Updates of our Finland trip!

 

Hi guys. Hope you are doing very well. Hope everyone is following Jesus and their calling in their lives. I believe this to be the most fruitful way of living and we have seen God moving in mighty ways when we follow Him. It takes faith to get out of the survival struggle, but it is possible. I returned from Finland last week. Here is some of our newest updates.

Visiting our first grandchild in Finland

Diina was born in February, and she is a most beautiful baby. She has a very good temperament and her Finnish great - grandmother said: “You can see she is a special child”.  It was amazing to stay with Job and Iida and to hold and play with Diina. It is special to know that we would walk with her for a good time in her life.

Job is doing very well with ministry and his work and Iida is taking very good care of Diina as well as being active in their local church.

We were surprised when Job said we will be present for the baptism of Diina and they also invited the other side of the family. It is very special to have Finnish family! We were the center of attention at the first service (Diina was) as she was baptized in front to the whole congregation.

We soon also realized that Job is very actively helping with the mission’s week at the university and leader in the work of God at the university. We saw that he was on his church board and he was preaching the next Sunday! It is an international church of 120 with 50 different nations. He preached very well and is a great gift as a scientist who is also a believer, and he comes up with many answers. As the European community is a community based on science, we can really see God’s hand in his life and that he can live fruitfully while in Europe.

Visiting Ywam centres while in Finland

We decided to connect with Ywam in the area and we were asked to speak an evening in front of the base with all the staff. We met Tom and Emma. They are the base leaders from Australia. We also saw what they are doing in Helsinki and we offered our services in whatever way we can help. We had a very blessed time and connected well. Our online schools can also be a good asset for them to connect with where they are currently. We had a lovely time with some Ywamers and we have become good friends.

We have also visited Cari Tassia that heads the international refugee circle. As I am working with the Africa refugee circle we are co-workers as I received training from their circle to see how Ywam works on the circle level. We currently have 4 base leaders on the Africa refugee circle and we are growing into connecting the various refugee works all over Africa. We have a start and we need your prayers for this circle.

Finishing with three internet schools for the semester

We are busy with the practice phases of the TPM school, the prophetic school and the marriage school is also close to the end. All of our schools were very blessed and we continue to make contacts in different countries. We see that as we travel we meet some of the people that have done the schools and then some in person events can take place. The short schools have tremendous potential in networking with churches as it is not a threat to churches. Churches in general have a great need for good discipleship material that can help them in their context. Short schools seem to serve that need the best as it is a short school for Ywamers but an acceleration for the church.

Please note that the TPM international website has a new textbook – we will use the updated textbook in the future – see transformationprayer.org

Crisis of training for the kingdom of God

It was a little bit sad to see the moral degeneration of the state church in |Finland and in Europe in general there is a great need for good healthy biblical and spiritual training for upcoming leaders. Ywam has become an important player in global training for true Christian leaders. Whether it is short schools or longer schools it remains important for Ywam to function in the training and discipleship level.

Nita and Nicolas’s wedding

Nicolas has become a regular visitor to Potch. He has been helping in the orphanage and has now connected to AGES (a business in Potchefstroom). They had a beautiful wedding as the bride was from Finland and the groom from France. They seem to really have a mission call on their lives and we are walking with them as friends. We are very blessed to get to know Nita as well as she is very devoted to God and are the one God has called next to Nicolas’s side.

    FOR more photos of our Finland trip – see our facebook page WikusChristien Vorster

Prayer topics:

1)      Growth for Ywam Finland

2)      TPM network to start and expand in Finland

3)      Job and Iida’s ministry in Finland

4)      Finishing the TPM school and Prophetic school.

5)      Pray for our YWAM friends at the Refugee Camp in Malawi who need financial support

6)      For us to stay focused on Jesus in the next season 

7)       to hear from God about invitations to other countries

CONTACT US           

Email: ywampotch@gmail.com

Facebook pages:  Ywam Potchefstroom,  WikusChristien Vorster,  Operation Refugee-YWAM Potch,   Transformation Prayer – TPMSA 

Instagram: ywam_potch

Website: http://ywampotch.com

http://wikuschristien.blogspot.com

Paypal https://www.paypal.me/7Vorsters

Amaizing teaching opportunities

 

Hi to everyone. Hope you are doing very well! In this world that is on high alert we can focus on Jesus and follow Him. This gives life and purpose and makes life exciting and adventurous. Here are our highlights for the month past and the adventures waiting for the month to come.

