Being the leader of a group of missionaries would never be an easy task, and the group of young men that God picked out for me to lead was no exception. There were and are many hurdles that I have to overcome. Take for instance that my team consists of six exuberant and lively 18 and 19 year olds. I really do enjoy time with them. The age gap makes it hard sometimes to relate, but luckily we have our Lord in common. He grants wisdom to those who obey. Then there is the fact that the last time I had to lead a group of guys was when I was captain of my school’s u/13 rugby side, not even speaking of an expedition and responsibility of this magnitude. Needless to say my self confidence, which has never been very high, wasn’t overflowing.
The team
During training in Jeffrey’s Bay I was confronted with some difficult decisions, ones that could determine the course of some people’s lives tremendously. It was hard, but with guidance from the GCEX leadership and the Almighty, I had the strength and courage to make them. Lesson number one: Leadership was going to be challenging.
I, along with the leaders of the other expeditions, also had to supervise and run some missionary outreach projects to the Transkei. This really tested my very lacking administration and organizational skills. Luckily there were strong leaders there to guide us in our decision making which was not without faults to say the least. Lesson number two: Leadership proved to be harder than I imagined.
Finally it was time for us to leave the nest and off we went… work Your way 2011 accompanied by the always energetic and ready-to-help PJ. Oh how thankful I became for his presence during our next
three and a half weeks together in Panajachel, Guatemala. I learnt so much about being an expedition leader from him. From relationships with the locals, planning your time and most of all, how to go about interacting with your team. It would have been so much more difficult if it wasn’t for his experience (PJ was a small group leader on the South Bound Expedition in 2009 and the team leader in 2010). Thank you brother. Lesson number three: Leadership is very hard.
PJ and me
I also knew I had the backing of my leadership back home and that God had called me to this. It helped a lot knowing this. Our time in Guatemala was great. The team learnt so much from our host, Ps Ben, who’s radical, but word inspired teachings has changed many a Global Challenger’s outlook on life. It changed ours as well. Our days were long starting at
6h00 for quiet time, group prayer and breakfast. 9h00 was work time and we knocked off at between 15h00 and 16h00. Then we had time for roaming the long cobblestoned streets with its colourful markets and friendly locals with their broad smiles. This was also internet time to stay in contact with family and friends, supper time and time for your daily cold shower. Some preferred to have a swim in the breathtaking lake Atitlan with its unnerving but majestic volcanoes towering over it. Ps Ben would arrive just after 17h00 to start his teachings which some nights went on to midnight. Gripping information, but sometimes we just couldn’t stay awake. Sundays belonged to the Lord and apart from attending church in the evenings, we would use the time to catch up on reading, reflection, emailing and sleep.
Panajchel and the river running ito the lake.
Lake Atitlan.
Apart from shepherding his church with his wife, Ps Ben also helps poor people in the community to fix their houses or anything around it. Panajachel is situated in a valley on the lake shore, so during the rainy season it takes a pounding from the mud slides as the water washes down the valley. Some people have lost entire homes, others escaping with their lives. Our job in Panajachel was then to help pastor Ben with helping these people.
The team and Ps Ben
Last year's mudslides visable on the hills.
One such a man was Joe. An American expat from Texas who owns a piece of land on a very steep part of the mountain side. Our job was to clear this piece of jungle for him so that he could plant his peach groves to gain some income.
Two, three days’ work was my first reaction after looking at the piece of land. After day one I realized I was wrong. We spent 10 days working at Joe’s house.
Working at Joe's place.
Now Joe is a believer in Christ, but he has some very peculiar opinions about God, the word and Christianity. This became my challenge, to change his way of seeing the above, but very soon I realized that patience, repeated speaking of the truth, lots of love and lots of prayer was all that was going to help poor Joe. Did I mention patience? At the end of our 10 days there I could see a slight difference. He was still stubborn in his ways, but was less hostile and seemed to think about what we were saying a bit more. I can only pray that the Holy Spirit will do a mighty work in his life. Amen.
Thinking back on my conversations with Joe I thanked God that He loved and chose me first. I could see how the Devil blinded poor Joe and how he believed the lies he was fed. That made me think, how many of us are caught in such a snare, thinking we know the truth, but actually just believing lies and false doctrines. How often do we reflect on the cornerstones of our belief system, taking it to our blueprint, the word of God, and seeing if it still aligns with the truth? I believe many of us would get a very rude awakening if we did this.
After leaving Guatemala, we spent two days back in South Africa reflecting and planning for India. It was lovely to have some of the team members’ loved ones join us for a braai. The guys couldn’t stop telling tales of our time in Guatemala and the parents remarked on how different their boys are already… on their way to becoming mighty men of God! As I greeted and thanked one of the mothers for the effort they put in for the braai, she turned to me and said, “No, thank you.” The grateful look in her eyes would always be with me and inspire me to know that even when I am weak, I am strong through God who strengthens me.
Lesson number four: Leadership without God is impossible!