Newsletter Nov 5

Hi Friends,

We trust that this letter finds you well...  Some news from us...

Family – The kids (and Inesa) are almost finished with the current school year. Inesa is planning next year's school curriculum for the kids. Nelis is trying to find time to finish 3 subjects of his studies (BA theology) before December!

Baby Safe - Our team has successfully installed a Baby Safe – An anonymous drop off point for unwanted babies. There are only 3 of these points in SA and this one has the newest technology capable of reading a baby's vitals.

Farming God's Way – Some of our team are busy introducing FGW principles to the communities we're working in. We believe this to be a key in empowering rural Africans!

2nd & 3rd Generation Believers – We started to focus on leadership training within the simple churches. We trust God to see 2nd & 3rd generation believers birthed in the next couple of months.

Thank you for your friendship and support – we are grateful for you in our lives.

Love
Nelis, Inesa, Tanya & Stefan

October 2008

Hi Friends,

Yes, it’s still raining in the Cape. I guess we will look back in February and think back with fondness of the cooler and wetter time we’re having now!

Answer to prayer – When we face a mountain in our lives and we know that only God can move that mountain, then it is all the more amazing when God move that mountain! Such was the case when someone gave us a beautiful well cared for car! Our old car was costing us huge amounts of money to keep going and we asked the Lord for His help. Our hearts were so overwhelmed and thankful when He answered our prayers. Nothing touches our hearts more and draw us more towards Jesus than when we experience His grace in our lives.

Our trip – We travelled almost 5000km’s in total – visiting friends, & supporters. We enjoyed renewing friendships and sharing our hearts and vision with people concerning what God has called us to in All Nations. Isn’t it wonderful how God designed it that we need to be part of His body to see & experience Jesus?

Thank you for your friendship and support – we are grateful for you in our lives.

Love
Nelis, Inesa, Tanya & Stefan

Tanya's birthday - new cuddly friend

Make a Smilebox postcard

All Nations video

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August 2008

It’s still winter in the Cape with rain and wind belting down here in Kommetjie as we type this letter! We hope you are warm and dry!

All Nations - The CPx (church planting school) from February till July was very focused and blessed – around 50 students successfully graduated. At the moment we are hosting the last of 4 overseas outreach teams ministering here. The past year All Nations has grown from 5 to 36 fulltime workers that are based in Cape Town. At the moment All Nations is in negotiations to buy a property that will serve as a base for training & equipping people to impact Africa & the Middle East. Please pray for this process and God’s wisdom in this.

Family – We as a family are planning to visit friends in Namaqualand, Free State, Gauteng and the South Cape to share stories & photos, encourage and reconnect with one another. We are very open to visit you if we can and there is some coffee! :) This will happen in September and we plan to take some needed rest during this time. We will appreciate your prayers for wisdom, safety & provision for this trip.

Thank you for your friendship and support – we are grateful for you in our lives.

Love
Nelis, Inesa, Tanya & Stefan

Inesa's Heart

How does one combine being a home schooling mom with being a part of a vibrant multicultural ministry?

In our almost 2 years with All Nations we have experienced 3 different “seasons” – a season of “pioneering out of nothing”, a season of very intense involvement (in running outreach programs, catering, setting up logistics for CPx etc) , and a season in which we are now – consolidating. It is still very busy for Nelis although the All Nation’s team has grown to 36 full time workers in Cape Town.

I guess the question I was asking myself was – “what is a sustainable pace for me & can I be involved in ministry and give 100% to my children?” Having gone to the Lord for answers, I have felt that though home educating our children is a priority, my purpose and my heart were also in the ministry and in what we do.

The Lord calls us all to obedience, but through it all He also provides us with help. I now have the help & support of 2 intern couples who are assisting me with projects as well as a wonderful lady who helps with All Nations catering. The Lord has made it possible for me to do both and I am grateful for that.

The other tool the Lord has given us is the house we are renting now. We love to extend hospitality, but although opportunities were plentiful we struggled for space. And then came our miracle. It has a guest room and a school room and the layout is ideal for group gatherings.

I’m very grateful for our new home – it is a great tool for touching people’s hearts, offering encouragement & comfort. My heart is overflowing with thanks and gratitude for God’s goodness!

