Jacksons – January Update 1

 Give thanks for the fortnight Dawn was able to spend with Ruth in England.

Our car has developed an unexpected fault and Fraser’s finding it hard to get the dealership to communicate. Pray that the car will be fixed in time to collect Dawn from Cape Town airport on Thursday morning. Thank God for the Church family who are ready to help if needed.

Fraser and the other NetACT staff have a meeting with one of the directors of Langham Literature next week.  Langham has a long history of supporting theological education in the developing world, including annual grants of literature to many seminaries and Bible colleges, so it is very exciting to discover how they can be involved in what NetACT is doing.

 Fraser has been suffering from an intermittent stomach upset for a few weeks.  Pray that we would be able to identify what is causing it.

Jacksons – December Update 2

 

Thank God for prayer being answered.  We got rain last week which should help regenerate the grazing destroyed in the fires.  We got the official traffic certificate necessary for the car.

 

Fraser’s business case for NetACT is now with the Stellenbosch IT department for them to add technical details. Pray that it would be ready to present to the university early in the new year.

 

Pray that NetACT staff will return to work in January with new inspiration as to how to embody following Jesus in their lives and courses. 

 

Remember the town in Nigeria where InReach is changing lives in the 95% Muslim community.  The woman who invited her Muslim friends to the group and these friends are now receiving threats.

 

The women were asked if they wanted to move to a safer area but one of them replied, “If I go, who will share this amazing Christ with my people?”  Give thanks for the change that Jesus brings.

Jacksons – December Update 1

Thank God that we were able to pick up our car last week.

Fraser would love to see discussions on the best way forward turned into a concrete action plan. The staff at Hugenote College are apprehensive about the move to computer-based teaching.  Please pray they would be able to embrace the challenge and be open to the possibilities.

Fraser is currently writing a business case to ask Stellenbosch University to physically host the NetACT portal. Again, please pray as it’s not a procedure Fraser is comfortable with.

Dawn has met two Nigerian students. Studying at Stellenbosch is hard for them because Nigerians are not encouraged to think originally, just to take in what their teachers tell them. They find the more independent study methods expected at Stellenbosch difficult to achieve.

When Dawn told them about the intention to include study skills guides on the NetACT library portal, they were very enthusiastic and just wished it was already up and running.

Jacksons – November Update 2

 

There was great rejoicing at Fraser’s first meeting with some of the NetAct people last week and thanks to God for a dream come true. He also has important meetings with the NetAct webmaster, with the College IT man and with the rector and dean of theology.  Please pray that these meetings will be productive

 

Thank God that we found a suitable little car in Cape Town on Monday.  We were flabbergasted at the efficiency of the SA police when getting proof of address before we could buy the car. It took a matter of minutes and didn’t cost a thing!

 

Another member of staff is currently living in the house where we’ll stay more permanently. He had hoped to move out weeks ago, but officialdom is not co-operating – a little frustrating for all of us. Please pray that we’ll all be able to settle in our respective houses as soon as possible.  

 

This area’s suffering its worst drought in decades, so please pray with us for some rain.

 

We shall probably settle in St George’s Presbyterian church. They do outreach work with Somalis near Cape Town and I see areas I could get involved in.

Jacksons – November Update 1

 

Our little flat in Wellington, near Cape Town, is basic but well equipped and comfortable and our welcome has been very warm and caring.  Many people connected to NetAct and the college see our coming as an answer to prayer. May nothing thwart God’s purposes for us here. 

 

It was incredibly difficult to leave Ruth in England. The early days are always the worst so pray for all of us involved, and recovery for Ruth with her health issues.

 

Fraser sees more of his past experiences becoming relevant to his work with NetAct.

 

We have found a friendly church with a good mixture of colours and ages and are now looking for a reliable, economical car before the rand rises against the pound.

 

Some news from Nigeria: The young woman who did InReach and whose Muslim friends became believers, feels threatened in her village. She hasn’t been able to see her friends or the imam who’d been doing InReach.  She feels she’s being watched and being told to keep away from them. Pray for safety for them all (including Paul, the InReach leader), and the assurance that nothing is worth giving up the joy and salvation they’ve found in Christ.

Jacksons – October Update 2

 

We received our visas for South Africa on Saturday, so have booked flights to Cape Town for the 1st of November. Suddenly it all seems real!

 

Thank God for the way he continues to use InReach to change lives and attitudes in Nigeria.  Paul, a church youth leader in Jos went through InReach then started up a group some distance away, covering his own transport costs.  

 

One of the participants started to text Dawn’s colleague Toby in Jos with thoughtful questions arising from her experience of InReach. Two of her friends went through InReach with her. They were Muslim but in the 5th week of the course they accepted Christ and are now attending church regularly.

 

Pray for these two women, for Paul, the groups he runs and the witness his life is being, and for the imam who has been asking questions and meeting with Paul every week

Jacksons – October Update 1

 We had a positive experience at the visa application centre in Manchester. We need another letter from South Africa clarifying that Fraser would be a volunteer.  

The application forms and documents will be forwarded to the South African High Commission in London for a decision by October 24th. We’re aiming for November 1st as a departure date.

A one-bedroom flat is waiting for us in Wellington, Western Cape.

Ruth has decided to stay in England to continue her A levels. This will be hard for us but seems to be the best option. Thank God that her grandparents are willing to let her live with them.

As for spiritual accountability, we expect to get involved in a church in South Africa but we consider we’re accountable to our prayer supporters in general and in particular a few people with special gifts of insight.

We have booked an appointment for a visa interview in Manchester for Friday 22nd September.  Pray that we’ll get clarity over which category of visa would be best to apply for. The letter of invitation from South Africa is currently being couriered to England and should arrive any day now. 

 Pray for the lives and attitudes being changed through InReach groups continuing in Nigeria. 

James, now at Glasgow University, and Ruth, at college in Scunthorpe, are both settling into this stage of their education. 

Check our latest leaflet in the rack which describes what we hope to do and includes a helpful little map showing the countries that benefit from NetACT’s work at present.

Thanks for all your prayers.  The mountains that arise are moving out of the way one by one.

Jacksons – September Update 1

Thank God that our police clearance certificates from both the UK and Nigeria have arrived.

Every time we look at the requirements for South African long-term visas, we find another document to be acquired or certified at a cost. Pray we’ll see clearly what we need. 

Fraser will apply for either a long-term volunteer’s or a visitor’s visa.  We are unsure whether Dawn should apply for a visa as a volunteer in her own right or apply for an accompanying spouse visa.

Please pray that we’ll know which is best – to go as an accompanying spouse we’d have to get an apostille (government proof) to our marriage certificate at an additional cost – as we don’t want to apply for the wrong category and be declined.

The South Africans are busy drafting invitation letters for us to present at the visa hearing.  Pray that they will arrive safely in the UK and will say all that needs to be said.

Jacksons August Update 2

Give thanks to God for he is good.

The applications for visas are in at a cost of just over £70.  Please pray that our certificates will be granted this week and arrive safely with us in the UK.  We were able to have our obligatory chest x-rays done for £85 altogether.

We have been offered accommodation about half an hour from NetACT’s base at Stellenbosch University.  They run courses in social reformation which sounds like something Dawn could get involved with.

NetACT is interdenominational and is made up of partner colleges including those belonging to the Evangelical Church of West Africa, the Anglican Church in Kenya, Presbyterians and several others. These colleges are located in several countries including Uganda, Burundi, Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa and Mozambique.

Pray that the South African immigration authorities will find our applications completely acceptable.