NOVEMBER 2012
www.fce.org.za
FCE
Fo u n d a t i o n fo r C ro s s - C u l t u ra l Ed u c a t i o n
Life-giving Rain Ethiopia
Dr Woyita Wozaolla, a man with a vision for his people
Biltong iAfrica
Making a proud show at “Kamers Vol Geskenke”
The Torres Strait Island “We experience that the Lord has once again opened a door for us”
IMPORTANT DATES DMT (Discipleship-Mission Training) Wolseley: 14 January – 23 March 2013 Posbus 126, Wolseley, Suid Afrika, Oakstraat, Huis Weich, 6830
info@fce.org.za
I
n the home stretch of each year, I experience a feeling of melancholy: as if the pace is too fast, the burden too heavy and the year too long. At our training centres in Zambia and Malawi, the heat is unbearable and the dusty winds are not really helping to lift our mood. In the mornings we get up wearily, looking at the horizon in the hope of seeing a cloud, the size of a man’s hand... That cloud represents our expectation for relief: rain, life-giving rain, driving away the dust. Through the years, rain has always been a sign of God’s blessing on the work of FCE.
I experience the same melancholy when I read the newspaper headlines, watch the news on TV or become involved with people trying to keep body and soul together, trying to make marriages work or trying to patch up broken relationships. My spirit feels deflated when spiritual leaders preach humanism as godly truth and compromise the truth to soothe everybody into a false peace. I want to hide under a broom bush. But the Lord sees me, and on the horizon a cloud, the size of a man’s hand, appears – a cloud of hope. “In this world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) With this newsletter I would like to encourage each one of you, who has been called by the Lord to bear fruit, to be fully involved in your part of the world where you have been placed to bring hope. This you can only do with conviction if you believe unconditionally that the Jesus you are following is also enabling you to lead people to spiritual maturity in Christ (Col. 1:28). Is the same passion burning in you as in Jordy, the daughter of friends of ours, who confronts everybody with: “Do you know Jesus?” And if you answer “yes”, she just makes sure: “The One who died on the cross?” Do we believe and are we working towards this: “If it were not for the purifying and preserving influence of the body of Christ, the fabric of all we call civilisation would totally disintegrate, decay and disappear. At this present moment the body of Christ, in union with her risen and enthroned Lord is therefore the fundamental preserving factor in this present world order.” (‘Destined for the Throne’ by Paul E Bilheimer). How true is this statement of your life? What is the motive for your missionary efforts? Do you believe with your heart, soul and mind that you are part of God’s plan to bless all people? Do you believe that God’s blessings bring healing and restoration in every aspect of human nature: physically, socially, spiritually, so that man can be made free to love God unconditionally, accept himself, respect his fellow man and honour God’s creation? And if you believe this, what are you doing to make this a reality? Neels
CiM
Creator in me dia
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KING’S HIGHWAY REST CAMP MALAWI
On 22nd of August 2012 we dedicate the Malawi campsite to the Lord. From early morning the FCE staff are running around to get everything in order, the fires are lit and the food pots start boiling on the braziers. The headmen of the surrounding villages start arriving. While dancing and singing joyfully, the women, dressed in colourful outfits, take their places. Visitors from South Africa, who helped to build the campsite – Sampie van Rensburg, Danie van Dyk and Deon Veldsman – are among the guests. Former FCE students from Malawi also join in the joyous occasion. After many speeches, the moment arrives: we lift our hands in worship and dedicate the campsite to the Lord. We declare before Him that this place will be a beacon of Light to the Malawians, a place of hope where Jesus will be glorified.
