serveSOWETO

This past Saturday in Soweto we had a day of serving and reaching out to the community. The ultimate purpose was to put the Gospel on display. God requires us to put our faith to action and not just be hearers of the word, but doers (James 1:22, 2:14-17). Jesus not only proclaimed the Kingdom of God but met people's needs... healed the sick, brought life to the dead, cast out demons and fed thousands of people. When Jesus returns, he will judge between those who served Him and those who did not... "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." (Matthew 25:40). Are you serving the Lord by serving and loving others?

What was special about this day was the partnership that began between churches in Joburg and churches in Soweto. Pray for this relationship to not be just one day of service but to continue to grow deeper to reflect one body in Christ.

One church in Joburg partnered with Faith Baptist Church in Snake Park, Soweto. We had three main projects including one at a creche located in the same block of Thulani Secondary School, where the church meets for worship. Members from both churches worked together to scrap off old paint and repaint the classrooms in order to be a blessing to the principal of the creche.

A second project was working at Thulani Secondary School. We desired to be a blessing to the principal and the school to share the love of Christ. The team here worked on fixing the many broken windows of classrooms.

The third team went to a disabled home located across the street from where we meet for Bible Study on Tuesdays. The team worked on painting a room and starting a garden. The home relies on making crafts to sell within the community for income. But they do not have much and struggle with providing for all the needs of the people living there, therefore it was exciting to provide a way of guaranteeing they will have something to eat.

Afterwards, Zach, Given, Philani and I along with some of the soccer boys hung out watching the Chiefs/Pirates soccer match and enjoying watermelon together. It is such a blessing to me to be able to invest in the lives of these boys along with Zach and Philani. Soccer will end 27 Nov with a tournament... it will be hard to say goodbye to these boys who we've known for the past year and half. Pray for the seeds that were planted in these boy's hearts, that they would grow up to fear the Lord.

We then headed over to Brenda's graduation party. I am so proud of her for the accomplishment of graduating from nursing school. Pray that she will get a stable and well paying job that will provide for her and her children.

Picture from left to right: Brenda's boyfriend, Brenda, Sibongile, Lebo (Sibongile's husband) and Momo (Brenda's last born).

Nomsa, Sibongile and I enjoying the food, fellowship and music.