South Africa Team

Missions team from Maranatha Baptist Bible College

Archive for June, 2009

Hi from South Africa!

Jun 18

Posted by Maranatha in Steven Munyon

Mozambique-0254Hi from South Africa!

I have had the very distinct privilege of being the official cameraman for the trip. It has been so much fun to capture moments that we will remember forever. Whether we were in the village with Pastor Nicholas or hanging out with the Zak family we have pictures of it. (the reason you have not seen many pictures yet is they are kind of big and the email / internet here is kind of slow) One of my favorite things was walking around the village taking pictures and then showing them to the kids or older folks. An older lady I showed a picture to said something about how the camera was like a TV. Everyone here loves to have their picture taken. When we went to the store to get nama (meat) one lady demanded that we take her picture. It’s been so much fun to see the smiles on people’s faces as you show them their picture. One older guy at TLC (the other place Johanna works) gave me a really big smile and laughed when I showed him our picture. I have gotten in a few pictures mom and dad, so don’t be worried. There is proof that I was in South Africa. Hope that you guys have a great day! Love to the family, Steven

3 Comments

God is Great!

Jun 18

Posted by Maranatha in Hannah Boone

Mozambique-0082I would just like to start off by saying if any of you know me well, you know I always have a lot to say, but I will try my hardest to be concise and not write a novel. I want to say above all else how GREAT and AWESOME my God is. From day one getting on the airplane to day four being in Africa, God has never ceased to amaze me. Holding beautiful black babies, comforting dying men and women, singing and sharing testimonies of God’s great salvation in our lives, to using an outhouse have all been part of our everday lives here in South Africa. I can go on forever about the work God has been doing in S.A. and in the hearts of the team. Thank you all who have prayed for us, supported us, or who has had any part in preparing Team South Africa. Please continue to pray for us! Giz, I wish you could be here. I love you all back home and can’t wait to share my heart with you in full detail when i get back

IN CHRIST, HANNAH

7 Comments

Learning the Culture

Jun 18

Posted by Maranatha in Eric Johnson

Hello to all!

We had a very full day yesterday seeing many people of all different ages. As the others have said, people such as Joanna and Pastor Nicholas were a huge challenge to all of us with their love of the Lord and of people. One of the things that impacted me the most yesterday was sitting around the campfire last night listening to Pastor Nicholas talk about South African culture. I learned enough to write a book, but what really stood out to me was the lack of jealousy and greed among most of the people here. In America it’s so common to see others with big houses, nice cars, etc. and want those things. In America, the mindset is that if we aren’t the best, we do everything we can to be the best. In South Africa, the people are content with where they are at, and if they see someone next door with a nicer house, they accept the fact that their neighbor has a nicer house and just focus on their own lives. It made me long for that kind of mentality in our culture. One other thing that happened yesterday was when we were at Joanna’s house with the AIDS babies, there was one little boy who cried and screamed when I put him down and had to leave! I nearly started crying. Please continue to pray for us, especially as the 9 days in Mozambique loom. Mom, Dad, and Casey, I love you and wish you were here to see some of these incredible people! Oh yeah, Mom, I ended up being the only one on the team WITH a watch :)

Eric

4 Comments

Evangelistic Outreach in Pretoria

Jun 16

Posted by Maranatha in Brian Trainer, Team Updates

Mozambique-0587Greetings from SA. We just returned (midnight) from an evangelistic outreach at Central Baptist in Pretoria. The church is only a few blocks from the stadium in which the Confederation Cup soccer tournament is being held. (The US lost to Italy 3-1.) We passed out tracts to hundreds of spectators, and invited many to the church to watch it on a projected screen. Many came to watch the game at the church which provided an opportunity for building relationships. Overall, the day was spent enjoying fellowship with the Zak family and learning about ministry in SA. The schedule the next few days includes an orphanage tomorrow, an overnight in a smaller village, a nursing home, two public schools and other evangelistic outreaches. We also plan on attending the Brazil vs. US soccer game on Thursday after the outreach. On Saturday, we will leave for a small village in Mozambique. During those eight days we will have no internet connectivity or communication.

The team is doing well. All are healthy and in great spirits. Every day that we can, we will update the blog with news of past happenings and future events. We do this because we covet your prayers. Our ultimate goal is to allow God to impact us as we seek to impact others. One significant prayer requests is that our luggage be found and sent to us. Thus far we are all living out of our carry-ons. The team is great with this, but there are obvious upcoming challenges if this continues! Thanks for your support.

