Camps Near & Far

It’s been a while since our last update and so much has happened since we arrived back from furlough. Thato took a trip to Zimbabwe to help with some camps alongside the WOL Zim team, we assisted with our church’s Holiday Bible Club (VBS) as well as a winter camp alongside one of the churches we partner with in the East Rand.  Our team also continued with our annual camps happening at Potchefstroom (True Word Bible Church) and Mozambique (Trichardt School). The biggest thing that has happened over these past few months though it that we welcomed our third baby girl, Aliyah Mphonyana (translated ‘little gift’ in Sotho) 3 weeks early.

We are thankful for the smooth delivery of our sweet Aliyah on Thato’s birthday (June 4)

The pastors cooking for the campers

Zimbabwe

I had a privilege to go to Zimbabwe after coming back from furlough to help teach at camp. The trip was great ias we were able to meet with Pastors and have fellowship with them as well as teach the word of God to the teens. What stood out for me was the humility of the pastors. In Africa we always see men being served all the time, but for the first time, we saw the Pastors cooking breakfast, lunch and dinner for the campers and that was really encouraging. God is really at work and it is starting with the men who are setting a godly example for the teens.

Mozambique

We have been serving alonside the WOL team in Mozambique since 2010 doing camps  and we have seen the Lord work mightily through out the years and how he has changed young people’s lives from different walks of life. This year we were not able to help because we were just arriving back from our furlough but the team continued with the trip and it was great. It was well attended camp and both teams from Mozambique and South Africa did great in sharing the gospel including our interns and students who were serving at this camp for the first time. Our goal is always to utilize young adults from different churches so that they can serve and be exposed to missions cross-border. They all came back with stories about how they got to share their faith. It is always encouraging to see how others adapt as they share the gospel and serve in a different environment and culture mixed with a different language. One thing that stands out is how God uses them dispite language barriers. Miss Wilma, the teacher we work with who helps us host the camp, was excited to see how well the team worked together and Paulo, a previous camper who is now a missionary in Mozambique, did great in leading the team. We love seeing what the Lord is doing through him and how He is growing him.

Etwatwa (East Rand)

Thato teaching at camp

At our winter camp in Etwatwa I had a privilege to teach about purity and do a question and answer session for any questions the teens had. There were around 100-120 teens who attended. It is great to see how the Lord is working in the area of Etwatwa and how the camp continues to grow every year. Now they have asked if we can do a summer camp at the church instead of them going all the way to Krugersdoorp where we have our summer camp. Instead of them sending only 5-10 teens to camp, they want to have a camp there so that more kids could experience summer camp. Pray for our team as we navigate how to make this work as it would be directly after our annual summer camp.

Potchefstroom

Since our little gift came early we were not able to help with the camp in Patch as planned but our director was led the team down there and the interns where in charge of setting the program and leading it. It was encouraging to see the training for the interns pay off as they are learning to be equipped for the ministry so that they can do it in their own churches. We’re also encouraged that the community always looks forward to the camp every year and lots off teens and young ones always come through. We are thankful to the Lord for Pastor Lance and the work that he does in the community to reach out to them. Please continue to pray for him and his family as they build the church to reach the community through the young ones.

Thank you again for your love, support and prayers. We are grateful for your partnership and continue to pray that the Lord would bless you and use you to build his kingdom wherever you.

Please Pray...

- For us to be intentional in ministering to the students

- For our upcoming teen missions trip to Cape Town

- For the Lord to grow our team and for wisdom as we consistently evaluate how best to use our time and resources

- For wisdom in our ministry and family life as we adjust to being a family of five