{"id":809,"date":"2020-12-13T20:29:49","date_gmt":"2020-12-13T18:29:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/?p=809"},"modified":"2020-12-13T20:29:50","modified_gmt":"2020-12-13T18:29:50","slug":"appreciation-dkar-from-rev-hendrik-du-plessis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/?p=809","title":{"rendered":"Appreciation D’Kar from Rev Hendrik du Plessis"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Appreciation from D\u2019kar – December 2020<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

D\u2019kar<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Covid-19 sounds negative to the ear,\nbut it can also have a positive outcome in a sense that the Lord’s blessing in\nour congregation has been clearly visible lately. It was as if many people came\nto the realization that we do not live forever on earth. Church attendance\nbegan to improve drastically. Covid-19 has shaken many people out of their\ncomfort zone. The food supplies distributed thanks to the contributions of the\ncongregations in South Africa and especially the Reformed Church New Zealand\nwas a sermon in itself. People talked about it and specifically thanked the\nLord who cared for them through other believers. The church began to become\nvisible, or another way to put it, the Lord showed Himself to many people\nthrough this service of mercy,  as a God\nof love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our son, Pieter, was confined here\nwith us for 6 months because of closed borders. Sun\u00e9, our daughter, wanted to\ncome too, but unfortunately the border closed just before she could come.\nPieter came through on Monday and on Tuesday the borders closed. She was very\ndisappointed, but now that we look back it was a blessing in disguise because\nshe was able to focus on her work and her master’s studies. By the Lord’s grace\nshe was able to submit her dissertation. If she did get through she would\ndefinitely have lost her job. Pieter not only helped here on a neighboring\nfarm, but was of so much help around the house. He built, did fencing work,\nrepaired our hot water system, installed the water purifier and so on and so\nforth. This is almost too much to mention. He was literally busy every day. In\nSeptember he was able to return, just in time to resume his studies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were shocked when we heard that\nSun\u00e9 had contracted Covid-19. It felt to us as if the boat we were in was about\nto sink, but by the Lord’s grace she experienced only moderate symptoms such as\nloss of taste and smell, headache and fatigue. Diarrhea and her sore throat\nmiraculously improved within a few days. She was completely on her own there in\nher new town and work environment but she was carried by prayers and\nencouragement from family and friends. Rev. Jannie van der Schyff of the\nReformed Church Welkom kept her on their prayer list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What we are particularly grateful for\nis the fact that my mission pickup truck is roadworthy again. An anonymous\ndonor provided the necessary funds and we were able to have the ute repaired in\nMaun at Ngami Toyota. Thus, at the right time, the Lord gave this person the\nneed to help us. We are very grateful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We also received Tswana Bibles\nprovided to us with the help of various congregations. We are thankful to each\nand every one who contributed in this regard. There is no greater gift than a\nBible, and the person to whom you give the Bible to gives you the opportunity\nfor a deep spiritual conversation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We also received Audio Bibles. Several\nbrothers and sisters contributed. We are grateful and excited about this. The\nNaro New Testament is on it as well as the complete Tswana Bible from Genesis\nto Revelation, plus Herero Bible stories. All the Hereros can understand\nTswana. Many Hereros can understand Naro, and many Naros can understand Tswana\nwell, and because many people cannot read, these Audio Bibles can definitely\nbridge that gap. In the past such Audio Bibles were handed out or sold to the\npeople and those who had it left it on from morning to evening for everyone in\nthe yard to listen to. One child could even recite an entire chapter of a\ncertain book by heart. The secret now is going to be to hand it out wisely so\nthat those who cannot read can benefit from it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last but not least, we would like to\nexpress our sincere thanks to everyone involved with the BSG (Botswana Mission\nGroup). Without you, missionary work would have been impossible here.\nUnfortunately, we need money to travel distances to preach the Gospel to\npeople. One often wonders how far technology has advanced. If one could have\nhad a solar or battery-powered vehicle, it would have been ideal. Years ago,\nchildren from South Africa rode through Botswana on a four wheel bicycle. Four\npeople had to pedal all the time. Often I wondered what it would be like if you\ncould install the necessary batteries and solar panels on top of the roof so\nyou could cycle more easily. Then you can literally go anywhere to the remote\nareas to teach people the Gospel, because Botswana still has plenty of\nopportunities as far as missionary work is concerned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The word “thank you” often\nsounds empty, but the consequences are enormous, especially if you use the word\nin your prayers. To the congregations, brothers and sisters who have so\nfaithfully supported and assisted us over the past year, financially but also\nin their prayers, we would like to express our deepest appreciation. We thank\nthe Lord for you and we pray for you that the Lord will bless you in abundance.\nThere are so many things to be thankful for. Should we compile a list, where would\none begin and where do you end? This year has been a unique year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The motivation for \u201csaying thank you\u201d\nfrom the words of the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 9: 6-14 made me realize\nthat there is more to it than just saying thank you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have read the passage below many\ntimes, but it often happens that you re-read a passage in the Bible that you\nhave read so many times, and its contents only hit you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2 Corinthians 9:6-14:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

6<\/sup><\/strong>Remember that the person\nwho plants few seeds will have a small crop; the one who plants many seeds will\nhave a large crop. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

7<\/sup><\/strong>You should each give, then,\nas you have decided, not with regret or out of a sense of duty; for God loves\nthe one who gives gladly. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