Speaking at the discipleship training school (DTS) in Bethlehem

I got a call from the base leader in Bethlehem that they urgently need a speaker for the Holy Spirit week. It happened very suddenly as 2 weeks later I was teaching on the base. There were about 7 students in the DTS and it was their last week of lecture phase. I trusted the Holy Spirit for a big outpouring in the DTS and to show the students that God is alive and active, and that the Holy Spirit is our close friend, counselor and the one that should lead and guide us. The Holy Spirit was very faithful, and it was a very powerful and enjoyable week. I made a few more friends and visited the staff and the leadership on the base that is doing a very good job.

Please pray for the team’s outreach phase and for this base to grow and have even more impact in the community.

New marriage school

Ulbe and Marleen Tolner did a school in family ministries in Worcester and we became friends in that time. They are now school leaders on the internet for our Relationship and Marriage course and they have 6 couples that are doing the school. We did the first school around relationships with them, and it was a great blessing. This is the first time they present the school of marriage online. They compiled a handbook of all the material, and it is really good material for marriages

It is good to see that they are teaching into the refugee camp and marriages in Africa as the base in Dzaleka has stable internet. ! Please pray with us for the students, staff and that the Lord will bless the couples to share with more couples about Christian marriages and good communication!

Prophetic school at a church

City on a Hill allowed us to train a prophetic school in the church. We have about 15 students, and it is going very well. We can already see that the few weeks that we had already had an impact. Francois, Andrea, Jonathan and Josua is doing the school as well as others that staffed at our base. I also decided to do the theological training at the church and it is very good material. It is an internet course that takes about 20 hours a month. I am doing it for personal enrichment and also for the building of new relationships.  

We were also asked to present a short small group leaders training at our church for all the Light-group leaders – it really went well and we could see how we can be of help in the church.   

TPM and Prophetic school

We are currently busy with the TPM school (Transformation Prayer Ministry). I have small groups with the men and have about 7 men participating. It is good to have sessions with the men and to see them grow and see how they become more able to minister to others. We have men from Romania, Switzerland, Mozambique and Rwanda doing the sessions with me. Christien has various other groups and various other nations involved as well.

We are also busy with week 6 of the 10 weeks with our prophetic school. The group is growing in their understanding and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit. Understanding and walking in the Holy Spirit remains very important for missions and the church as a whole.

Visiting Job and Iida in Finland

We got our visas, and we are both booked for Finland. We are also going to visit some Ywam connections in Finland and we are going to attend a wedding of a friend that has been involved with us for many years. We are going from 12- 27 April and we will see what God has for us in Europe in the coming years. We are seeing God doing different and exciting things and we have learnt over the years to follow Jesus where He goes and to minister and bring life where we go. We praise the Lord for His provision!

Successful Prophetic art workshop

Andrea and Christien presented a very blessed prophetic art workshop the 17^th. There were 7 students and they learned from Picture prayer to make a small painting in the theme of HE MAKES EVERYTHING NEW. We all were so blessed. We plan to do the same workshop in Johannesburg Linden in May. Thankful for the opportunity to bring a deeper relationship with the Lord using art. 

PRAYER TOPICS:

1)    1)    Please pray for the TPM, prophetic schools and the marriage school happening currently.
2)      Please pray for safety and fruitfulness on our trip to Finland.
3)      For all the kids that has ministries in the university and Job and Iida and Diina in Finland.
4)      For guidance of the Holy Spirit as we follow Jesus in our new season.
5)      We constantly do a lot of TPM session and we ask for your prayers for that too – it is not something we can testify about in our newsletters, but we really praise the Lord for a lot of Truth, Light, Healing and restoration that takes place in our TPM sessions!

6) 6) Wikus will also preach at Rhema Potch on Sunday - please pray for this great opportunity!!

CONTACT US

Email: ywampotch@gmail.com

Facebook pages: Ywam Potchefstroom,  WikusChristien Vorster,  Operation Refugee-YWAM Potch,   Transformation Prayer – TPMSA 

Instagram: ywam_potch

Website: http://ywampotch.com

http://wikuschristien.blogspot.com

Paypal https://www.paypal.me/7Vorsters

 

Exciting news and outreach update

 

Newsletter February 2023

 Hi, guys. Hope you are doing very well. As the world has its ups and downs, we can find peace in Jesus and follow the plan He has for our lives. In giving up everything and following Jesus we found that God is very much alive and that God’s ways is incredible wise. We have also learnt to follow Jesus even when we don’t exactly know where He is going. But we know where He is going to be a very pleasant and good surprise!

Here are our newest updates.

“Go and speak to the King”.

