Category: Update

We had a fantastic day in the “Kroek” in Springbok, drawing people with the smell of lekker boeries and Henri having a shot at open-air preaching, sharing the Gospel. We went there with 96 boeries, and within an hour the people finished everything.

Tian, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the Gospel of Christ. The Gospel God had planned from the beginning for the undeniable redemption of those who inherit eternal life through active faith in Christ Jesus.

God knew that man would sin against Him and precisely how wicked we would become. God knew that it would cost His only Son and that He would have to Give up everything, die a brutal death, and face His wrath for us to have a relationship with us, yet He still chose to create and love us. Let that sink in for a moment.

I thank God as often as I remember every one of you who has become partners with us in the Gospel of Christ Jesus. We sincerely miss all of you and pray that God will open a way for us to see you again soon. We want to impart some gifts to you to aid you in spreading the Gospel as Jesus has commanded us to do, and while we’re there, encourage each other with some much needed fellowship. 

Evangelism news

Lazarus lives yet again: Wednesday, we made a trip to Gravelotte to buy some meat, and while we were there, we visited a giant Baobab tree for the kids to climb and explore. The guard at the tree was taking full advantage of the solitude the remote location provided, reading a daily devotional. Upon approaching him, he briefly mentioned that his name was Lazurus, “a friend of Jesus,” he said. Although being Catholic, Lazurus noted that he was born again, and it was clear that he was deeply in love with Jesus. After talking for quite some time, we shared the Gospel with him, to which his response was he wants to come and preach the Gospel with us. So if God permits, this coming Saturday, we’ll be handing out free boeries next to the road in Gravelotte teaching Lazurus to Gospel. Please pray that there are plenty of opportunities for him to learn and for people to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Please pray for Oom Ben and Tannie Antonette, who were seriously considering baptism after hearing the Gospel Wednesday evening. Please pray that the Holy Spirit assures them that God will give them the boldness to face the religious authorities (Opposed to the baptism) they’ve been looking up to their whole life. Pray that they would read the bible, believe it and do what Jesus says.

We’ve also been fortunate enough to hand out another couple of Bibles in and around the campground. Please pray that the individuals who received them will read it, believe it, and act on it.

Finding our feet

Packing up and pitching camp is continually becoming more manageable as we are familiarised with the equipment, but, at the same time, more complicated as we’ve had to invest in a few necessities we did not foresee requiring. I think it is safe to say that we’re about settled into the caravan. Now we need to find a practical way to organize the tent.

We’ve unfortunately had to deal with some equipment malfunctions as well. Thank you, Ludi, for letting me use your workshop to fix our awning winder. We’ve also done a very sketchy job fixing our outside grocery cupboard temporarily until we find a place to buy a new one. And we need to find a new buckle for one of our storm straps. I’m not mentioning this as a hint that someone must buy these things for us or that we need money, but rather illustrate that everything does not always go according to plan.

Making Friends

With the Corona virus surging and most people at our current location being elderly, making new friends has become slightly more challenging.

Please pray that this situation changes or that God sends some friends regardless of the circumstances.

Finance

Besides buying a couple of Bibles and sending some money to some people in desperate need, our expenses towards the Gospel have been relatively low. We are, however, in the process of printing some Gospel cards, which we’ve found very useful in presenting the Gospel first of all, and secondly provides an excellent way to equip fellow disciples to do the same. To save in the long run, we’re opting to print a considerable number of cards, some of which we’ll put in storage, we will give some to fellow brethren, and others will be used to present the Gospel to the people we meet on the road. Ideally, we’d like to leave everyone we share the Gospel with, with a set of these cards and a Bible if they don’t already have one.

Revelation

An apprentice doesn’t become like his master by studying his character. He becomes like his master by practicing what his master taught. Jesus’ disciples became like Jesus by practicing what Jesus taught. The result of that humbled them to become like Jesus.

If there’s anything I’ve failed to mention or anything you would like to hear about in our Update letters, please let us know.

Elmi and the kids greet you in the name of our blessed Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Please thank God for keeping us healthy and providing for all our needs. See how I type this letter to you with my own hands.

May God bless you with a supernatural revelation of His love, grace, and mercy, and may He grant you the words to express and proclaim it to the world.

Lots of love

Until next time

Tian, Elmi, Nanke, Ruhan, Jusia and Ellie.

