When Nellie was a little girl she lived with her mother, 4 sisters, and two brothers in Durban, South Africa. Her childhood was unpleasant. She was always fighting with her sisters and her mother had severe alcoholism. So severe that she was unable to work and provide for the children, so Nellie and her siblings had to go to work at a very young age, and never went to school. When Nellie was 11 years old she began working doing domestic jobs in other people's homes (cleaning, laundry… ect). At the age of 24 Nellie became pregnant with her first son, Sifiso. She decided to move to Johannesburg with Sifiso and his father, because her mother had died from food poisoning (by her own sister), three of her siblings had died from HIV and tuberculosis, and one was murdered. She had nothing left in Durban. At the age of 33, Nellie became pregnant again. This is when she found out that she was HIV positive.

Nellie did not take the news well that she had contracted HIV from her children's father. She became very depressed at the thought of ending up like the people she had seen on television with HIV, ravaged and suffering. Nellie tried to take drugs to kill herself and her baby but was unsuccessful. After Nellie gave birth to her second son, Klankla, the father became angry and physically abusive toward her, forcing her to leave him. When she was 34, Nellie had to quit her job and move in with her sister because she became very ill with the HIV. She could not walk because her legs became very swollen and sore, she could not eat, she could not take care of her 2 children, or even make it to the toilet. She was afraid for her life and for her children. Nellie prayed to God everyday, asking Him to forgive her so that she could take care of her children. Her sister did not receive it well that Nellie was HIV positive, and so she ill treated Nellie and was very cruel to her. Eventually her sister kicked her out of the house, leaving Nellie with no place to stay and very sick. Nellie ended up in the hospital with HIV and Tuberculosis for 1½ months. She received medication for the tuberculosis, but not the HIV.  When Nellie got out, one of her close friends took her in for a while, but she too, treated Nellie in a cruel manor and ended up kicking her out.

One night, feeling deathly sick and abandoned, Nellie cried out in anger at God. She yelled at Him saying that there must not be a God, because if there were, He would not allow her and her children to suffer so severely.  That very night God came to Nellie in a dream in the figure of a dog.  At first Nellie ran from the dog and was afraid, but she became tired of running and sat down crying. The dog came over to her and sat down in her lap and nuzzled into her. As Nellie began petting the kind dog, it turned its head toward her and began to speak. In a deep and powerful voice, the dog told Nellie “I am here and I love you. Why don't you believe in me? Just believe in me and I will take care of it all.” Nellie said about God's voice, “the whole world could crumble because of that voice; it was like a tornado.” Nellie woke up from hr dream crying and shaking. She couldn't believe that God had come to her and spoken to her! She prayed to Him, telling Him that she believed and wanted Him to come take care of her. He did.  The very next morning one of Nellie's friends told her about a place called Nkosi's Haven. She told her it was a safe place where she could stay and where her children would be taken care of and provided for. Nellie agreed to move into Nkosi's Haven Village, feeling that this was God's will for her. She packed up all of her belongings and her children and called a taxi. When they pulled up to the gate she went to pay the driver, and he said “no charge.” Nellie couldn't believe that God had provided for her to come to Nkosi's Haven free of charge! From the moment Nellie walked through that gate on, her life was forever changed. When she arrived at Nkosi's Haven, Nellie was very sick; she couldn't walk or eat, and was very skinny.  Within the first few weeks of being there she got dramatically better. Nellie said she could “feel the healing inside of her, and God's strength increasing within her.” Sister Rose in the clinic couldn't believe how fast the swelling in Nellie's legs went down and how quickly she gained weight. While Nellie's body was healing, she learned to make clothing, mats, and beautiful jewelry. A talent she never had before and believes that God has blessed her with to provide income.

