Car Wash and Market Today!

Today, starting at 10am, we'll be washing cars in the parking lot at Community Covenant Church to raise funds for our trip. Bring us your car and whatever donation you'd like to give.

We will also have a market of handmade African items on sale after service on the back lawn.  We'll be selling bowls, servers, Christmas ornaments, jewelry, and more - all made by folks in South Africa.  Come browse our market while we are washing your car!

A suffering people and a suffering God

A few nights ago, we watched the film "Red Dust," which sets its story in the midst of a Truth and Reconciliation trial in South Africa.  The story is a difficult one to watch because it pulls no punches in revealing the evils of apartheid and the darkness of human sin.  After watching the film, I was struck with the enormity of the task of faith for kids growing up in that country.  These kids live in a world that was crushed by apartheid for decades.  And, as if that weren't enough, in the years before the nation celebrated its first free elections in 1994, the monster of AIDS began quietly claiming its first victims.  As I thought about this history, I couldn't help but be overwhelmed at just what a significant thing it is for these kids to believe in a God who loves them. "How can we," I thought, "enter this world and tell these kids that they are loved?"  How can those words not echo hollow when proclaimed beneath the dark shadow that is South Africa's history?  And then Eric said something very simple and yet profound: he reminded me that the message of God's love starts with the cross.

I don't know what these kids have experienced.  I can't fully understand the hurt and anger and loss that probably still scar the people of this country.  But the God we worship does.  He looks upon them through the bruised and bloody eyes of a man beaten and hung on a cross.  And only such a God can really say to his broken people, "I understand."  Only a God who faced evil and injustice in its greatest measure, and overcame it on our behalf - only that God - can rightfully and authentically say "I love you" in such a way that the words ring true.

As I reflect on this truth, I am humbled by the power of the cross.  In some small way, I've seen a glimpse of the gospel through the eyes of another, and now it's beauty comes across in even richer vividness.  

"But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor beacuse of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone" (Heb 2:9). 

Paton quote

Hey everyone,

I was reading the introduction to Alan Paton's book Cry, the Beloved Country and came across this quote from the author in 1949. And, well, he hits it on the head. So here it is:

It is my own belief that the only power which can resist the power of fear is the power of love. It's a weak thing and a tender thing; men despise and deride it. But I look for the day when in South Africa we shall realize that the only lasting and worth-while solution of our grave and profound problems lies not in the use of power, but in that understanding and compassion without which human life is an intolerable bondage, condemning us all to an existence of violence, misery and fear.

Love, understanding, and compassion. Three things to consider as we prepare to head out on our trip.

What we will be doing

On Sept 20th - Oct 5th, our team of three people from Community Covenant Church will be joining three others from Rolling Hills Covenant Church as we head to Franschhoek, South Africa, where we will help Bridges of Hope International run a camp for 120 third through seventh graders.

            Bridges of Hope International is a non-profit organization devoted to “building bridges into suffering nations in order to create long-term, self-sustaining solutions to the deep problems of our world.”   The Bridges of Hope South Africa Project, with which we will be partnering, was developed in response to the AIDS pandemic that has ravaged the nation of South Africa during the past two decades.  Bridges of Hope’s After School Program was developed in cooperation with local leaders in South Africa as a means to empower kids with leadership skills and give them the resources to make wise decisions for their futures.  The six-month curriculum emphasizes the need for sexual abstinence until marriage – a practice in South Africa that is, literally, a matter of life and death.  It also provides kids with discipleship and life skills training.  Halfway through the program, the children are invited to attend a camp at the Bridges of Hope Retreat Center, where their facilitators and camp leaders can help them to dig deeper into the truths they are being taught.  The kids also get to experience the joys of camp – many of them for the first time.  

Our role as a mission team will be to work alongside local volunteers and staff to help make this camp possible.  We will be assisting local facilitators as they run two four-day sessions, each of which will involve 50-60 students from elementary schools in the township of Philippi.  

      Here is a picture from the last After School Program Camp 

Join our team!

We leave for South Africa in just under a month...and we can use all the help we can get!  We are especially eager to find people who can join our prayer team.  If you'd like to committ to regular prayer for our team during and leading up to our trip, please let us know.  We hope to have at least 20 people praying for us daily while we are on the trip (Sept 19 - Oct 5).

We've also got some great ways for you to get involved in the coming weeks:

August 30th Car Wash and Market
During and following Community Covenant's Worship Service on Sunday, August 30th, we will be washing cars and selling hand-made African goods as part of our fund raising efforts. We'll begin at 10am and keep scrubbing until we run out of cars.  Come browse our market and drive away with a clean car!

September 11th Africa Movie Night
Join us on this evening for a South Africa themed movie night.  We'll also have a Veggie Tales movie for the kids and a chance for them to make a craft project that we will deliver to the campers in South Africa.  We will accept donations, but admission is free!  Stay tuned for details on time and movie title. 

Our new blog!

Hi everyone,

Here is our new blog for our 2009 South Africa trip! We'll be posting info and updates on our trip, as well as prayer requests before, during, and after our time in Africa. Please check back soon to see what we've added!