December 2005 Christmas Greetings

Anathoth is the headquarters of Africa Upper Room Ministries. On five acres of land near Johannesburg, South Africa, it takes its name from the Jeremiah passage in which land at Anathoth is purchased as a sign of hope for the future. Anathoth is, for Upper Room Ministries, a sign of hope for the future of Africa. This newsletter from staff-person Roland Rink brings news from this important ministry.

Advent greetings to each of you from a hot and summery Johannesburg Highveld. Strange as it may sound to those of you held in the arms of the Northern winter, in the Southern hemisphere it's time for swimming at night, barbeques, sandals, shorts, suntan oil, cricket and holidays.

The scripture, Isaiah 40:3-5 continues to provide nourishment, direction and encouragement for our work on the African continent:

"A voice cries out: 'In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.'"
- Isaiah 40:3-5 (NRSV)

As we reflect back upon the year, we see multiple signs of God's grace in our midst. Africa Upper Room Ministries (AURM) has been an instrument that, in providing Christian resources to all Africans at the lowest possible cost, has made a more level path for God to travel in the lives of people.

Some of the "leveling instruments" we have been privileged to work alongside during this past year, and for whom we give thanks has been:

• Cheryl, Elroy and Derek and the mission team from St. Andrews Methodist Church in Eldorado Park who support the local Eikenhof community who gather at Anathoth.
• The Youth Group from Belmont United Methodist Church who spent time with us and the community in a cold wintry June, sitting around a bonfire.
• The Pienaar family who continue to care for the Anathoth property and the group of 30 young people who gather each Saturday.
• The Stotler family from Peachtree City, Atlanta whose presence was much appreciated as we dreamt and discerned the future development of the property.
• Visits by the Brown and Lefelar families; Stephen Bryant, our Upper Room world editor; Victor Perez from the Emmaus office in Nashville; and Jerry Haas, the director for the Academy for Spiritual Formation.
• Regular visits by the Presiding Bishop, Ivan Abrahams.
• The continued incredible support we receive from our colleagues in Nashville, Tennessee.
• The presence since 16th June of little Zanele Mazibuko who still has not found it in her 4-year-old heart to give me a smile, although she very nearly did so at the AURM Christmas lunch. (Next year sees Zanele begin her first adventures in pre-school!)
• That we have been able to distribute no less than 128,000 copies of The Upper Room daily devotional guide, in 5 languages to 18 different African countries.
• A strong, growing relationship with TransWorld Radio. We anticipate that we will see the daily devotional broadcast into Kwa Zulu Natal in 2006 to no fewer than 9 million potential listeners/believers in their mother tongue, isiZulu.
• Our friends and printers, Salty Print who continue to perform minor miracles when printing the magazine to deadline, as well as our distribution team at the Methodist Publishing House in Cape Town.

All those not mentioned above who have visited us, and all of you who have been so supportive of our efforts. Your prayers, thoughts, observations, kindness and generosity have been overwhelming and inspirational. All of you have assisted us to help make the road for the Lord to travel to the hearts of the African people smoother. I have the distinct feeling that God smiles.

As in life, there have been joyous moments in 2005 as well as profoundly sad times.

Perhaps the saddest of these was when we had to say goodbye to our friend and colleague Johannes Mpingi who died so suddenly at the end of July. Additionally, our neighbours John and Yvonne Gallow whose mother Jackie died in a motor car accident on the corner of Howard Road at the beginning of the year.

Finally, we would like to take this opportunity to wish each of you, your families, faith communities and friends a very peace-filled and blessed Christmas. Our earnest wish this festive season is that the Prince of Peace will be reborn in your hearts, your minds and in your everyday lives.

May the sun in your heart be your smile! We go forward into 2006 strengthened by the fact that we're all in this Love together.

Peace is my sister,
Nancy, Renny, Bettina, Ike and Roland

P.S. The GPS coordinates, for those who are technically inclined, for the Anathoth property are: S 26" 20' 26.6" E028" 00' 09.5". Check out this marvelous aerial view of our 5-acre plot of land.