Feb 2019 - Furlough Finished

My first furlough/home assignment is complete and I’ve returned to South Africa for my second three-year term with CVM!  Seems like I should feel like a real missionary now :) But I must admit, I don’t feel different.  I still feel like a regular person doing a fairly normal job to the best of my abilities and seeking to share God with those I meet.  And that is just the way it should be!  Those of us living overseas in full time ministry are just regular people, working hard, facing difficulties and frustrations, and taking pleasure in the small joys of life.

Spending three months in the USA has been a blessing in many ways.  Seeing my family and even much of my extended family, visiting with old friends and catching up on their lives, speaking to groups of vet students, and meeting many of my supporters that I’ve never had the pleasure to meet previously has been refreshing and encouraging.  The continuing education conferences that I attended have also given me food for thought and I’m looking forward to introducing new ideas and techniques in the clinic here as well as working out new client communication training for the students in the Animal Health program.

This year we will have the largest final-year class since I arrived with over 70 students (last year we had 55).  Fitting those students into 6 rotation groups will mean large group sizes and reduced contact with individual students.  Please pray that the Lord will provide opportunities during each rotation to get to know the students and move beyond the large group sizes to individual relationships.  Please also pray that I don’t go crazy trying to corral and organize that many students!  The clinic is going to be bursting from the seams!

Aside from the clinic, I am also continuing with the weekly student Bible studies and would appreciate your prayers for the fresh new first-years; that they will find joy in spending time with God and in His word.  The Gestring’s and I are also praying for the Lord to direct committed students to our Acts 1:8 witnessing training program.  Several of our long-term students graduated last year so we are eagerly looking to who the Lord will bring along new this year.

A few other prayer points for the year:

·       Continued peace on campus!  We have been blessed with two peaceful years and pray for a third year free of protests and riots

·       The new Compulsory Community Service veterinarians (new grads) have arrived and started working in the clinic.  Please pray for them to grow in skill and knowledge as I mentor them throughout 2019.

·       Safety of students – a large percentage of our Bible study students have been mugged or assaulted when walking to the grocery store.  Please pray for their physical safety, especially when off campus.

·       New financial supporters are needed for my next three years.  In order to meet my budget and continue serving at North-West University, I’m praying for an additional $800/month.  Several of my past supporters have been unable to continue for this second term so there is a current monthly deficit to fill.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support over the past three years!  I look forward to sharing with you, over the next three years, what else God is going to do here in Mafikeng, South Africa.  The adventures await!

Dec 2018 - Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

“It's the most wonderful time of the year

There'll be much mistltoeing

And hearts will be glowing

When loved ones are near

It's the most wonderful time of the year”

Snow, hot cocoa, the holidays, friends and family…what could be better?  It is a wonderful blessing to be back in the USA for the holidays.  Despite fitting in CE, speaking at events, and traveling to visit friends and supporters during my furlough, I’ve managed to plan Thanksgiving and Christmas at home this year.  I want to get as much Christmas cheer as possible while I’m here since it isn’t a big holiday in South Africa.  At least, not like it is in America. 

Most of the grocery stores in South Africa put up Christmas garlands around the tills and play awful Christmas music and a few stores have Christmas decorations and such, but there aren’t any craft fairs, Black Friday or Christmas sales, Starbucks’ Christmas drinks, Pier 1 Christmas decorations, gingerbread house building parties, or Christmas concerts. 

It is also too hot there for Christmas!  I just can’t get in the Christmas mood when it is 95 degrees.  And Christmas baking is not nearly as much fun when it is that hot and I have no air conditioning.  To me, Christmas in SA always feels like some weird Christmas in July holiday knock off.  So, needless to say, I’m very excited to be back in Washington for Christmas.  Maybe we will even get some snow while I’m back!

While I’m in on furlough, I’ll be in the San Francisco area Nov 11-14, Los Angeles Dec 11-12, and San Diego Dec 13-16 (Fetch 360 continuing education conference).  If you will be in those areas while I’m around, it would be wonderful to meet up with you. I’m also happy to speak to churches, Bible studies, home groups, etc. about the work God is doing here at NWU. 

