Victory!

Yesterday, after months of trying to get all the paperwork together and 3 hours in the South African Home Affairs office, I received my spouse permit!! For so long I’ve been putting it off because there is a minimum income level, but yesterday we decided to just go for it and see what happens. Amazingly, we saw more than a couple miracles happen.

First, I had to stop off at my doctor to get a form filled out that I am not mentally ill. She had given me one at the beginning of the year, but I had since misplaced it. Anyway, I was really disappointed in myself, and also disappointed knowing they were going to charge me the full price for an appointment that would take less than 5 minutes. I was in and out and when I had to pay, it was about half the price I normally pay. I didn’t ask questions, I just took the blessing! Miracle One.

Secondly, I assumed that I had to first apply for an extension on my current permit (visitor’s visa) before I could apply for my spouse permit because you have to apply 30 days before your current visa expires, and mine was expiring in 8 days. The lady told me not to worry about the extension; she would just push my spouse visa paperwork through. Miracle Two.

Third, the lady who was processing my paperwork said there is no way that my visa would be denied!! Wow! Miracle Three.

Fourthly, there was NO FEE on my visa. It didn’t cost me anything, except that three hours in the building and walking up 7 flights of stairs a number of times. Miracle Four.

After we left the building, we celebrated! The process was so much easier than we had imagined!



Piet and Leah



Praise God that there is now one less stress to worry about!

         "So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.
          You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God,
          you will receive what he has promised."  Hebrews 10: 35-36

So, I guess the tunnel isn't as far as we thought. :)

Our new car! 2003 Ford Focus

Thanks for the prayers!

The Bakers

Pain in the Night, but Joy in the Morning

I realized lately that I haven’t properly explained the set up of Africa Ablaze. There are about 12 of us that live on the Africa Ablaze campus. The campus has 4 dorms, and 3 private houses, a multi-purpose hall, horse arena, and more. Piet and I live here full-time, and whenever it is time for camps, the students arrive at our door step and we entertain them for the duration of their stay. I have to admit I’m happy to be married because my days of staying in dorms are OVER!

The children who come on holiday camps have been booked in by their parents. We don’t advertise it as “church camp”, but it is an invitation to understand who God is and how he works in our lives. The June/July camp definitely topped the April camp. There was a real spirit of God’s presence touching the lives of the young people.  Many received Jesus into their hearts.

I have to admit that when we first joined the ministry I wasn’t super excited about camps and working with kids. Piet and my specialty is youth. However, I find myself playing the part of the mother on camp, and I hear the phrase, “You are going to be such a good mom one day” said much more than expected.  Piet also finds his role an easy one to play: camp facilitator and worship leader. He is learning well how to blend authority, discipline, and friendliness. Everyone loves him.

Every day there were sessions where we would sing songs and teach a moral or Biblical lesson with the kids. We had a lot more opportunities to teach this camp, which is not only fun, but has really helped us grow.

As I mentioned a while ago, life just seems particularly difficult lately. Piet and I feel that we are going through a lot of trials. I see the light at the end of the tunnel, but it’s still a distance away. Many of you have probably heard about our car by now. We had bought a really great car for a good price, but unfortunately we had been scammed and the mileage had been set back, AND the car needed a new transmission. Luckily we caught it in time and were able to get our money back. And here we are, a month later, we have bought an excellent car! We got an even better price on a car with very low miles. We are very confident that our new Ford Focus will last us years. We want to thank EVERYONE who helped contribute toward our car! Thank you so much!! We would have never done it without the loving support of each of you.

At the moment, Piet and I have been given an amazing gift of a condo about 50 minutes away. We requested a week off to really just take time to pray about our future. In all honesty, we aren’t sure if we are at the right place at Africa Ablaze. We felt called, but now we doubt. We are taking quality time to think about our goals, visions, and plan for the future and to seek God’s heart for us. Things were just getting too much, and I personally felt like I had nothing left to give until I slipped away and completely recharged.

We are also (yes…the trials continue!) in the middle of trying to sort out my visa. It’s literally been months trying to get it right. I have about 9 days left on my current permit, but I am getting an extension this week, and will apply for a spouse permit. We actually don’t qualify for the spouse permit because we don’t make enough money, but we are praying for a miracle!

