Our mission teams often visit with patients at the Harrismith Hospital.  Team members pour out love and prayers to everyone who welcomes them- men and women, black and white, old and young.  All precious children of God looking for healing, comfort, and courage.

Just like Johanna.  Johanna had been staying at the hospital day and night with her 20-month-old granddaughter Seipati who was suffering from a serious respiratory infection.  She shared with us that her daughter, Seipati’s mother, had passed away and that she was currently caring for 7 grandchildren ages 20-months to 19 years.  Half-laughing and half-crying she said she was too old for 7 children, but she trusted that the Lord would provide them with everything they needed.  When we asked what we could pray for, her request was so simple and so sacrificial – that the Lord would heal her hands so she could keep up with the laundry for such a large family.

Even when money, energy and strength seem to run out, it’s clear that Johanna has enough love for her entire family and then some.  Our prayer is that she continues to trust the Lord to supply her every need, and that she passes that strong faith on to her grand-children as well.  Will you join us in praying for Johanna?

8 men and women, in 2 short weeks, poured their lives into a village in Qwa Qwa, 8500 miles away from home.  All because of the love of 1 Savior, 1 true God.

14 new believers in God’s kingdom.   4 families that will remember Christ’s love as they eat from their gardens.  3 families served by total strangers doing household chores.  6 families given Bibles in their own language.  5 people comforted and prayed with.  1 person healed.  78 children who learned about Christ and experienced His love through a team from half-way around the world.  In this case, it was thanks to The River Community Church serving Lighthouse Ministries and our beloved Pastor Maria.

We track these numbers in order to share with local pastors, and to celebrate how the Lord uses a mission team to impact a community.  But it’s not about the numbers – rather it’s about each man, woman and child that they represent.  Lives that were touched by the love of Jesus Christ, believers that were encouraged, and churches that were strengthened as a result.

- Jill Marshall, Outreach Coordinator

If you’ve been looking around our website much, you may have noticed a common thread: discipleship. Thrive Africa is all about guiding people to become fully-devoted followers of Christ and equipping them to be leaders who are highly competent and strong in character. Each year we have hundreds of people come to serve alongside us on mission teams, so how do they play into our mission statement?

One of the main types of ministry our mission teams do is a type of cultural exchange. We call it relationship evangelism. Teams are split into small groups and paired with an interpreter. They visit with the Basotho people in their homes, getting to know the family and building a relationship with them.  As a people group, Basothos are very relational. They love having visitors and sharing life with those that we would consider “strangers”- someone they just met. As our team members get to know the people they’re visiting, they are able to help meet their spiritual and practical needs-through conversation, prayer, helping with chores and even planting a garden.

The goal of relationship evangelism is to have the opportunity for mission team members to share Christ with people through relationship and then get them connected with a Bible believing church in their neighborhood, where they can grow and be discipled. Many times we are able to get them into one of our LaunchPad classes, where they are able dig into the word under the direction of Thrive staff and interns.

As we approach our busiest season of the year with hosting mission teams- we wanted you to have an “inside look” at what they’ll be doing as they minister alongside of us.  If you’d like to read some stories from teams that have been with us in the last few months, check out these: More Than A Coincidence, We’re in the Hospital, or Go With God.

We hosted our first-ever radio station mission team this month!  Life 100.3, from Barrie, Ontario formed a team comprised of promotional winners and radio station staff- and they spent 10 days serving alongside of us.

Driving through Qwa Qwa on their first day of ministry, the team needed to turn on the radio to see what South African’s listen to.  Seeming more than coincidental- the Qwa Qwa radio station is the very same frequency as Life: 100.3.

Before their time in Qwa Qwa came to an end, Life and Qwa Qwa Radio staff were talking face to face.  They spent a morning together- sharing about everything from Canadian culture to radio technologies- and in doing so, Thrive made a new connection that’s loaded with potential for spreading the love of Christ.

It was awesome to see God work through more than a coincidence- it was His providence.

We had the opportunity to host a missions team of 20 young people from Willow Creek Church. After spending a weekend with Thrive, they ventured to other parts of South Africa to finish their missions trip- and this is testimony is from their time with us:

“This was our second time partnering with Thrive, and though it was only for a short weekend, their team led us in the most poignant ministry moment of our entire stay in S. Africa.  It was our visit to the Qwa Qwa hospital that we are still talking about, processing, and praying about.  All five senses were engaged as we attempted to talk to patients through translators, asking if we could touch them, pray for them.  It stretched us beyond measure.

There was one patient reading and praying from a Thrive (Leadership Summit curriculum) booklet that she had brought with her to the hospital. She was sharing it with the girl in the bed next to her when we arrived!!!  It was a testament to the effect Thrive Africa is having on this community and we were blessed to be apart of it.” - Chrissie Tofilon, Willow Creek.

