Learning to Polish Our Shoes

Leo is learning to polish his shoes with mom's help.

Hlulani there to learn and assist.

Hermanus Mountain Bike Trails

Discovered these traits offer the school holidays.

Learning to draw on Pen Up and teaching it to the boys

Been slowly trying to improve my drawing on the phone while using it as a way to relax.

I particularly love Pen Ups feature where you watch someone draw and you follow along by tracing over their drawing. It's a perfect "learn by doing" approach. 

After following a few of these "live drawings" I'm starting to get a hang of how various brushes are used. This drawing above is my first drawings in Pen Up using "Live Drawing".

Over the years I've been showing the boys how to use Sketchbook and lately Pen Up. These are the boys first drawings on Pen Up - learning to use the oil brush.

Here's a drawing I did by myself using the techniques I picked up following Pen Up examples:

For this I've before I had an imagine in the side and tried to recreate it using circles:

Leo Rides Without Training Wheels

It was a bit over due but this December Leo, at 5 years old, learned to ride without training wheels after outgrowing his bike.

Took him just 3 sessions and one crash to get it right.

Hlulani hasn't been interested in pedaling his tricycle but when he saw Leo riding he suddenly started pedaling properly!

Hlulani turns 3

In his mind he's been 3 all along. From the time Leo turned 5 in Aug Hlulani has been set  on the fact that he's 3 years old now so it was exciting and a relief for 11 Oct to finally come so we can celebrate it.

The guy has never been so excited to get a ice cream with candles for him to blow out. He was literally jumping up and down on the couch while waiting for it.

We have a thing that we don't want to do birthday parties every year so this was a laid back one, except Chinelle made these cup cakes for his school class after seeing and tasting them I'm not so sure we should've had a low key one at home...

Leo turns 5

Some day we'll get used to their growth rate and stop saying "they grow up to fast"... until then here's one more time: they grow up too fast!

The guy's been asking "Am I almost 5 years old? Is it 15 August yet?" almost the whole year. Glad he finally made it.

The best part with these two is seeing their friendship develop: Hlulani sang an entire "Happy  birthday to Leo"

First Time Leaving Africa - American Trip Videos

Leaving Home

This year with out global Go Conference in the U.S I got an opportunity to leave Africa for the first time. Our resources were tight so I went alone but managed to add 2 days before the conference and 3 after for some sight seeing. Leo was not impressed that I'm travelling alone.

Rookie mistake: I took cheaper flights to U.S and ended up having a 12 hour lay-over in Dubai at night so I couldn't even leave the airport to see Dubai...

New York

I arrived in NYC on  Friday night and slept in New Jersey at my host Akin's place. The next morning I left the house at 10am and returned around midnight and spent the whole day walking and exploring NYA knowing I only had one day there.

The Conference

Detailed post on the conference HERE

Washington DC

After the conference I was blessed to be hosted by Jessica's family in Pennsylvania. They drove 2 hours to pick me up at the airport in Washington DC and gave me one day tour. We walked for 4 hours straight in DC for me to squeeze in as much as I could.

Still to edit is a video of the one day I spent at the Daly's home in Pennsylvania before flying back home.

Go Conference 2019

I was blessed with an opportunity to go to our world conference in Orlando, Florida in July this year. Finally, after going over-rivers for many years I finally get to go overseas! Sadly I went alone but I made sure to maximise on the experience.

Leaving Cape Town: Leo is not impressed that I'm leaving

The conference is aptly names "GO" because it's about just that: reflecting on & celebrating what God is doing in the world through our movement and other movements, recognizing the remaining work and hearing God's heart for us for the next three years regarding campus ministry, church planting and missions.

The power of the conference was bringing over 5000 people from 80 nations with one heart, passion and vision into one location for a week.

For 5 days straight I was surrounded by over 5500 people who speak different languages but have one heart beat. Imagine everywhere you go you're meeting and talking to people who have the same passion. This messes with your mind and sets your heart aflame as you get reminded why we're doing what we do - that the point of campus ministry is to see every nation in one heart.

These are some of my main highlights:

1. Connecting with people and campus ministry leaders who are facing or have faced what we are facing.

• Hearing what other students and campus missionaries face in their nations and how they overcome makes you appreciate what you have at home and also reminds you that while we might be consumed by the mountains we face in our own context, we already have a lot to give to the world.
• It was also powerful meeting and hanging out with people who, like Chinelle & I, lead campus ministries while raising small kids and exchanging notes, stories & experiences together. 

In this picture is all of us who are part of the global leadership for campus ministry

2. Seeing first hand the scope of what God is doing in the nations i.e. that despite what people might say, the gospel is advancing faster than it ever did in history.

• Being in a specific nation in person is probably the best way to see first hand but I think a close second best is interacting for an extended time with someone serving in that nation.
• I connected with people doing campus ministry in the Israel, Japan, Sweden, Kazakhstan and other nations.
• During the conference sessions we reflected that up until 2016 we had planted churches and campus ministries in 60 nations and now 3 years later we are in 80 nations.

Praying for the nations with the nations during the daily prayer sessions

3. Connecting with people who are missionaries in nations where it's dangerous to be a follower of Christ.

• For some people at the conference, doing campus ministry means everyday they could get arrested as parents report them to the police for sharing the gospel with their kids.
• Seeing the passion and sacrifice makes one remember that to give your life to see more people come to the saving knowledge of Christ is a worthy cause to live for.

With some of my friends who lead campus ministries in Southern Africa

On one night, nations night, we reflected that we currently have churches or active church plants in 31 of the 50 countries that are the most dangerous nations to be a follower of Christ. At the end of that night we saw over 30 people respond to the call to go be missionaries in the remaining 19 nations.

  

It was great also being reminded that the remaining task is too big for any single movement to accomplish, it will only come when movements work in unity.

Where to from here?

What was re-established solidly is this:

1. God has given each movement an area of stewardship and ours is the campus ministry. 
• We are not the only movement with this mandate but that is also our mandate. 
2. Our primary contribution to changing the world will be from reaching the next generation by planting campus ministries and churches that have a deliberate focus of reaching students.
• University students are not the only future leaders in a society, however, the campus is our specific assignment.
3. We will find fruit when we steward what is entrusted to us.
• It's about pursuing what you're graced for.
4. The primary way to grow is to plant new campus ministries.
• It's going back to our original mandate of missions and pioneering new campus ministries on every campuses.