Yes, it’s been a while, two and a half months to be exact, but what can we say… we’ve been extremely busy trying to corral the 79 kids Christ has blessed us with at Naledi Christian Academy and at the same time train new staff and minister to them and the other children, youth and adults living on the property. Christ has been faithful to provide laborers (keep reading…) and we promise we’ll do our best to send these updates out on a regular basis.

Welcome Back Ma’am Taylor!

We are blessed to have Taylor Van Duinen back serving with us in the capacity of “International Project Coordinator”. Taylor spent five weeks with us last year as a short-term volunteer and has decided to join us for a longer term. When she is not helping the kids brush their teeth Taylor will be coordinating our Child Sponsorship Program (keep reading…) and assume some responsibility for communicating with you through our newsletters, website, Facebook and Twitter feeds. If you are interested in what it’s like to leave family and friends behind to pursue Christ’s call on your life in another country, Taylor is also maintaining a personal website or blog that describe parts of her personal journal in more detail at http://tnvd88.wix.com/immeasurablymore.

Easter Camp

Taylor Van Duinen

With the month of April comes a slew of school holidays in South Africa, the first of which stretched from Monday, May 31 to Friday. April 4. Some of our parents had requested that we stay open for the week, so that their kids would have a safe place to go, while they were working. So as an experiment, we hosted an “Easter camp” for the students that wanted to come. We cut the hours of the teachers in half so they could have a mini-break, and journeyed through the life of Jesus in the final days before his death and resurrection.

On the first day, the students learned about Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. “Hosanna!” was a new word for the kids, but they jumped at any opportunity to chant it throughout the day as we reviewed the story with the felt board, coloring pages and drama.

Day two emphasized the last supper with Jesus and His 12 closest friends. It just so happened that 13 four and five year olds were in attendance, which perfectly set the stage for a dramatization of the story. One of our small but mighty students keenly volunteered to be Jesus, and proceeded to wash the feet of his 12 classmates. When it was Peter’s turn, he washed his hands and little, shaved head as well. Be careful what you ask for, Peter! When the basin was put aside, Jesus asked his friends to remember him as he broke a loaf of bread and passed a piece to everyone.

The following day we reviewed Jesus’ prayer in the garden, and encouraged the children to talk openly with their heavenly Father as Jesus did. Thursday was a heavy day for a few of the little ones who were visibly moved by what happened to Jesus on the day of His crucifixion, even the mild version that we reviewed. Thank goodness that’s not the end of the story!

Friday was spent rejoicing over the hope that we have, because Jesus is alive! For many of the students, this was their first exposure to these stories, and each day, they seemed to absorb them like sponges. Please pray with us that the seeds planted in their little hearts would be nurtured, and that they would be excited to learn more truths from the Bible throughout the year.

“A picture is worth a thousand words…”

Words sometimes are not enough to describe the impact Christ is having in and around the place He prepared for us and the people He called us to and entrusted to us to bring the Good News of His Love to. We are praying that one day each and every one of you will have an opportunity to visit and see first-hand the impact your support of this ministry is having in the lives of the people we are blessed to touch.

We were blessed to have professional filmmaker Jeremy Schmidt from Calvary Chapel Chester Springs spend a week with us last year in South Africa to document the mission and vision of TentMaker Ministries and the work Christ is doing in and through us and His teaching, training and resource center in Ikageng. It’s been said that “a picture is worth a thousand words”, so until you are able to come and experience what Christ is doing here first hand, we hope that this video which Jeremy produced will give you a better understanding of the eternal impact your support is having. In order to protect the safety and security of the children, local, and international staff who appear in the video we can not post a link to it on-line. If you would like a copy on DVD for a private showing in your home or church, or if you would like to arrange for a representative of TentMaker Ministries to visit with your church, bible study, or home group please email your request to info@TentMakerMinistries.com.

Child Sponsorship

Did we mention we had 79 children ages 2-6 currently enrolled in Naledi Christian Academy? Praise God, we do! Some of those 79 children are still in need of sponsorship, which helps provide them with the necessities for a healthy and successful start to their life – nutrition, early childhood development, education and health.