I’m also planning a trip east (TX, GA, NC, DC, MI, WI) in January and will put updates on Facebook with my itinerary once I’ve got it nailed down.

Have a very merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

 “It's the hap-happiest season of all

With those holiday greetings and gay happy meetings

When friends come to call

It's the hap-happiest season of all”

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year - Eddie Pola / George Wyle                

Oct 2018 - STM

Four Americans from different states, different backgrounds, different positions in the veterinary field, and of different ages all came together in Mmabatho, South Africa for a two-week short-term mission (STM) trip.  Only with God’s grace and blessing can such trips succeed in both ministry and team relationships.

It was such a pleasure hosting this year’s STM group made up of a retired veterinarian, two emergency technicians, and a pre-vet student.  Every year, I wonder if I should offer a STM trip again because it is a lot of planning and work to prepare for, but every time I do, I’m blown away with how the students here are encouraged.

After picking up the team in Johannesburg, we headed up to a game reserve called Madikwe for a two night safari.  In addition to seeing the big five (lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, and buffalo), we were also blessed with cheetah, giraffe, zebra, and many antelope species.  Our trip was not without stress however.  My car decided to start acting up again with a loss of power. It wouldn’t go over 55mph at the best of times and there were a few hills on the way that I was sure we were not going to summit. It had done a bit of this while my parents were here in April, but two Honda dealerships had told me there was nothing wrong with the car and it had been behaving itself in the intervening months.

We discussed getting a rental car to finish the drive to the game reserve, but by now we were out in the middle of nowhere and would have had to retrace our steps significantly to get a rental.  After much prayer we continued on our slow way and thankfully made it to the reserve and back to Mafikeng without the car giving up.  My local mechanic thought it might be the catalytic converter and, sure enough, getting rid of the converter fixed the problem (thankfully it isn’t illegal to remove it here).  It was such a relief for the rest of the team’s visit to have a fully functional car!  The Deceiver does his best to sow chaos and doubt, but God’s faithfulness shines through.

While in Mmabatho, the team spent time with the students on rotation in our clinic, helped with a rabies vaccination outreach in a local village, taught several review sessions for all the final year students, went out witnessing with our Acts 1:8 students, shared their testimonies on multiple occasions, helped with an overnight AWANA camp at church, and generally poured into the lives of the students at NWU.  The two technicians were especially well placed for connecting with the students and giving great practical advice.

One of the technicians on the STM team is a new believer so we were also blessed to baptize her on the last night of the trip!  Wonderful memories formed for everyone.

On another note, shortly after you receive this letter I’ll be flying back to the US for my furlough.  It would be wonderful to meet up with you while I’m home. I’m also happy to speak to churches, Bible studies, etc about the work God is doing here at NWU.  Please get in touch if you would like to connect while I’m home (Nov-Jan).  I will also be attending the Fetch veterinary continuing education conference in San Diego so if you will be there, please let me know!  My contact details follow:

Postnet Suite 030, Private Bag X2230, Mahikeng South 2791, South Africa

Cell +27 82 052 3837 (WhatsApp and SMS/text)

                                                    

hislightrq@hotmail.com  |    www.cvmusa.org/quam   |    www.facebook.com/GoSpeakLiveBoldly 

August 2018 - Generics

Generics...Do they work as well as brand name products?  Even if they contain the same ingredients chemically, are they as effective?  Those are questions we often ask in veterinary medicine.  Some generics we know and trust, while others have been proven to be significantly less effective.

In a non-medical sense, I’ve experienced this recently when my ancient Samsung phone battery died.  Going without a phone wasn’t really an option, so I went down to the local shop and bought a replacement battery.   After getting home, I replaced the old battery with the new one and powered on my phone.  Voila!  Works just the same as it did before and only cost $10!  However…a few hours later…I realized the battery would only power my phone for a couple of hours.  Less if I was actively using it.  Now, I have to leave it plugged in to a charger most of the time or it just shuts down.

