God's kindness and faithfulness

A lot has happened in the six months since Judy arrived, and we continue to feel more and more settled in JBay. Relationships are deepening and opportunities are opening up ministry-wise and 'job'-wise.

A friend's early morning birthday swim


We feel we are being immersed into a journey that is depicted in this statement :

You don’t always need a plan.

Sometimes you just need to pray, 

trust God, 

let go, and see what happens.


Family

David and Robynne have packed up their lives and visited us just before they left on the European trip. It was so good to see them. 

Visiting Heather and Nathan. We had a wonderful visit up to Pretoria, where we saw some friends, but, being a long weekend, we missed a lot of you. Then on to Middelburg to see Heather and Nathan and the girls for some special family time. We were treated to two nights on a game farm with friends of theirs from their new church. Our hearts were full when we left.

 

We have not seen Amy and Will this year, but they are doing well. Amy has taken up scuba diving and she is loving the new underwater world.   


What is happening in the Global Challenge community?

We are continually amazed at the vision God has put in the organisation. Future plans launched recently include:

-        Expansion of the school to offer technical subjects and trades like bricklaying, welding etc.

-        Building an admin block for the primary school, Oakridge.

-        Building and running a temporary safe house within the Global Village for babies who have been abandoned or released for adoption.

-        Arendt's nest: A house in the Village that will help fulfil the constant need for short-term accommodation for missionaries and guests.

-        His table: A greenhouse and food garden, with a training facility for community development.

For more details go to https://globalchallenge.org/ 

Ministry

We are really gaining many 'children' in what we felt our purpose to be as Mom and Dad in the community. We are building good relationships and encouraging many young people and married couples. 

We have done two sessions of Marriage Chats. There were just a few couples from our house church (life groups are called house churches) for a short message from this seasoned, yet flawed couple. Then there was an opportunity to ask us a few questions, and then go off in their couples to answer some carefully-worded questions on the topic. The topics covered were ‘What was God thinking?’ followed by 'Equal, yet so different'.

Ian is also meeting (virtually) with the two Travel Varsity men weekly for discipleship training. 

Teaching 

I (Judy) have settled in and begun enjoying the school. I have purchased some apparatus for the Science department and have loved starting to use it. The students and my colleagues are very appreciative. I have set one of the June exams for the district, and don’t have to set any others. The Matrics write a provincial paper and the other grades write papers from the district. My workload at GLA is less than I had before, so I have time for people and other activities. 

I am loving the adventurous and ‘wild’ ethos of the school. Spiritually, such sound foundations as well. Ian and I are both leading one of about 70 discipleship groups of about six children each, that are timetabled in on Wednesdays.

To find out more about the school, go to https://www.gla-jbay.org/

Building

I (Ian) have assisted some home owners finishing off their homes in the Global Village. Like all projects, there are some setbacks and issues but on the whole, it has been enjoyable. With several families having moved in, we are starting to see signs of the community forming, as was originally envisioned. 

I am now Project Manager on some exciting school-related building projects. The first is to build a second wing onto the high school for the launch of four new technical subjects to be offered from 2025. This will focus on subjects relating to the construction industry. We will be using shipping containers for the construction, while maintaining the aesthetics of the existing school. Secondly, the primary school, Oakridge, is expanding and needs an administration block. This will also house remedial and counselling rooms. Finally, I will be project managing the groundworks needed for the new roads and sports facilities. I feel so excited and privileged to be part of what the Lord is doing.  


In true Global Challenge fashion, we are starting to build without all the finances being in the bank! Please keep this in your prayers. 

Transbaviaans  

The lure of having the Transbaviaans mountain bike race on our doorstep got the better of me; a bunch of friends and I have entered the race to be held in August, and started to train. I trust my legs will hold out for the 230km! 

Answered prayer

As I (Ian) have mentioned above the Project Manager position is a real answer to prayer. It is a great honour and an exciting challenge for me.

The above position is is also largely an answer to prayer for our financial needs. 

Our landlords fitted a completely new kitchen for us. It has made a big difference to our enjoyment of the house. 

Deepened relationships and ministry opportunities. 

Prayer requests

  • Wisdom what to do with our house in Pretoria. Whether and when to sell. 
  • Continued move of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, and sensitivity to do what He lays on our hearts, and not just what seems good to us. (The God things, not the good things)
  • We would like to set up a support group around us for accountability, prayer, moral support, communication, logistics, and financial support. Here, they call this a Core Team. We are very excited about this, because it will mean we are not just doing this on our own. Please pray for wisdom whom to approach.

IT WOULD BE LOVELY TO HAVE VISITORS!! We have a small place, right on the beach, with a guest bedroom. We would love to share our new world with old friends.


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