As you pray -12 December 2007

Thank you very much for your prayers for yesterday's trip to Entabeni Hospital. From home to Durban and back was a very smooth operation.

My heartfelt thanks to my good doctor, Albu van Eeden, the medical support, technical support and all the brothers who helped to carry me.

Once again, Dr Garth Skinner worked with great skill. It seems like we will get over the problem of air leakage. My main reference at Entabeni, the pulmnologist Dr Mike van der Linden, came out and spent quite a bit of time to assess my situation.

The KwaSizabantu Youth Conference begins today. Let us pray specifically for the weather as well. Right now it is wet and cold and the weather forecast for next week is not encouraging. Ultimately, God has the final say over the weather.

Peter Roos and Dr Paul Zuidema came by to share about the recent trip to Mozambique together with Mario Rocha, Andrew Roos and some Dutch friends who have the Doctors for Life Zavora clinic project at heart. The Lord granted them success, obstacles were removed, so construction should commence next year.

Mario has asked that we pray for possible additions to the clinic complex.

Three young ladies, two from Cedar College of Education, Galina Celick (Russian American) and Lidia Veciunca (Romanian), and one from Doctors for Life, Salome du Toit (South African), would appreciate your prayer support. They are currently in the USA and doors are opening for them to minister to young people. The Lord is using their personal testimonies to reach out to hearts.

Our prayers are with the Eurochor as they will be doing their Christmas concerts in Germany this weekend.

Children of God in different countries and places are doing Christmas functions to pass on the Good News. May the Lord keep glorifying Himself through these opportunities.

Klaus Alius and the Bielstein brethren will value your prayers for their Sunny-way (the children's ministry) Christmas celebration tomorrow. Next weekend will be a feast for the congregation.

CFT-Netherlands will join other pro-life organisations for the annual 'Walk of Life' in Amsterdam tomorrow.

Jan de Bruin requests that we also pray for their action at the venue of the Marylyn Manson concert where around 50 000 young people are expected to be attracted by the music of the culture of death. The brethren will be singing songs of the message of life as the crowds pass by.

The Cederborg brethren want to dedicate the weekend of 14-16 December to evangelisation, starting with a pro-life evening in Groningen on Friday.

Nkosi sikelel' i-Afrika

The conference in Polokwane (Pietersburg) from 16-20 December could have just been another political party gathering, but that is not to be. The party in question is the ruling and by far in the majority African National Congress (ANC) and at this conference they will be electing their top leadership. The stakes are high, divisions are obvious with accusations and counter-accusations about millions changing hands in order to buy votes. There are also allegations of intimidation, security concerns at the conference and in the country as a whole.

People should be forgiven for sometimes being cynical about lofty political statements like, "A government of the people, by the people, for the people." Often, when political garbs are removed the naked truth is laid bare for those who can see that most rhetoric that is branded about boils down to one thing - individual interests.

During one of my early visits to Europe a brother asked me if I knew what human rights were about. Then he pulled out his purse from the back pocket and told me, "This is human rights - money."

Be that as it may, the truth is that whether we like it or not it does matter who our rulers are. The laws they make affect us in one way or another. As Christians we are hurt deeply when politicians pass laws that are contrary to God's Law.

God knows what will be going on in the hearts of the delegates at Polokwane when they stand up to sing South Africa's national anthem,

"Nkosi sikelel' i-Afrika...
Woza Moya oyiNgcwele."
(God bless Africa...
Come Holy Spirit.)

Let me plead with you to intercede for South Africa, that indeed we may be blessed and that the Holy Spirit may come.

"your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:10)