Love
Inesa

June Newsletter

Dear Friends,

We trust you are all doing well and are enjoying cosy fireplaces on this side of the world and lovely sunshine on the other side. =O)

Below we describe little fractions of what the Lord is doing, if you would like to read more, please go to our blog www.nelisandinesa.blogspot.com (there are some nice family photos there also)

We’ve had a few eventful weeks in the van Rooyen household – the move to our lovely new home, Nelis’ birthday that was closely followed by Stefan’s birthday. They both had lots of fun & enjoyed their special days, sharing them with friends and family.

We want to thank all of you who were praying for Nelis’ brother, he is doing better and it looks like he might be able to regain vision in his eye. (He was violently assaulted a few weeks ago) Please keep him in your prayers.

Masi - xenophobia impacted this community recently. All Nations offered to house & feed those refugees we have relationship with. This was a wonderful opportunity to show practical love & care. We had great times of sharing, worship & laughter! We believe something wonderful was birthed by God as we shared life with our brothers & sisters in need.

Two weeks ago I (Nelis) visited the Bo-Kaap (central Cape Town) where one of our teams is working. As we were serving soup to the refugees on the street the words of John, a Zimbabwean, touched my heart deeply. He said to me: “I’m so tired, my own country does not want me, people in South Africa do not want me here – where can I go where I’ll belong? I just want to look after my family.”

There are no easy answers – what we DO know is that Jesus is worthy of our lives and we can trust Him to bring life, hope and change as we all follow and obey Him. He is our motivation!

With all our love,
Nelis, Inesa, Tanya & Stefan.

All Nations video

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Ministry photos

Ministering to refugees impacted by xenophobia

Prize giving - Cpx's soccer tournament

The Champions! - The Red Hill Attackers

Time of worship - CPx




All Nations' first "Explore Africa!" vehicle to raise up & train African leaders!

Family photos May- June 2008

Stefan's Birthday


Family fun during our 10 day break

Van Rooyens are enjoying CROCODILE meat - we love unusual foods (well, most of us, anyway)

xenophobia - masi & soet water ( by Floyd McClung)

It is a sober time in South Africa. Violence has swept through the nation like a wild fire.
I have to tell you about the terrible events unfolding in South Africa, and what God is doing in the midst of tragedy.
You’ve seen the news: Unbelievable racial violence has broken out all over the country. There are xenophobic riots taking place in every major city of the nation. Much of the violence has actually been under-stated for a change. It is worse than any one TV network can cover.
It is a case of the poor attacking the poor in the townships and shantytowns and squatter camps. No one knows how it actually started, but it has spread from one part of the country to the other, until tens of thousands of people are homeless and hundreds of people have been killed.
It is mainly jobless, homeless poor people turning against political and economic refugees from Zimbabwe, Malawia, Mozambique, Angola, Somalia and the Congo. There are 3,000,000 refugees from Zimbabwe alone in South Africa! South Africa is looked upon as the breadbasket of Africa, a safe haven for the destitute and oppressed. There are ruthless dictators in Zimbabwe and the Congo and other countries close to us that squash any sign of criticism or freedom of speech. So people come from those countries to South Africa looking for jobs so they can survive and send money back home.

Massiphumelele, or “Masi” as we call it, was spared from the violence. Many people worked tirelessly to stop the violence from breaking out. We held prayer meetings, worked with the local pastors and community leaders and police, and did what we could to help.
Community meetings were held in Masi, foreigners from neighboring countries were invited back to the community (many had fled in fear for their lives), and people went door-to-door recovering the stolen property of the refugees who had left in haste, fearful for their lives.
I spoke with some of our Malawian friends in Masi, and they were frightened for their lives. About 25 Malawians, Somalians, and Zimbabweans fled Mai and spent the weekend sheltered in our team house. Vuyo, who is part of one of the little churches we have started in Masi, got assaulted - he is a local but was in the wrong place at the wrong time - he got hit twice on the jaw and head.
Last Saturday night there was a joint community and police effort to recover all stolen property by going door to door, and Sunday morning people were still spontaneously bringing stolen stuff back. A national Television news station reported on how local Masi community pastors and leaders acted to stop the violence. In effect they were saying the violence was not acceptable in their community. They condemned the violence, acted proactively to stop it, and set an example for the rest of the country!!
Sun afternoon the premier of Western Cape Province arrived in Masi to congratulate the pastors and community leaders. A deputation took a memo to the refugees to invite them back to Masi. More than 70 foreigners were welcomed back to Masi with a KFC supper late last Sunday evening!