Nellie has been living at Nkosi's Haven for 3 months now and is healthy and strong. She has only been on ARV medication for HIV for two months, and believes it is God, not the medication that has made her healthy again. Both of her children live with her at the Haven. They get three meals per day, have a cottage to live in, and attend school. Nelly and her children are safe, they are together, and they are getting a chance at a better life. God kept His promise to Nellie and has taken care of everything. She thanks Him everyday for bringing her to Nkosi's Haven and for saving her life.

Nellie now has a dream, a goal, and a purpose. She believes that God has called her to share her story with Johannesburg, South Africa, and the World. Her goal is to show people through her own testimony that there is hope in God, and all He asks is that we “love Him enough to believe in Him, and He will rescue us, from any situation, even HIV.” God has also anointed Nellie as a healer. She goes into the clinic at Nkosi's Haven and also to the local hospital and helps take care of the patients suffering from HIV as she once did. She helps them just as much as the nurses do and the patients ask for her now, instead of the nurse, because Nellie offers them something more than physical help. She offers them hope and spiritual help, encouragement and love as well.  Nellie says that many times she has felt God telling her to place her hands on someone and pray for them, and so she does, and people have been healed. She has prayed for and healed people's stomachaches, knee pain and other ailments as well. She says that she doesn't know what to do or what to pray, but the Holy Spirit comes and just works through her.  She says that she can't even believe that she is the same person anymore, healing people and speaking to them with confidence about how God saved her life. “I used to be a quiet and insecure person, but after God came to me and spoke to me in my dreams, I felt chosen and special, and I am not shy or insecure anymore.”

Nellie is such a beautiful, strong woman and her faith is truly encouraging. She is so obviously in love with God and says that He is her best friend and is all she needs. She prays to Him constantly, thanking Him for everything He provides.  She has only been a follower of Christ for 3 months, but she has the wisdom, love, and faith of someone who has known God their entire life! This woman is my hero. She has been through so much hardship, yet is thankful to God for it, because she knows that He will use her story to change many people's hearts and lives. She loves her life now, because she has God, and she knows that He will always provide for her and her children, bless them in abundance, love them, and keep them safe. This is Nellie's story. A story that she has asked me to tell to the world, with the faith that God will use it to change lives and bring hope. It is a story of struggle, it is a story of hope, but most of all… it is a story of God's transforming love.

We're in the Philippines!!!

SO we have arrived in Asia and once again I'm in love. We arrived in Manila Saturday night and Sunday morning we took a flight down to Mindinao. We landed Sunday afternoon and arrived in Malaybalay Sunday evening. God is just good. His protection, his provision, his love, his mercy, and grace… amazing!

This month my team and four others will be working with Kids International Ministries (KIM). Some of the things we will be doing this month.

8 hour shifts in the baby and toddler house

Getting the older kids up and ready for school

Helping the older kids with homework and putting them to bed

Prison Ministry

Intervarsity College Ministry

Basketball Ministry

And various other tasks around the compound

I'm excited for this month. God is so good and his love, peace, and grace are so present here… and it's mango, pineapple, and watermelon season :)

PRAISE GOD I AM FULLY FUNDED!!! God is so FAITHFUL and truly He is our PROVIDER. I just want to say THANK YOU to everyone who supported me, either prayerfully, financially, or both! Thank you for your encouragement, your love, your prayers, and your heart for God's people around the world! I am so blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life who support me and what God is doing through me in the Nations. I am honored to serve my King in the way He has called me to serve, and I am THANKFUL that He has provided for this calling through all of you! A special thank you to my family for their continuous love and support from the very beginning. Love you guys! There are 3 people on my squad who still need support URGENTLY to continue on this Race. Please pray about donating to them:

