As so many beautiful things in life, Nomsa began with a simple dialogue... friends wondering together: “If Jesus walked the earth today, who would he spend time with?” That conversation sparked many more, and most importantly, led them to who they needed to spend their days (and nights) with. So began the epic journey: they started taking peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to the homeless of downtown Orlando, and it wasn’t long before they made friends and a habit of these wandering meals.
Meanwhile, the same conversation led one young woman across the globe to Africa, to serve as a missionary for six months. And the adventure continued... While working with AIDS patients in Swaziland, some of the children gave her an African name, which she easily embraced assuming certainly it must mean ‘white girl’ or ‘clumsy’ or something equally embarrassing. Claiming it as her own, she proudly introduced herself as ‘Nomsa’, happy to know she was accepted. All the while, hoping the love she knew so well was crossing the cultural divide.
One day, after months of introducing herself as such, she introduced herself to a well-educated interpreter, who spoke perfect English. Upon introduction, he immediately asked if she knew the meaning of this name. She laughed, telling him what she assumed. He responded, “There’s no English word for it, literally translated, it means ‘Open Heart.’”
Upon returning to the U.S., in Dec. `07, a week hadn’t passed before she was on the street with friends and PB&J. Many new faces, a familiar few. Soon, she was presented with an unusual request (Bibles?) followed quickly by requests for consistent fellowship and study. Quickly, a central location was chosen and a time and day picked for weekly get togethers.
As the small group of people began gathering every week, numbers grew until they had close to 100 on a regular basis: sharing meals, worshipping, and talking about Jesus...
That’s how this journey began and continues, and now as the Nomsa team, we are dedicated to seeing it through.
We feel honored and privileged with this “beautiful burden” and we invite you to join us as we work, raise awareness, and dream the solution into existence.
