Brrrrrr-Cold & Wet

Community News

Great news…the young man we have been praying for finally got a place at a re-hab centre when it looked like he was going to wait for months. He will be in for seven weeks & has a desire to work alongside us with the kids once he is clean. It was truly a miracle as others have waited ages & this all needs Social work intervention….we had none, but God opens doors all the time.

The jungle gym has been a huge hit & the kids can’t keep off. It has been annoying as every time I walk past I see litter everywhere so told them that they would be sleeping in the pigs accommodation if this carries on (If you can see it, you can pick it up)….its been pretty clean since then.

With the help from the Dutch Students & our Life Group we set a new record for ‘mass-braaing’….in the dark. Around 190 people all got a boerewors roll & the event definitely brought the community together. Unfortunately I need to find someone who took a photo & will post it on next month’s blog.

More CV’s & another two people in the Community have their ID documents & can now start looking for work. `It has been slow going but we are definitely moving forward & there is a buzz about the place.

The Health Inspector paid us a visit to ascertain whether the crèche was good, bad or ugly & was happy to help us complete the details in stages & would help us with all the basics in getting the crèche registered & at a level where the children are safe & provided for. We are still hoping to get a container to house the new crèche & have our eye on the one sitting within Elgin learning Foundations fences….anyone have a crane?

Friday Night Youth

One of our leaders, Marius finally got engaged….congrats, which meant he wasn’t around as much as usual….women! The kids were kept entertained with loads of games & the kids are inter-mingling well & feeling a lot more comfortable in their surroundings. We have loads of cool things planned for the next term….Fear Factor here we come.

Holiday Clubs

Middle of June saw the schools breaking up for three weeks so switching into creative mode to keep the children entertained & out of trouble is always a mission but so far it has been a joy & even on the days that have been washed out we have thoroughly enjoyed ourselves with activities in the hall. To date the kids have watched videos, gone hiking, had sports days & learned some cool educational games. They have been divided up into four teams so the competition is fierce, as they know there will be prizes involved at the end of it all.

NewGen Church

We were blessed by Newgen’s Urban Liberty Life Groups visiting us last Wednesday evening after collecting much needed blankets & candles for the community. Around 110 people crammed into the Community Hall, supporting, singing, & praying for the community members who were present. What a great evening & we are already seeing the fruit of bringing the people together. Long may that continue.

The following night all the donations were handed out fairly & as the Community has no electricity many of the households had actually run out of candles that very night…Gods timing is perfect.

The Church also had its annual ‘ManDay’ event & we took two of the boys from the Community. A day filled with ‘Manly’ activities from weight lifting, rolling tyres, fly-fishing & watching the Sharks win in the Super 15. We also were blessed with an inspiring talk from Brendan Smith who had spent time in Afghanistan testifying on amazing stories on how God had protected him over & over again, just by praying every day before going out. The day was ended with peri-peri chicken & drinks….the boys loved it & met some great guys.

FAS

We also attended a week’s course on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, held by Early Years Services. An interesting week where we met new people & learned a bit more about what is paralyzing so many children & adults mentally. We now have more of a support network to deal with the high numbers of this horrible reality.

Our News

Seth turned 3. Well that says it all…..joking. We organized an afternoon at the Somerset West Spur where the adults could chat & the kids could go wild, & I think it went the other way around, but fun was had by all & Seth got spoiled & loved every minute. Growing up so fast….Anyone know of a good taxidermist?

We are also on the road to opening up an Article 21 Company & NPO (Non-Profit Organization). This all takes a lot of time & paperwork but in the end we will be a registered charity with all the bells & whistles. This is mainly so we don’t handle money coming in so we can be above reproach as there have been many people wanting to get involved but we do need to get our ‘duckies in a row’….but the work continues regardless as there is so much you can do without the finances you think you need. It’s all about relationships!

Thank you for your on-going support & hope to hear from you soon.
Love The Muir's
xxx

May... a month with a difference

The month of May brought many blessings & only the 1^st bit was spent in Grabouw due to trips to London & Johannesburg. All sponsored I might add.