Ruth Fulton, a 65 year old lady, came as part of an Australian outreach group to help build the staff houses at the campsite. She joined Regina in the women’s ministry and was so touched by their childlike faith and relationship with the Lord, that she realised this is what she also needed. The leader of the outreach group, Max Madison, prayed with her and she accepted Jesus as her Saviour. Ruth went back to Australia, inspired to testify about what the Lord has done in her life. Malawi Alumni: Since 1996, FCE has been involved in Malawi and more than 200 Malawians have gone through our discipleship training. The Malawians who completed their teacher training in Zambia, founded an organisation called FTS (Fishers, Teachers and Senders). They lead people to the Lord, give them training in the Word and send them out to be salt and light in their own communities. We are very thankful that our ex-students are living out their missionary zeal in such a practical way! Borga from Spain came to Koti ni Eden in Zambia to work as a volunteer. During his stay, Borga was born again and we are rejoicing with the angels over this young man who came into the Kingdom. Neels de Jager will visit him and his family in Spain during November.
Good bye to Jesaja en Malinda Strümpfer Jesaja joined FCE in 2008 as fulltime missionary. He is a real handyman, a hard worker and served FCE faithfully with his talents. Malinda, a Botma girl from Ladismith, did her teacher training at our College. The two of them met in FCE and got married after she completed her studies. For the past two years, Jesaja was involved in the work in Malawi, while Malinda taught the staff children and was involved in the women’s ministry. They are leaving us at the end of this year, as Jesaja is going to help his dad on their farm in Pongola. We are sending them away with heavy hearts, as we love them very much, but we’re also sending them with the knowledge that they will be serving wherever they go. Both are well equipped to reach out to people, to build relationships, to lead people to salvation and to make disciples of Jesus Christ.
Jesaja & Malinda
At the start of the October school holidays, about 140 tired teachers arrived at the Oranje Girls’ School in Bloemfontein, where the annual National Christian Teachers’ Convention was hosted by FCE. The theme this year was “Renewed Relationships’ – very timely and applicable. Dr Jannie Compion of FCE and Dr Felix Muchimba of the GLO Training Centre in Zambia, were the main speakers. Their point of departure was that every problem in society, in people’s personal lives and in the world can be relayed to: • • • •
Your relationship with God Your relationship with yourself Your relationship with other people (your neighbour) Your relationship with creation.
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Jannie Compion
The solution to all problems, therefore, is in the restoration of these relationships. The speakers addressed the problems as follows: • Are you in a relationship with God or do you have a relationship with a specific religion or denomination? • Do you love yourself? Only by accepting yourself, can you love others unconditionally. • If you love your neighbour, you will serve him and the community with your talents and gifts. • If you respect God’s creation, you will accept the mandate to reign over God’s creation – over both the physical and the spiritual realms.
Felix Muchimba
If a teacher wants to be successful in the classroom and in educating learners, it is essential that he/she will live successfully in each of these four relationships. Only then will he/she be able to address the needs of the learners, as all their problems also start and end with relationships. Prof. Thinus Dreeckmeier led the teachers to see their subjects as vehicles to lead children to God and to salvation.
The 18 workshops that were presented, equipped the delegates in an interactive and practical way to build, restore and renew relationships through subject teaching and education in general.
Peter Jones from Creare
During the praise and worship sessions and in the prayer room, each delegate had the opportunity to renew their intimate relationship with the Lord. From the feedback of the conference, it was clear that the Lord has touched, inspired, encouraged and given new hope to everyone. Many realised yet again that they were called into education to make a difference in the Kingdom of God. Creare is a theocentric Arts, Skills Ministry training centre based in Bloemfontein. Their vision is to train and equip in the Arts. www.crearedream.com
EQUIPPED TO SERVE Adriaan & Magda van Zyl from Swellendam
Our desire to serve the Lord, caused us to pack our earthly possessions, take our three sons and go to Wolseley for training. After completing the Discipleship course, we went to Zambia for the Mission training, where we stayed in a tent to be together as a family. This time of training was also a time of relationship and character building. In the tent we got to know one another on a deeper level – we rubbed and brushed against each other, and the Lord bound us together as a family like never before. In the cross-cultural situation we learned to respect other people’s customs and habits. The working of the Holy Spirit became a reality to us and we started to understand what it means to seek first the Kingdom of God at all times.