But things were much different in the refugee camp just a few minutes walk from where Sally and I live. This is the camp for the foreign refugees driven from other communities by the violence.
I would like to quote from a report I read about what the conditions were like in the camp:
“There was Alvin from Angola, whose brother was killed on Friday, and who was so traumatized by the guilt of leaving the body to save himself, he could barely speak. There was Maria (not her real name) from the Congo, who was raped on Thursday, didn’t know where her teenaged son was and just wanted to be given a pair of panties and a place to sleep. There was Noor-Ali from Somalia, a very smart young man in a stylish leather jacket, who had spent years working his way up from cleaning cars for change to owning his own business, only to have absolutely everything he owned snatched away from him in minutes. They, and most of the estimated 1500 people there, were in an extreme state of shock…
“…, two more buses arrived, offloading yet more shell-shocked people. Tensions amongst those who had been waiting 24 hours already without a single word from the authorities on what was going to happen to them began to mount. Sharp words were exchanged between Somalians and Congolese, each feeling more vulnerable than the other… many of the refugees have survived genocide once already in Rwanda and the Congo…
“…Unlike the foreign residents of Masiphumelele, who were evacuated by the police on Friday as a precaution, these people - from Phillipi, from Du Noon, and from Khayelitsha - had been violently chased from their homes…”
The camp where the refugees are staying is a few-minute walk from where Sally and I live. These people are homeless and without hope.
Please pray for us, and more importantly, for the refugees as we try to serve them.

Being here in Africa reinforces to me how great the need is for leadership training. There is a desperate need for honest, servant hearted leaders, for leaders who seek to find significance in God’s eyes, not success in man’s eyes. Leaders who want to make a difference like the leaders in Masi did this last weekend.

All Nations Leadership Institute is involved. The students from the All Nations CPx leadership school are involved in Masi and in the refugee camp. They have been serving the Zimbabwean refugees for months, feeding them, bringing them blankets, and sharing the good news of Jesus. I am proud of them for serving without recognition.
These are the men and women who are the hope of Africa.
Yours,
Floyd and Sally McClungAll NationsCape Town, South Africa

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feedback from Zanzibar team - COCONUT COMMUNION

Coconut Communion

"Just keep your eyes on the horizon," was the advice I followed on the 3 hour ferry trip to Zanzibar. The boat kept on launching itself over big waves, tilting dangerously from side to side. Inside me my stomach was doing the same tilting and sloshing against the sides. It wasn't very pleasant to say the least. Today, after 11 days on the Island, I'm back in Dar Es Salaam after surviving another grueling ride. This time I kept my eyes on the TV in front of me and Jason Bourne whacking a few bad guys around. But what happened in Zanzibar the last 11 days? No one could have guessed. For one the main electricity line to the Island is damaged and has left the island without power for the last 2 and a half weeks. The president promised it would be back on before September. Meanwhile its crippling the whole island's economy and making life fairy difficult.

On our first day on the island I felt led to go back to the place where we stayed last year, called Bububu. We were there for approximately 15 minutes when we found our men of peace (not man of peace). David, a Christian, immediately invited us to his brother Clay (an unbeliever's) house were we slept for the next two nights. Since then we've become good friends with Clay. He's a local dive instructor and has been organising everything we need. But the real man of peace is Sadat who we met on the same night just in front of Clay's house. Since then Sadat has become known as the guy who sounds Christian but is Muslim. It's unbelievable. He is a self-professed Muslim but speaks a lot of truth and is virtually on the edge of giving his life to Christ. We are all praying for him. He speaks very good English and interprets all our Bible studies for us. When we disciple the young believers he translates as well and even motivates them. Sadat is a teacher in a private school in Bububu.

Three people have given their hearts to the Lord. One of them is a Muslim Background Believer called Abdul and the other his friend Simon. They were both baptized in the sea. I baptized Abdul, the first person I've ever baptized, and I thank God for the opportunity. We've been meeting with them and some other believers in a Bible study every night and we're seeing the fruits. People are blown away by the simple idea that you can study the bible. Even believers! We're amazed at the low bible knowledge among the Christians. The group has grown to a place where we can split into two and we are excited about the prospect.