We said farewell to George & Joan originally from the UK but now living in the West Indies. They were both a wonderful addition to our Life Group & after most of us spending quality time with them realized that they were a gift from God in many different ways, & to many different people.

Community News

We are still battling with rehabilitation centres due to the absence of Social Workers. A young man who is heavily relient on at least 3 different types of drugs is trying hard to kick the habit & needs a lot of support so please pray for doors to open & for favour. I have met up with him since returning & he seems positive. We continiue to fight for a place for him in appropriate facility.

Also, while we were away, the jungle gym was completed by the Dutch Students & a couple of local men. I am told that the kids have hardly been off it. A huge thank you to the students for their hard work & funding. Now we just need to make a fence so the stray dogs stop using the area underneath as a toilet.

Leslie Ann, one of the young ladies who is helping us in the community kept the homework Clubs & Girls Mentorship going while we were away. She has done a great job & we will continue to work alongside her, guiding her towards her dream job in Social Work. This place needs her x 10.

One of the ladies that needed a CV & interview assistance got a job while we were away. Thank You Lord. She is one of the few that has completed school so we hope this will encourage some other people.

Friday Night Youth

Although we were away, Maruis (another youth leader) still collected the children & a great time was had by all. Apparently the older kids are starting to attend now, which is great news.

Five of us leaders met before we left to plan the new term & there are loads of exciting things planned…. Whatch this space.

UK Visit

An old mate of mine finally tied the knot, & planned the wedding for middle May, but in the Isle Of Mann. For those of you who are geographically challenged, it’s between Liverpool & Ireland in the UK. I was asked to be one of his best men but had to turn it down due to financial constraints. A couple days later another friend from Boys High who was also a Best Man said that he wanted to buy me a return ticket as a present to the Groom. WOW, what a blessing. I won’t mention names in case people start calling them, confusing him with a Travel Agent. Thank you so much my friends.

The Groom wasn’t aware of anything & we surprised him going into the church for a rehearsal….Ticket = £700, Ferry Ride £25, Hiding in the backseat with a baby’s blanket over your head  - free….seeing your mate cry with surprise…Priceless

What a great wedding. Now move back home & bring the ‘Manx’ (that’s what people from the Isle are called) back with you!

The remaining time was spent running around like a chicken without a head. I spent no more than two nights at each place & visited many old friends, work -colleagues, & old haunts I used to frequent. So many memories … & slipped back into London life quickly.

I attended a ‘Mens Day’ just outside of London arranged by Every Nation Hammersmith, which was great fun & re-bonded with the guys from the old church. What a place, mountain biking through a forest, shooting cans & chocolate with sling shots & a meaningful sermon on being a man & how to treat your better half, Gods way.  And the weather held up, how’s that for a miracle?!

I managed to raise some partnership but as I look back, the main reason for the trip was to encourage others & build relationships. Gods ways are not our ways!

I did not manage to see all our partners & friends but hope that we will soon.

I had an amazing trip & loved every minute of it but I can say with confidence that we are in the right place & I am very happy to be back with my family.

Thank you to all the great friends who made it an absolute pleasure!  We cant wait to host you when you come down south.

Lees’ Jhb trip

Lees & Seth were blessed with tickets to Johannesburg & stayed with family while I was away. At different gatherings she managed to show the video on what we are currently doing so we will see how that goes in the future. The video is on my facebook page & will hopefully be on the blog soon.

Seth loved being with family again & playing with his cousins & has come back with an entirely new vocab….some words we will have to alter.

Its cold & windy in the Cape but there’s no place like home

May God keep and bless you all always

Love the Muirs

Easter - He has risen indeed!

Well April has been unstructured and a little disorientating to say the least.  What with school holidays and the Easter holidays running at different times, as well as the hall we usually use, being used for different courses, it has been somewhat difficult to follow a routine.  So lets just leave it at… ‘a challenge’. ;0)

Prayer & Counseling

As mentioned, the hall we usually base ourselves in for prayer and morning coffee has been used by other organizations, therefore this specific aspect of the ministry has been somewhat slower this month.  However we are very excited to announce that, what with the disruption of using the hall, ‘Lighthouse Ministries’ have been offered our very own container which will be made into an office just for us.  A place where we can be based always, a place the community will hopefully come for support and prayer.