This generic battery looked the same as the Samsung; same size, same type of battery, supposedly the same strength, but a fifth of the cost of the real thing.  On my next trip to Jo’burg I visited a Samsung store and ordered an authentic replacement battery to get me though till my trip home this winter, when I hope to upgrade my phone.  I just can’t deal with the frustration and reduced effectiveness of the generic till then.  Now, I’m waiting anxiously till my next trip to Jo’burg to pick up the replacement.

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.”’ Matthew 7:21-23

Unfortunately, many of us also chose to replace God with generics.  On the surface these generic gods may look the same, but I guarantee they won’t work when it comes to our eternal salvation.  What are some of these generic gods?  When we believe Jesus is only one of many ways to get to God, we believe in a generic god (John 14:6).  When we believe that following Jesus means life will be easy and he will bring us material wealth, we believe in a generic Jesus (Acts 14:22). When we believe that going to church and doing our best to do good will get us to heaven, we are following a generic god (Eph 2:8-9).

Why do we choose these generics?  Just as in material cases, they seem cheaper or easier than the real thing and look just as good.  Choosing the real God means we must take up our cross and follow Him.  It requires sacrifices on our part. It is often painful and seems too difficult.  But I will tell you straight, as I tell many of my clients, getting the real thing will be worth it (and often cheaper) in the long run.  Don’t settle for a generic god when the real One is knocking on the door of your heart.

June 2018 - Baptisms and Travels

Only two months have passed since I wrote my last prayer letter, but I’ve received my visa renewal for another three years, baptized four students, traveled through four countries, visited seven of nine provinces in SA, driven 5,700 miles, and packed/repacked my luggage countless time. Life has been a bit busy!

Connie, Boitumelo, Pumla, Tafadzwa, and Thato after their baptisms

My parents and a family friend visited during the month of April and we traveled around South Africa and several surrounding countries. It was such a blessing to show them around Mafikeng, introduce them to some of the students I disciple, and wow them with the beauty of this incredible country. My parents also learned the reality of the phrase TIA (This is Africa…) – things just aren’t the way they are back home. Plans must be flexible and we must be as well.

My parents experienced water outages at my house, requests for bribes, tourist destinations that open whenever they want regardless of posted open hours, flat tires, and roads that have more potholes than they do asphalt. But they also met wonderful people, a business willing to change our tire even though they were closed, and caring staff at the hospital where my Mom had two surgeries after falling and breaking her arm.

My parents on the right and out family friend, Lois, on the left

 One of the highlights of our travels was visiting Victoria Fall in Zimbabwe. We were there during the high water season so the spray from the falls rises up to 2,000 feet into the air. As you walk along the ridge opposite the falls the mist is so thick you can’t see the falls themselves and the spray falls back down as a deluge. Despite having waterproof ponchos we were soaked!

Now that my parents have flown back home, I’m settling into the routines of life here once again. The last group of students for the term is on rotation in the clinic and in a few weeks they will be starting exams. In early June I’ll be organizing their practical exams in the clinic where they demonstrate the skills and practical knowledge they have gained. I will have 10-15 minutes with each of 70+ students over 2 days to assess their competence in animal handling, vaccine choice and administration, fecal parasite exams, dispensing of medications, etc. It is always grueling, but fulfilling as well when I see students flourishing.

Our Acts 1:8 witnessing group is finished for the term, but the Monday night student Bible studies and Sunday night church at my house will continue through exams.

I’m also planning and preparing for a small, short-term veterinary mission group that will be arriving in July. Please be praying for that team, that they will be able to get to know the students and encourage them as well as grow spiritually themselves during their time here in Mafikeng.

Please also pray for me as I begin planning my furlough back to the US this winter. I’ll be back for three months and will hopefully do quite a bit of traveling to meet with my supporters, speak at CVM events and conferences, get some continuing education taken care of, visit churches, etc. The organizing and the busy schedule will be a challenge.

Till next time….

