Preaching Sunday in Qwa Qwa

We got up early on Sunday morning, had breakfast and headed out for church in Qwa Qwa.  This was a special day for me.  I was the guest preacher for the service.  The service started with a man leading the singing with a guy on the keyboard.  Then he moved to the drums, and a woman came to the front and started to sing.  She was joined by two other young women, and they would start singing, and the musicians would join in along with the congregation.  Some of the songs were in English, others were in Sesotho.  It was an interesting worship service.  Then the pastor got up and he would say something and then he would start singing a song, or he would turn to the women and they would begin singing a song.  From time to time someone would get up from the congregation, walk up front and they would begin to lead the song.  Then 19 women came up and sang, then some of them sat down, and they sang some more.  

After the introductions of the guests, the pastor called me up, and I was privileged to speak using Genesis 1, telling the congregation that God loves us so much He gave us a diverse, beautiful, and colorful world to us.  He could have made it grey and black, but we have variety of all kinds for us to enjoy.  God loves us before we begin to love Him, as Psalm 139 tells us.  God showed us even more love when His Son, Jesus, came to die for us as it tells us in Romans 5, and nothing we can do is able to separate us from His love, as Romans 8 tells us.  Then I invited people up for prayers for healing, and people started to come.  Marty came as well, and when she saw all the other people, she joined with me as we prayed for all those who came.  What a great privilege to pray for the people as they came seeking God’s special touch.  What a blessing for us to pray for mothers and their children, the youth, and for parents and grandparents. 

Speaking a second time with an interpreter was easier.  It was great to see the faces of the people understanding what was being said.  I could see it sometimes when I spoke and at others when the interpreter spoke.  Our God is the same, in America and in South Africa.  He loves us all.  He died for us all.  What a special privilege to share that with people in two different countries and cultures.