We are, however, weary of just attracting more Christians and trying hard to open more doors into the Muslim community. In our last Bible Study on Thursday evening we teached about the Communion or the Lord's Supper. Since bread is very scarce, especially with the electricity failure, and juice is very expensive we've been using a Coconut during communion. Breaking open the hard shell is very symbolic of the punishment Christ suffered and pouring out the coconut water symbolic of his spilt blood. It's very effective and on Thursday night the Holy Spirit touched every single body in the meeting. Believer and unbeliever. Sadat was the first to say something was different, even though he didn't participate in the communion. I remember how he sat with the bowl of coconut in his hand, thinking long and hard if he should take some before he refrained in the end and passed it on. It was interesting that a lot of people witnessed that they felt very cold. It's always very hot and humid here and so we think it was the Holy Spirit's way of touching them in such a way that they knew it was different.

Yesterday we broke into two teams . One going to the north of the island and one going south. It was in the south that our team came to a village that was remarkably very friendly and open, unlike any of the other villages or towns. Here we met Muha, a christian, which was also strange, and was interested to hear that he has to travel to Stone town every Sunday to go to church. Imagine the look on his face when we told him he could have church in his house. So we are thinking of sending two or three team members there for a week or so. So why am I back in Dar? We're getting two more team members, Ester and Rone McFarlane, who are flying in from SA tonight. Can't wait to go get them. Please pray for Abdul and Simon, Sadat as well Mohamed and Ali- two other Muslims that has been coming to our Bible Studies and are very interested.

God Is Building A New Kind of Leader in Africa

Spirit-filled and Spirit-led young African leaders know only too well the giants of poverty, sickness, foreign domination and failed leadership at work to destroy their great continent. They also have a vision of what God can do through them as servant leaders to turn things around in Africa.

Floyd McClung, leader of All Nations in Cape Town, South Africa, invited some of the young African leaders attending CPx to share with the other students some of Africa's beauty and pain.

In his introduction to the special session, Floyd set the tone for what followed, "I believe God planned the nations, tribes and peoples of Africa. God planned each individual and God planned each "nation" of individuals. God made Africa and Africans. How will we serve Africa, and how will we respond to the challenges of Africa?" he asked.

Floyd believes that Africa, once enslaved, now needs to be served. "The beauty in Africa will be set free by people with serving hearts," he says. The All Nations CPx has brought young leaders from several continents together to learn what it means to be servant leaders, especially in Africa. The majority of these sixty-six men and women are from African countries where the words 'servant' and 'leader' are often polar opposites.

Africans Speaking About African

Three of the African leaders in CPx, Bruce Chitambala and Sydney Musonda from Zambia, and Vakele Dlamini from Swaziland, opened their hearts and shared what they see are the bright spots but also the shameful realities in Africa.

Bruce described the good news about Africa and the bad. Africa is the most "Christianized" continent. It is a continent of amazing natural beauty. "Her unique and colorful peoples are hospitable and gracious to strangers. Her vast natural resources can feed the world."

However, Africa is a continent ravaged by HIV and AIDS, wars, crime and poverty. Bruce talked about his crushing loss when his favorite aunt died from complications from HIV and AIDS. Most of the African CPx'ers raised their hands to show they had lost a friend or relative to HIV/AIDS.

Bruce wept as he described how his mother would cut up her dresses to make shirts for her children and how he had to sell colored iced sugar water to help buy food for the family. "And we would be described as one of the privileged few," he said.

How Does Africa Break the Cycle of Poverty?

How does Africa break out of the cycles of poverty and disease? Bruce, Sydney and Vakele agreed: "Africa's most compelling need is servant leadership. Our leaders must learn the difference between significance in God's eyes and success in man's eyes. Sadly, many of our leaders are more interested in how much they can acquire than how much they can give. Africa has enough to meet the need, but not the greed, of all her peoples," one said.

Sydney explained that most African men want an education and with it, the perks of a good life, cars, money and clothes. "Naturally, a person wants to take care of oneself first," he said. "But we must raise up young men and women with a bigger vision, who will make a difference, to go back to their countries to impact the young generation with new role models. Everything rises and falls on leadership." Bruce and Sydney and Vakele have given up good paying jobs and careers to invest their lives to train and equip other African young leaders.