April 2018 - Shaun's Story

After Koketso’s story in my last prayer letter was so well received, I’d like to share Oageng’s testimony. Oageng, or Shaun for his English name, has been part of our Acts 1:8 witnessing program and Bible studies from his first term in 2015. He was introduced to the project by a friend from his home church outside Rustenburg, about 2 hours from Mahikeng, who was also attending NWU. Oageng is now in his final year of Animal Health and I’m looking forward to having him on rotation in the small animal clinic.

Oageng has an infectious smile and a gentle humility that belies his rough years in Rustenburg (which he seriously downplays in this testimony). Here is his story.

“My name is Oageng Shaun Mosito from Rustenburg South Africa. In 2005, I lost both my parents, I was 10 years old still naive and not fully aware of many things. Little did I know that this had an impact in my life.

“I started to live two lives being a good child at home and a naughty child at school. Due to the bitterness that was in my life I started to bullying other kids at school and started to smoke glue privately. When I was at home I would be a good boy, however at school I'll be a monster. I was in a verge of being involved in real gangsterism.

“But midyear 2009, my Aunt invited me to her church. After hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ I started to change. I started not to enjoy the things I used to do and gradually my life started to change and is still changing.

My life since took a 180 degrees turn. I no longer smoke glue and I no longer live two lives of hypocrisy. I am a new creation; the old has passed away. I'm currently in the university of North-West South Africa, doing my final year in Bsc Animal health.”

Oageng is now a great witness for Christ, passionate about sharing his faith, and involved in training younger students. Please pray that he will be able to balance the demands of his final year with those of church, Bible study, Acts 1:8, and personal time with the Lord. Please also pray that he will be well prepared over the next few months to leave university and embark on the next stages of his life. We will miss him next year!

Feb 2018 - Koketso

For the New Year, I want to share with you the stories of some of the students I work with and mentor on campus.  Koketso is starting her second year at university this month and is in the animal health course.  She was very active in our witnessing training group, Acts 1:8, last year and jointed us on our outreach to Lesotho.  She also regularly attends our Bible study and home church. During one of our movie showings last year she was also brave enough to share her testimony with all the students that attended.  I’ll let her tell her story…

“I am Koketso Mogashoa from South Africa (Pretoria), currently studying Animal Health in the North-West University Mafikeng campus. I am blessed with a family of 7, my grandparents, uncle and his wife, mom and step-father and lastly my younger sister. My grandfather is a pastor at a Baptist church which makes both him and my grandmother to be servants.

“I am raised by my mother’s aunt (grandmother’s sister). On a regular bases, we would have visitors at my grandparent’s home, visiting for counseling or just for a normal catch up and wherever they were it was almost impossible to have their attention. At that particular time my mom worked at a house selling agent so she often travelled and left me behind as work got hectic and neither did I have enough time to spend with her. My dad on the other hand is a man of his own kind he doesn’t care about me or anyone this is pretty obvious that we don’t have a good relationship.

“I felt lonely, miserable, hurting, fearful, unwanted and I would often spend time alone .Time went by feeling the very same pain, it was made worse when my mother’s aunt was laid to rest hence I had to move with my mother, younger sister and my step-father .I moved with them in a state of hate and disbelieve that I lost someone who was like a mother. My step-father started abusing me emotionally, but I woke up every morning with hope that my mother will one day stand firm and be on my side but she didn’t and she ended up chasing me out of their house leaving me homeless and to cut the long story short I now live with my grandparents .

“On one Sunday the preacher was preaching about peace, friendship, love and freedom God offers in his relationship and I felt the urgency of grabbing the opportunity and ever since my life has never been the same again. This means I agreed to the fact that Jesus Christ is the only mediator between I and God, that I fully depend on him for eternity and that there is no church or rules that can make me have eternal life. God really intervened in my life I have peace, freedom, love, I am no longer feeling lonely, I know I am his priority and I have a friend in him. Isn’t that great!”

Koketso has been a wonderful sister-in-Christ to mentor and I look forward to working with her over the next few years.  Please keep her in your prayers that she would flourish spiritually and academically this year.