Around the world in South Africa

COVID-19 upon our personal lives and it is similar in our SU work. But I am grateful to be involved with a team that has continued to push our work with young people in creative and useful ways to take the gaps that the pandemic has provided for us in which to minister. The challenges are complex, but SU South Africa still managed to reach around 55,000 young people throughout 2021. We praise God for His kindness. He has answered our prayers. We’ve called to God this year and He has answered. Prayer has been a major focus and the prayer team led by Daryl Henning has helped to keep prayer on the front burner with weekly SU zoom prayer meetings, monthly prayer calendars and weekly staff prayer focuses. The experiments in digital communications from 2020 became quite normal for us in 2021 as SU staff met monthly for devotions, the directors team met weekly and Council met quarterly, all online. These online gatherings have helped to facilitate important discussions leading to a model, adopted by Council, that significantly changed our budgeting processes and responsibilities in an effort to create a more sustainable SU. This seems to have been helpful. One other major transition has been in the shift from IQ to Xero as a new accounting system. Alice Chinya led this process and it has simplified the bookkeeping system and provided helpful report generation capabilities while greatly reducing the staff hours needed to process SU financial information. The cost savings have been significant. But most exciting for all of us has been the return to in person children’s ministry. New teams have been planted in new schools and we are finding church partners excited about ministry to young people. These children are in need—trauma and anxiety levels have increased and the door for ministry appears to be open. And in the midst of our financial challenges, we still believe that we are meant to fill many of these gaps. We are trusting God for increased funding in 2022 to reach the young people that we believe He has waiting for us. Please join me in praying for a massive harvest in 2022.”