Dear brethren,
Please find herewith the latest ministry news from Sizwe Maseti and Makhaza Reformed Baptist Church in Khayelitsha, South Africa.
Family
The Lord has been gracious to us as a family. We thank him that we are well. My wife, Sethu, was ill. The doctor said she had COVID-19 symptoms, so we stayed at home and took medication for ten days. We did not notice it in the beginning, because we had bad news that week, so we thought she is just feeling down because of the news. We only noticed when she was getting worse and having short breath. Before she got ill, our son, Nakuwe, was not well for a couple of days. He was not eating and was a bit weak. His temperature was sometimes high. We thought he was teething, but he was not. Then I started to have a cough for about three days. After that it was my wife. We thank God that she is well and we are also well.
Ministry
We were hit hard as the church by the death of two of our members by COVID-19 in the same week. One member passed away on Christmas Day and the other on 29 December. One of the challenges was that most of the people were still away on holidays, so it was difficult for them to come back for the funeral. Another difficulty is that they were buried on the same date, so those who were around had to split: Some attended one funeral and others attended another. My colleague, Bulelani, and I had to split as well so that each conducted a funeral. It was a challenging time for us, but we thank the Lord that we were able to manage the situation and everything went well.
We have not been meeting as the church since the announcement of the president to go back to Level 3. We are going back to sending voice note sermons and prayer items. Since the numbers are getting higher, and we are cautious after losing some members, we have not discussed when we should reopen.
Prayer Items
- Praise God for the health of our family.
- Pray for our church and the families that lost their loved ones through this difficult time, and that people may not overwhelmed by fear.
- Pray for the situation that the churches find themselves in, so that the Lord may give the eldership wisdom in guiding the saints during this rise of the pandemic.
Thank you for your prayers,
Sizwe Maseti
Makhaza Reformed Baptist Church
Khayelitsha, South Africa