NEWS FROM SOUTH AFRICA

KEMPTON PARK

The outreach work continues with our members seemingly to be continuously blessed. With the final Crèche course for the year over, we are encouraged that many of the Crèche course attendees have also signed up and are completing the ‘God’s Master Plan’ Bible course and attend the lunchtime Bible class at the Aphiwe Good News Centre. The course has become so popular that the Sister team have started another running in Eden Park. Waiting lists are filling up quickly!

SOWETO

Another of Adam’s race took to the waters of baptism on October 7. This time it was Shawn Ntekele, a friend of our Bro Lucky, but also a friend of us all in that he has been attending the meeting for more than a year and already felt part of the family. He was delighted to be born again and sat in the pool afterwards savouring the moment while we sang the whole of ‘To God be the Glory’. Life for young adults in particular, has many temptations and challenges so we pray Bro Shawn keeps strong in faith on the narrow road to the Kingdom. Bro Barry Van Heerden’s Bible Class turned into a baptismal talk and then a Bible Class.

Our interactive seminars continue every Saturday, students really enjoying being involved. Three students who have been with us for most of last year have requested to be baptised, so they are preparing, God willing, to take that vital step next month. Also Bro and Sis Jimmy and Synthia Matekane’s daughter and Okkie, Sis Thato Tshikumbana’s husband, are preparing for baptism. We rejoice at the prospect of these additions to our Soweto family like an expectant mother!

Long distance outreach preaching and pastoral trips this month, have continued. Bre Daniel Makhado and Austen Mataka to Limpopo, Bro Lucky Sekhasembe spread his wings and joined Bro Gary Smith (Yeoville) to go to Maputo, Bro Paul and Sis Leonie with Bro Emmanuel Mphambo went to Gaborone. It was a pleasure to see the new brothers in Gaborone so active and enthusiastic. Bro Emmanuel did the seminar on, “Do we need prophets today?” Five pastors from Palapye (280kms away) made the effort to attend and check out this insolent challenge. Some common ground was finally found but needless to say it was a hotly debated topic and we applaud Bro Emmanuel for keeping his cool throughout! We were able to disagree without being disagreeable! They were willing to take our literature and Introduction to Bible Basics, seemingly keen to, at least, study. The attendance was very good with 25 in all.

YEOVILLE

We had a wonderful fraternal gathering led by Bro Barry Van Heerden who was accompanied by Sis Wendith; and we enjoyed the fellowship with other Ecclesias. The long awaited Sis Yvonne Dube (Walton, UK) has arrived; she has started teaching and demonstrating the Cooking course at Yeoville Ecclesia. We also had her at our Wednesday class and contributed with words of encouragement.

We thank God for his blessings on our preaching activities: we have been granted a stand in the Alexander Shopping mall to preach the Good News of the Kingdom of God and our Lord Jesus Christ, a lot of people are responding to our correspondence course. If God be willing, we are hoping to run series of Seminars in Alexander.