Lauren Newborn     laurennewborn.theworldrace.org

Alicia Hodges         aliciahodges.theworldrace.org

Melissa Ventura      melissaventura.theworldrace.org

Lauren, Alicia, Me

HEY GUYS! I first want to say that I miss and LOVE you all very, very much. I'm thinking about and praying for you all EXTRA lately, as Thanksgiving is just a few days away!  A LOT has happened since my team and I arrived in Malawi a little over two weeks ago. We spent our first two days of ministry in Mpunga and Ntiya villages encouraging and praying for MANY men, women, children, and families at their homes. These resilient people have many needs (that I hope all of you will pray for too). They are hungry for the Word of God, more than food! They don't ask us for money or food, the only thing we have openly been asked for are BIBLES! That was a slap to the face that woke me up- the word of God is the MOST valuable treasure! Bibles were the most sought after need, but they also need prayer for food (there was a drought this year and so many crops failed), clothes for the children (they can't go to school without them), construction and repair on their homes and churches (the rainy season has just begun and their roofs & walls are leaking), and prayer for protection and healing for mental and physical illness (such as malaria, cholera, and schizophrenia). We also visited Pastor Megada's orphanage where they have 15 orphans, and they only have enough funding to provide the children one meal per day. THAT IS NOT ENOUGH!  Especially since the main food provided here is encima, a flour based gruel. These are the most urgent needs to keep in prayer. Although these people have many needs, they are still persevering and are spiritual dynamites! The believers trust in God's provision and sovereignty, and truly have the JOY of the Lord! It is amazing to witness! And you should hear them sing worship to God… the MOST beautiful sound! The rest of the first week of ministry we traveled to villages and visited the churches that Pastor Medson and Willy P. had planted recently. We were welcomed as pastors (hehe), greeted with singing and dancing, and were allowed to give them a sermon of encouragement and/or word from God. There are no words to describe how AMAZING this experience was, and the source of A LOT of spiritual growth for us all!

The second week of ministry we headed to Chikwawa (about 5 hours southwest of Zomba) to visit the hidden away villages in the bush of Malawi! Pastor Medson and Willy P have 4 churches there that they planted. We stayed three days and two nights there (camping… sort of… I accidentally forgot my tent poles in Zomba… ask me about it sometime :) with Willy P's mother and hometown village community. WOW, eye opening experience! Amazing worship, preaching sermons, praying for needs, sleeping beneath the stars, dust storms, GIGANTIC bugs, dehydration (very limited water), truck breakdowns, FOOD (mangos, goat, encima), squatty potties, diarrhea, HOT SUN (107 degrees), new relationships, lots of growth, dancing, SOCCER….ect…ect…ect… AMAZING! I wish I had a better word to describe it, but the only word I can come up with to describe this experience is AMAZING! Difficult at times, but AMAZING! I have never felt more alive than I do living here in the villages of Africa! Again, the biggest desire here was for BIBLES!! These people absolutely blow my mind! Back at home base in Zomba I have two little kids who have stolen my heart. Their names are Dan and Yacinta. They remind me A LOT of my two favorite girls in the WHOLE WORLD- Peyton and McKenna!!!

Well I am out of time now and I have so much more I could write, but the most important thing to leave you with is that I LOVE YOU GUYS!!! And HAPPY THANKSGIVING (just in case I don't get internet again).  XOXOXOX

PS. Please pray for safety over all of P squad, we need it! Thanks and LOVE!

This is just a quick update of what has been happening since I left Ireland on October 2nd. I'm sorry I have not been able to communicate sooner but we have had ABSOLUTELY NO internet, or phones. So my team and I left Ireland and flew into Bucharest, Romania where we had a mini debrief and got into our new teams. My team is team TRUTH. Mari Tomer, Tara Reed, Brittany Smith, Craig Thompson, and Jon Harris are my new teammates! Check out their blogs for pictures of us! We stayed in Bucharest for 3 days and then hopped on a bus for Moldova! My team and I will be staying in Cantemir Moldova this month. We are living with mama Vita and Stephan; a family in a very small, rural village here in Moldova. It is quite cold here this time of year! We will be mainly helping with construstion on the church this month, and playing soccer when the weather is good!!! I will have very little internet this month, and probably no skype, so be sure to check my blog for updates! Here is a video introducing Team TRUTH!!! It was shot at our house here in Moldova :) LOVE YOU ALL