Child Headed Households in Africa"Africa is sick, and we need a healing message," Bruce declared. "Everyone knows about HIV and AIDS but one result of this pandemic is the massive number of child-headed households. The family, though highly esteemed, is endangered. It is plagued by poverty, ignorance and unfaithfulness among partners. We have to speak about purity and abstinence to men, since this is not the norm," Sydney says.

Bruce shared his conviction that many churches in Africa are weak and dependent. "Those planted by international aid agencies are often enslaved in dependency. This is why I am excited about the simple church model in which everyone learns to love one another, studies the Word of God together, and take responsibility for each other," Bruce says.

Sydney spoke about the need to disciple believers. "If Africa is so highly Christianized why it is also so highly infected with HIV/AIDS? What is wrong? he asked. "People need to be discipled," he said. Bruce, Sydney and Vekela voiced their conviction that Sub-Saharan Africa has been evangelized but not discipled.

All of the African leaders in CPx see themselves as part of the new thing God wants to do in Africa. "It is time to rebuild Africa," Sydney says.

Floyd McClung also believes this. "This is the main reason we moved to Africa. God wants something new to be birthed in Africa," he says. "We sense God birthing something new through the CPx in the hearts of these young leaders. God is longing for His people in Africa to break free from hierarchical models of leadership. God is longing for African leaders to break free of the old ways of dominance and control, and to unleash the potential of Africa to bless the rest of the world. God will not be satisfied until Africa is ready to come to the party!' he says.

"What is God's response to these huge challenges? Do we continue to do church the way we have in the past? Will old ways of thinking solve the old problems we face?" he asked. "Perhaps the old problems have been caused by the old ways of thinking about church and the kingdom of God. "My heart is exploding with longing to empower the bright young leaders of Africa who see the problems of Africa and are open to change," he says.

What about Women in Africa?

It takes a special bravery for an African woman to speak up, but Vakele Dlamini is willing to be that kind of woman. "We have experienced love and acceptance on all fronts here," she told her fellow CPx'ers. "We are free to share our brokenness, our same struggles."

As a woman in Africa, there are many struggles. "Women are almost non-exsistant," Vakele says. "We are raised to listen to men, respect our culture and traditions, and be silent." Men are customarily allowed several wives and mistresses, and a woman, out of fear, must submit to this," Vekela says. She said this practice contributes to the rapid spread of HIV and AIDS.

Even for women in churches, this is a "huge difficulty," Vakele says. "Like many women, I do not know where to find my place." Vakele believes the African men and women at CPx hold the key. "Guys like ours need to embrace change, and target other men to help them change," she says.

CPx/All Nations is committed to Equip Servant Leaders

If you would like to partner with us to equip the change agents in CPx, please contact us. We welcome you to partner to change a continent for Christ – one life, one family and one village at a time.

All Nations CPx Prepares Servant Leaders for Africa

His face was angry, full of despair, his voice broken as Khwazi explained his problem. He had lost everything in the fire that destroyed 78 homes as it tore through the informal settlement called Red Hill. His shack, higher up the mountainside, was engulfed in the flames, as were his refrigerator, stove and all the possessions he had. A gardener in nearby Glencairn, he had been given two days to rebuild his shack and he did not know how to do it properly. "I've tried but I can't," he said "I have no saw, I have nothing and I don't know how to build". Further there was a sense of urgency as his eight year old daughter who lived with him, was staying with his brother while he slept on the ground. Kwazi poured out his troubles to the CPx students who came to assist him rebuild his life and his home. "Don't worry, we will help you," they assured him.

CPx students, Willy Ngombi of Zambia, and Muwyaradzi Hove of Zimbabwe, hiked up the rocky mountainside to work beside Khwazi. They assessed his progress and gave some helpful advice. Khwazi has used the wrong beams and his measurements are way off. He really does not know what he is doing. But now he has friends who will work alongside him to put his house back up. "These are the first people to help me," says Khwazi.

An engineer by profession, CPx'er Muwyaradzi is now focused on economics and marketing. He came to the All Nations CPx six month training school in Cape Town, because he has a hunger to see people come to know Jesus Christ. This Red Hill experience is where he now gets to show the love of Jesus Christ "hands on," something that all of the students must do.

