Mission to Mpumalanga - 2011

​Whenever possible I try to include one of my children in mission trips. When invitations came through for ministry in Mpumalanga and KwaZulu I wanted to include our youngest son, 11 year old Calvin. However funds did not allow this. When my father-in-law, Rev. Bill Bathman, heard about the complication, he immediately sponsored Calvin's air tickets so that he could take part in this mission. This was Calvin's eleventh mission trip with me and, as before, he proved an invaluable member of the team assisting in Way of the Master and Evangelism Explosion training and Scripture memorisation presentations.

​Calvin and I flew up to Mpumalanga. There we were met by Frontline missionary, David. He had travelled through from Limpopo with his landrover and trailer packed with two tonnes of Study Bibles, Christian books and Gospel booklets for strategic distribution throughout this mission.
Back to the BibleOur first meetings were at Back to the Bible Training College. This dynamic ministry is run by General Shai Mulder and they have over 160 students from 14 countries throughout Africa studying for a three year degree which takes them through every book in the Bible. It was sad to see the destruction caused by the devastating fire last year.

The students were busy taking the Evangelism Explosion course. I presented a lecture on Islamic Revolution in the Middle East and taught on Recognising God's Voice.

David delivered many boxes of great Christian books for their library and distributed Dr. Robert Morey's books: Fearing God, The Islamic Invasion and Winning the War Against Radical Islam to students. Mark Cahill's books: One Thing You Can't Do In Heaven and One Heartbeat Away and Robert McNeil's books were also delivered to the college to distribute to students. First year students were also given copies of my books: The Ten Commandments – God's Perfect Law of Liberty and Apostle's Creed – Firm Foundations for your Faith, which the other students had received last year. Reformation Study Bibles were made available for faculty members and as prizes for third year students. There was great excitement and enthusiasm over these valuable resources.

Africa School of MissionsSituated at the base of a huge rock from which the Shangaan people used to throw to their death human sacrifices, we found a vital ministry under siege. The entire three kilometre perimeter of the mission base is surrounded by high electric fences which are frequently being cut. In a two month period the mission college suffered 21 burglaries. Witchdoctors and Communists in the local communities have been working steadfastly to harass and loot the college. The government has also attempted to intimidate and undermine the college by threatening to close it and demanding that it adapt to government standards for accreditation!

We distributed large quantities of great Christian books which have been donated by authors, Dr. Robert Morey, Robert McNeil, Mark Cahill, numerous of my own books and Reformation Study Bibles to the missionary students and faculty members. There was an enthusiastic response to my presentations with one student shouting out “Where do we sign up?”

Petra CollegeThe nearby Petra College for Children's Ministries seemed similarly besieged behind razor wire and electric fencing. They had also suffered numerous burglaries. It was evident many ministries around the country are under attack and involved in serious spiritual warfare.

Mission to KwaZuluAfter completing our ministry tour in Mpumalanga, we travelled through to Jivannadi Mission, a vibrant mission to Hindus, in Natal. I conducted three evening services, dealing with: Guilt Manipulation; The Islamic Revolution in the Middle East and Recognising God's Voice. David and I recorded numerous programmes for Good News Community Radio, including on the Cape Town 2010 Lausanne Congress, the Independence of South Sudan, The Revolutions in the Middle East, Relationships and Courtship, Christopher's Kidney Transplant, and Coping with Cancer. On Sunday morning I presented a sermon on Pride and Foolishness at a Reformed Church in Africa in Durban.

KwaSizabantuAfter completing the Sunday evening service at Jivannadi Mission we drove through to KwaSizabantu Mission. We hadn't gone very far down the road when one of the rear tyres of the landrover began to unravel. We were shocked to see the large strip of tyre that had peeled off what was a fairly new and very expensive off-road tyre. We praised God for His protection, changed the wheel and determined to speak to the supplier concerning this dangerously defective tyre. We arrived at KwaSizabantu Mission before midnight.

Cedar College of EducationEarly the next morning I presented a lecture on Egalitarianism at the Assembly of the teacher training college and delivered new audio-visual resources for their library.

Radio KweziThis was followed by recording a series of Devotionals and sermons at Radio Kwezi.
Ministers ConferenceAlmost half of the two tonnes of books, Study Bibles and Gospel booklets which David had driven through from our mission base in Limpopo were delivered to KwaSizabantu Mission for strategic distribution to their co-workers. Almost a thousand pastors, missionaries, evangelists and church leaders participated in this year's Ministers' Conference at KwaSizabantu Mission. I have had the privilege of participating in conferences and seminars at KwaSizabantu Mission for over 24 years. It is always a highlight of any year to be at this extraordinary mission station and to see so many evidences of God's gracious hand.

Dr. Peter Hammond