“...and the Lord bound us together as packed up moving a family...” pegs even
We then our tent, our tent further, still looking for the place where we could serve Him. We drove 15 743 km and travelled through six African countries. We now know how sick one becomes with malaria, we know the anxiety when a child is injured and there is no medical aid nearby; we can tell you about potholes, impassable roads and long, long distances. We learned not to fear, to surrender everything to the Lord and to trust Him for provision. After nine months we are back in Swellendam; the circle is completed. We heard the Lord’s voice; we trusted Him and started moving. In the process the Lord equipped us and took us to the place where we must serve Him at this time. Our home is now open to anyone who is searching for Him. We are making our talents available to Him. We have found the place where we can impact people and their circumstances, so that they will be able to glorify Christ through their lives.
PSALM 2:8
“Ask of Me and I will give you the nations for your inheritance” At a recent day of fasting, FCE came before the Lord with the above Scripture. He encouraged us to ask Him for the nations! We had to confess that we come to Him regularly with lists of all our needs: finances, buildings, vehicles, workers, health, safety, etc. BUT, He admonishes us, when last did you ask Me for the nations? Pray with us for wisdom regarding the following opportunities that opened for us to become involved by means of our training in Ethiopia and the Torres Strait Islands.
ETHIOPIA
Recently the Lord brought us into contact with Dr Woyita Wozaolla, an Ethiopian man of God, a man with a vision for his nation and with a passion for missions. He is one of the leaders of the ‘Kale Heywet Church’, the biggest evangelical church in Ethiopia. This church mobilizes, sends out and supports missionaries to many countries.
Dr Woyita visited Koti ni Eden and was impressed by the way the FCE community functions. He had to live among the staff and students, stand in the same queues for his meals. He was touched by the community life in which we are serving one another. He saw the vision of FCE to equip people with skills to improve their lifestyle and circumstances, as God’s plan for Africa. He realised how important it is to train people and prepare them for the mission field, so that they don’t just lead people to the Lord, but also disciple them. He believes that Christians should take the lead in moulding the next generations; otherwise the world will do this and draw our young people into a selfcentred, selfish lifestyle which directly opposes God’s plan of servanthood.
“He realises how important it is to train people.”
Neels visited Dr Woyita in Addis Abeba recently and he is impressed with what the Lord is establishing amongst the Christians in Ethiopia. We trust the Lord to lead us into His plans for Ethiopia and the role that FCE can play.
TORRES STRAIT ISLANDS
The Torres Strait Islands are situated between Cape York in Australia and PapuaNieu Guinea. The Mackay Christian College, with whom FCE has close relationships, regularly sends students on outreaches to these Islands. Ndanji, daughter of Brian and Barbara Singoi of Zambia, was offered the opportunity to continue her schooling at Mackay Christian College. Shortly after her arrival in May this year, Ndanji went on one of these outreaches. Peter Lister, a teacher of the school, who is the leader of the outreaches, testifies how wonderful it was to see how the Lord used Ndanji with her singing talent and her ability to relate cross-culturally, to reach the hearts of the people.
Ndanji
Ndanji’s parents, Brian and Barbara, went with Neels to visit her in Australia. During this visit, Neels, Brian, Pastor David Westbrooke and Peter Lister went to visit the Torres Strait Islands. They were welcomed with open arms. Relationships were built, ideas were exchanged about how FCE can work with the churches to train their young people in discipleship. We experience that the Lord has once again opened a door to us to spread the Gospel across the world by means of our ministry of education and training.
Biltong
iAfrica
Biltong iAfrica made a proud show at “Kamers Vol Geskenke” – the annual ‘Creative Feast of Handmade Products’ in Lourensford, Somerset West in October. Our unique biltong and dry sausage made according to grandpa’s secret recipes and the various snack sensations were a hit!
Visit our website for any enquiries about our meat products - anything from Dry sausage, Cabanossies, Game, Chilli Bites to Tulbagh Boerewors and Tulbagh Chicken Sausage.
TULBAGH
Boerewors
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