Good morning brothers and sisters!

I want to quickly share some AMAZING news with you all and give God ALL the Glory He deserves!
Two days ago, during an incredible and powerful prayer meeting of over 300 people, there was a moment when our Base Director asked if there was anyone suffering from an illness that desired to see and experience healing. I didn’t think anything of it, but moments later, the Lord spoke straight to my heart and said, “Katie, I want to heal you of your Asthma. Go forward.” I was quite surprised, but I know the voice of my Heavenly Father very well, and know that when He speaks, He will act. So I walked forward, and as a few pastors and leaders began praying over me, a little boy (about 8 years old) came to me, grabbed my hand, and began praying for healing! It was an incredible experience, and all of a sudden, I physically felt my trachea (wind-pipe) and lungs open wide and fill completely (something that has not taken place since I was about 6 years old)! I felt this amazing sensation throughout my entire body – from the tips of my fingers, down to my toes, up into my head…I could literally feel new air…new oxygen…coursing through my veins and filling my body with strength and life that I have not had since I was a very young child! It was an unbelievable miracle! So, after spending many hours praising the Lord for his awesome might and power, and calling friends and family, my friend Natasha and I decided to go for a RUN. I have never in my life been able to run without chest-pain and closure of my airways, but having ALL FAITH that the Creator of the Universe had healed me of life-long Asthma (not just partially, but FULLY and COMPLETELY) I tied my running shoes and stepped outside (at 11:30pm, in the freezing cold winter night) and began running…at full speed…sprinting around the entire base……..without one second of pain or difficulty! In fact, I was breathing better and more deeply, mid-sprint, than I had ever breathed on a normal day of my life! It was an absolute miracle, and I cannot stop praising our Awesome God for His power!! The Lord continued speaking that night, whispering to my heart that He had brought healing to me so that now, I can go and bring this same healing to the Nations! He desired to demonstrate His power in me first – renewing my faith that He truly can work through me, and fully receiving this gift and anointing of Healing! All week, He was speaking to me about His desire for me to receive this anointing…this gift of touching and healing through His power and authority IN ME, yet there was a barrier of unbelief in my heart…I did not truly believe that He could use ME. But when I finally allowed God to break that unbelief, and I put ALL my faith in His awesome power, He immediately came to make it a reality in my life! He has anointed me with this gift, and I will run hard with it until my last day on this earth! PRAISE THE LORD!

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound…to comfort all who mourn…to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be GLORIFIED!” ~Isaiah 61:1-3

Sawubona!

Blessings to you ALL from Worcester!

The past few weeks have been absolutely MARVELOUS! Classes began on the 4th (no mention of U.S. Independence Day here) and we were, in NO way, ‘eased-into’ things. Our days are bursting with lectures, work duties, studying, presentations, performing full medical examinations on anyone we can get our hands on… and in all of the “free-time” we have, we’re expected to be studying for our weekly exams and writing lesson plans for all of the health teachings we will be doing! And can safely say that I have done more intense learning and practice in 2 weeks here, than I did in 2 MONTHS at University!
God has been SO faithful in renewing my strength (especially as I am battling sickness this week) and His mercies truly are new every morning! He has also brought INCREDIBLE blessing through relationships! I have never in my life experienced SO many friendships built in such a small amount of time. We are such a unique and beautiful family here, as more than 100 students from all over the world live together in this splendid “home.” (not to mention the other 200 people living on the base!) God has given me so many amazing brothers and sisters – many from Africa, a few from Korea, and a LOAD of Brazilians! My Health Care school only consists of 7 students, but the rest of the base if filled with English Language School students and various other schools as well, so all of our free time is spent together – playing Fútbol, learning each others’ languages, eating other cultures’ foods, and (for us medical students) seeking out “victims” for our physical examination quota each week!
Last Friday, our team took a combi (van) into Zwelithemba – the most impoverished squatter camp community in all of Worcester. We were there to survey the health and sanitation conditions, but let me tell you, it was truly a heartbreaking morning. There is such incredible devastation in the black community of South Africa, and the need is absolutely unfathomable (especially to us Westerners). Our team will have a lot of interaction with this specific community in the coming 2 months – giving vaccines, working in the clinic, and giving health teachings. Please pray for openness among the people of Zwelithemba, and for wisdom for our team as we seek out creative and practical ways to reach them. The prevalence of HIV in this community is ENORMOUS. Please also pray for strategies in health education, as we will be taking every possible opportunity to present teachings of the causes, dangers, and prevention of this deadly disease! Please pray for financial breakthrough among our team of students. Nearly half of them made it here to South Africa on God’s grace alone, and have absolutely NO money to pay their school fees. They simply made a huge leap of faith, and are trusting that God will provide! Pray for their fundraising and for miracles! And lastly, I would be so blessed if you would pray for my physical and emotional strength over the next 2 and a half months of training. The work load is unbelievable, and stress is quickly building, but please pray that I would do all in the Lord’s strength! He is my sustainer, and the only reason I am here!
Please keep YOUR updates coming as well! It blesses me SO very much to hear what is going on in your lives, and how I can continue praying for each of you!

Praise the Lord for His awesome plans and His sweet, sweet mercies!
Love you all!
Kate

Ngiyagubingelela!!

I have made it to Africa!

Hope all is well with everyone! Miss you guys already!!

Praise the LORD I had 2 very smooth (yet LONG) flights, and a lovely afternoon in London! God provided SO graciously for safe travels, and I was greeted with loving, open arms when I arrived at the base yesterday!

South Africa is GORGEOUS, and Worcester...is like a DREAM!! We are surrounded by MASSIVE, Majestic mountains, and I joyed in my first African RAIN this afternoon! It is absolutely lovely here! And COLD!!! Let me tell you - I have not worn less than 3 coats, a scarf and gloves since I arrived - and that is INDOORS!! It is definitely winter here, and MUCH colder than I ever thought AFRICA could be! But I love it! I'll be thinking about all of you in Colorado when you are hit with this HOT SUMMER and wishing I could send you some of our Cold weather!

Classes begin tomorrow afternoon, and I am thrilled to commence with the next step of this grand adventure!

This base is AMAZING! And SO very different from Argentina! I share a room with 2 girls (still waiting on the 3rd to arrive) and they are from Nigeria and Ghana. Our class will only be 7 IN TOTAL (and only 1 guy!) but I think it is truly going to be a blessing to have such a small size. However, the rest of the base is a totally different story! There are about 6 other schools going on at the same time, and a few giant teams of youth visiting for the next few weeks as well! So this place is PACKED! SO many different cultures and LANGUAGES! My favorite group is the load of Brazilians that are here for the next year studying English! My Portuguese is improving like lightning, and actually ran into a kid who I previously met in Argentina for a short time! I’ve also begun to learn French and Africaans in order to better communicate with my classmates! There’s only one other person from the States here, so it is awesome to get to know all of the other cultures! As most of your know, I absolutely thrive in situations like this, where I can use my language skills and learn new ones, and really just love on everyone around me! God is SO GOOD!

I will definitely keep you all posted as we begin to delve into our studies and see God moving in incredible ways!

And yes, mom – we CAN drink the water!

LOVE YOU ALL!!

~“Kate the American”(as they all call me here)