Tot’s Therapy

As with other aspects of the ministry, the lack of the hall’s use and all the holidays has also impacted Tot’s therapy.  However with the difficulties I was facing with regards to ‘colours’, what I have asked Letti (head teacher) to focus on, is a themed colour week so we can explore each colour in detail.  As soon as we are able to start therapy again, I will let you know how this experiment has gone… ;0)

Homework Club

With the holidays at least we have been able to collect the children’s reports and start putting together some rough learning objectives for them.  We are happy to announce that some of the children have made improvements since last year.  However, a good majority are really falling behind.  We are currently praying how best to handle these severe F.A.S cases and are praying that God will help us provide alternative education choices for these children who really seem to battle in a main stream setting.

Friday Night Youth

Youth stops during the holidays but starting again this Friday. Kids have been asking all holiday…’when are we starting Youth’? Good sign.

 Boys Mentorship Club

Boy’s mentorship has been slow because of all the Easter holidays but in this time we have held the Holiday Clubs, Mini Olympics & videos. All the clubs have been focusing on Courage, & having the courage to stand up for what you believe in.

It’s been great to see some of the older boys who have dropped out of school attending the clubs instead of out & about causing trouble.

Girl’s Mentorship Club

This month we have focused on self-control and have been given an opportunity to talk rather frankly with the girls about controlling their impulses, specifically their tongues, and their bodies.  We have two unwed teenage mom’s in our group and without placing judgment upon them, they were able to share with the other girls how difficult it can be to raise a child with no money, no education and no help. 

May God remind them of the frank discussions we have had when they are in the decision of saying ‘yes’ or ‘no’!

Home Visits

Well, one good thing about all the holidays and having help looking after Seth, Daz and I have eventually been able to get to all the homes to pray over them and improve the relationships. With help from Gav, we managed to complete a computerized map of the area, numbers & who lives where. Only three or four houses left to connect with.

Adult Fitness

Winter has come, & then left, & then come again, bringing quite a lot of rain so Military Fitness has not taken place. Lees has been too pregnant to jump around with the ladies but we have designed an outdoor fitness track & hoping to get funding to complete this so the entire community will have permanent fitness apparatus, which will keep them fit & healthy. Watch this  space.

 Community

Under Uncle Neef who is a Committee member, the Klein Begin community is working together to clean up the areas around their houses. In doing so The Elgin Learning Foundation has empowered them by funding their efforts. In the 4 months we have been working in the area we have seen so much progress & a new lease on life. The Dutch students have donated money to fund a new jungle gym for the kids, built by ELF & the students themselves. This will be installed over the next three weeks. ELF has also donated 100 olive trees, which could be used as an income if maintained correctly…we will definitely make sure this happens & learn a bit about it as well.

Our News

We were also blessed with visits from a number of special people, from old friends from London, Tina and Rachel, Granny and Grandpa as well as a much awaited visit from Daz’s oldest friend in the world, Gav, along with his wife, Jude and their adorable baby girl, Layla. 

Gav is currently helping us design a logo for the new Ministry. He is a qualified Graphic Designer with amazing talent so it should be on the next blog. Our Church Elders have advised that we start an official NPO, so that is the start of a whole new ball-game & looking forward to that.

Our Life Group that meets on a Wednesday evening is going well & we have a couple new faces which is great. Visiting from abroad, George & his wife Jo, have spoken into almost everyones lives with a Word of Knowledge & their time here has blessed us all. 

Other than that we hope you are all well & look forward to hearing from you on a personal note.

May God keep and bless you all always

Love the Muirs

March, yet another month of God’s provision and unconditional love.

 Prayer & Counseling

Well March started off slowly with regards to morning prayer and counseling.  However after an evening meeting held for completely other reasons, God opened an opportunity for Daz and I to share our heart with the community and since then we have had a number of people, men and women (however still predominantly women) coming for coffee and a chance to pray and chat.  It feels wonderful to slowly get accepted as part of the community and realize that with God’s help we can really have influence in some of these people’s lives.