Willy, the other student helping Khwazi, has studied accounting and psychology. He says his heart really is with children, "but I want to touch each and every soul God places in my path," he says. He loves the CPx training and is happy to be in Red Hill. "This is very good experience," he says. "We help people not to feel neglected but see the love of God through us. This is awesome, servanthood leadership."

News from Nelis, March 2008

Yes, it is true!! The Cheetahs can still win the Super 14… mathematically! Do I hear an amen somewhere? or a prayer for me? :)

CPx - We’ve seen the Lord doing such wonderful things in the CPx (church planting training Feb - July) People are truly getting prepared & equipped for reaching the lost – we’re seeing the Lord changing lives and bringing glory to His name! We’ll give you more detailed feedback in April!

Family – It is going well with us as a family, the kids are healthy, we’re managing to spend regular quality time together (which is a challenge!) and we’re really experiencing God’s grace on our lives as we serve in All Nations. Sometimes we get a bit off balance with all the demands & stress of serving but so we learn and get back to basics again before it goes too far.

A prayer request – We feel free to ask you to please pray with us regarding our transport. We’ve been blessed the last few years with a good reliable car (our “old faithful” camry :) She’s really getting old (15 years) and is costing us a lot of money to try and maintain and it seems her condition is getting worse and worse… (almost like the cheetahs’ season this year!… :) Would you please trust with us for the Lord to provide and make a way for us? We have faith in our hearts for this!

We’ve finally made it!! – Yes, we (actually Inesa) have finally caught up with technology and started a blog – that is that space in space where you keep a journal I think… The address is www.nelisandinesa.blogspot.com There’s even some photos (kikkis) to look at. We try to update it every 10 days or so.

Thank you for your friendship, prayers and support.

Nelis, Inesa, Tanya & Stefan


For more info go to www.floydandsally.org or www.all-nations.info

Some photos

Stefan learning to ride his bike

Tanya baking with with friends

Beautiful scenery in Kommetjie

Atlantic ocean

Things that change our lives...

Red Hill
If you take a drive through Cape Town Peninsula you might encounter a road leading to Red Hill. Striking scenery, cliffs, the ocean & beautiful vegetation will take your breath away…. Nestled in all of this beauty is a little informal settlement called Red Hill. Yesterday a small group of us took a trip down that beautiful road. It was very sobering to see this majestic view change to rock & cinder with almost no warning….

The purpose of our trip was to assess the damage of the fire that left almost 500 people homeless. Red Hill informal settlement consists of 5 camps with an estimated population of between 3500 and 5000 people. The sections that were affected by the fire are now nothing but rock, cinder, burnt metal & rubble.

Standing in the middle of it I was asking the Lord – "how do I begin to comprehend the impact of this fire?" He pointed out the tree standing nearby. The bottom part of it was charred but the crown was still green. The tree was still alive. Three days ago it was flourishing, just like a person who does not expect the fire of circumstances to come & sweep through his life… The fire will burn & scar, but the Lord will bring His rain & sunshine and slowly new green leaves will reappear and the healing process will start.

Slowly the people will come back & rebuild their lives around this tree & life will return back to routine. But what will the impact of this fire be? Anger? grief? or hope? The vision our team has is to bring Jesus through practical assistance starting with small steps - help the owners to rebuild their homes, clear the rubble, listen to their experience, and share our love, sandwiches & water. We want to see the Lord touch their lives through practical help – clothing, housing, better infrastructure, food….

Soup Kitchen
When we heard about the fire, the Lord challenged me to trust Him for the means of giving a meal to at least 25% of the affected people. By the time we made the assessment trip we had 60 litters of soup, 500 sandwiches & 40 loves of bread as well as other food loaded in the van. Isn't it amazing?

As we were driving through the sectors that were not damaged by the fire we saw not just shacks – we saw a COMMUNITY of people. This is what the burned camp must have looked like – people sitting in front of their homes, chickens running in the road & children playing in the dust. Our first stop was to pick up Virginia - an "African Mamma" who was hanging half way out of the van proclaiming in her loud voice the arrival of "i-soup" as the van was moving down the main road.

