South Africa Report Back - Part 2

PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
I want to tell you about some personal things that happened to me on the South African venture. The second day I was in South Africa was May 6, and the US consultants met the South African consultants in a conference room at Feathers Lodge, which is where the USA team stayed for two weeks. Towards the end of this meeting I asked a question to everyone gathered about South Africa. I can't remember what I asked, but afterwards a man named Louis came up to me and said he thought God had spoken some words to me that he needed to share with me. Louis said...

"I felt that the Holy Spirit was saying that while you are here in Cape Town, He will put the buidling blocks together and He will add to your understanding the revelation to solve and tackle some of the work challenges that you had at work. In fact, before you leave this place, He will let you get on the plane with the basics of the answers (I thought that I saw 3 problems/challenges). The Lord will do this for you as you invest in the life of your client."

I had no idea what he was talking about, but I did have three big projects at work that were a bit of a headache. Within the first 30 minutes of my first day back at work on May 29, my manager told me I was being reassigned to a new project and the three projects I had before would be passed onto another team!

The last day of venture when the clients gave their presentations (May 18), I was talking to Louis about a new potential job opportunity at Pay Pay for a mobile designer (similar to Hannes's South African company, which offers mobile banking solutions via mobile phones). Here are some things Louis said that I've taken to heart...

"Pray unlimited prayers"
"Pray for God to open up my career ceiling"
"Pray for me not to worry about finances (money)"
"Pray for wisdom in what you pray for and then adjust your prayers"
"Pray big prayers"

On May 19, Louis wrote these words in my notebook while we had a rēp team meeting (venture debriefing)...

"In order to grow into a greater understanding of what the calling and ministry in Japan could hold for the two of you (Richard and Noriko), visit http://www.plumblineministries.com/home to understand more about the "Redemtive Gifts" of cities, nations, and countries -- then, when you know what God has called that nation to be, then you will understand your assignment."

On Sunday, May 20 I had the opportunity to visit a small church in the African township of Atlantis with my co-consultant Johan. This was truly one of the highlights of the trip for me. This group of people was so on fire for the Lord that it really pushed my views of what a church could and should be. They were so gracious and loving to me and after I shared with the congregation about the purpose of my trip they asked if they could pray for me. Of course I said "Yes." A group of people gathered around me and laid hands on me. I bowed my head and closed my eyes and could hear people praying in English, some sort of African language, and in tongues! The a few minutes into the prayer I felt a hand on my stomach. It was sort of moving up and down a bit and I sensed this feeling of energy or movement separate from the hand moving. It's really hard to describe what I felt, since it was so new, almost like a flow of energy. Then after everyone stopped praying and they moved back to the chairs and the service ended a women came up to me and said...

"I felt your burden when I was praying for you and laid my hand on your stomach. You are free from it now."

Then she said she had some words from God for me...

"You fill the gap. You are in the middle."

This didn't make sense to me at the time. I asked Johan to explain this to me. He said he believes it means that God will use me to fill the gap between people and Him. I had been praying since I was in Africa for God to reveal to me my purpose in His plan for restoring the world. I've always enjoyed bringing people together and next working. I think I get this from my dad. :) Anyways, this made perfect sense to me, since I often see myself as a connector of people. Perhaps this means I have the gift of evangelism. Lord knows I've brought many people over to the Macintosh from the darkside (Windoz)... ;) In all seriousness, I am praying about having more clarity about this revelation and to find ways to build on top of this potential gift.

I also want to mention that my mom suffered from pneumonia the whole time I was in South Africa, and her sickness began right before I left the USA and she was healed as I returned. We prayed daily for her recovery during the venture, as we did for many other concerns. It's not uncommon for people on ventures to get really sick during the venture or someone in there circle of family or friends to suffer. One of the consultants on the India trip this spring developed Bells Palsy during the trip! Thankfully he recovered within a month, which was another miracle!

Speaking of thanks, I want to thank the staff of Feathers Lodge for being so gracious to us. If you're ever in the Cape Town area, I would highly recommend this Christian owned and run establishment. They are truly a first class operation!

This was one of my favorite quotes from the venture:
"God really does care about the little things!"

This trip was truly LIFE CHANGING for me, on a completely new level. I really felt God speaking to me during my trip to Japan last September, and I felt like God really showed me a whole new set of things on this trip to South Africa. WOW! I can't wait until my next (ad)venture! I will be posting more on this in the months to come. :) Stay tuned...