A Day in the Life of Modern Missionaries - thoughts from Minda

We’re up at 6:00 to have some prayer and study time and then at 7:15 Paul drives Peter to preschool. At 7:40, our nanny, Winnie arrives at our house to care for John David and I walk to the office so that I can get rolling before Peter P. comes in at 8:00.

In the office, I sit at a desk with two windows behind me, which I can look out of and see the same hills that I was so fond of as a teenager when my family lived and worked here 20 years ago. Some days I work with my windows open and enjoy the breeze and the sounds of the birds. But what’s happening inside the office is not so tranquil! Things are fast paced as I scurry around trying to juggle the constant inflow of information and requests for the CEO of this continually growing organization. Joint Aid Management has 700+ employees world-wide, operations in seven African nations and support offices in six countries in North America and Europe. Peter is also president of the gospel ministry, Jesus Alive Ministries, whose offices are housed adjacent to our property. All of the activity associated with all this plus the many requests for speaking engagements around the world and the boards that Peter serves on for other ministries and organizations and other non-profits he is assisting to get off the ground are constantly vying for Peter’s attention… and it all flows to me before making it to him! But this is what I signed up for and I love it. I love it because I love the work of God’s hands that we’re accomplishing. I love the privilege to be around and serve this man everyday whose heart beats with so much compassion and passion.

In the studio, Paul has just been part of the launch of our new website: http://www.jamint.com/ and is learning so much about web administration. He still has another month of training before he begins to function on his own and begins developing projects in conjunction with the website. Even the avenue of Facebook is being employed to generate interest and ultimately partnership in our programs.

Paul picks Peter up from school at 12:30 and brings him back to our house where they eat together and then I come home for an hour (1:00-2:00) while Winnie takes a break. I so enjoy that hour with the boys in the middle of the day. Then I’m back to work at 2:00 (the South Africans eat lunch at 1:00 so the afternoon part of the work day really goes quickly!).

Winnie lives adjacent to the mission base as her husband is one of the construction workers employed on base. She is such a blessing and a big part of the Lord’s provision for us here in South Africa. It is part of the culture here to have full-time help in your home. She was a must in order for us to be able to do what we came to do. In addition to being a gentle and loving care-giver to the boys, she assists me with taking care of our home. She’s always done with the chores by midday so that she can play all afternoon with the boys. The work that Winnie does affords us wonderful quality family time together once our working hours are completed.

The boys and Winnie visit with the other children and nannies on the base. There are quite a few families with children. Three other families have children the same ages as ours; one of those families is American. The boys have lots of friends!

At 5:00 we’re home – no commute! – and we enjoy the outdoors a bit with the boys and I make dinner, etc. We keep the front and back doors open. The fresh air here is so wonderful. The first thing I do each morning is open the bathroom and kitchen windows. There is no central air conditioning or heat, but it is amazing how comfortable we are with the natural air flow. We often eat dinner on our veranda where we have a table and enjoy the absolutely breathtaking sunsets. At 7:00 we bathe our thoroughly dirty boys, scrubbing black knees and feet and then we all sit on Peter’s bed together for “book-in-the-bed” and family prayer as we each take turns praying about whatever is on our hearts. We tuck them into their beds in their rooms and then Paul and I make a pot of African Rooibos herbal tea to enjoy together as we talk. We’ll catch up on emails, read, etc. and then we usually go to bed pretty early (for us)… 10:00 or so.

I still can’t believe we’re back in my beloved South Africa. I just want to pinch myself sometimes. We are so at peace. We’re at peace in our home, on this property, in our jobs, in our family. We’re experiencing such a stillness to just “be”. There is no sense of striving or reaching for something “out there”. We’re really enjoying just being “here”. I know this is a feeling that God will soon want to stir and enlarge as we come into the reasons why we are here. But it is so good to feel the confidence that we feel in where God has brought us to today.

News from the Nichols

We are loving South Africa. We have moved into our home and are enjoying life on the mission base. We’ve been at work for a week now. Paul is working literally next door to our house in the studio. He has been undergoing training for the technical side of his job which has been pretty intense, but his “fuel” has been the stories, pictures and videos surrounding him in the studio. He’s had several moving experiences as he’s learned more about JAM’s work and it’s not been hard to find inspiration for the work at hand… wanting to get word out to the world via JAM’s websites so that more can be done for the children. In addition to administrating the sites for JAM (the relief organization) he will also do the same for Jesus Alive Ministries, the evangelistic organization. He looks forward to opportunities to write and edit as well as brainstorm on ways that the websites can be better tools.

Minda was grateful to have a week to get up to speed with Peter Pretorius’ previous assistant while Peter was away in Angola on a filming shoot with Life Outreach International (James Robison) and special guest Ruth Graham (Billy Graham’s daughter) who came out to see the work being done. Look for the footage on upcoming Life Today broadcasts. Peter is back in town now and Minda is amazed at how easy it has been to fit into the flow of things in assisting him. She has felt graced to step into her place.

