South Africa Update
Lucas Scheepers
Preaching & Pastoral
Kempton Park
We are blessed with a growing Youth Group and Sunday School, connecting with other youth every Sunday via Zoom. All who attended thoroughly enjoyed a Holiday Club organized for the Junior and Senior youth. A mix of Bible study sessions, games, and creativity classes kept the young people entertained while learning many valuable principles for godly living.
Pretoria West Group (Congolese refugees)
Two visits on two consecutive Sundays in March were jam packed with teaching. A mini fraternal, including two additional Bible study sessions, was also attended by the senior youth group. Everyone enjoyed good fellowship and good food during the lunch break.
A holiday club activity was held for the Congolese youth. Bible Class sessions, games; fun activities; a substantial lunch, and the senior young people helping with a lot of the maintenance work at the community center made it a very productive day.
Parklands Group (Cape Town)
Beach cleanups continued from February to May. They provided opportunities to discuss our beliefs with people and invited them to attend our meetings and Bible classes.
The Fundani Center provides a wonderful venue for a growing Saturday Bible Club. Up to 40 children attend at times. Recently, a 6-year-old boy learned to use scissors for the first time during one of the craft-making activities. The look of delight on his face was priceless. We are blessed to also be able to give many of the children food parcels.
The Kingdom Kids’ group in Cape Town enjoyed an informative outing to the Butterfly Sanctuary. Young ones join virtual Sunday School (KINGDOM KIDS) every Sunday morning. Sister Lilandi Furstenburg does impressive work preparing classes, and resources and coordinating all the class presenters.
Hopefield Group
Beach cleanups continued from February to May. They provided opportunities to discuss our beliefs with people and inviteSister Leona Scheepers, brother Michael, and sister Lilandi Furstenberg continue to bring a lot of joy, food parcels, and warm meals to about 40 children at Green Village. The children really enjoy the activities and learn a lot about the Bible in a fun and interactive way.
Sisters Liezl Viljoen and Leona Scheepers host an international weekly sisters’ Zoom class in Hopefield. A variety of exciting and informative topics from different sisters all over the world provide edifying spiritual food for the sisters.
The monthly “Men of Faith” class facilitated by Bro.Hendri, via Zoom, has been very thought-provoking. Brethren from South Africa and the USA have shared studies regarding life as a brother in Christ’s service.
Bro.Hendri and Sis.Liezl started a Friday evening Bible class for young people. They were very encouraged by the interest shown by eight young people who turned up for the first three sessions. Activities are planned for the rest of 2023 to strengthen the group's friendship and have them meet other Christadelphian young people.
Brother Michael hosts a mobile Bible Education Center monthly at a farmstall near Hopefield. Bibles and Bible-related literature are provided for those interested. He has had some very interesting discussions with a few people about the Gospel message.
Cuddle Trust Outreach
The demand for the creche course (child care training) has remained the same. Courses were presented in Kempton Park as well as Hopefield. The subsequent courses will take place in June and are already fully booked.
Food parcels are provided for over 600 children throughout South Africa every month. The process of procuring the food items, making up the parcels, and ensuring they are handed to the recipients personally is time-consuming. Still, it ensures that the funds donated for the food parcels are spent appropriately. We will continue with this project as long as donations from donors (other than WCF) continue to be made to us.
Little Brinks
Weekly visits are made to the Little Brinks foster care home. Educational play, exploration of creative art mediums, and making music develop their physical and mental abilities. A healthy variety of snacks are always a hit, and most of all, the children learn that they are valued for the unique individuals they are.
Days For Girls
Monthly visits to the 8 ladies of the Hermetia Enterprise enable them to produce high-quality washable sanitary products. Two primary and high schools were also visited. Information that helps children understand how their bodies work, how to care for themselves and others, and how to use the products they receive are shared. Visits to 6 more schools are planned for June and July.
P2P
We are looking forward to the P2P (Prepare to Preach) group that will join us for the first two weeks in July, God willing. There will be a full-on two-week program that will enhance the work we are currently doing. In addition, the Holiday clubs; Youth camps; Workshops; Creche upgrades, and enhanced food parcel distribution will be run in Gauteng and Cape Town. This will bring rich blessings to the young people and families involved.