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| Fish Hoek beach |
Greetings from sunny South Africa. We have been back here
over 5 weeks already and it has been a very busy time. We have got stuck into quite a few things,
some of which we have not done here before.
The main one is that our house group leaders are exhausted
after a very busy time over Christmas struggling with a family matter. They
wanted a term’s break from leading the group so we volunteered and Christopher
is doing a great job teaching and encouraging everyone.
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| Beautiful Cape of Good Hope |
At my ladies Bible study we have just spent 5 weeks studying
heaven, a topic far too rarely taught in the church. It required a lot of
preparation and I felt rather inadequate teaching such an incredible subject
but I have also been very blessed. My view of heaven has been transformed and
the ladies all tell me how much they have enjoyed learning more about our
eternal destination.
There are a huge number of needs in the church here and many
people facing really troublesome and sometimes life threatening illnesses which
has meant a lot of prayer and some visiting.
We attend and sometimes lead the early Saturday morning prayer
meeting. I also continue to go to the
‘carers’ group for those who find themselves in the caring role in their
families. We pray and encourage them each month.
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| Beauty of God's creation |
I have also been involved with an African ladies group
called Karis who before Christmas held monthly meetings to teach, strengthen
and encourage ladies from all over the area and from many nationalities. Since
Christmas the focus has been on – guess what – prayer. The first half night of prayer from 10 p.m.
to 4 a.m was very well attended with 60 ladies coming out. Children slept all along the back wall in a
row. It was a vibrant time of Holy
Spirit praise, worship and prayer – African style led by a lovely Nigerian lady. I so enjoy these times and feel very honoured
to be involved and ministering to the ladies.
The next one is this Friday night.
In addition I continue to learn Afrikaans and am reading a
very amusing children’s book. I try and talk Afrikaans to anyone who will
converse with me. Christopher plays golf
twice a week and we both play some bowls though the bowls club is in dire
trouble with falling membership and a poorly maintained green. It may well fold
over the South African winter.
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| Nick and Angela graced by the setting sun |
The highlight of the last few weeks though has been the
visit of Nick and Angela Jones from St Albans for a holiday. They have been
friends for years and have not been to South Africa before. However they are
seasoned travellers and did not bat an eyelid at travelling into Cape Town on
the train, enduring the train preachers and then finding and using the buses.
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| Vergelegn - wine estate |
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| Tea at the Mount Nelson |
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| Hoping not to get wet - the waves were getting very close |
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| Bird looking at Kirstenbosch |
However we also went out and about with them and we so
enjoyed going to Kirstenbosch (the national botanical gardens), Cape Point, supper
at the Waterfront, tea at the Mount Nelson – an experience second to none - and
visiting the wine estates at Vergelegen and Boschendal. It was lovely to do the
tourist things; the sun shone and we ate far too much, laughed and talked as
well as having meals with people from the church.
My second book is now in a major re-write which keeps me
busy when there is a gap between all the other things that seem to come our
way.
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| See waxbill - very sweet! |
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| Flamingoes taking off |
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| Orange breathed sun bird |
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| What more can I say? |
