Friday, May 19, 2006

The Move to South Africa

Well, here is my second post...catching up to where we (my family and I) are today.
My husband had always wanted to teach baseball and share the gospel (sports evangelism) in Russia. In 1998, while we were living in North Carolina, he got an opportunity to go to Zimbabwe, Africa to teach baseball and lead Bible studies at a local school. When he returned from that trip, I knew something was different. During his time in Zimbabwe, he and the missionary there discussed possibilities for coming to Africa long-term.
Right then, I knew...or had a pretty good feeling...that God was leading us to Africa. I was anxious, but excited about it. We prayed and prayed and listen to God through His Word. Through it all, it became clear that God wanted us to go to Africa. We thought that he would take us to Zimbabwe. But He had other plans. There was no job for a sports evangelist in Zimbabwe, but there was one in South Africa. That is the one we answered!
We came to Joburg in October 2000 and have been here ever since. Our job has changed quite a bit. We started out teaching baseball at schools in areas where there was no church work. It helped us get into the community. We also taught life skills with other team members (missionaries working with us) at the local schools.
Now, we do mostly Bible studies and leadership training that will help start new churches. We are currently doing most of our work in Soweto and informal settlements (squatter camps). But, we have helped our Baptist partners in Joburg start a church in a nearby middle class neighborhood. It is an area that is growing rapidly!
When we came to Joburg, we brought one child with us, our daughter, Ruth Anne. In 2003, we adopted a boy, our son, Joshuwa. The children are very happy at their schools in Joburg. Josh is 4 now and VERY active. Ruth Anne is 13, loves riding horses and competes in dressage.

1 comment:

Angie said...

Hey JK....I LOVE your blog! You are a good writer! I'm looking forward to reading more. :-)
Love,
angie