The Mirror

Last week I was told that, if a SA citizen spends more than 180 days outside of South Africa, he gets exemption from income tax! Maybe I can do it this year! The year has been loaded with travel, to some places I’ve never seen, meeting people I had previously only known by email, and discovering more of the marvellous diversity of God’s family, and the riches of both grace and gifting only found with all the saints’ (Eph).

Some years ago a Vineyard pastor from the UK shared a vision he had received, which he felt was for me. It had to do with ‘targets’ over a map of Africa, and seemed to be calling me to greater involvement in West, East & North Africa. It culminated with a picture of a cross super-imposed over Africa, with its top in Egypt, its foot in the Cape, and the cross-piece reaching from Somalia to Nigeria. The Cross represented, not merely evangelism, but the establishing of a Christ-like lifestyle in the nations of Africa - the redemption of Africa from poverty to the riches of God’s Grace.

January took me to Florida, USA, for a strategy conference for the AVC USA Missions Partnership for Africa. All the US Vineyards who were, or wanted to be, involved in missions in Africa were invited, and the principles of partnership were worked out in depth. We were blessed to meet & sense the servant hearts of 200 Vineyard leaders who are committed to our nations’ Kingdom welfare.

In February, most of the AVC SA Leadership team were in Harare, where we met with all the African AVC’s Structural leaders, and the Sub-Saharan African Vineyard Leaders’ Network (or SADEC AVC) was born. SADEC is actually a misnomer, because we have a focus wider than just the SADEC nations. We felt the Lord challenge us to share resources, both of leadership, materials and finance, between those nations who are committed to this Regional AVC and beyond it.

In March, I visited Egypt for the first time. The Arabic nations Prayer Summit was held in Alexandria, and I was blown away to discover the Arabic Church, united at a deep and sacrificial level, where leadership was seamlessly shared, and 7000 people were led in passionate, intimate worship by 12 different church’s worship bands, without any jarring or disharmony. Church leaders and ‘marketplace ministers’ shared in leading the conference into prayer. I met the leaders of the Evangelical Council and the Transformations movement, and they lead side by side, equally committed to One Body of Christ, to Evangelising their nations and to effective prayer. Struck me that the three things are mutually exclusive. Without genuine unity, neither Evangelism nor Prayer will reach optimum effectiveness.

On the way home from Egypt I spent a week in East Africa, visiting Tanzania and Rwanda as well as Kenya, and meeting with the leaders of each of 3 regional groupings of Vineyard churches there. Rwanda was a particularly moving experience, seeing a nation that has been ravaged by genocide (5 major outbreaks, between 1959 and of course the climactic 100 days in 1994), coming into a quietly determined place of reconciliation. We can learn so much from that nation. Every citizen is involved in an educational process about Tribalism and Racism, which includes a visit to the genocide memorials. Every citizen is also required to work in the community on the last Saturday of every month, cleaning the neighbourhood and generally improving the environment. Rwanda is like the Switzerland of Africa!

In April, Alexander & I spoke at the West African Vineyard Leadership Conference in Accra, Ghana, where about 150 leaders from several Francophone nations of Africa and Europe met for a ‘What is the Vineyard’ Conference. We met some delightful people, and saw an interesting variation in levels of understanding and implementation of Vineyard values.

In May I returned to East Africa, this time visiting Kenya and Burundi, where great things have been happening, and the first Vineyard has grown from 4 people to 300 in 3 years. This visit to Kenya, sadly, coincided with the announcement of Peter Twycross’ resignation from ministry, in the light of his decision to divorce Judy. You have been given appropriate information about this through another emailed memo, but I again ask you to pray for Peter & Judy and their family, and to extend grace toward them.

The Windshield

The ‘backward look’ over the past 6 months describes a number of linked factors that call us to prayerful action for the future. So, to look through the Windscreen:

Because we are working hard at genuine partnership with all AVC’s, such as the US, UK & Canada, we need to link our involvement in all the nations mentioned, with the churches, teams and leaders from those AVC’s who come to serve in Africa. We will plan together, make leadership decisions together and work co-operatively in our nations. You, your church and your regional AVC need to continue to ask God where you ‘Samaria’ and ‘uttermost parts’ (Acts 1:8) nation or region is. When you know, plan your involvement there inclusively, both with us, with the receiving nation and with all other AVC’s involved there. It is a simple thing, really. Before you go and minister in any Area, Region or Nation, ask someone in leadership who else is going there, and how can I partner with them effectively?’ Contact the person/s involved, and discuss a ministry plan or approach that works co-operatively toward agreed strategic goals.

I also want to ask you to pray seriously about filling pastoral vacancies. Next month, Tim & Ingrid Briscoe will leave Tanzania and relocate to Alexandria, Egypt, to plant a church. There is as yet no clear replacement for them in Dar es Salaam, where they have planted a strong Vineyard among ex-pats and English speaking Tanzanians. As I write this, there is no replacement for the Karen Vineyard in Nairobi, which Peter & Judy Twycross have just left. This is also a diverse church, made up of ex-pats, missions personnel and Kenyans, and using mostly English as the medium of ministry & worship. Is God speaking to you about either of these vacancies? Is there someone you know who would fit the bill?

Finally, all of the above builds momentum toward the biggest, most extensive Vineyard Pan-African Leadership Conference we have ever had, at Gariep Dam from 10-14 September 2007. We will be hosting leaders from an unprecedented 16 nations of Africa, as well as from the USA, the UK and Canada. It is the 25^th Anniversary of the planting of the first African Vineyard, so we are calling it: BACK TO OUR AFRICAN FUTURE. Starring worship leaders, speakers & workshop facilitators from Southern, East and Central Africa. You will see new faces, hear new voices, learn the songs of our African heartbeat and discover how Maasai leaders are doing training and economic missions.

What I want to see as the main outcome of the Conference, however, is new relationships and the spark of God’s love igniting fresh partnerships and refocusing our vision. This is a season in which we will move quickly from ‘us and them’ thinking to ‘we’ thinking, and from narrow nationalism to generous Africanism.

Agape

Costa