Have we been in South Africa for one month already? Time has moved quickly! Our journey began January 30, 2017 with a flight from San Francisco, California. Our first stop on the journey was Zurich, Switzerland. During our layover there, we were able to connect with our friends Remo and Doris. They are an awesome couple, and we definitely felt privileged to be able to spend time with them.
We arrived in Cape Town, South Africa late on February 1. It took about a week to recuperate from the jet lag. Our friend Chris Millin met us at the airport. Over the next few days he helped us to get our rental car and show us some beautiful and important locations in the area. Getting adjusted to driving on the opposite side of the road took some time, but we think we are pretty comfortable with it now! On one occasion the local wildlife provided a welcomed obstacle.
Prior to beginning this journey, someone spoke from the heart of God regarding our time in South Africa. One of the items spoken to us was that the first leg of our journey would be about connecting with people and networking. That has been happening. At least some of these connections we believe will last for years to come. The people that we have connected with are amazing and want nothing more than to see Jesus receive the reward for His sufferings and see His Kingdom advanced upon the earth.
Many of the connections we have made are through Jireh-Seed (the ministry run by our friend Chris Millin). Teams from this ministry visit local hospitals on a weekly basis to share the love of Jesus through praying for the sick and more. We have joined one of those teams, and visit a hospital on Tuesday nights. Patients are set free by the love of Jesus when team members move through the ward. One man suffered a severe burn on one his feet. The foot was wrapped and he was in a lot of pain. He was shocked when the pain disappeared after we administered the life of Christ to him. That’s how our God works! The nurses love having the team come to the hospital, and are often ready to receive prayer themselves.
In addition to hospital ministry, we have had the opportunity to visit some townships and shanty towns in the area. Townships tend to be low income areas, and are often accompanied by shanty towns. A shanty town is an area where people have erected shacks as their homes. Living conditions are not great. Poverty is high in these areas, and with the poverty comes a lot of alcohol abuse, rape, physical abuse, and more. During one of the visits to a shanty town, we walked through looking for people with whom we could share the love of Jesus. Several miracles happened that day. One family was greatly impacted as members of the family were set free from physical, emotional, and spiritual bondage. We plan to regularly follow up with this family to encourage them in their walk with Heavenly Father and strategize ways for them to have consistent work.
While praying for people on the streets and in the hospitals has been great, there is a matter of prayer in which we invite you to join us. A severe drought is in place, and with that comes severe water restrictions. We are still a few months away from the rainy season, and the reservoirs are at about 25% capacity. Please join us in praying for the necessary rains to come and fill the reservoirs and ground water tables.
Until our next update, our prayer is that you will be blessed and that our Heavenly Father would become more real to you each and every day.