A year ago I was invited to speak on a biblical worldview topic in a DTS (discipleship training school) in Eswatini. Eswatini is a country of 1.2 million people that is surrounded by the borders of SA but a totally separately governed country. While I was driving back I felt the Holy Spirit say: “Go and speak to the king”. At that time there was riots and it was one of the most turbulent times in the history of Eswatini. I prayed what it is about and assembled a team to go on outreach to Eswatini, later the year. In that outreach we spoke eventually to someone very close to the king. While I drove back the Holy Spirit said: “Prepare a gift for the king.” I asked my daughter to paint a prophetic art piece and it worked out that we would be going again to Eswatini in February this year.

I went with the painting to Eswatini not knowing what to do with it. When we got to Eswatini we had a meeting with a person from the radio. She said: “If you want to see the king, he is meeting with the pastors this Saturday, but you must have a gift!” According to God’s voice the gift was ready!

When we looked at the painting Johannes thought about a book, he wanted to give to the king about SERVANT LEADERSHIP. When he got the book the chair on the front cover of the book was exactly the same as the one on the painting!

It was the opening event for the parliament and the government with prayer. It was a very interesting event where the king came in with his praise singers, his entourage that includes his 15 wives and the queen mother. We listened to all the pastors preaching and to a speech from the queen mother and the king. We then presented our gifts when it was time for the presentation of the gift. Please pray with us for the stabilization of Eswatini and dialogue to happen so that safety can be restored.

  Visit to Finland and Switzerland

Job and Ida got a baby about two weeks ago. Her name is Diina. She is a beautiful and healthy girl! We are trying to go from the 12-26^th of April to visit them. We went for our visa appointment today and we have money for 1 ticket already. We still need the money for the second ticket. I was invited to Switzerland as well for a few meetings. I intend to go from the 27 April – 2nd May to meet with a few people. Please pray for us for this trip, we really need the grace of the Lord to get there. We are looking forward to meet the baby and to spend time with Job and Iida who is in Finland for a 4 year contract at the Helsinki university. Job is doing his doctorate in Astrophysics at the university. We also plan to meet some YWAM connections in Finland.

Busy with internet schools

Christien has over 50 people on her group for the TPM School including helpers for the school. It is very fruitful as we have small groups and personal sessions with each one. We have participants from many nations. We have continual sessions through the week with people as they are working through emotional issues and getting breakthrough and healing in their lives. Please pray with us for the students and staff of the TPM course. (Transformation Prayer Ministry)

Wikus has over 30 people on his prophetic school. We are helping people to walk in the prophetic with servant leadership, understanding and integrity. Different groups are starting to stand up and we have a nice group from Madagascar that is growing. We also have some leaders involved as we look how to get the prophetic growing in churches with wisdom and good oversight. A lot of people want to know how the Holy Spirit works and it is very exciting as we have a very nice international group from different countries. Please pray with us for these two schools.

PRAYER TOPICS:

1)      Our visit to Finland to go through. Please pray for our VISA applications, as well as the funds to pay for both our tickets. We are moving forward with the fundraising, still needs approximately R12000.

2)      Christien is developing an arts business to also help with income. See on Instagram and Facebook Mom&DaughtersArt. She included our two daughters in the business, both are very creative!  Andrea and Christien each has four paintings in our local Arts club art exhibition.

3)      For both our schools (TPM online and Prophetic school) and the School Of Marriage starting in March. There are still spaces open in this course, feel free to join!

4)      Please pray for our children who are studying – Josua (First Year Computer Science), Jonathan (engineering), Elandri (music), Francois (languages) and Andrea who has her own business.  

CONTACT US

Email: ywampotch@gmail.com

Facebook pages:

Ywam Potchefstroom,  WikusChristien Vorster,  Operation Refugee-YWAM Potch,   Transformation Prayer – TPMSA 

Instagram: ywam_potch

Website: http://ywampotch.com

http://wikuschristien.blogspot.com

Paypal https://www.paypal.me/7Vorsters

 

Happy 2023- blessings from Potch

 

Newsletter January 2023

Hi, happy new year to all! Hope it will be a very blessed year and that you will get the breakthroughs that you are praying for. Please be in contact if you need a TPM session or prayer. We would like to hear from you.

Dzaleka refugee camp outreach

From the 11 - 23 December we were at the Dzaleka refugee camp speaking on the Discipleship Training school. It was my first time at the base that has been recently built. I was amazed at how well the base was doing. They have about the size of a rugby field on which they could plant, their own soccer field and quite a big building that can host 40 students. I could really see the blessing of the Lord on the base, and it is led by X-refugees!

