Meeting Christ

As the music blared throughout Pastor Maria’s village, kids came from all over to hear Bible stories, play games, sing, and learn what it means to follow Jesus Christ. The kids loved hearing about Jonah, Noah and Daniel, and the important lessons they still teach us today. Lessons about obedience, faith, prayer, and what can happen when we run away from God. Remember the whole whale "situation?"

Our Thrive Africa mission team did a great job of teaching Biblical truths in a way that was fun, memorable, and kid-friendly...something that kids don't really experience in their home churches. And in a few short days they impacted these young ones for a lifetime. Not only did the children learn about Jesus Christ, but they also met Him through each of the team members.

The Power of Prayer

Tshehla has a long, difficult road ahead of him. His family does as well. We met them last week while visiting the Harrismith Hospital. Tshehla is 14. So handsome. So bright. With an infectious smile that lights up the room.

It was a joy for our Thrive Africa mission team to meet him, but it was heart-breaking as well. What had started as a fun, innocent soccer game ended in a fight. Tragically, Tshehla was badly beaten by an older bully and he suffered a stroke.

When we met him, he had been in the hospital over a month. His outside wounds had healed, but half of his young body was still paralyzed, and he was just learning to speak again.

We also met his brother and sister, weary from visiting everyday to help feed, bathe and change him. As they poured out their grief, we listened, encouraged them, and prayed together. Through the grace of God, grief was replaced by hope. Anger was replaced by forgiveness. Weariness was replaced by perseverance and strength.

Please pray with us for the family’s continued strength and for Tshehla’s full recovery and bright future.

Peaches

What do canned peaches have to do with sharing the Gospel? Last week I would have said “Not a thing”, but this week is a different story… I spent the week with our Thrive Africa mission team. 4 awesome women from Michigan, Tennessee, and Georgia who came to share their hearts with the people of South Africa.

As they spent time with Paulina, they learned about her work as a traditional healer (Sangoma in Zulu, Naka in Sesotho). Traditional healers practice natural medicine and communicate with ancestral spirits for wisdom and guidance. Paulina believed in God and Jesus, but didn’t know that the Bible spoke against communicating with spirits and consulting the dead - basically a rejection of the Gospel.

As the ladies helped with laundry and canning peaches, they also built friendships and opened the door for heart-to-heart conversation. Now Paulina has some real food for thought. Can she forsake her traditional spiritual beliefs in order to commit fully to Jesus Christ? Please pray with us that she does.

Blind Trust

Imagine walking through the woods. Blindfolded. Holding the shoulder of the person in front of you (also blindfolded). Being led only by someone’s voice. Sounds scary, right? But it’s also a lot of fun, and a great way to build courage and trust within a team – in this case it was with our fabulous team of Outreach Interpreters!

We had a great time hosting them this past weekend! Our interpreters serve such an instrumental role in supporting and equipping our missions teams. It was a blessing to celebrate the fruit of last year, and to relax and refuel for our 2010 Outreach season.

Together we enjoyed touring the beautiful property, doing team-building activities, watching movies and just hanging out. And God showed up in a miraculous way – with me cooking both dinner and breakfast for the interpreters AND interns and everyone survived! Halleluiah!!

Flashpoint

Have you ever experienced a “flashpoint”? A flashpoint is the lowest temperature that a combustible substance bursts into flames, but in a more general sense it’s also the point at which something or someone suddenly bursts into action.

Through Leadership Summit and our IMPACT youth leadership conferences, that’s exactly what we aim to do. Ignite a fire in our youngest leaders, bursting them into action in their schools and communities.

In February, we kicked off our 2010 Leadership Summit program with 95 classes and more than 4000 students. And on February 17th, we held our first IMPACT youth leadership conference called “Flashpoint”. IMPACT is where select leaders from the various schools come together for deeper learning, coaching and action planning.

Several coaches gave testimonies about their flashpoints – how Jesus changed their lives forever helping them through struggles such as teenage motherhood, drugs, alcohol, and abuse. It was clear that the students were gripped by the stories – by the candor and because they could relate.

The teaching afterward solidified the truth that Jesus loves us just as we are, but too much to leave us that way. Please pray with us for the students who attended IMPACT – that through Christ they experience flashpoints of their own.