 Tot’s Therapy

March has also seen the end of the ‘body parts’ series, where I am very happy to announce all the children have learnt there appropriate body parts and are slowly learning to manipulate them appropriately for there age.  (Teachers will be continuing with techniques learnt).

However, we have now begun a series on learning ‘colours’ and let’s just say I will need every bit of Godly patience to complete this task.  These poor little mites have obviously had very little input from home and even my 5 year old has very poor knowledge of his colours.  In fact I am so concerned that I may need to have some tested for colour-blindness.  But we will persevere and I am confident that eventually I will be able to report some success in this challenge.

Homework Club

Another benefit of the meeting Daz and I were able to have with the parents, was to encourage them to ‘parent’ their children and to encourage them to use the resources available to them, predominantly the homework club.  We will be collecting reports now that the children are completing their first quarter and will hopefully be able to put a programme together with some assistance of the parents and will hopefully be able to begin to combat some of the specific areas of concern for the children.

Friday Night Youth

Friday nights have still remained the highlight of the teenagers week. Marius the Youth Leader has a wonderful heart for God & praise & worship has been awesome. The kids are still getting used to the environment but when I drive up in Marius’ bakkie (pick-up) they are eagerly standing on the side of the road waiting for a joy-ride to the venue. All the kids are praying that one day we will own our own bakkie as they are battling to fit in our ‘Fordrarri’. The record so far is 10 kids in a 5 seater

 Boys Mentorship Club

Cricket World Cup…at this point I really don’t want to chat about the disappointment we feel on this side of the world but as usual it didn’t affect our community kids at all. Nice to learn something from them for a change…life goes on & there are far more important things at stake.

They are still cricket mad & we have been coaching cricket as well as rugby. One of the Dutch Students is currently putting a programme together which will help us identify problems through how the children move, tackle problems etc. She visited us for an afternoon, took some video footage of our session in order to assist where she can.  So we will see where that leads.

Girl’s Mentorship Club

This month we have focused on self-control and have been given an opportunity to talk rather frankly with the girls about controlling their impulses, specifically their tongues and their bodies.  We have two unwed teenage mom’s in our group and without placing judgment upon them, they were able to share with the other girls how difficult it can be to raise a child with no money, no education and no help. 

May God remind them of the frank discussions we have had when they are in the decision of saying ‘yes’ or ‘no’!

Home Visits

Daz and I have decided to put Seth into crèche an extra morning a week, especially now that the nausea is over.  That way we can concentrate a full morning to going to meet the families and building relationships.   We are realizing that it is only through relationship that we are going to be able to share Jesus’ love with more effect and know home visits are a great opportunity to build these relationships.  Please pray for continuous opportunities to do this.

Adult Fitness

Well, after a little bit of time off to recover from the severe nausea, adult aerobics will beginning again on a Thursday evening.  Please pray that this will continue to be a good opportunity for us to build relationships with the community, and that through it people will start to regain a little self-respect.

 Community

Unfortunately one of the young girls we have been working with decided to run away this month.  Left her baby at the drug-addicted father and disappeared.  Thankfully after much prayer we were able to locate her on a nearby farm and after a week she came back home.  Please can we request that you pray for this young girl.  She is a 17yr old mother, who herself was abandoned as a child.  She is currently using ‘Tik’ a local highly addictive form of Methamphetamine.  She currently feels completely inadequate to mother her child and has stated that she just wants to run away.  We have gotten her into some counseling and are currently waiting to see if she will be accepted into a drug-rehabilitation programme in the near vicinity.  She has also requested that her adopted mother foster her child until such time as she feels able to regain the role of mother.

She is such a special girl and holds a very special place in our hearts, please pray that God will show her that she is valued and has great purpose in Him.