Sponsoring a child not only helps the sponsored child, it also helps lift the community, as our programs reach children’s parents, caregivers, community members and the staff who are employed at the school. Together we help change the lives of all these people, protect them from exploitation and provide them with hope for the future.

If you’d like to sponsor a child it’s easy to do so… just click here or on the “DONATE NOW” button at the top right of this page and set up a one-time or recurring donation of $300 per year or $25 per month for each child you would like to sponsor. Be sure to include your email address so we can contact you regarding the child(ren) you would like to sponsor.

Click here to link to a two-sided, tri-fold brochure which explains the Child Sponsorship program in more detail.

Visible Hope?

Susan Weibel

Do you think it is possible to ‘see’ hope? How often do we hear someone say that we must give hope to someone? But in reality, is it really possible to measure and see hope? I would probably be one that would say hope is not visible to the eye… until this year!

Naledi Christian Academy is blessed to have employed 11 staff members, and each one of them has a story of their own. We truly know that after many prayers, God has hand-picked every one of them! For the majority of the women, this is the first job they have ever had and they have found themselves in total shock when asked if they would like to join our staff.

They have quickly formed a bond in the 3 short months they have worked together. In fact, at the beginning of the year, they were so fond of each other that when the clock struck four we have had to tell them it was time to go home, otherwise they would stay and chat for hours with their newly founded sisters. We learned that they felt so safe and at peace with each other when on the school property that they did not want to go home at the end of the day.

Their untaught actions and words never cease to amaze us… They never leave each other alone-if one teacher has to stay late with a child, another staff member will always team up and stay behind with her. One person might unexpectedly belt into a song following morning prayer time, and usually by someone you would least expect. The staff takes pride in their school, keeping every inch of it spotlessly clean. They have learned how to collect and honestly record school fees every month. Teachers and assistants wipe tears from little ones eyes when they are not ready to leave their momma for the school day, loving that child as much as they would their own child. And they know how to have fun – picture our cleaner scrubbing a toilet while grooving to the beat of Willow Creek’s awesome children’s song “Dance, Shout, Sing”, and finally throwing the toilet brush aside and running into the classroom to dance with the children.

Other uplifting notes include a 26-yr old mother experiencing her first job ever and sharing a story about how she was able to purchase paint to paint interior walls of her home that had never been painted, with such excitement in her voice. A few employees have learned how to save if even the smallest amount of money so that they are not broke when an unexpected funeral arises that they must attend. The school principal encourages and preaches on the unexpected ‘opportunity’ that God has set before each one of them, including herself, and how they must not waste it.

One of the greatest compliments we receive is when visitors come to visit our school and say that they can ‘see’ the love in the eyes of our children and the staff members That is what we want to be all about. The Lord has reassured us that one of our assignments for TentMaker Ministries being here is to employ and teach people to live a life of purpose. We see our staff sharing together in Christ’s love, experiencing true relationships with each other, building each other up, participating in new activities daily, nurturing children, and ultimately, our prayer is for them to take this newly found knowledge and Christian way of life into their homes and communities.

In May, we will be adding employee #12 to our team. Another woman, whose family now relies upon a neighbor for food, will be given the opportunity to bring not only a paycheck home to clothe and feed her children, but a new lifestyle that honors the One who has given us all Hope. Can one see hope? We sure can!

Thank you for being a part of this God-inspired journey of bringing hope to our staff at Naledi Christian Academy!

Changes in newsletter/social media

We make the safety and security of all of the people Christ has entrusted to us one of our highest priorities, especially the children. For this reason we are making some changes in how information regarding our operations and the people we serve is communicated to our partners. For now our website and social media platform content will be limited to general, non-specific information regarding operations and individuals. More specific information will only be provided via periodic PrayerMails and Monthly Newsletters which people must “opt-in” or subscribe to.  In order to receive the more personal version of our newsletter directly in your email inbox must subscribe to it by clicking here or on the last link on the bottom of the left column of this page.