutor the children in english and math, teaching basic bible stories, and simply providing a little fun and laughter in their week. We just started this week but already love these sweet little faces! All of the big bear hugs and high fives we get from them tell us, they like us too.

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A quick update on Alechia…She is doing well in school! She finished her first class in Greek, is making new friends, and loves her roommate. She felt blessed to hear about all of our friends and family commiting to pray for her this year! Praying that she will do well in her studies, experience more of the Father’s love and favor in her life, and for some basic monthly financial needs she has since she is living on her own for the first time. We will keep you up to date on how she is doing through out this year.

Saying goodbye- all the feelings!

Her Mom and our friend Tori moving her to school a couple weeks back

Prayer updates from January:

Pray for the new residents that will be moving in Jan 20th. We will give you snapshots of each of them throughout the year….

We have had our new year-long residents move in this past month. We have 6 ladies and 4 boys with one more guy on his way. It has been a fun month of getting to know them and helping them get to know us. Lara and I have both been given the opportunity to mentor a new resident this year and we are excited for how the Lord is going to work in all of our lives. We love this chance to speak into them, love on them, and share our life with them. Also, Lara and I both have a couple of young men and woman (like Alechia) that we will continue to walk with this year that are not in the East Mountain program but just in our community.

Pray for Homeschooling…For everyone to finish the year well in these next 5 months…

School seems to be going fine. Mac is doing so well in his studies with the Liberty online program. He is way more advanced than either of us already so he has to take things like English, Math and Science online to get a real challenge. Greyson really likes the freedom to work on his on time. He is pretty interested in Science, Geography, and cultural studies. Elly is learning how to read and basic mathematic skills like subtraction and how to tell time. Lara and I are learning tons of things as well, especially in the area of how different each child is and how different their learning styles are. Keep their studies in your prayers please.

Pray for wisdom of when to travel back to the US for a visit this year and for affordable flights. We are looking to visit the beginning of July…

No tickets have been purchased yet but we will keep you up to date when we do.

Pray for Spanky’s parents (Nana and Pawpaw) as they travel to visit us Feb 1. Mom doesn’t like to fly and it is a long trip…

Nana and Paw Paw came to visit last week. They were our first family or friends to come visit. It was good to have a piece of home with us for a week and to spend time catching up. Their flights were wonderful and Mom did so well with the travel. She knows that it was the Lord helping her. While they were here we sat around the house talking and catching up, Mac and PawPaw played cards, we took them to some of our favourite local restaurants and coffee spots, we went to Cape Town and explored the top of Table Mountain, drove around to see all of the breath-taking views from the mountains to the beach, toured the East Mountain Ministry house, meet the new residents, went to Life Church and the local market on Sunday, had a Super Bowl party, and ate a lot of Nana’s famous chocolate chip cookies! It was a busy and eventful time! We enjoyed having them here and it was hard to say good-bye for sure!

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Pray for success: that others may know Jesus and know His plan for their life through our lives and ministry here. We want to have a deep impact on people and communities this year for His glory!

God is moving in a mighty way in and through us! This is not a statement of arrogance but an observation of His grace and working. We have been renewed in our call to live open, transparent, vulnerable, passionate, loving, caring, selfless, and available to the people and needs that arise from day-to-day. God is using our willingness to step into the moments and people’s lives to share who we are and who He is to do great things!

Prayer needs for Feb:

Please be praying that we will continue to make ourselves available to the best opportunities not just to every opportunity. We do not want to be too busy to where we miss the Lord’s perfect plan for us.
Please be praying that we will make some good connections with the children and families at the Community Centre. There are so many great stories to come here!
Please be praying for both of us as we are starting to mentor new residents, Zuzu and Zach. Our hope is to build a deep trust with them as mentors and help gain a greater sense of who the Lord has created them to be and what He has called them to do with their lives.
Please be praying for Zuzu and Zach. This is going to be a year of the Lord growing them in many areas as well as deepening their faith and understanding of Him. They are just getting settled and figuring out life here therefore any prayers for peace, wisdom and comfort would be well appreciated too.
Keep praying for rain!
Please be praying for East Mountain and Life Church