Our Peter is at preschool every morning and is learning all the new ways and words in the culture around him. (They do speak English, but use some different terms and phrases). He is making many new friends and LOVES to play outside in the afternoons on the grounds surrounding our home.

God has blessed us with a wonderful African nanny for John David. Winnie is the wife of one of the builders on the JAM construction staff. She is very nurturing and gentle. Several days after she began coming into our home, we were struggling to get John David to take his nap and he was crying. Winnie put John David on her back and wrapped a blanket around him and tied it at her waist as the African women do with their babies. He immediately became calm and quickly fell asleep. This has become part of their daily routine as Winnie busies herself with other tasks. It’s so sweet.

On the ministry side of things we have visited with two churches whom we have relationship with and are setting up times for fellowship with the leadership in order to further determine where we feel to connect locally.

When we visited South Africa in September of last year, God spoke to Paul’s heart from Isaiah 61. Since arriving four weeks ago, this word has been resonating in our hearts concerning the Lord’s purpose for us in this land. According to Isaiah 61, God sends His people, anointed with His Spirit to bring good news to the poor; to heal them, comfort them and bring them liberty. According to this passage, God’s heart is that THEY then would rise up to rebuild the ruins and desolate places around them, destroyed by the generations before them.

This is certainly our heart in all we are doing here. This is the work that JAM is doing in feeding 500,000 children throughout the continent of Africa every day, in drilling holes for clean water, in the malnutrition clinics nursing the starving back to health. This is also what Jesus Alive is doing in taking the gospel to the unreached inhabitants of rural Africa. JAM has numerous development projects underway in the various countries where our programs exist to not just leave the communities the way we find them, but rather “helping Africa help itself.”

Please visit http://www.jamint.com/

"Consider the Poor"

(thoughts from Paul)

This week I was asked if I had heard about the "million rand robbery." I had not. Apparently, there had been an organized, armed robbery in Johannesburg where 1/2 to 1 million rand worth of items were stolen. The robbery was aggressive and included over 20 men with AK-47 and other automatic weapons. Forty rounds of ammunition were fired. Thankfully, no one had been hurt. I asked where this had taken place and was grieved to hear that it was in Sandton, a wealthy community only 30 minutes from my new home. Though the conversation remained casual and I showed no outward evidence of fear I could not ignore the terrible senses I was having from the several "what if" scenarios developing in my mind. What if Peter...? What if John David...?

My mind knew this was fear and that I needed to be in faith for God's protection, but still the thoughts and feelings ensued.

That night I spent my prayer time bringing this issue before God. I had a wonderful time in His presence, casting all of my cares upon Him. Afterward, I picked up where I had left off in my bible study, which happened to bring me that night to this very verse:

"Blessed is the man who considers the poor: the Lord will deliver Him in time of trouble. The Lord will preserve Him, and keep him alive; and he shall be blessed upon the earth: and you will not deliver him to the will of his enemies" (Psalm 41: 1,2)

All of the feelings and fears vanished in the light of God's Word and promises. A great sense of peace and excitment settled over me as I knew the creator of Heaven and Earth was covenanting with me to deliver and preserve me, keep me (and my family) alive, bless me and deliver me.

But, the context in which the Lord spoke this promise was not merely because I was "in His will," or because I had moved to Africa in obedience. The context of this promise was in considering the poor.

God's "father heart" aches and breaks over every soul who does not have enough food to eat. How would I feel watching Peter or John David starving to death due to malnutrition? The thought exceeds my imagination. God's heart feels that and moreso for every hungry child in Africa and throughout the world. He has covenanted with His people that we can be His very Body on earth and do the very works of God. If only He can find those in His Body who would "consider the poor," who would personally identify with their need to the point of action. Only then can He fulfill the desires He feels so strongly towards the starving and needy.

Will you consider the poor? Will you look beyond the issues of your own life and create a place in your heart to care for those in desperate need the way He does? It is to people who would do such that God promises to aid in their time of need.

If you would like to know more about how you can be a part of meeting the needs of the starving children in Africa, please visit www.jamint.org.

Every Goodbye is Followed by a Hello

The plane touched down after 15 hours in the sky and the pilot said, "After a marathon journey it is my pleasure to give you a hearty welcome to African soil." We are home.

It's amazing how Africa just seems to wrap her arms around our hearts. It feels so right to be here. We arrived at the Joint Aid Management base and we are staying in a temporary accommodation used for visitors until our own home is ready to be occupied. (They are knocking down some walls in one of the existing staff housing units to convert it into a three-bedroom unit for our family. We'll be in it by the end of the month.)

