Oct/Nov 2010
Dear Friends... Our year is almost over, and we are almost sad to see it go... but praise God for eternal hope which keeps us ever looking to the next thing, anchoring us to our destination, and fulfilling the vision.
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent me to heal the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of our Lord.� Luke 4:18-19
The graduates of this term have really been fantastic, Nelson taught them incredibly well and they have produced beautiful work. They made their toolboxes and windows, and then some beautiful desks for the business classroom with chairs to go with. Then in the last week they divided into groups and made three outside bench seats, which will be placed around the school grounds. Dora has invested long hours in the students over the last few weeks by going over each one’s business plan with them individually and creating action plans suiting their specific needs, making sure they knew exactly what they were going to do once they got home. We are eager to see how this clear direction benefits them once they return home. The graduation time was very precious, with Nelson and Chris heading up the games on the beach, instigating lots of shrieks and hollers as everyone had fun! In the evening at
the graduation dinner Votec students produced a lovely drama about ‘the perfect carpentry business’ demonstrating how things ‘should’ be done – their work was finished when they said it would be, the boss paid his workers well, and he even gave back the extra money when a drunk paid him too much for a job! The Discipleship School students formed a choir and their singing filled the room with amazing resonance which was enhanced by the new drums making everything come alive. Graduation morning was so fresh and pure as the students were happy to leave and charged with Joshua 1:9 “Be strong and courageous; do not be terrified, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go!” They knew they may be going to fight giants but they also know that the same spirit that was with David and Jesus is also with them. Hallelujah! It was so fantastic to see Jeosafá graduate from Votec! He is from Brazil and has been a teacher at Inhaminga Bible School until now. He will be working with the Vocational Centre and already has made quite an impact in the way things work. He has good ideas and is determined to see them put into practice, which is brilliant. There are great things ahead and the students will benefit so much from all his input. We sadly realized that this would be Dora’s last graduation ceremony... since she is leaving next year to return to Brazil and prepare for her wedding and marriage! So we presented her with a certificate of appreciation for all the hard work she has done with the students and in moving the vision forward. It was a tender moment. THANK YOU for everything, Dora! We know you have much joy and happiness ahead of you, but you will be missed! We had the honour of attending the inauguration of the new Muzuane church, which the congregation built themselves out of mud blocks. Su have a great word about each of us being individual blocks in the spiritual building of God’s church, and that we carry the church with us wherever we go... The kids had a great time joining in the Mozambican Sunday school and it was special to see the Nacoto and Rassim churches (other neighbourhoods in the region) there encouraging Muzuane and vice versa.
October saw us in Malawi for 2 weeks, we took Gabriel to see some therapists and were so please with their reports. They said that he is doing so well and he has full range of motion in his limbs and there is no shortening in his muscles – it was wonderful to hear such encouraging news! He received new splints and when we were done we spent some time with my sister, Tammy, which was such a blessing. Gabriel also ‘graduated’ this month, he has completed his preprimary education at the school in town which he has been attending, and will be going into Grade One next year! It was such a special event, the teachers pulled out all the stops and the kids did some amazing dance routines. Gabriel received his ‘diploma’ and said, “Hi, my name is Gabriel Christiaan Maas, when I grow up I want to be a lawyer, so I can defend the rights of the people!” He was also awarded ‘most polite’ merit certificate and ‘word smart award’. When Gabriel does Grade One next year, it will be at home with Debs. We do have a curriculum to follow and are sure we will have lots of fun, but would appreciate your thoughts and prayers for those difficult days which are bound to come our way every now and then! We are looking forward to Christmas back in Zimbabwe with our family and friends. It will be fun to see everyone we know and love again. May your holiday season be blessed to its fullest as you enjoy Jesus, and thank you so much for all of your love, prayers and support. Thank you for your part in Afrika wa Yesu, enabling us in our work, and together may we bring God all the Glory! Together for His Glory,
Chris and Deborah
and all at the Afrika Wa Yesu Vocational Centre
A MESSAGE FROM THE SECOND TERM STUDENTS, 2010 THE students of the Vocational Centre thank the team of Afrika wa Yesu which contributed to our theoretical and practical studies. Firstly we give thanks to God for everything; we thank Him for His protection during these months of work, for taking care of each one in His goodness. Praise to God. We thank director Chris together with his wife Deborah for the vision that they have to equip the men of God in the world of business with the goal of manifesting the Kingdom and Glory of God in the marketplace. We also thank our instructor, Nelson, for the patience and love God demonstrated through him since the beginning of our studies until today, how he supported us our difficulties while learning and directed us at the basic level of knowledge in the work of the carpentry. Not stopping the thanksgiving, missionary Dora was a big contributor as she helped us wake up to the knowledge and understanding of the subjects related to the area of businesses. With regard to the use of the time of our work, we consider it positive, because the following projects were accomplished: Toolboxes, windows, chairs, desks and benches for the gardens. We are grateful for what we received and what we have, and without more to point out, we wanted to say to all that have a part in the Mission Afrika wa Yesu, that God blesses you with the blessed spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus and that Peace of God fills your hearts day after day. Amen! Nacala, November 26, 2010