News 2006 - February

Dear Andrew,

My role here is primarily as a cricket coach and thus as a link for Sportslife into the cricketing world to help spread their ministries to other parts of the country than just football and athletics. Currently Frank and I are running a bible study for the cricketers on a Thursday morning, when he leaves I will continue with a course that Frank has helped me to learn while he has been out here. In April I am flying to Ghana with the national cricket team as an observer and a coach. We will then fly on to South Africa. In total the trip will last from the 5th April to the 3rd may. All the while I will of course be witnessing and holding bible studies for the team. Hopefully it should create some fantastic opportunities to talk to people that I have become good friends with about what a real faith is rather than just a nominal one.

As well as this Frank and I have built a relationship with the national boxing team and the plan is to start a bible study for them also. We will of course be taking Yatta to this one as it will most definitely be a harder crowd to preach to and Yatta's experience will be priceless.

So far I have spent time and worshiped at many different churches and plan to continue visiting new ones whilst out here. It is good to get an idea of what church is like all round rather than just in one place. This has given me a chance to experience the prosperity gospel a number of times and has made my mind sure in my absolute certainty that it is wrong. It has in fact made me a passionate campaigner against it.

Any way this trip already has served to make me grow in many ways. Firstly I have to organise my own life in a country that I don’t know at all so I feel that I have had to mature greatly very quickly. Secondly I have seen what real reliance on Christ is and have become better at, as it says in James, believing that when I pray it is done. When one really acknowledges this then answers to prayer come from every direction and my faith has grown drastically as a result.

So that is my trip so far I look forward to reporting more when I get home.

Much love

Stay blessed

Paddy Stern