This morning we had a brief meeting with Peter Pretorius just to touch base. Then Paul and Minda took Peter N. to visit a Christian preschool 15 minutes from the base where we've decided to enroll him. The school year began here yesterday, so Peter will start Monday and be in on it from the beginning! He's so excited. He said, "Mommy, can this be my school?" (The principal of the school was Minda's brother's teacher when her family lived here 20 years ago.) It is Summer here in the Southern Hemisphere and so today the boys are already loving playing barefoot outside on the green grass and enjoying the spacious and safe grounds on the base.

We are excited to pursue our plans for this first phase of our journey after arrival. We will need to get up to speed with our roles at JAM Headquarters here on base. We also feel we have several important relationships with various church leaders already developing. We will be visiting several of these and discerning where we will fellowship locally, and also have as a local covering.

Before starting work with JAM on February 1st, we will be accumulating furnishings for our new home as well as acquiring a bank account, cell phones and a car, interviewing and hiring a nanny for John David, getting over jetlag and getting settled into our new home. Minda's parents are here on one of their many trips to South Africa and so they are providing much appreciated help with the kids, etc.

WE ASK FOR PRAYERS during this transition time - for ability to adjust easily, for wisdom in making decisions, for provision for needs. Thank you for carrying us in your hearts. We are so aware of all of our friends and family and carry you in our hearts as well.

Anyone who wishes to contribute towards our relocation costs and the work we will do with JAM can do so by mailing a check to DDMI at the following address and your gift will be tax deductible. (Please mark your gift for the Nichols.)

DDMI
Nichols Mission
2457 Airport Thruway
PMB #220
Columbus, GA 31904

Thank you.

Update:

We are planning to leave Dublin on Tuesday, January 6th and will spend a week with family before departing for South Africa from Atlanta on Tuesday, January 13th.

We are planning to depart for South Africa on January 7th (pending the processing of our residence permits in time). We have sold most of our belongings and are “camping out” in our unfurnished house: sleeping on air mattresses, eating on paper plates and borrowing a TV and microwave from a friend! We’re filling our days with necessary preparations for the move and precious visits with friends and family.

Upon arrival in Johannesburg, we will get over our jet lag and begin to set up our new residence on the mission base of Joint Aid Management (JAM). We’ll visit preschools and enroll Peter as well as interview nannies for in-home childcare for John David. We are set to begin in our positions with JAM on February 1st.

Minda will be working as Personal Assistant to Peter Pretorius, helping him during the transition period of the next few years as he prepares to give the leadership of the organization to his son. Paul is going to be managing the websites, writing and editing stories as well as monitoring donations coming in to track their effectiveness. http://www.jamint.com/

We are very much looking with anticipation to this new opportunity in front of us. In addition to our work with JAM, there are many churches and ministries who are doing so much effective good in South Africa, whom we look forward to building relationship with and ministering with as opportunity provides. We love South Africa and can hardly believe we’ll be living there in just a matter of weeks!

This is a missionary endeavor and so we have undertaken the challenge of getting there and the many expenses that go along with that such as fees for residence visas (plus the expenses of acquiring all the legal documentation required), airfare, and the accumulating of furnishings for our new home. If you would like to give towards making the work we will do possible, tax-deductible contributions can be made to DDMI (Divine Design Ministries International) and all funds will go fully to us. Please mail to:
DDMI
Nichols Mission
2457 Airport Thruway
PMB #220

Columbus, GA 31904

Thank you for the interest and support that so many of you have expressed and for being a part of this exciting journey with us. We will continue to update as our “new season” in life unfolds!

May you have a Merry Christmas, celebrating all you hold most dear and may you experience God’s blessing in your 2009!

In Summary

We have returned safely to Dublin, Georgia and are basking in the richness of everything we have experienced in South Africa.

We were overjoyed to see people come into the Kingdom of God. We were honored to minister to 11 congregations, Bible Schools and ministries and so humbled by the flow of grace we experienced. We truly “stood on top of” what has been built into us over the years of formation and sensed an authority to communicate as well as a receptivity and need for the things God has entrusted to us. We witnessed God’s hand of guidance as we made numerous purposeful connections over coffee, in restaurants and in homes with spiritual fathers, leaders and the emerging generation in that land.

Before leaving for South Africa, we stated that the purpose of the trip was to put our feet on the ground and see what we experienced… walk through the open doors believing they would lead to open doors for the future. Through God’s Word to our hearts while away, through the witness of the Holy Spirit in our spirits and through the connections made we feel a growing confidence in the purposes of God for us in that land. Our hearts are now connected with the work of God in South Africa and Africa in a more deep way and we look forward to the future and watching God’s plans develop.

We realize that all we have been a part of over the past four weeks is not due to anything special that we are, but it is because of God’s goodness and His commitment to the destiny of His people. If we make what He is doing in the earth our priority, it is His pleasure to bring us into our place in that plan.

We thank you for your interest and your friendship. Thank you for being part of this journey with us – we were so aware of your support. We hope you have been enriched and inspired to fully participate in all that God is doing in your life and in the earth.

All praise to God!