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Real Life
David (not his real name) was the one who made fun of others; playing the entertainer, making jokes.
Gabriel challenged him that he has a gift, but he is using that gift for the wrong reasons. Gabriel warned him that God will keep him accountable for what he did with the gifts that God gave to him.
David's family name has a negative connotation and his family life reflected that; being full of strife and other strange things that happen to them.
Another challenge was given to David - maybe God wants to use you to turn your family around; for you to be the light to your family. As a 15 year old, David is very intelligent. People listen to him because he often speaks with wisdom.
Not long after this, David told Gabriel that he started a small fellowship group and they get together to encourage one another! David said he want to stop breaking people down; he wants to be the light.
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Young man of 13 years old, joined the discipleship group. While he was attending the classes, he heard God speak to Him and felt challenged by God to obey his mother. He shared with the group that before this, he had been very disobedient. Now God was asking him to obey and respect his mother, even if she was an alcoholic. And God gave him a promise that He will not take his mother away before he finished with school.
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At 18 years old, Clive (name changed) never knew his father. The father had run away, so Clive was always aware that there was a father somewhere in another town, but he never made contact.
As a family they often moved house. The mother had no work and they lived off food that other people would give to them. Of course, they only had worn out clothes to wear.
Clive was very embarrassed about his family's situation. He was even too ashamed to talk to his friends. Often he wondered why they had to move house so often.
At the youth gathering, Clive testified about how he cried out to God, asking why their family had to endure all these difficulties.
God heard his cries; his mother became born again. She came home one day and announced: "I think God is about to do something. He heard our calls".
The next day the mother got a job with a good salary. Now they are able to help those who helped them before.
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A mother came to Gabriel, asking for help with her 15 year old son. She discovered that he had not been attending school for about 5 months. When she spoke to him about it, he just said, "No, I don't like school".
This young man had been coming to soccer practise every Saturday and Wednesday, even though he was already part of another soccer club. He asked Gabriel for help and whether he could join the Beautiful Kidz team. At first Gabriel told him there in no place on the team, but he kept coming to practice. It was then that Gabriel realised it was the son whose mother asked for help.
Gabriel took time to have a personal conversation with this young man. He opened up and admitted that he did not go to school because others teased him about being poor, his clothes and where he lived.
When Gabriel asked him where he would not want to end up with his life, he responded that he would not want to be poor, homeless or a drunkard. One of his dreams is to be an architect and design houses.
Gabriel then challenged him: Everyone has dreams, even the one living out of the dustbin. But if you do not do something to move towards your dream, you will end up where you do not want to be. You also need Christ to assist through life. Gabriel committed to talk to the teachers and ask them to support this young man. A few days later the young man was back in his school uniform. He and Gabriel now meet once a week, showing that he is willing to receive more guidance.
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OUTREACH ENCOUNTERS:
The discipleship class went to visit one of the local establishments for senior citizens. We took snacks looking to have a time of fellowship, but also opportunities to encourage and pray for our hosts.
One of the 13 year old boys testified:
I asked God: 'What do you want me to say and who do you want me to be a blessing to?' It was my first time to do outreach like this and I was very nervous. But after I asked God, I could not believe the things I was saying.
I asked an old man if he has ever received Christ. The man replied: 'No. Does God care - I am old?'
My answer was: 'God loves you the way you are. He loves young and old and if you decide to give your life to Him, He will receive you'.
The man asked if I would pray for him and I said yes, that is why I was there.
Afterwards he asked me to come again. I realised these people are looking for someone to talk to and because we came, this old man was able to express his heart.
One of the young people asked a grandmother if she knew God. She said yes, but confessed that although she once served God with her whole heart and enjoyed singing in choirs, she had moved far from Him. The young person then asked the grandmother if you would like to come back to God at which she responded: 'Of course, please pray with me'.
It was a big encouragement to experience that God can use us and guide us.
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