Our News

We are very happy to announce that the first trimester is now officially over and thankfully so is the majority of the nausea.. :0)  ‘Bean’ Muir the 2^nd is growing strong and so is mom.  Seth is slowly getting used to the idea of being a big brother, the other day he was found playing alone for ages at a Cell group picnic with a baby doll, dragging it around telling everyone it was his baby sister.  When I cuddled him and told him, “man I love you”, he said “and I love my baby sister”.  He is going to make an amazing big brother…if he doesn’t drag her around.

March also was a month of great blessing for us as a family.  We were blessed with a week away to ‘Avalon Springs’ by a lovely English couple whose daughter volunteers at The VoH.  It was absolutely wonderful and a real bit of luxury.  Seth swam nearly all day in the warm pools and as it was during the World Cricket Cup, Daz got to enjoy quiet a few uninterrupted hours of cheering the Proteas on… we don’t need to go into what happened in the quarters ;0)

May God keep and bless you all always

Love the Muirs

February Heatwave

February started with a meeting with two of our Elders from NewGen Church. They sat down with us so we could clarify their role in accountability and management. It was decided that it would be helpful to put together a ‘Business, Ministry Plan’. We have now completed this with some valuable advice from our good friend Stuart, who also attends our Life Group.  We found this exercise very helpful as it has helped us focus our dreams and vision, and now as always, the ball is in the Lord’s court.  We have also been asked to submit this to a friend’s family, having inherited a trust that they would like to fund Christian missions with.  We will let you know how that pans out.

Beginning of the month saw our first crime scare. We awoke at 2am on Thursday 3^rd to find a raging fire near our cottage. Wires had been stolen from both Tuppy’s & his daughter’s house preventing us from getting water to the flames. We finally managed to get water & for the next three hours we worked with the fire brigade & contained the fire. The next day it started again as the fire stays in the roots, but, The Lord sent a huge thunderstorm that sorted things out. Thank you Jesus.

Prayer & Counseling

Our Morning Prayer sessions in the Community Hall have quietened a bit due to many of the ladies finding tempory work. While this is great news for them we still need to find opportunities to connect with the community.  Aside from this, new people have just walked in, either to pray after God put this community on their hearts, or to ask for advice or practical help. Three young boys aged between 16 & 19 have approached us as they have dropped out of school & need assistance. This always annoys us as we know how important school is, especially in their circumstances but after assessing the situation we realize that the guys should be nearing the end of their schooling but are in actual fact just finishing primary school due to failing so many times. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome once again.

The three of them now have applied for their ID documents & have been working within their community cleaning it up with their elder’s….promising.

Can we request that you keep in your prayers one of our mom’s who has recently given her life to Jesus and on our recommendation has been planning a wedding to her long time partner with whom she has 3 children.  He has recently stabbed her and we are feeling a little lost to what direction to counsel her now!

Tot’s Therapy

The O.T sessions run by Lees to assist the crèche children in getting ready for school has shown much promise over this past month, giving her opportunities to demonstrate appropriate teaching techniques and exercises to their under trained ‘teachers’.  It has also allowed her to pick up potential problems in children’s development, some of which she has seen visible improvement in, just by advice on appropriate diet (some of our 3 year olds start their day with coffee and snack all day on MSG and Tartrazine filled chips and sweets) as well as seeing the benefits of the ‘teachers’ following through with exercises demonstrated in the sessions.

The hope for these sessions is that when these children do go to school they will hopefully have the building blocks in place to ensure that they do not fall behind.

Homework Club

We have had an average of about twelve children of different age groups regularly attending these sessions. After meeting with the head master of one of the schools we found out that each child needs to be doing at least an hour of ‘quick math’ & reading everyday, so gone are the futile excuses of, ‘I don’t have any homework’. Many of the kids are way behind due to the poor support they get at home & even in the schools. What we hope to do is wait for the school reports to come in for this term and then hope to get the parents involved in utilizing the clubs by ensuring their children attend.  Watch this space.

To be honest, sometimes when we realise how far behind the children are, it is difficult not to become very despondent. This is definitely an area, which has much potential for growth if God sends some assistance.

