It has been awhile since I've written any updates because my internet has been down, but there has been a lot going on here. I'm at an internet cafe right now and it is very hot, but not nearly what it will be in a few months so I'm trying to adjust to the idea. It has been a good day today as we had a special service at our church. We had a church breakfast as part of the service, and I spoke on Matthew 24 and the signs of Christ's return. There was a good turn out with some new faces there, and a good group of the teens who have been coming only on Fridays turned up this morning after we had been encouraging them to come. I had arranged for two of our teens, Andile and Phumelele, to help me with a skit that was part of the message. They did a great job and I was excited that they were willing to get involved. The focus of my message and my prayer for our church is that we will live every day with the thought that Christ's return is near and that that thought would motivate us to be faithful.

Thank you all for your prayers in recent weeks. There have been times of discouragement, but also many blessings and times that I see the unmistakable hand of God guiding every event.

One of the joys of ministry in Durban is the excitement of knowing that the impact made here could easily reach to other parts of the world as I have the chance to interact with people from all across Africa. I'd like to ask you to pray for a few of these people that I've had the privilege of spending time with recently. Let me introduce you to some of them:

Patson is from Zambia. He is a 6'9" high school kid who was recruited to play basketball in Durban for obvious reasons. He grew up in a Christian home and tells me that he used to love reading his Bible and going to church. He seems to be a genuine believer, but says that since coming to SA he hasn't been going to church. Being away from family and being a foreigner living in SA is hard and he says he doesn't have many real friends here yet. I've been playing basketball on a club team with him and some of the other players and coaches from his school. We've had some good conversations, and he has said he would like to come to church and Bible study, but he also seems a little apprehensive about the idea. I'm praying that God will bring him to the church and let him find a family there who will care for him.

Thabo is from Pietermaritzburg, a city which is about an hour from Durban. He was also recruited to play basketball here and is quite talented. He is not a believer and although he is skeptical about the Bible, he seems genuinely curious. Tuesday evening after we had played basketball for awhile he sat down near me and started asking me about my faith. He said he can't believe the Bible because he wasn't there when it was written and he didn't see any of those things happen, but he says that when he looks around him he knows that someone had to have made all of this. Thabo, at the age of 15, is one of the top basketball players in SA and has a bright future ahead of him. Please pray that God will open his eyes and increase his faith.

Peter who is 28 and his nephew Tauria who is 17 are both from Malawi. They have been coming to church and have consistently been to our young adults Bible study for the past 3 weeks. Both are professing Christians and seem to have a desire to grow and become disciples, especially Tauria who plans to begin studying at the University here in January. I'm trying to spend more time with them and help them grow in their faith even as I am being encouraged by their genuine desire to know God.

Erwin is 21 or 22 and lives right here in Durban. I met him because I've begun tutoring his two younger brothers, Michael and Gabriel, in math. Erwin was saved when he was young and has floated around to several churches. Within the past couple of years he has developed a real desire to know and serve God. He says that he wants to be a missionary out in the bush someday. He has agreed to join me in a Bible reading plan and has already begun asking a lot of questions.

David is a Sudanese refugee who came to South Africa in order to teach. I worked alongside of him 4 years ago when I did my student teaching here and I've been talking with him a lot lately. The teachers strike has continued and so on the days that I have gone to the school I spend my time talking with the teachers, especially David. I'm still not sure where he is at spiritually. His faith seems to be real, but there is no evident fruit in his life. I'm honestly not sure how to connect with him on a spiritual level and even as long as I have known him now it is difficult at times to communicate. I need wisdom as I interact with David and try to share the truth with him.

Please pray for all of these indiviuals, and for me as I interact with them.