We were asked to speak at the first DTS of the base. There were 11 students and I spoke on the subject OF FROM REFUGEE TO CHAMPION. Christien joined me a week later and she spoke on HEARING GOD’S VOICE AND COUNSELING. The base has solar power electricity, and we had a lot of rice and beans.

I visited some of the houses of the guys doing DTS and me and Christien also went into the camp. Although I was there earlier I was once again shocked by the poverty and it was really difficult to see the circumstances in the camp. When we walked back to the base, we walk past three one-year old’s eating rice out of a plate in the dust close to some of the open drains. As we continued to walk the base came into view and it looked like a building towering over these mud houses, bringing hope. The Ywam base really has a big calling to serve the refugees in the camp (currently 55000 refugees from DRC, Burundi etc.) as it has the potential to train and educate people.

There was about 5 staff that is really dedicated and I was very impressed with the work ethic of the base and how the staff and the school were operating. It was really a proper DTS and a lot of transformation took place in the lecture phase and the outreach phase. All the staff also had big and influential ministries in the camp. I was very proud as this base was build as a direct result of an outreach from Ywam Potch, and Operation Refugee Africa that was started from Ywam Potch.

Ywam Blantyre did a great job in training the refugees and the partnership between the two bases really gave birth to something influential for the refugees at that camp. In my discussions with the base leaders there is really a vision to plant different schools of the University of the Nations (of YWAM). This can create many refugee missionaries and help with much needed education! The international people coming and going from the base are very precious as the various connections and cross pollination of cultures can open a future for many people.

I was looking at the camp and praying for the M23 situation in the DRC. Then I saw a vision where the Holy Spirit showed me pills that can heal a sickness. I asked the Holy Spirit what these pills are, and I felt the Holy Spirit saying: “Pray for many leaders to be developed from this base”.

The base is really a place where true indigenous leadership development is happening. The central African region is the home of many tribes and a worldview that is very foreign to many people in more developed countries. Please pray for this very important work that can raise a lot of really good leaders for the central African region and beyond. The DTS team is currently on outreach in Malawi. Please pray for many to be reached during their 2 months of outreach.

Outreach to Eswatini

I have another outreach coming up in Eswatini. The situation is currently very volatile as there seems to have been a political assassination recently. There seems to be a lot of tension between Christianity and ancestor worship as the country is moving more and more towards Christianity and out of the roots of ancestor worship that has been there for many generations. Please pray for our safety and that we will be wise in doing what God wants us to do in our time in the country.

New internet schools starting

We are starting in mid-February with the new PROPHETIC SCHOOL and the new TPM SCHOOL. This is a time where we can make a lot of new contacts with new people that many times become new friends as we walk together. The Transformation Prayer Ministry continues to really help with trauma and to help people work through difficult times and emotions. There is always need for this school and the results are always very good as those THAT THE SON SETS FREE ARE FREE INDEED!

The Prophetic School answers a lot of questions about the work of the Holy Spirit from the Scripture and help people to activate a living relationship with the Holy Spirit with safety and mentorship along the way. The school helps people to get breakthroughs and can bring a lot of joy in people’s lives. Feel free to join us – see ywampotch.com

Job and Iida about to become parents

·         Any time now the baby of Job and Iida is coming. Please pray with us for a safe delivery and a joyful time as they welcome their first child.

·         We are also thankful to celebrate the twins 21^st birthday this week.

·         Our kids will start with their University studies again in February, please pray with us for their provision.

CONTACT US   

Email: ywampotch@gmail.com

Facebook pages:

Ywam Potchefstroom,  WikusChristien Vorster,  Operation Refugee-YWAM Potch,   Transformation Prayer – TPMSA 

Instagram: ywam_potch

Website: http://ywampotch.com

http://wikuschristien.blogspot.com

Paypal https://www.paypal.me/7Vorsters

 

News from Malawi - Dec 2022

 

 Highlights of 2022

We thank and praise God for what He did this year!

We want to take time at the end of the year to thank God and all the supporters that made it possible that we could stay in ministry and also concentrate on God's calling for us. Here are a few highlights

·         Lots of students!

We had more than. 100 students per semester of 6 months and over 200 for the year. As we transitioned to an Internet base for the next season it was all internet schools. But it still had a great effect and we had students from approximately 20 countries!

·         New schools pioneered

The TPM (Transformation Prayer Ministry) and Prophetic schools still has the most attraction currently but we started with our first Relationship School and I am on my way to Malawi to train the first "From Refugee To Champion" school!