Friday Night Youth

Every Friday evening from 7pm onwards we take our less fortunate kids to Kingsway School in town. We have an amazing group of mentors who really want to make a difference & as we draw near to the end of the term we have had loads of fun & plenty of exciting activities for the kids to do. They are still finding the 'mingling' part difficult but that will change in time. This last week they completed a 'Amazing Race Challenge', running around the streets looking for clues, where the central theme was relience on God & the clues He gives us in His Word for tackling this life. They loved it & it's been a highlight of their week, every week.

Boys Mentorship Club

We are focusing on a life skill a month instead of once a week as we find that it was just not sticking. I still use sport as the medium but the emphasis is being there for the kids & trying to go deeper. The relationships are getting stronger every week & keeping them busy is a constant challenge but the fruit will be evident in the future…please Lord.

Girl’s Mentorship Club

Following the theme of ‘service’ this month and our reading from Matt 20:26-28 on Jesus’ declaration of His coming to serve and not to serve, has proved a true journey for a lot of the girls.  We started the month by planning to do something special for a special lady in each of their lives and as we planned a lot stated but “what do we get?”  However at month end the girls had all invited mom’s, sister’s and aunts to a special pedicure evening where they washed their feet, massaged them and put some paint on their toes, whilst serving them tea and cake.  It was a special evening enjoyed by everyone and the girls even ended up dishing out the chocolates I bought them, to their moms.  Progress…. :0)

Home Visits

We are still making our way around to every single family in the community & so far we have prayed over & with many families. We know who is working, who are not, what personal problems they are facing & what are their dreams for the future.  However as this is something Lees and I would like to complete together, her current severe nausea has rather slowed down progress.  We are finding that building relationships is slow moving and something we are putting in the hands of the Lord as we just aim to be a consistent and loving presence. 

Adult Fitness

One of the issues raised by the community in our ‘Needs Assessment’ was the lack of health & fitness. So we have started an Aerobics/Military Fitness session on Thursday evenings. While mostly ladies & the older children attend we are hoping to get the men involved soon. I have an idea for fitness tracks placed around the community for outdoor fitness sessions where everyone can benefit. This will take some planning & funding. Look forward to uploading those pictures.

 Community

As we have said above, more people have applied for their ID documents & birth certificates and we trust that these will bring that little more security and allow these residents to receive the nominal government support they are entitled.  We do however have a prayer request, alongside this particular community is a small cluster of houses that are in shocking condition, to say the least. We have been trying to help one of the young ladies there who is in a very bad shape. She is sick, poor & hopeless. We have managed to get her ID documents organized but over this last weekend she was attacked & was found lying in her shelter full of blood with her small baby lying on the dirty floor with no food & filthy. Please pray for her & her baby & for us to know how to help.

We have identified two ladies who have shown commitment & integrity & in spite of their hard work have had no return. They have been a real strength to others & have proved a great help to us.  Therefore we have managed to get them registered with the Elgin Learning Foundation who will be paying them a small stipend while they help us to transform this community. We look forward to many more coming on board.

Our News

As most of you know, we are expecting no. 2 and for those of you who remembered Lees during her pregnancy with Seth, she is not a shiny happy pregnant person and unfortunately this time is no different.  She is finding the nausea unbearable and we are praying very hard that this trimester will end very soon, about another 3 -4 weeks to go! 

However in saying this we are very excited about the privilege of bringing another little miracle into the world and are looking very forward to Sep / Oct when ‘Bean the 2^nd’ will be joining our little family.

Thank you for your support & prayers.

All our love,

The Muir's

But without faith it is impossible to please Him...Hebrews 11:6

New Year, New Ministry…

As you all know January has been our first month on our own, but it has not felt like it at all. God has been so gracious & blessed this new venture every step of the way.

Our 1^st official day in the little hall was the 10^th January & a young 18 year old, Keaghan, who has just finished school with the dream of eventually becoming a lawyer came to see us. From our point of view he has a long way to go but we also know that with God all things are possible. We managed to help him with the 1^st baby steps, like a presentable CV, interview skills & he has now enrolled in a carpentry course so he can one day fund his studies. He has also asked for driving lessons…that should be interesting.

