Today felt like a real Cape Town winters day. We woke up at 06h30 with the sound of rain on the roof… and it was still dark outside. Welman and De Necker were loving this and missing their Cape homes very much.
Last night we arrived in the little town of Langkap and because Ps Silvanus was busy ministering, we took the 30 – 40 min walk to the village where he stays. He put us up in a large room and we even got mattresses and pillows. What a blessing. Last year’s team slept on straw mats, so this was a luxury. Ps Silvanus also blessed us with some Chinese fried noodles. What a treat.
The morning was perfect to stay indoors and so we had our debrief session of India. This consisted of reflecting on our time in India, learning from our mistakes, seeing how we grew and sorting out little issues in the team. Everyone is still alive and have all their teeth!
We very ironically had lunch at an Indian café. Local Malay-style tea and coffee with fried chicken and Indian noodles was on the menu. It was delicious. Ps Silvanus also used this time to tell us his life story and also share about the work that he is doing in the villages.
He is a Chinese man who married an Orang Asli (the native people of the Malaysian peninsula) woman. This allowed him to stay with the Orang Asli people which would have been forbidden by the government was he not been married to her. This way God made a way for His word to be preached
to them and in the 30-odd years that Ps Silvanus has been ministering here, he has seen many people commit their lives to Jesus Christ.
Even after this long in the area, work is not standing still and since last year’s team left, he has planted another church. They now have 16 churches amongst the Orang Asli. 9 buildings and 7 house churches. There is also a big influence of Islam amongst the people of the Orang Asli as well as local tribal beliefs.
We also met little Asher, a two year old little boy who lives with his parents and grandparents in Ps Silvanus’ village. At first very shy, but after his dad prompted him to give Welman a high-five, he followed our every move as we spoke to the people and even blessed us with a smile. We also want
to bless him with the words of Moses in Deu 33:24 “And of Asher he said, "Most blessed of sons be Asher; let him be the favorite of his brothers, and let him dip his foot in oil. Deu 33:25 Your bars shall be iron and bronze, and as your days, so shall your strength be.”
As we do not have much internet access here, video footage might become less, but we shall try to get as much info to you as possible.
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