8<\/sup><\/strong>And God is able to give you\nmore than you need, so that you will always have all you need for yourselves\nand more than enough for every good cause. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

9<\/sup><\/strong>As the scripture says,\n“He gives generously to the needy; his kindness lasts forever.” <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

10<\/sup><\/strong>And God, who supplies seed\nfor the sower and bread to eat, will also supply you with all the seed you need\nand will make it grow and produce a rich harvest from your generosity. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

11<\/sup><\/strong>He will always make you\nrich enough to be generous at all times, so that many will thank God for your\ngifts which they receive from us. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

12<\/sup><\/strong>For this service you\nperform not only meets the needs of God’s people, but also produces an\noutpouring of gratitude to God. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

13<\/sup><\/strong>And because of the proof which this service of yours brings, many will\ngive glory to God for your loyalty to the gospel of Christ, which you profess,\nand for your generosity in sharing with them and everyone else. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

14<\/sup><\/strong>And so with deep affection\nthey will pray for you because of the extraordinary grace God has shown you. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

15<\/sup><\/strong>Let us thank God for his\npriceless gift! (Good News)<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In\nthis passage we see how the generosity of a congregation (Corinth) miraculously\n\u201cboomeranged\u201d back to them. What happened here is very interesting. This is not\njust an example, but through Paul, the Holy Spirit reveals to us something of\nGod and His deepest reason why He gives more to some than to others, also to\nsome congregations more than to others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If we\nread the previous chapter together with this chapter we see how the church in\nCorinth did everything in their power to raise money to help the Jewish\ncongregation in Jerusalem with great zeal. Paul uses the Macedonian congregation\nas an example of how zealous they were to help the believers in Jerusalem. When\nthis Macedonian congregation (Northern part of Greece) heard about the\nsuffering in Jerusalem, they immediately jumped to work and, despite their own\npoverty, started raising money for the believing Jews in Jerusalem who were\nsuffering so much. Paul uses this to motivate the Corinthians to do the same.\nThose Macedonians, Paul says, could be so generous because they first gave\nthemselves to the Lord (2 Corinthians 8: 5). Then Paul writes further to the\nCorinthians, from verse 6: \u201c6<\/sup>So we urged\nTitus, who began this work, to continue it and help you complete this special\nservice of love. 7<\/sup>You are so rich in all you have: in faith, speech,\nand knowledge, in your eagerness to help and in your love for us. And so we\nwant you to be generous also in this service of love. 8<\/sup>I am not\nlaying down any rules. But by showing how eager others are to help, I am trying\nto find out how real your own love is.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This\nbrings us back to the passage we read at the beginning, how your gifts (love\nwork) \u201cboomerang\u201d  back to you in a\npositive way and why. In this case it is the Corinthians. Through their\ngenerosity, a series of interesting things happen. Let us start. What boomerang\nback is the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1.\nGod’s love: God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9: 7)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2.\nGod’s abundance: “And God is able to give you more than you need, so\nthat you will always have all you need for yourselves and more than enough for every good cause<\/strong>.”\n(2 Corinthians 9: 8)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3.\nGod’s riches: \u201cHe will always make you rich enough to be generous at all times<\/strong>,\nso that many will thank God<\/strong>\nfor your gifts which they receive from\nus.<\/strong>\u201d (2 Corinthians 9:11).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then\nPaul explains: Remember he says, “12<\/sup>For this\nservice you perform not only meets the needs of God’s people, but also produces an outpouring\nof gratitude to God<\/strong>.” In other words,\nit’s not just about helping people, but getting those people to thank God for the help they\nreceive<\/strong>. Then Paul further explains the effect of this relief on\nthe believing Jews in Jerusalem. He says: \u201c13<\/sup>And because of the\nproof which this service of yours brings, many will give glory to God for your loyalty to the gospel of Christ<\/strong>,\nwhich you profess, and for your generosity in sharing with them and everyone\nelse. \u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\nbrings us to the fourth thing that boomerangs back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4.   Those people are nows starting to pray for\nyou: “14<\/sup>And\nso with deep affection they will pray for you because of the extraordinary\ngrace God has shown you.”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\nis interesting to think that the help from one church to another can have the\neffect of bringing glory to God and not only that, but that they start to pray\nspecifically for that church that has given them help. If your outreach to a\ncongregation in need can result in them thanking God for you and praising Him\nand starting to pray for you, the boomerang has completed its circle. You reached\nout and now they are praying for you<\/strong>. This then brings us to the\nquestion: Would God not answer such a prayer?\nThis is exactly how the Lord wants it. You help, God is thanked and honored for\nit and they, overwhelmed in their hearts by the working of the Holy Spirit pray\nfor you, and God hears their prayers regarding you<\/strong>, and you are blessed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Be assured that through your help and\nassistance you have led us to praise and thank the Lord and we pray for you\nthat the Lord will bless you in abundance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

May this simple truth motivate us to\nthink outside the circle of our everyday existence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Greetings in our Lord Jesus Christ,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hendrik du Plessis<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Appreciation from D\u2019kar – December 2020 D\u2019kar Covid-19 sounds negative to the ear, but it can also have a positive outcome in a sense that the Lord’s blessing in our<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":542,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/809"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=809"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/809\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":810,"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/809\/revisions\/810"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/542"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=809"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=809"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/botswanasending.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=809"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}