Gifts
For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.
Habakkuk 2:14
His goodness follows us all the days of our lives. His goodness is a gift to us. As I was meditating on this, I thought to write to you all and share with you three gifts, among the many He has given in 2021, that stood out for me.
The gift of redemption:
I met Jack & Jill (pseudonym) in December 2019. They are homeless people who try and be self-sustainable by keeping a watchful eye over the cars of beach goers. (Here in South Africa people take care of your car while you go to the beach, or shop, for a small donation in return).
In 2020 (just before the COVID pandemic), God told me to start a DBS (Discovery Bible Study) with them. (Another story for another day that I would love to share).
But back to the gift of redemption. Jack was part of a gang in prison called the 27's. If you are familiar with these gangs you will know that 27’s are the most violent of the numbers and are also called the men of blood. They typically have their gang numbers (26 or 27 or 28) tattooed in their necks, arms or hands, as a sign of who they are; to be recognized for what they stand for, to be associated for what they believe in.
A few months ago, Jack came to me and started weeping. He started reading the Bible and came upon the story of Saul, who was redeemed by Christ, and became Paul. Jack sobbed and said: “Rika, that was me. I read about myself in the Bible. His grace was enough for Paul and it is enough for me”. But the tattoo marked him and it was hard to be credible in his witness to his faith and to try and to even get a job. It was there and then that we decided to re-design the tattoo and asked a tattoo artist if he could do art over the existing art. And so it became that “27 Blood” became a Nail and Thorn Cross…the blood of Christ. The day I fetched Jack from the tattoo artist, he said: “Rika, I have been redeemed!!!!”
The gift of life:
This year All Nations Mozambique arranged for a photographer to come and take pictures of the children. This has been typically done every year in the same way that families do family pictures. As I was able to look at these pictures, one picture in particular stood out for me and actually brought me to tears. I immediately praised Jesus for the gift of life. This picture (see below) shows Luis as a baby, when we received him and the other one shows Luis today! What an amazing healing God has done in this boy!! Surely His purposes and plans are for hope and a future. I am so excited for the calling on Luis’s life and what the Lord plans do to through him. For many had no hope that Luis would survive, and yet, the God of the impossible gave him the gift of life!!
The gift of the great commission:
Yes, I know, the great commission is a command Jesus gave us. But what an amazing gift it is as well. Because, as we go in obedience to tell about Him, to share His love and goodness, we get to see so many amazing stories unfold for His glory. This year it was such a gift to me to be able to train and equip those who said yes to go and to have the privilege to coach and walk with individuals and seeing their vision come alive as they obey.
At the end of October I was pretty tired and told Jesus, I think I want to start going slow!!! I soon learned that it was my flesh talking and not the plan Jesus had for me. I was sitting in a meeting where the vision for Win-A-City was shared and the opportunity to be part of hosting some events at the end of November came up. Oh and how amazing it was to fellowship with people in the valley where I live, who are passionate about discipleship and reaching those who do not know Jesus.
There are many opportunities in training and equipping at the moment waiting in 2022. But more news about these in the coming months!!!
About the author: Rika is an All Nations field worker in Cape Town, South Africa.
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