After the distribution we drove back and one picture is still impressed in my mind: a couple sitting on the ground in front of their shack, dipping their bread into a bowl – the bowl I just filled… Tears filled my eyes – not because I felt I made a "contribution to the cause" but because it cost only R2 to feed one person. To me R2 is only small change – less then what I would give a parking attendant. To them it might have been the only warm meal they had that day…

As I am writing this it is raining. The Lord is starting His healing, soon the leaves on the tree will appear... Our team is also out there, working with the community. I trust that the Lord's healing will follow down the streets of Red Hill too.
Inesa

The year ahead...

We trust that the celebrations and rest of the festive season is not too far tucked away in your memory! The start of any year can sometimes begin with a bang – as it has for us! :-)

We’re looking forward so much to share this year with you – the dreams and realities, the highs and lows, the laughter and tears, how the Lord will guide and direct us all – not to mention the work He will do in and through us all! God is on a mission – that mission is His glory and His fame throughout the earth – and He chose you and me to do it through right where we are!

Family – We’re continuing with home schooling Tanya and Stefan. Tanya started drama lessons and Stefan is completely infatuated with cricket after getting a cricket set for christmas! We started playing test matches in the garden – he even plays on his own in the hallway with loud running commentary!

Inesa’s heart – the last 2 weeks of January have been weeks of preparation & laying a foundation for the year & Cpx school (church planting experience) ahead. What excites me is being part of the Lords work in setting up the infrastructure for the 70 students as well as training a wonderful lady on our team in catering planning. She comes from Ocean View and has a heart to start a soup kitchen to feed the poor in her community.

Nelis – My biggest desire is for all of us to bear much fruit for our Lord – fruit that remain - because we love Him and that love grows! (John 15)

May your desires and longings for the Lord come to pass this year. We’re looking forward to visit with you when it is possible – maybe over a rugby match where the cheetahs win the currie cup again! :-)

Love
Nelis, Inesa, Tanya and Stefan


For more info go to http://www.floydandsally.org/ and http://www.all-nations.info/

Faces

One often wonders about how much good can a short term team do, but we often forget that impact is measured in people not volumes, schedules and often not in sermons.
I have come back from the dinner with the team that is staying with us now and have been deeply touched by the story that one of the ladies shared. She has served in the hospice and had some special time with one of the patients. I am piecing together this sketch – the glimpse into life of the patient – Xhosa lady. I don’t even know her name, but I will call her Nkolo…
“ My name is Nkolo, I have lived in the Cape all my life. My family has moved away and all those who were close to me are dead. I am 68 years old, ill and all alone… I spend my days looking at faces. They come and go – some kind, some cross & I will never know who I will see next, for you see, I am a patient in hospice care, terminally ill & dying.
“I love watching faces. They fascinate me – the emotions, wisdom, life… sometimes you can see person’s life reflected on their face. Sometimes we get strange faces. The last 2 weeks one face keeps on coming back. She is young and pretty and speaks funny. My English is very limited – I spoke Xhosa all my life. I think she keeps on saying she is from another land, far away land. She takes me for walks in my wheel chair & reads me out of her big thick book. Some of the words are strange, but comforting. Her presence brings me peace. She often prays for me to her God, & I pray too… to go to the place where I am not alone.
“ Last night some more faces prayed for me & I have reached my hands out to that unknown God & asked Him to keep me close… That night was the first night I slept through in a very long time…
“This morning I opened my eyes to the sound of voice reading. It was the strange face again, reading out of her thick book.
I’m asking God for one thing.
Only for one thing
To live with Him in His house
My whole life long.
I’ll contemplate His beauty:
I will study at His feet.
“Listening to that, I lifted my eyes to Him, and reached for Him. He smiled at me and called my name. I have lifted off the pillow and followed Him. As if from far away I heard reading:
I’m sure now I’ll see God’s goodness
In the exuberant earth.
Stay with God!
Take heart. Don’t quit.
I’ll say it again:
Stay with God”

The lady’s passing on has been gentle as she was listening to Psalm 27 being read to her. She has gone to meet her Creator. The Lord, who cared enough to send someone from far away to spend the last 3 weeks of her life with her. He did not leave her forsaken nor forgotten.
We are very thankful that when the harvest is ripe the Lord sends the labourers. It is so wonderful to see people’s lives touched through someone who is willing to go… And when the Lord calls … would you go?