YWAM Yei, South Sudan

South Sudan is going through a transition period. Bryan Whitlock a Ywamer recently travelled up to Yei to find out what is going on there...

YWAM Yei, South Sudan from YWAM AfriCom on Vimeo.

What's holding you back?

At YWAM AfriCom, our heart is to serve those who work in YWAM in Africa so that they can feel better connected, that their work does not go unnoticed and that they can learn from others in the mission. Sometimes it's good to reflect on what holds us back. At a recent mission gathering, known as the Go conference run in Mossel Bay, South Africa, there was a talk on what holds missionaries back, or takes them out of missions. Hans Oines, who was at the conference summarised the main points we need to consider:

1-Bitterness and un-forgiveness with other missionaries is a killer because relationships keep us afloat, we need to be balanced and healthy with our expectations towards one another.

2- Keep short accounts. We must say when we are offended and forgive. We must be quick to forgive and apologize. We have to protect our relationships with one another and those we are called to serve.

3-Disappointment with God is another thing that shuts missionaries down. We are to move in obedience and it is costly. We have the wrong kind of expectation if we think that we will have open doors and everyone is safe. We should obey regardless of the cost. We need to have the character to follow Jesus no matter what the cost.

Why not share your experience of being held back, or being released from bitterness/disappointment in missions on the YWAM Africa Facebook page? Just go to https://www.facebook.com/pages/YWAM-Africa/127366240649036

Pledges sought

As we enter into a new season for YWAM in Africa, here in the communications team we are excited about the projects that we have planned. God is guiding us to venture into new places and embrace new projects. We are equipping missionaries in the field with what they need to communicate, whilst hearing their stories and championing some of the great things that are being done there. In this picture we ventured into a rural location in Angola to find an Angolan YWAMer preaching and teaching in a village, making disciples and baptising new believers. From this visit, working alongside many different ministries, we were able to produce materials that built a better understanding in the region of what God was doing. We were also able to build partnerships between YWAM and other agencies.

For those that have been following us over the past months and years, will see that we are now starting to build on the projects that have been successful.

Right now, as our administration changes and we are preparing for what God has instore for the next season, we are looking for friends who will be willing to journey with us. Most important for us at this time is prayer and support pledges. We want to be accountable to a support team which values YWAM and wants to see more breakthrough in Africa. With that we are going to need friends who are willing to stand in the gap, financially and otherwise, so that we can complete what we have been called to do.

If you are willing to be a prayer partner and would like to pledge how you will support YWAM AfriCom to connect ministries in Africa:

please email
info@ywamafricom.org

(e.g. I am willing to commit to praying once a week for guidance for the team or I pledge $15 per month towards this ministry).

Connecting Africa

Imagine working for years in isolated circumstances. Your calling is to reach tribes in rural Africa with the gospel. Faithfully you go and serve, build relationships and work in a people group that is not your own, adopting customs and cultures that are alien to you and embrace life there. Your contact with the 'outside world' is limited to visits back to the big cities for meetings with other missionaries, or the ocassional visit from a leader. However, your knowledge of what is happening in the broader picture for the mission is limited. Easily you start to question what you are doing in relation to others.

Is anyone else out there doing what I'm doing?
Does anyone else have the difficulties I'm facing?

All too often, missionaries leave their 'posts' because of burnout or isolation. That isolation is not usually because there aren't people around them, it is because they are not connected with others who are doing and feeling the same way.

That is why it is so important to build a communications network where those working across Africa in places away from their 'home' and extended family can feel connected to others in similar circumstance. They need a place to share their stories outside of their immediate circumstance and they need to be valued by others in the mission.



God has laid on our hearts, in AfriCom, the vision to support all who serve in YWAM. We visit projects in far-flung places, we collect stories and share them, we make videos to champion the work done by the unsung heroes of faith and we teach the wider body of the mission how to build their own links with each other.

It is our vision that every ministry location in Africa should be connected to one another and thereby feel valued and part of wider work of the mission.

It might not seem like much to many of us, but the magazine we produce bi-annually, known as Djembe, is highly prized by those that receive it. Our running costs are relatively low, but to distribute a few copies of each magazine to some of the remotest locations is a costly exercise. But something that, from our own experience is well worth doing. People donate their time and energy into gathering stories, writing, designing, translating and producing the magazine. In other contexts we could just publicise it online. However, in our context, a physical magazine showcasing the work done by YWAMers on this continent is invaluable and something that we cannot compromise on. However, it does lead to the problem of printing and distribution costs. This is usually around $3,000 per edition. We would value, so much, if friends could pledge a donation today to support us in the production of the current edition which has been produced and is just waiting to be printed. We have raised a third of our costs so far, so we are just asking anyone to donate to enable this to happen.

