A life full of purpose in the sight of God and others, is the only life that really offers fulfilment
Follow me...
"I am the Road, also the Truth, also the Life. No one gets to the Father apart from me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him. You've even seen him!" (John 14:6 The Message)
We always try to keep the message as simple and practical as possible when we work with our outreaches on the streets of Cape Town and in our outreaches to women caught-up in prostitution. Many times we literally just have a few seconds to make personal contact. We usually use small gifts to make this connection (such as sealed homemade biscuits or cold mineral water in the summer). These gifts have a sticker with a yellow arrow and a message that reads: "I am the Way" – Jesus Christ (refering to John 14: 6).
"I am called by the Lord." Many people confess this, especially those committed to full-time ministry. Similar to the way Jesus called Levi or Nathanial to be his disciples with the words "follow me" 2000 years ago, He still calls us today. Should all who are called enter the ministry as pastors or ministers? Or a missionary in a faroff land? Do only those who are called serve the Lord full-time? No, because:
Calling is to follow Jesus. He calls us to live so closely to Him, that we will be able to see others through His eyes and hear others through his ears.
Calling happens in real life. Next to the fishing waters, Peter hears Jesus' voice. Levi hears Jesus calling him from his tax office. At Straatwerk we pray and trust that those who cross our paths will respond to Jesus' invitation: "Follow me".
All those who are called are full-time followers of Jesus, regardless of their occupation, status or age.
If we know deep in our hearts that we are made new in the Lord, as Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5, then we know that we are called to live a life of influence. Influence is always aimed outwardly. Influence means shining our light among others. Influence and making an impact means continuously sharing cups of cold water, and walking those extra mile journeys in the name of Jesus. Sometimes it is easier than we think.
There's a saying: "As you sow, so shall you reap". However, sometimes you reap where you didn't sow. Another word to describe this is grace. Grace is to receive that which you don't deserve. Grace is when God doesn't keep a lifetime of sowing in the fields of failure against you.
Hold on to the God of grace. His goodness meets us in unexpected times and places.
Greetings from Fourie and everyone at Straatwerk
Beanies, jerseys, teddy bears, dolls and scarves
This winter, women put their knitting and crocheting skills to great use. Scarves came in handy in our outreaches to women involved in prostitution, who try desperately to make a living in the most adverse weather conditions.
The Valuable to Jesus campaign on the Cape Flats is gaining great momentum, with four leaders currently training other women, inspiring them and ensuring that everything runs smoothly.
Part of our outreach efforts to women caught up in prostitution is to extend invitations to engage with us. Even simple “please call me” messages are taken seriously and are followed up.
Teenagers are not the easiest bunch of people to work with, and the teens of Badsberg Close, Heideveld, and the surrounding neighbourhood are no exception. Drugs available on every corner, teenage pregnancy considered acceptable, gangsterism with the allure of quick money and power and poverty. Read more...
A life full of purpose in the sight of God and others, is the only life that really offers fulfilment
Usefulness
We recently received an unexpected email addressed to our manager who is responsible for the ministry to the destitute and desperate. It read, “I don’t believe you know who I am, but I would just like to thank you and your team from the bottom of my heart for the noble task you undertook in cleaning the Liesbeek River. So many people easily complain, but only a few are willing to bend over and pick up the litter. I am quite sure that you only receive 1% of the praise that you deserve, but please know that there are in fact people who recognise and appreciate your work and who rejoice at it”.
I admit that picking up litter has become somewhat of a forte of everyone involved at Straatwerk. Projek Opruim teams are involved in this every day in various areas and the night outreach teams get involved amongst those enjoying the city’s nightlife, every Friday evening on the streets of Cape Town. As part of community awareness prayer, litter is picked up around schools on the Cape Flats while praying. (A significant group of women pray specifically for the school children affected by sexual abuse, prostitution and pornography as part of the Valuable to Jesus campaign.)
The well-known leadership guru, Jim Collins, once asked his mentor to describe success, to which his mentor replied: “Life is not about being successful, but about being useful”. Offering service and being of use to those around you is what life is about – and the Bible attests to this. “For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.” Eph. 2:10. Something is stirred when one takes practical action. One of the most quoted prayers one would find on fridge magnets or bible coversnowadays also affirms this: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.” This prayer was written by Reinhold Niebuhr when he served as a young pastor in his first congregation in Detroit during the 1920s, in the time of the great depression in the USA.
Realism asks that we think smaller, more modest, but that we try and do what our hands find to do, within reach of our ability. Realism is the wisdom (asked for in this prayer) that does not become dejected, helpless and therefore stuck at inaction because of everything that cannot be done, but is willing to start on a small scale, step by step. This is the essence of Paul’s message in 1 Cor. 15:58 where he states that in light of the gospel, we should be abundant in all that we do, because our labour in service of the Lord is not in vain. That leaves no room for cynicism, because there is always something to do.
Greetings from Fourie and everyone at Straatwerk
The miracle of Jesus Saves Daily
Every person deserves a place to belong. Neither race nor title, income, address, gender, nor any other category should stand in the way of letting someone feel that they belong. Perhaps this is wishful thinking, but when you see the Jesus Saves Daily teams in action, you know that this isn't a far-off dream.
We like to think that guardian angels are working overtime at Straatwerk – but do we really understand the role that angels play in our lives? The lastest book from Sannie Wiese sheds light on topics such as: do I have my own guardian angel; what do angels look like; children and their angels.
Who would have thought that children prefer to sit and read and build puzzles, rather than playing outside with balls, hula hoops, and skipping ropes? Who could have imagined that children would want to attend a literacy class, instead of playing games?
