We hope you & your loved ones had a wonderful Christmas! As we exit 2018 tonight, we wanted to wish you all a very Happy New Year!! We pray your cross-over into 2019 will be safe & Blessed!!
We thank you so much for your love to us throughout this year! We are so thankful for your relationship with us! We couldn't have made it without you!!
Part of
our growing pains in 2018 revolved around partner relationships. When we started Catalyst (back in Feb. 2017), some people close to us didn’t understand why
we wanted to do this. Actually, some told us we shouldn't start it at all! And w/out getting into many details, this year
their feelings became apparent, resulting in them breaking relationship with us.
For us this was the hardest part of 2018. Actually, I’ll (Dennis) will be super honest: This was my hardest year in ministry, and even of my Christian life. There were times Zwa &I felt so broken, that we
thought about pitching it all in, quitting ministry, & moving back to
the USA. We tried to work things out but to no avail. In the midst of all this it was even hard to even know what
to say (to anyone). Of course your flesh
wants to defend itself, and there were times I (Dennis) did that…But as time went on we
really felt called to just shut our mouths, & by all means trust God, & seek
His Love and Healing for our hearts. So yeah were ready to shut the door on 2018, and asking God for a new season in 2019!
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| Thankful for our relationship w/ Sport For Christ!!! |
So Much to be Thankful For!!!
Now let me shift a bit! I wanted to be as super honest as I could above,
but I also want to Praise the Lord, for all the good things relationally in 2018! We are super thankful for our growing & new relationships that we have!! As written about before, this year we really worked a lot with Adventures In Missions (AIM) eSwatini. Whether it was through the SLA Friday's trainings, or working with Sport For Christ, we worked often & hard alongside our brothers & sisters @ AIM! We are so thankful to be in partnership with them!
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| Dennis had the privilege to speak @ SFC end of year camp this month! |
Another new part of partnership with AIM in 2018 saw the resurrection of the Pastors Fellowship Ministry! This was something that was built and developed while we were on staff with AIM from 2004-2011. This year I was part of a great team that kicked it off again! We had 3 meetings in 2018. Some of our goals are: to be a safe place, a listening ear, a conduit of God's love and encouragement, & to foster unity amongst the men & women who serve the Lord!
The 3 meetings all went very well and we really feel the Lord rebuilding this ministry! In our last meeting we had about 45/50 pastors total. Many of the pastors are those who work directly with AIM leading a church at one of their 35 Care Points. However, our meetings are open to any pastor looking to grow in this fellowship! Going forward we have 4 quarterly meetings planned for next year as well as a couple different types of events. AIM eSwatini provides the funding to serve the pastors a great meal, as well as transport money, and in providing the venue. In our final gathering they also donated a brand new pair of shoes to each pastor - A HUGE Blessing!
Will you please keep this Pastors Fellowship in prayer?
1) That God would use our team to build unity within these pastors! We want to create an atmosphere of a safe place, where the pastors feel free & can be open, vulnerable & encourage one another.
2) That God would use us to speak into each others lives. In our meetings we have a time where one of our team shares a challenge, preaching to the preachers if you will. In our first 3 meetings we have felt led by the Lord to share some challenging stuff. Topics like jealousy, etc. Please pray that the LORD will continue to lead us in what to share with His servants!
I think that we will close out Part 2 here. In our next post we will share about Catalyst 's relationship with Mafutseni Emmanuel Weslyan Church. We will also be sending out an email regarding the highlights of our Compassionate Ministry. Again, Happy New Year!!
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| Our 3rd & last meeting of the year. |
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| AIM donated a new pair of shoes to each pastor! |
The 3 meetings all went very well and we really feel the Lord rebuilding this ministry! In our last meeting we had about 45/50 pastors total. Many of the pastors are those who work directly with AIM leading a church at one of their 35 Care Points. However, our meetings are open to any pastor looking to grow in this fellowship! Going forward we have 4 quarterly meetings planned for next year as well as a couple different types of events. AIM eSwatini provides the funding to serve the pastors a great meal, as well as transport money, and in providing the venue. In our final gathering they also donated a brand new pair of shoes to each pastor - A HUGE Blessing!
Will you please keep this Pastors Fellowship in prayer?
1) That God would use our team to build unity within these pastors! We want to create an atmosphere of a safe place, where the pastors feel free & can be open, vulnerable & encourage one another.
2) That God would use us to speak into each others lives. In our meetings we have a time where one of our team shares a challenge, preaching to the preachers if you will. In our first 3 meetings we have felt led by the Lord to share some challenging stuff. Topics like jealousy, etc. Please pray that the LORD will continue to lead us in what to share with His servants!
I think that we will close out Part 2 here. In our next post we will share about Catalyst 's relationship with Mafutseni Emmanuel Weslyan Church. We will also be sending out an email regarding the highlights of our Compassionate Ministry. Again, Happy New Year!!
We really Appreciate Your LOVE to us through your prayers and financial support!! May 2019 be a year that we all know Jesus's love deeper, & reflect Him in greater measure! May God Bless you all in Abundance!
Dennis, Zwakele, Thandeka & Busani
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