Tuesday 19 May - God Meets Us Where We Are

Can anyone doubt that God is everywhere? This is my first time on South Africa and you can see and sense his presence everywhere. The majesty and beauty of the ocean and the mountains proclaim His name! The friendliness and the hospitality of the locals testify to Jesus and His grace. His presence can surely be felt in the tent of the Beloftebos farm as we engage in this rēp venture. And even the signs offer blessings from above!

And being blessed to spend time with my client, Johan Jacobs, is also a testimony to God’s goodness and supreme plan for us. Johan is truly a living miracle. He was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, a supposedly incurable disease. But then God gave him the blueprint for a healthy lifestyle based on ancient truths and Biblical principles. This healthy lifestyle literally saved his life. And now it is Johan’s personal mission to empower others to live a healthy, live-saving lifestyle.

Johan, Francois (local consultant) and I spent the morning developing purpose and positioning statements for GoNatural, Johan’s brand name for his healthy lifestyle business. We then visited his store in Somerset West, which was filled with healthy food and, more importantly, equipment to enable people to grow and make their own healthy food. It was especially pleasing when I asked one of the key employees, Lerina, what is the purpose of GoNatural, and her response, “equipping people to live healthy lifestyles” was 100% in alignment in the purpose statement we had drafted earlier that day. 

God has a wonderful plan for GoNatural and it is a blessing to be able to come alongside Johan and walk along the path that God has set out for him and his business.

Monday 18 May 2015

The day started with a sense of deja vu , it was all too familiar...The clients walking in, some meeting their consultants both local and visiting for the 1st time. Wondering...did i do the right thing by signing up ? What's all this 10P , 10F ? what's with the bicycle? etc too many questions too fast ... and it was wonderful to see as the day panned  out that all their fears were allayed and people getting more comfortable with their decision. The awesome venue helped in people being at home i suspect.

Looking back at my journey from being a client in 2007 in chennai to being a local consultant in 2010 and  now a visiting consultant in a foreign land i can testify that  Rep has not only Repurposed my business but also my whole life and i can't wait to see how these 9 clients are going to have their worldviews turned upside down.

We had the usual consultant and client introductions in the morning and  before we took a coffee break Izak came up to share a word from the Lord  "it's time for a change in season for many in the tent". This was a confirmation to what was spoken over the venture by a prophet  just before i left for South Africa !!!! 

It gets better, today at team debrief we gave God thanks for facilitating a client-consultant match that was totally a God thing. Also everyone got their purpose statement without much difficulty as the Presence of the Lord was hovering over the tent. The 1st P is the most difficult hurdle to cross, but not for this bunch. 

I thought the day was over with the team debrief and dinner at Brett's guest house but little did i realize my Guest house was in for a long night as the Rocket scientist and his client were going through the scorecard very religiously and Ed was suspecting they'd even finish the client memo by day break...so much for today's adventures, looking forward to another exciting day waiting to see what the Father has in store.

Sunday 14 May 2015

We started Sunday by greeting our beloved Melissa who had arrived late in the night from Nairobi, one of the many destinations on her X-Ordinary Journey . Brett reviewed our agenda and route for the day from Cape Town to Stanford.  Our brave drivers took in his rapid fire directions, while Linh Ly wisely took notes. On departure we collected our chock-full goodie bag (boys' and girls' versions) from our host Rebecca, who'd already spoiled us with loving attention, luxury, and  beauty. Her explanation:   "Well, when you've received  so much from others as I have, you just want to do the same, don't you?"  Blessed to bless. 

 Our first stop was a view from St Lowry's pass back over the Cape Peninsula we'd traversed the day before. This was our first chance to greet Suneera who'd just  been collected from the airport and added to our caravan.  Her smile and warmth shone brightly on us all.  

 Our second stop was the Perergrine Farm shop where we found  jars of Gansbaai Heunig (honey), the product of one of our new clients.    

We indulged delicacies such as guava fruit roll-ups, dried mango, ostrich biltong (!), and of course coffee.

We stopped next at the seaside resort town of Hermanus. From a rocky point we saw a whole pod of porpoises swimming directly for, then around, and past us, leaping out and diving back into the water in elegantly repeating arcs

 Manuel suggested that we go shark diving. As this was his 51st time to make this suggestion in 1.5 days, he was christened and will forever more be known as "Shark Bait". 

As we went onward to Stanford, the trees gave way to more grasslands but still with vertiginous craggy mountains scattered throughout.  We next took a wander around very pretty, very pastoral Stanford

As it was Sunday, most things were closed resulting lovely commercial hush unknown to most of us.  Thankfully, a lovely tea shop was open and more cappuccino to be had. 

And then to Beloftebos Farm, the site of our venture for the next 1.5 weeks.  "Belofte" means vow or promise and "Bos" means farm (??),  a fitting name for a farm that's a favorite wedding destination..  We learned more about our clients and about each other as shared introductions with the "local" South African consultants. Each of us had a story of how God brought us to this very place at this very time, with more than a few miracles, visions, and dreams  paving the way.  One had been praying for Africa for years, another had had a dream of the Indian Consultants enjoying meal with all us and so they came at this prompting, with visas and finances provided through God's generous hands.  There had been a vision of bees, and a vision of mountains or strongholds brought low to small stones, easily removed from a field in preparation for a mighty sowing. We finished with  a beautiful meal in the big tent of meeting and were off to our many scattered cottages.

And so we began.

The Venture Begins...

Today was our teambuilding day. Had a wonderful night sleep in Beulah Bed and Breakfast in Cape Town, after a hearty heart felt breakfast from our hostess we caravanned in 3 rental cars. So grateful the Lord has answered our prayers and the entire India team got their visas. Our team pastor had a dream and that the India team would play an important role in this venture.

We drove around to horn of Africa and saw the warm Indian Ocean and cooler Atlantic Ocean in one day. We stopped in an old town called Fish Hoek and sipped cappuccinos. Saw and smelled Penguins up close, yes I said Penguins.

We took a cable car to Table Mountain, looks like a table and can be see from miles around. When the clouds descend from over the mountain it resembles a tablecloth. Next to Table Mountain are 12 rugged mountains called the 12 Apostles.  We looked out over the a beautiful South African sunset and declared blessings of God for South Africa.

We topped off the day with a meeting of elder saints, in a powerful in prayer meeting. Don and Margo and their son missionaries in India and soon Malawi South Africa. Where there vision is demonstrate the Fathers love through to building 1 million homes for widows and handicapped those that society discards.

Can’t wait to see what the Lord is going to do tomorrow.