We have been very conscious about being busy for the sake of being busy, as we want to do what the Lord wills every step of the way. However, when you work amongst such poverty where people’s needs are so obvious it is difficult to not just get stuck in. Therefore we start everyday with prayer and are rather diligent about waiting on God’s guidance before just doing. We are joined most days by a group of 4 or 5 moms (as well as occasional dads) and have been sharing with them the love of Jesus and offering biblical principals to assist them in overcoming their problems.

As it stands we have started a homework club four afternoons a week where the kids have a dedicated safe place to complete their schoolwork under our supervision where we can help them. Many of our kids suffer from Fetal Alcohol Syndrome which makes it very hard to learn & retain information, so many of them have failed & are far behind. This causes many social problems as they don’t feel comfortable being in a class of 10 year olds when they are fifteen.

We have continued with the sports outreach, using sports as a vehicle to teach valuable life skills & bible teaching.

The area of ‘Klein Begin’ has a small crèche, which is in desperate need of assistance as many of the community children attend but only two or three of the parents pay the lady (Lettie) a very small fee to keep it going. We are currently assisting her to get funding & get the other parents on board, seeing the value that this brings. Lees also assists by running a biweekly O.T session where she not only identifies the children’s difficulties but also demonstrates appropriate teaching methods to the unqualified ‘teachers’ in getting children prepared for primary school.

Many of the people don’t even have ID documents & some don’t have birth certificates, which is a huge hindrance, as they can do nothing without these. Part of our work has been assisting those who have accepted the offer of help, (many have no hope at all for so long that they just don’t try anymore) in sorting out their personal documents & filling in the correct forms to get these people on the road to a brighter future….baby steps, but hugely important.

Testimonies

As you know we are running this work without any additional funding at the moment as we feel that being a presence in the community is what God wants & what we have to offer doesn’t cost anything, although there are a few things that do, but the Lord is placing people around us who want to help & give & its been very exciting watching how the Lord is working…

Five people including two school dropouts are waiting on the arrival of their ID docs so they can now pursue work.

2. A lady from FNB bank approached me in the parking lot & after a minute conversation she has requested a letter so they can help assist in any way.

3. Another gentleman who runs a new recycling ministry right next to the hall we are in, offered to buy us sports equipment off his own back & to help us draft funding letters to equip the Youth Centre.

4. After praying for one of the young moms to get her daughter back from the West Coast after her ex ‘kidnapped’ her, little Charnay has now arrived back home, & we are now looking at schools to enroll her.

5. The same mom whose boyfriend we have also been praying for has now asked her to marry him and we have been blessed to be able to speak into this, as they have four children to care for.

6. Charlie Bedford, a professional rugby player came up to run a sports club & brought us a bag of rugby equipment & is now helping get one of the young guys into a rugby academy for next year…watch this space…

7. Riaan, a former 7’s Springbok player also provided a bag full of rugby balls, & is assisting me in organizing a holiday camp in April to raise funds.

Looking forward to many more.

Lees is also running an aerobics session on Thursday evenings which is well attended. Fitness & well-being is one of the key areas that the community said was lacking in a recent survey they completed.

We have recently started our NewGen Church's DNA series as this is where we feel God has placed us & have been blessed with some amazing friends in the short time we have attended. The guys took me out surfing last week & I was in the water by 6:30….bbbrrrr….was exhausted by 8am & one of the guys saw a large fin about 50 meters out….Thankfully I was sitting on the beach by then enjoying the view.

The Life Group I lead on a Wednesday night is still going strong with all wanting to get involved in community work. Brenden, a local headmaster, has his Masters in Theology & Greek so we are soaking up his valuable teaching on The Word at the moment…very interesting.

Friday nights we co-run a Youth Group at one of the schools in town & the kids are loving it. Some amazing new people have come on board with a heart for kids & it’s going from strength to strength.

We just want to thank you all for your support & sticking with us. Please continue to pray for us and this work as that’s the best & most powerful thing we can offer these people.

All our love in Jesus

Daz, Lees & Seth xxx