A Strange Week: Tragic Realities in the Midst of Hope

This has been a strange week in the international life of NieuCommunities. Within days of each other, we had two stirring incidents take place on opposite sides of the world.

One of our sites is in Pretoria, South Africa. While developing young Church leaders, our team has been diving deep into the local context, which is still plagued with the after effects of years of violent racism in the wake of Apartheid. Lines have been drawn between rich and poor, white and black, etc…

This past week, one of the families on staff was hassled and robbed, which led to the draining of bank accounts. Another one of our staff had his home broken into for the second time.

Right here in Golden Hill, one of the families (a couple with three young daughters) on staff hit the floor as they heard a flurry of gunshots ringing around their house. Soon there were cops at their house picking up dozens of bullet casings in their backyard. The cops said, “That’s what happens when you live in the ghetto.”

None of our NieuCommunities’ members feel as though we live in the “ghetto.” This is our home and we are constantly in awe of what God is doing to renew and restore areas that were once broken. We don’t walk the streets in fear, but with hopeful conviction that this is exactly where Jesus would want us to be. I don’t see this as ignorance, I see this faithfulness.

With all the hope of restoration, this week has been a tragic reminder of the pain and destruction that still remains all around us. There are social, economic, political and spiritual realities that are oppressive and lead to what we have recently experienced.

All that being said, our teams need prayer for safety, courage and trust that we are still living the story God has called each one of us into. In fact, in these events, we must choose to be reminded that these are the very reasons we live and submerge into place/lives that are often forgotten by the rest of society.

Lord, may your presence and peace reign in the midst of a Creation groaning for your Shalom.