I wanted to share a story with you that has truly impacted my life. While we were visiting Mabula Game Lodge, I had the chance to catch up with a few of their staff workers. After a couple of conversations it was clear that one of the workers was after my shoes and he asked that I leave them for him. After about 10 min. of talking with this employee I found out that he was going through some life struggles, like all of us are, but he was looking for salvation/solutions in all the wrong places. The bottom of a bottle, smoking, etc. Then he began to tell me he knew it was wrong; he knew that it wasn’t what he should be doing, but he didn’t have anyone to teach him another way. It was during this moment that I felt the prompting of God within me to share the Word with him. Within about 10 minutes of talking about the bible, this young man began to shift. You could see it in his face and the way he held himself. It’s as if a light bulb went off inside. He understood the ramifications of living life as he had been.  Unfortunately, our conversation was cut short by my scheduled obligations. I left him with a prayer and asked God to show me what I should do next.

The next morning I ran to see if he was working, and he was! I was so excited to see him again briefly before leaving the lodge. I ran over and met him at the bar with a satchel across my shoulder. He embraced me with a big hug and welcomed me as if we were old friends. Everything about him was different. He had a little pep in his step and he embraced every word I said to him as we greeted each other. I knew I was tight on time so  I reached inside the satchel and pulled out a Bible and the same shoes he wanted when I first me him. I told him I didn’t have much time, but that I needed him to choose what I was going to leave behind. He looked at me and with no doubt, hesitation or fear- reached for the Bible and embraced it as a treasure. I was overwhelmed with joy. I told him ” God wants you to have the Bible, and I want you to have the shoes.” Go with God.

- Tres Washington, Thrive Trip team member

We had the wonderful opportunity to host a team of 26 students from all over the United States for 3 weeks this summer. They changed many lives and had their own changed as well. Take a closer look at this video to gain a better understanding of how they spent their time here, and to get a feel for the authenticity that served as the backbone for the entire trip.

Does this sound like something you’d want to spend a couple weeks doing? Hop on over and take a look at our student and adult Thrive Trip opportunities.

This past July we hosted the Thrive Student Trip under the watchful supervision of Cassie and Brandon Hart, leaders from the States that we’ve had led the Thrive Student Trip the past two years. They’re a huge part of the reason that Thrive Trip is so instrumental in the students’ lives that come out; their dedication and pure, steadfast joy in the Lord and His work is a shining example of the life we should all be striving to live.

Cassie is an elementary school teacher, and when she came out in July she brought notes of encouragement from her third-grade students. They were both humorous and refreshing. Here are a few of them:

Hello my name is Eva. God loves you and he’ll never let the earth fall into the sun, you his daughters and sons.

Your friend,
Eva

: :

Dear Missionary’s, I hope the African children understand what you say. God has you in his hands.

Love,
Natalia

: :

Hello, you are doing something that is great! Thare is hope for all the children’s family, frends and them. Keep up the good work.

Love,
Megan

The Thrive Trip team met a man named Thomas who was suffering from epilepsy. Thomas had no family and was living with a friend. The man who cared for him was gone most of the time, so Thomas was usually left alone. When Thomas was younger, his mother read Bible stories to him and his siblings. Both of his parents tragically died, and the children were left to the care of their grandmother. Unfortunately, his grandma was a sangoma (witchdoctor) who tried to poison the children. Thomas thanks God for being saved from being poisoned.

The group prayed for Thomas, asking God to heal his epilepsy. When they were finished, Thomas said that he had felt power course through his body, and he knew that God had healed him.

When the group returned to his house after lunch, Thomas was already looking better. He was talking more clearly, and both of his eyes were open. They shared Scriptures with him about the healing power of God.

The next day, Thomas was walking down the street, waving to them. He told them he was filled with joy, because God sent them to him. He can’t read, so he has the friend he lives with read the Bible to him. He wants to bring the man to Christ and to church with him on Sundays. Thomas says he will always remember the day he was healed, and he wants to share Jesus Christ with everyone he knows!

When we hosted a team from Mountainview Church in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, God—as always—worked as much in the lives of the team members as He did in the lives of the nationals they touched. Here’s the stories of three of the team members.

Chris
Chris was most impacted by a woman his team met, Sarah. He was touched by her love, humility, and trust. He believes the level of trust she was able to show was possible because though she had never had a white person enter her home, the love of Christ abounded. The experience was humbling and will stay with him forever. Chris says his heart is broken for the people of South Africa, and God gave him compassion for their situation. He now feels equipped with the information and the heart to better allocate his resources for sending others into the mission field.

Lani
While Lani was in Intabazwe ministering, she met a woman who said something she will never forget: “Maybe God sent you here just to speak to me.” Lani was also utterly taken aback by the amazing power of prayer. Her group met two men who were alcoholics, and after praying with the men for an end to their addiction, the men stopped drinking.

Aiden
This was Aiden’s first mission trip, and he feels this experience has truly shaped him. His eyes were opened to many things, including the enormous amount of potential in the people of the villages—the potential for the adults and children to become incredible leaders. God showed Aiden the power of sharing Jesus Christ with people through relationships. He is anxious to share what he has learned here in South Africa with the members of his community back home. Aiden is also waiting for God to send him on his next mission trip. His heart has been burdened to share the love of Christ all over the world, “How can we stay in the United States when there are people out there like [these people]?” He is returning home equipped with a heart for many, many more mission trips!