We know this is a lot. I don’t usually like writing so much because I never know if anyone will read till the end. But thank you for taking an interest in our lives. We have some real desperate needs at the moment if you can please stand with us:

-Pray for God to speak clearly about our future this week
-Pray for the visa extension to go through and grace for a spouse visa
-For the enemy to remove his hands from our lives
-For the financial stress to be taken away

We really do love each one of you. We feel a connection even though we are far.
“Jesus, your love has no bounds” –Phil Wickham

The Bakers

Psalm 35

A few weeks ago, I was reading my friend Ashlee’s latest blog post. I don’t normally advertise for other people, but this one was especially good: http://ashsouthafrica.blogspot.com/2011/06/gone-overseas-and-its-brought-me-to-my.html . It really describes something I’ve felt lately.

A little while back I was reading Psalm 35, and it really stirred up my heart’s cry and brought up a lot of questions that I was discussing with Piet.

The author, David, is pleading with God to take away his enemies and to deal with them justly. He also mentions that God’s heart is for the poor and how he rescues them and sees them.

10 You rescue the poor from those too strong for them,
the poor and needy from those who rob them.

13 When my prayers returned to me unanswered,
14 I went about mourning as though for my friend or brother.

22 O Lord, you have seen this; be not silent. Do not be far from me, O Lord.
23 Awake, and rise to my defense! Contend for me, my God and Lord.

It made me think, however. But just hear my thoughts… Does God really rescue the poor? Does he really save them from those who are too strong for them? If I’m totally honest, living in this country makes me question if he does. I see young children with torn clothes, shoes with holes, and starving bellies on a regular basis. These children are unwashed and lonely. Some of their parents have died and have no one to look after them. It just seems so unfair, and I began to ask the Lord if he really does see them, or are his eyes blind toward them. How many genuine prayers are being unanswered? Why does he leave them to suffer? I began discussing my concerns with Piet.

There is an unfortunate reality in South Africa. There is a spirit of laziness and abuse. So often the little money that a family might earn is used on alcohol to drown the sorrows that they feel.  Not long ago Piet and I were speaking to someone who lives in a shack who wants to buy a Mercedes! Their perceptions are so distorted. They think the status of a nice car trumps feeding their family because it shows that they are doing “ok”. Have you ever seen a Mercedes parked next to a tin shack? It’s very strange and certainly counterproductive.

Piet made the comment that God gives us the ability to reason and to understand the things that are right. People in the informal settlements are crying for food, yet not making the effort to get a job. There is one guy who attends our church who calls Piet on occasion looking for a job, yet he makes no effort to find one himself. He thinks that just because Piet is married to a white lady he has lots of money or can “pull strings” for him.

I get very encouraged by all the small businesses that are run by the side of the road or otherwise because these people have seen the vision and are running with it and can then provide for their families. Some of the hardest workers in South Africa, however, aren’t even South Africans-it is those who see and appreciate the opportunities- the Zimbabweans, Nigerians, and Malawians that have nothing for them in their home country and come to South Africa for work.

The truth is that there are the many innocent children living below the poverty line who are sadly living in the sins and disregard of their parents. And the truth is there in David’s words: O Lord, you have seen this. And as Piet was relating to his personal experiences, some are very content where they are at. It doesn’t mean that they must go from a shack to a mansion. If they were able to eat that day, then God took care of them. God saw their need and he rescued them. Piet even as a young boy knew that God looked after him because he never went without.

So maybe it’s not up to me to judge God and to say that he doesn’t answer their prayers. He does. In ways that are tangible for each one.

Piet’s comments: That being said, we acknowledge that everything happens for a reason and our task is to seek God’s will in the situation. I (Piet) have come to an understanding that we might not fix the situation but if we continue witnessing the truth, people will be set free, not forgetting that we should cultivate goodness within our lives so that the fruit of goodness is produced. It is impossible to produce true kindness (doing well to others) without practicing goodness.  Our words are not enough, but the Godly character in us makes our speech true. Character is a witness of what is inside us.

Thank you Lord, as David says later in Psalm 68:5, YOU are the “father to the fatherless, a defender of widows…”

Stirred by compassion,

The Bakers