Preaching in the township and prison visit

Today I'm including a report from Mark

Preaching in the township.

We arrived at Germinston Methodist Church on Sunday 18^th February and all I knew was that someone was going to pick me up at 9.30am and take me to a local township to preach. I didn’t know who and I didn’t know where I was going! So it was an exciting step of faith. A brother arrived at the church and I bid fair-well to Carolyn and was off!

We arrived after a short journey by car at the church building, which was a roughly built construction of concrete with a tin roof!

After discussing the order of service with the minister and choir outside (which was our vestry!) we prayed and processed in to wonderful singing.

What a joy it was to share in worship together! Joy! Rhythm! Harmony! God’s wonderful presence! It was mainly ladies and several children. The building filled up and it got hotter!

I preached from Mark 1:9-15 and weaved in some of my testimony. The congregation were most responsive and it was a joy to share God’s word with them ably assisted by the minister who kindly translated for me in to Zulu.

After the word came the most joy bit – the offering! The congregation came up to the front singing and dancing to place their offering on the table at the front and then sang and danced all the way back to their seats! Amazing!

The young people led the congregation at various points during the service. I was also blessed in song by the people as they sang over me and waved! Wow! What an amazing experience.

Near the end of the service there were various ‘votes of thanks’ from difference members of the leadership, which I returned as the privilege was all mine.

I thank God for this experience and am so grateful to have been allowed this honour of sharing God’s word with this flourishing part of the body of Christ in South Africa.

Joyful worship in the township

Visit to Modderbee Prison, Benoni

I was collected from the manse by one of the brothers from Germiston Methodist Church in his mini-bus/ taxi at 0645 and we delivered his Muslim passengers to Benoni Muslim School before going on to the prison. A quite surreal start to the day!

I met Kyia, a lay pastor from one of the local Methodist Churches.

Once checked in we met with other Christian leaders and we were eventually led through to a canteen where we assembled for a session from the Purpose Driven Life series led by an evangelical Catholic lay-pastor!

All the projector equipment and speakers were set up and the inmates arrived in their orange jump-suits.

What a wonderful privilege to be with these spiritually-hungry men!

The worship was wholehearted and passionate.

We watched a session by Rick Warren and then split into small groups gathered around the tables in the canteen.

I sat with the leader and about 10 men.

We looked at various Bible verses together on the theme of discipleship. There was a real sense of love and unity and a desire to change to be more like Jesus as we shared together. The Holy Spirit joined our hearts together. We prayed together and then rejoined after about 40 minutes with the other groups for the closing worship.

I was asked to share a greeting with the men, to encourage them to attend the forthcoming Alpha course and to pray God’s blessing over them! What another honour!

One inmate came up to me from our small group and said how his heart was full of joy at the fellowship we’d all shared together and I completely understood what he was saying as mine was bursting too!

Thank you Lord for this amazing experience and the joy of sharing fellowship with these precious brothers.