This is in addition to the Evangelising Worldview School that started last year. We will add a Marriage School to the Relationship School next year. So the schools are multiplying and so are the students and the impact!

·     

    Teaching in 4 countries for the year

I was invited to DRC, Eswatini, Uganda and Malawi to travel to physically and also taught in 2 other countries in schools on Zoom. This was a great privilege. Christien is joining me next week to aslo teach on the Dts (Discipleship Training School) in Malawi. This base is the starting point of our Operation Refugee Africa ministry-  where we get sponsors for Refugees to do DTS in YWAM.  We already supported many to do DTS in Malawi and they are all fruitful in God’s kindom, especially here in the Dzaleka base next to a refugee camp of 55 thousand refugees from DRC and other countries.

·         Josua dis his DTS and visiting 3 countries in the process

Josua graduated at Worcester as he started off in Amsterdam. He also did outreach to Norway, South Africa and Namibia. We thank all those that supported him as he has grown a lot in this year! He will give some feedback on his blog.

·         The orphanage getting a new property

We are supporting an orphanage for quite a few years in different ways. They got a big property and we are very grateful for the kids that can now have proper space. We are planning to do Bible studies there in the next year.

 ·         Job and Iida expecting

We are also expecting our first grandkid early next year! Job and Iida moved to Finland and we congratulate him on his new job at Helsinki University.

Andrea and Francois celebrates their firs Wedding anniversary today – we are so thankful for God’s grace in their lives!

Jonathan and Elandri both finished their Second year of Study very well – we are so proud!

A lot happened, we are very thankful to the supporters without which we would not have been able to focus on God's will, serving and living out the mission of training, discipling and caring for His People.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU !

Blessings from Potch   - Wikus & Christien Vorster

CONTACT US      

Email: ywampotch@gmail.com

Facebook pages: Ywam Potchefstroom,  WikusChristien Vorster,  Operation Refugee-YWAM Potch,

 Transformation Prayer – TPMSA 

Instagram: ywam_potch          WEBSITE: http://ywampotch.com

http://wikuschristien.blogspot.com        PAYPAL https://www.paypal.me/7Vorsters

 

November News

 

Hi guys. Hope you are doing very well and you are very blessed. We were very blessed on the SA leadership with a speaker that was from unreached nation. He gave a powerful word on the Scripture of:

Proverbs 28:1“The wicked flee though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.”

Visitor for the orphanage

We have been involved for many years in an orphanage and have pioneered the ministry. Nicolaas and Lizz took the ministry and ran with it for quite a few years. 6 Months ago, we received very good news that the orphanage got a new property from the city council. It is the old jail of Potch! It was probably used a hundred years ago as a jail, but it is a very big property with a lot of potential. Nicolas visited from France and spent some time at the orphanage. It was a very blessed time with him and with the new property there are now new opportunities and quite a big property to restore.

Josua sharing at Boy's camp - Walvisbay Namibia

Relationship school going very well

We started the first relationship school that was led from Netherlands by a couple Marleen and Ulbe. We are doing the course and are learning new things that equip us for ministry among couples and families.

Wikus going to Uganda

Wikus will teach for a week in Uganda on a prophetic breakthrough school. He is leaving next Sunday. Please pray with us for the school.

Job leaves to Finland for 4 years

We dropped Job at the airport this week and he is now working at the university of Helsinki Finland. He got a doctorate job at the university in Astrophysics with a four-year contract. We are very proud of him but also have to face his absence for at least four years. As he is married to Iida that is from Finland it is good for her to spend some time with her family. We expect to become grandparents end of January, so please pray for the couple as they start a new season in Finland!

YWAM Southern Africa leaders meeting

Africa refugee circle prayer meeting

We are planning a prayer meeting for later this month for refugees from Africa and ministries involved in it. We have the first refugee discipleship school running currently and we will listen to the Holy Spirit where he wants to lead the movement.

Eswatini team

Prayer topics:

1)     Job & Iida in Finland

2) Josua on outreach in Botswana and Pretoria in this month

3)     Wikus going to Uganda

4)     The refugee movement

5)     The relationship school

6)    Elandri, Jonathan, Iida and Francois busy with exams

7)     Preparations go to Malawi in December to YWAM Dzaleka 

KEEP CONTACT

Email: ywampotch@gmail.com

Facebook pages:

Ywam Potchefstroom,  WikusChristien Vorster,  

Operation Refugee-YWAM Potch,  Transformation Prayer – TPMSA 

Instagram: ywam_potch

WEBSITE: http://ywampotch.com                    

http://wikuschristien.blogspot.com

PAYPAL https://www.paypal.me/7Vorsters