Children Freed from Sex and Alcohol

In a remote Swaziland community, kids openly skip school, drink alcohol and ask each other for sex — by the age of 8 years old.

Their parents are no better off. Jobs are scarce, and adults are desperate to escape the hopelessness they feel. But that only compounds the problem. Many parents can’t provide for their families because they’ve spent their money buying sex and marijuana.

It’s no wonder that by the time Ayize turned 16, she was already a mother and a dropout.

She was hopeless . . . until she met a woman named Superrose.

Training Swazis to Reach Swazis

Superrose felt God’s call to missions in high school. Born and raised in Swaziland, she knew how desperately her people needed the Gospel.

There was just one problem. She needed training — and Bible college is impossibly expensive for many Swazis.

One friend went to Bible college and came back with terrible stories of financial hardship. Each morning, he would wait until the other students had used the bathroom. Then, he would use whatever toiletries they had left behind.

The idea terrified Superrose. So, she decided to go into secretarial work and “do God’s work part-time.”

Fortunately, God changed her plans.

A pastor told Superrose about Swaziland Evangelical Bible College, a school where TEAM missionaries teach and serve.

Friends like you helped pay for her schooling. And soon after she graduated, Superrose found out about Ayize’s community.

A Willing Sacrifice

Life in the Swaziland bush means no running water, no electricity and few jobs. Adults and children alike find their escape through drugs and alcohol. Photo by TEAM

Ayize’s remote community had no running water, no electricity and no roads to help strangers find their way. But when Superrose saw the depravity and hardships there, she knew she had to stay.

“If I can’t sacrifice my life to help them, no one else could,” Superrose said. “No one else could because of the hardships that are in this place.”

With her new education, Superrose started holding regular prayer meetings.

That first year, 15 people were saved and baptized. The next year, another nine came to Christ.

As Superrose shared the Gospel, she also taught what the Bible said about living for Christ. When Ayize heard Superrose speak, it completely changed her.

Thank You for Transforming a Community!

Ayize gave her life to Christ, apologized to her parents and went back to school. Now, she excels in all her subjects, and her employers are amazed at the change in her character.

But Ayize isn’t the only life changed by friends like you.

Teen moms like Ayize are teaching younger girls to abstain from sex — and the girls are listening.

Christian parents have stopped wasting money on alcohol and can now provide for their families.

Kids are flooding back into the schools because they want to know how to read the Bible.

And the church keeps growing.

As this Gospel transformation takes hold, these new believers stand as a beacon in their community, shining a light that only comes from Christ.

Please pray that the Gospel will continue to spread in this community!

When you give to TEAM, you help share the Gospel through students like Superrose. Give today to help equip students and missionaries for a lifetime of ministry!