Sunday, September 13, 2009

South Africa Mid-Trip Report

Hey everyone,

Below is the mid-trip report from our YMI Team Leaders. This is the second of two reports sent to us from the field, though there may be more depending upon Internet access.

We are all well and the ministry is going great thanks to God! We spent two days at a village north of here called Ceres. It was a 3 hour drive through mountains, very scenic. When we arrived we participated in an Awana club, The team did a 1.5 hour program for 30-40 clubbers. We then ran a youth program for 15 young adults. The following morning, we ran a children's ministry for another 30-40 children, many of them were new visitors. We then went to a market in downtown Ceres, as well as a driving tour while the pastor explained how the community had looked during apartheid and the lingering affects that he is helping the people overcome. We drove back and the team went to the top of table mountain then pizza at a mall in Cape Town. We finished with Bible study and prayer.

Sunday we went to an all-association meeting where 9 churches met together to focus on missions and their specific call to reach youth and children for Christ. The team had the opportunity to present the mission they are on using music and testimonies. Then we met to plan the Awana Camp with the volunteer leaders who will be attending. In addition to running the all camp games, the team has been asked to run teaching sessions on Saturday morning and Saturday evening, and to help with camp worship. We will be very busy! Pray for us as tomorrow as we will be in a school to present the Gospel. On Tuesday, we go to a fishing village 2 hours from here on the west coast to introduce Awana to area churches and also to present the Gospel in schools. Our mission on this trip is developing into one where we are spreading the Gospel and the Awana ministry to children in a larger geographic areas around Cape Town. This supports the vision that Clive received for his ministry this year.
Rick and Raeann
YMI South Africa Team Leaders

Thursday, September 10, 2009

South Africa Update From Team

Hey everyone,

We have arrived on schedule in Cape Town. All our baggage made it and all of us are doing fine. We are staying at the Baptist College where all slept well. Yesterday was our first day here and we already had a ministry in a rehab center. We listened and shared our testimony to a group of men ages 18 and up who are recovering from drug and alcohol addictions. They were very open and we recieved a blessing by hearing how God is working in all their lives.

Pray for us as tomorrow we travel 2.5 hours to our ministry location where we will work in an Awana club and Youth Group. We will spend the night there and return the next day. Next week we will travel to a fishing village on the west coast 3 hours from here where we will work in a school and a church. Clive wants to use the team to introduce the local churches to Awana. They do not have any Awana churches there.
Praise - Clive reported record sign-ups for Awana Camp. He was hoping for 85 and has 160. He is very encouraged. We will meet with the ministry team on Sunday to plan the ministry for the camp.
Rick and Raeann
South Africa Team Leaders

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

South Africa Team Has Arrived

Hey everyone,

YMI's final team of 2009 to South Africa has made it safely to Cape Town. Charmaine Atkins, the Awana Missionary's wife emailed YMI to let us know, so we are passing the information on to you all. A message from the team should soon follow - as soon as they are rested up enough to write! They had close to 24 hours of flight time (not counting a layover in Amsterdam) from Seattle to Cape Town.

YMI Staff