Message from Shayne and Marna

 

Dear partners and friends,

 

2016 has been a year of tremendous growth for GraceLife. We’ve experienced it in all directions and in many ways, but in general it has been two-fold: much of that growth has been “underground” in the form of structures and systems we have been developing to support and sustain future fruitfulness, but we certainly have seen also increased fruitfulness in many of the more “visible” areas this year.

 

Over the past year we have grown in influence and in numbers. We’ve seen more people regularly attending services at all campuses; we’ve had more baptisms, more people joining LifeGroups, more people tuning into the live-streaming of our services and more people growing through the teaching of the Word.

 

Through your partnership and generous giving, we have been able to give away more than 1000 teaching CDs this year! You have also enabled us to grow our online ministry. This year (so far) we have had 12,600 unique visits to our website from South Africa (535,000 hits), USA (97,000), UK (19,000), Brazil (9,000), Mexico (9,000), China (6,700), Albania (6,300), Russia (4,960), Mauritius (4,900), Germany (4,091), France (4,039) and others. We’ve had 42,000 minutes of video watched, and over 2,700 views of our live-stream from around the world. Over 1,700 people have listened to our audio teachings, and our daily devotional is reaching around 300 people daily. All of this is a part of our mission: to reach the world with the message of God’s unconditional love and grace. Thank you for helping make this possible!

 

It’s a good problem for me to report to you that we have more opportunities to plant churches and influence pastors than we are able to take! We have had invitations from around the world to come and plant churches, and to minister. We prayerfully consider each opportunity, knowing that while it may be a great opportunity to expand God’s kingdom and influence people, not every opportunity is from God.

 

Expanding the Grace Network

I (Shayne) attended a training seminar for church leaders in the United States in July this year, and I am encouraged to see how that trip has had a very significant impact on the ministry. Something that stood out for me at that seminar was that healthy things grow, and so we should focus on building a healthy ministry. That is what we have been doing over the past few months, and we’re healthier than ever and growing more than ever!

 

While I was in the United States the Lord connected me with a like-minded pastor, Mark Machen, from Life of Faith Church. I had the opportunity to minister there and enjoyed a great time of fellowship with them. Through Mark, I was connected with a number of like-minded ministers from the United States, Asia and South Africa. It’s been encouraging to connect with men and women around the world who are on the same mission as we are – to share the gospel of grace with the world!

 

New finance team

I’m also excited about the introduction of a finance team who will oversee the management of the finances of the ministry. This team consists of businessmen in GraceLife who are now helping to give input on how we can be more effective in managing the finances entrusted to us, so that we can more effectively fulfil the vision that God has given us.

 

Zimbabwe Mission and Ministry Trips

In July I (Shayne) also led a mission team to Zimbabwe where we had an exciting outreach into the Mashumbi area. We had about 200 church members gather there with us; we trained them and then sent them to go door-to-door to minister to the people. This really helped to strengthen our sister church in the area, and we saw many salvations and miraculous healings! We also saw a witch-doctor repent, receive Christ and get miraculously healed: when we met her, she could not walk, but was completely healed after we prayed for her!

 

In October, Marna and I and the two boys had the opportunity to travel to Zimbabwe as a family to minister at our sister church, Charis Ministries. Marna and I ministered (mainly on the impact of grace and the gospel on marriage and relationships) at a women’s conference, and then we also ministered in the different churches in Harare that Charis Ministries have planted. We enjoyed a great time of ministry and fellowship with our brothers and sisters at Charis. It was a real blessing to have William (currently three and a half years old) and Elliott (20 months) with us on this trip.

 

The boys really enjoyed the worship and making new friends, and they felt so at home in Harare that when we got back to Cape Town William was asking us if we could go back to “the Zimbabwe House”. Even though there are many challenges in travelling together as a family, it provides for a much richer ministry time than when I travel alone. Marna ministers to people in a way that I cannot, and our interaction as a family really seemed to bless many people. There were times that we were all upfront during the service and it seemed completely natural.

 

Upcoming Albania Trip

Our church plant in Albania is going well and is getting stronger and stronger. It is not an easy environment to plant a church in, but Carel and Alècia are doing a fantastic job! They have been there for nearly a year now, and have received teams from South Africa, the UK, Holland and Zimbabwe to assist them in reaching out to the city and strengthening the believers there.

 

We are leaving 20 December to evaluate what is happening there and strategize on how we can reach more people with the love of Jesus. The need there is desperate. Click here for more information and to sow towards this mission.

 

We are growing because of your support!

Over the past few months we have received so many messages from people that tell us of how their lives have been impacted radically through the teaching and ministry at GraceLife. People are getting to know God better and growing in relationship with Him, and we’re receiving testimonies of people being healed and set free from bondages. Through your generous financial partnership, you are 100% a partaker in every life impacted and changed!

 

“Yes, it’s true that “everyone who trusts in the Lord will be saved.” But before people can pray to the Lord for help, they must believe in him. And before they can believe in the Lord, they must hear about him. And for anyone to hear about the Lord, someone must tell them. And before anyone can go and tell them, they must be sent. As the Scriptures say, “How wonderful it is to see someone coming to tell good news!”  Romans 10:13-15 (ERV)

 

Partnership is God’s way of accomplishing His mission to reach the world with His message. As a partner with us, you are helping to send us and our team to fulfil the mission of Jesus. You are 100% a part of the mission and we want you to know that! We certainly would not be able to do what we do without your generosity towards this ministry.

 

A lot of people see it as simply giving money but it is much more than that – your partnership is a strategic way for you to be a part of the mission of Jesus. Thank you for being a part of the mission!

 

We’re praying for you, your family and business, and we know that “God shall supply all your need, according to His riches in Glory.” (Philippians 4:19)

 

Together we are accomplishing great things for Jesus!

Much love,

Shayne & Marna