In YWAM AfriCom we work to serve YWAM any and every YWAMer who lives and works in Africa. We do not receive corporate funding; we get our support from friends who value what we do.

By sponsoring this magazine, YOU can know that you are helping connect ministries together and build a holistic mission to fulfil the Great Commission together.

Best foot forward

Peter Clemison writes:

This morning was the first meeting of the new group of elders for YWAM AfriCom which is made up of five longterm, well established YWAM staff who have a passion for Africa. This group has committed to meet with the AfriCom team once a month to help us as we grow and develop the ministry to serve YWAMers in Africa.

During this transitional time, as the baton is handed from one to another, it has been an opportunity to look at some of the achievements that have been made since its inception in 2002. If you look at YWAM being the decentralised movement of training, outreach and community ministries in many different locations across Africa, it is amazing to think that this small team of communicators has achieved so much. I can really see God's hand on guiding and developing this team. YWAM has been organic in its growth, focusing on where God is leading, rather than slow strategic planning. Therefore building a culture of communication and developing an

understanding of the value of communications in a missions context has been a great challenge.

Yet, the AfriCom team has developed a communications focus in YWAM that has equipped so many missionaries serving in Africa with what they need to communicate – through schools and workshops, seminars and events. It has connected some very isolated missionaries on this continent with one another and helped develop a culture of communication which has led to partnerships being formed which otherwise would not have existed. It has also championed the 'under dog' – the quiet unassuming ministry that presses on toward their goal.

As I look to take on the co-ordinating role in this team and I look to continue to serve this vast continent, I know that I must trust God to guide the team in developing the plans for the future. That is why I am so glad that the team has the elders in place to speak prophetically into AfriCom and be an accountability for us in the future.

I am excited about the future of AfriCom. Communications in missions can often be misunderstood and overlooked, yet when it is done effectively , so much can be achieved.

YWAM leaders from South Africa meet in Bethlehem

Autumn in South Africa is a time for refreshing and gathering together of those that lead YWAM training locations and ministries in southern Africa. Over the weekend of 6-8th, about 50 of us gathered in Bethlehem (no, not that one! – Bethlehem, South Africa). It was a chance for us to share our stories, each one part of the larger story that is YWAM's work in this part of the world.

In the cool, misty, remote location of YWAM's training centre in Bethlehem we were singing and dancing to songs with hand and arm actions to warm our bodies as we worshipped God. Though cold outside, the atmosphere in the main hall was warm and inviting with lots of family jokes and banter among old friends. As the meetings got underway, each ministry in this region had a chance to share with the group the ways they are working to meet the needs of the communities where they live, along with the main things that they are facing this year. Some shared about great challenges, whilst others shared about exciting new beginnings.

YWAM Durban surprised us all when they told of their rescue home for cats (currently housing 100 felines) which – apparently – has opened doors into the community that would never have been there otherwise. Another unusual story came from a YWAM ministry which began working with the police to bridge relations between the community and church pastors, who had been getting into trouble from parents of school children who objected to their work within schools.

It was inspiring and encouraging to hear and share the myriad projects that are being done as part of Youth With A Mission's engagement in the communities of South Africa. Our work as a YWAM communication team means that we focus on building connections between diverse Youth With A Mission ministries, and on championing them by telling their stories. Meeting with the leaders from this part of Africa was another reminder of what an honour this is!

Inter-agency Networking

When we started AfriCom, the first regional communication team for Youth With A Mission, it felt like we were creating something completely new. And we were, for our organization. Communication had either been dealt with at a local level - more or less competently - or, when it came to our public face, at an international level from the United States.

Those first years were a combination of experimentation, building connections with leaders in the organization, being told what we were trying to do couldn't work, and then seeing the first small signs of success. It was hard and sometimes messy. But we were convinced it was important and we enjoyed it enough to keep going!

Last week Miranda and Peter went to JOhannesburg to meet with the communication directors for Africa from Wycliffe, Africa Inland Mission and the International Baptist Mission. We have been discussing how the unique 'personalities' of our organizations have led us to pursue communication in specific ways on their behalf. We have exchanged ideas. We have been impressed by what one another is producing - beautiful stories from Africa in video, written and photo form. We have identified ways of partnering with one another, together supporting the work of each of our missionary groups in Africa.

We learned that we are not alone. That others have walked this road before us and have made the road smoother for those that follow behind. That this great mission which we have all given our lives to - making Love and Life known - can only be done as we work together.

Who do you network with and how does this encourage and inspire you?