Mr. Trainer

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We made it all the way to South Africa!!

Jun 16

Posted by Maranatha in Rebecca Manion

Family, Friends, and Jon,

Can you believe it? We made it all the way to South Africa!! At some points in the trip, it really didn’t feel like we would ever get here! Traveling was long, but we had so many fun experiences-walking around Madrid, Hannah and I “getting separated from the group” (not lost) in Lisbon, and almost having to get vaccinated for yellow fever in Angola.

South Africa is beautiful and amazing. We went directly to the Zak’s church from the airport since we had some delays at the airport because of our lost luggage. The singing at the service by the African nationals was beautiful and all of us tried our best to sing or clap along. They were kind enough to translate the songs which they sang in different languages for us.

Today was more relaxing in the morning, since we were all exhausted from the days of travel earlier. We spent most of the day getting to know the Zak family a little better. I played with several of the kids throughout the day and most of the team played “Balderzak” – a Zak family original, I will have to teach you it, Joe.

The Zak family was in need of a car after a recent accident which left one of their cars was totaled. Today a woman called and offered them one of her cars, to borrow and eventually buy for a very reasonable price. That was a huge answer to prayer!

Please keep praying for our team! I miss you all and am looking forward to seeing you all in a few weeks!

-Rebecca Manion

2 Comments

Where to start?

Jun 16

Posted by Maranatha in Eric Johnson

Where to start? It seemed like an eternity before we FINALLY arrived in South Africa, but so far it has exceeded expectations. The Zaks have been wonderful hosts, and with 22 people staying here right now, it brings a whole new meaning to the term “full house!”

I’ll let the others describe some of the things we’ve done as a group, but one thing that has really impacted me so far is the people of Malas. Malas is a nearby compound where refugees from Zimbabwe have been living for several years. I went with Kevin Zak to pick up some things from a shopping mall (which was identical to an American mall) and on the way we stopped at Malas to visit with some of the people. It gave me a whole new understanding of what poverty means. I met some of the men there, and Kevin invited them to come to a showing of the USA vs. Italy soccer game at Central Baptist Church in Pretoria (which neighbors Onderstepoort where we are). 4 of the men came! I was able to watch the game with Raymond, Telmo, Richard, and Francis and get to know them a little bit. I’m looking forward to going to Malas again soon and ministering with the rest of the team.

We still don’t have our luggage—please pray it arrives soon!

- Eric Johnson

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Testimony from Pretoria

Jun 15

Posted by Maranatha in Nikki Bergstresser

Hey ya’ll! Well we are finally in South Africa! Took almost 48 hours but we are here and it is amazing! We had an interesting time in Angola. Let’s just say Jessie and I nearly had a heart-attack when there was the possibility of an Angolian doctor giving us a shot right then and I think we were all nervous with the possibility of being deported; but alas, we did survive! After we were picked up from the airport (with no luggage) we went to Kopano Baptist Church in Onderstepoort where I enjoyed real worship and fellowship with the believers at that church. The service was like nothing I have ever experienced! Amazing African singing, testimonies, and preaching! We had a great time getting to know some of the Africans in the area! Today we had a nice time getting to know the Zak family. Tonight we went to the “Western” church in Pretoria near the stadium where the Confederation Cup is being played and passed out tracks and invitations to view the World Cup at the Church. The people were very open and quite a few made it to the church to watch the game! On Sunday they are having a soccer player come and speak and we are praying the people will return and hear the gospel as well. Mr. Zak also introduced a few of us to a man named Abraham from North Africa who is in South Africa attempting to find a way to get his wife and children out of the persecution they are facing. He has been here for some months and his wife has been arrested twice now and the government is watching them closely so getting them out will be quite a challenge! Thank you for your prayers for our team and for the requests added on this blog!

Nikki Bergstresser

3 Comments

We Arrived

Jun 14

Posted by Maranatha in Team Updates

The South Africa team has safely arrived at their destination.  The trip involved a few adventures in Madrid, Lisbon, Angola, and in South Africa.  They left Watertown on Friday at 9:00 am and walked out of the airport in South Africa at 3:00 pm on Sunday afternoon.  We are hoping our luggage catches up with is no later than Monday evening.   The main thing is that God has safely got everyone here in good health.  More will come in the future.  Tonight the goal is simple – SLEEP.

2 Comments