Thank you so much to everyone who was praying for Goodman, his family, and the weather. The rain cleared up in the early hours of the morning, and we had a beautiful sunny day. Goodman was here at 16:30 as planned, but unfortunately, his wife and kids could not join us for this glorious celebration of new life. All the glory to God for His goodness, setting Goodman free from his sinful nature and giving him everything he needs to live a Godly life.

We will meet with Goodman as often as we can over the last couple of days of our stay here in an attempt to impart some gifts, edify him and encourage him to walk in the Spirit, Following Jesus and obeying His great commission.

P.S. I forgot to mention yesterday that you can follow Elmi’s blog as well. She’s been at this for a while now and has been a huge inspiration to me, sitting down and putting into words what’s on her heart.

Dear Brothers and Sister in the Spirit

I’ve been trying to write for a couple of days now, but I couldn’t find inspiration to put down an excellent write-up for you, so I’ve decided to, rather than let everything go to waste, write it as it is, call it an update letter, which I’ve now discided to record at least once a month. I will once again, as the Holy Spirit inspires me, continue with my testimony where we left of, but for now, here is the news.

Evangelism News

However badly I want this to be the main feature of this update letter, we regretfully have to report that there has not been much progress on this front. Besides handing out a couple of tracts, one or two Bibles, and sharing the Gospel at least twice, we’ve had to turn our focus towards settling into our new mobile home and sorting out some logistics. 

As I wrote the above paragraph, Elmi started speaking to someone outside the caravan when she called me, “Goodman is here. He says he wants to get baptized.” Praise God! He’s working even when we’re not. One of the guys Elmi shared the Gospel with a couple of days prior mentioned to Goodman that we would baptize him. And here he is. So tomorrow, Goodman and his family are coming over for dinner, and then we’ll baptize him. Thank you, Jesus. You are perfect in our weakness.

Please pray for good weather and that his wife will also accept the good news of Jesus and hopefully get baptized as well.

Finding our feet

I can at least report that we’re starting to get used to the compact space and have managed to make one or two changes to our environment to accommodate our needs better. We’ve also acquired an additional groundsheet to get rid of the majority of the dust, a Reflecto Sheet to cover any potential leaks, should we get some rain, and a foldable trolley to assist in transporting everything to the ablution block when bathing the kids.

Oh yes, and we got a compact little washing machine. The nearest laundromat charges R27/kg for washing alone, and with six people’s clothes and two babies in nappies, the return on investment is almost instantaneous.

Making Friends

I want to dedicate this space to the new friends we make along the road. Either to remember them in our prayers or to thank them for their kindness or both. Whatever reason we may have, this is where we will mention the people God has set on our path.

Anton and Juané

You have beautiful spirits. It was great to meet you, and we look forward to seeing you when we’re around the Winterton area. 

(Please pray for Anton and Juané’s fellowship, they’ve only recently started coming together, pray that that will multiply and bear good fruit.)

Mike and Pauline

Thank you so much for the words of encouragement and the testimony. We endeavor to follow in your footsteps as you follow Jesus.

(Please pray that God will continue to use Mike and Pauline wherever He pleases to use them next. Please pray that they will receive the financial support to continue what they are doing, and please pray for Mike’s shoulder as he was in a great deal of pain when they left Hazyview.)

Jaco and Nelda

Sorry, we never sat down for that coffee, but it was very nice to meet you regardless. Please tell Edmond that our kids miss him a whole lot. However short they knew each other, they’ve grown fond of him very quickly.

(We pray for a small town called Ogies to be restored, not only physically, but even more so spiritually. We pray that Ogies become a beacon in your Kingdom and Glorify Your Holy Name)

We hope to see all of you again. If not in this lifetime, then on the other side with our Blessed and Mighty King Jesus Christ.

(Not asking for money)

Thanks again to everyone who contributed to our missionary fund. Our promise to you is that this money is dedicated to spreading the Gospel and providing for the needy as the Holy Spirit leads us.

So far, we’ve bought some Bibles in the various languages we’ve come across here in Hazyview, including isiZulu, Siswati, and Sepedi.

God has been gracious in mobilizing my work and thus provides for us in the form of a Salary.

Thanks to everyone who’s been praying for us. We can feel God carrying us as His presence is almost tangible here. He’s been ministering to us daily, slowly breaking away everything that is not His image. Sometimes overwhelmed with emotion as we stand in awe of all He is doing.

All the glory to God.

Until next time.

Tian, Elmi, and the Kids