Reflections on the Ywam Univesity meeting.

 

Wikus & Christien

Newsletter September 2023

Hi, guys. Hope you are doing very well. Hope you are obeying the voice of the Holy Spirit daily… as long as it is today. We have just finished with a historic University Of The Nations meeting that was in Africa for the first time in a very long time. The University of the Nations is one of only four global Universities and are on the frontline of studies focused on the Kingdom of God. They are always aligning with what God is doing, always shifting as God is moving and always growing as they try to keep in step with the Holy Spirit. It was a privilege to be invited and to see how they operate and to meet the global leaders of the UofN faculties.

UofN Summit in Muizenberg Cape Town

We were very thankful to meet as YWAM Africa leaders and brainstorm together as a team to get creative ways to make UofN more relevant for Africa. We could share about our own experience how the Extension studies (online training and short courses} could be very effective as it is Accessible, Doable, Continual, Cheap and Contextualized. We also discussed how to create vocational courses where people can learn skills to be self-sufficient and sustainable in missions.  A highlight of the Summit was a lovely dinner at the Graham and Dianne ‘s house next to a river. See the photos.  The summit was a great experience of growth for everyone who attended it.

Africa is innovative and has a lot to give, The UofN need to be indigenous and stay Prophetic – focus on hearing from God.

Growing as a University of the Nations outlet

For the whole of the University of the Nations (Ywam) the Corona virus outbreak was a watershed time. In that time the whole of the world had to align to online training. As the UofN was mainly in - person schools they suddenly had to see (like all universities) how online training works. It was exactly in Corona that our two main schools, the TPM and the Prophetic school really started to gain traction. After the virus we were in a bit of a struggle how to go forward as a base (do we return to the old normal, or are we adapting to the new normal?)

Visiting our TPM network in the Cape

We were very excited to visit a few TPM contacts here in the Cape – we enjoyed the fellowship and building relationships. Some of our TPM online staff we met for the first time although we are working together for years!  Aquilla and Alex treated us with a lunch in Cape town, we stayed over at Ester and Hannes in Belville. We also had a dinner at Karabelo and Refilwe she was in our Ywam Student house, we had dinner at Vasiliki and Nicolas and the kids in Somerset West and a lunch at Lilly and Murray and their two kids in Stellenbosch. We spend a great time with Cathleen in Swellendam and we also met Ds Adriaan van der Colf and Teresa and their son for a meal in Sedgefield. Our hearts were so thankful for all our Ywam and TPM friends whom we could visit, and encourage to stay close to the Lord – hearing Him and following Him,

What is the difference between the University of the Nations and Ywam?

Ywam means Youth with A Mission and is one of the biggest world missions organizations in the world. But Ywam is the umbrella for all the ministries and training facilities in the world. To be a Ywamer you need to do a DTS (discipleship training school) and your ministry needs to be connected to a base. After Corona people that have done dts’s long ago would suddenly do short courses over the internet again. The University of the nations is the university equipping missionaries all over the world with various courses.

How do we act as the original Ywam parents in the city?

We were in front of God for wisdom for all these shifting factors. We did not want to stop the emerging talent of the new base in our city (Fire and Fragrance), but we also had to find a way to work together constructively. We decided to take on the prophetic role of researching the new online realities and the dawn of the technology era and to see where God take us while the other base will specialize in the in-person schools that Ywam is used to. God suddenly started to move with our base and the numbers of students started growing and growing…

Missions Week on Campus – Ywam Potch & City-on-a-Hill stall

Our team did a great job of representing us at a Missions event on the NWU campus last week. Many students were curious about our short courses and City on a Hill student evening celebration. We are so thankful that this mission’s event is activated again and that so many diverse students was interested in Missions! Thanks to Andrea, Francois, Jonathan, Josua and Heyn!!

Prayer topics:

v  Please pray for our safe return home after two weeks in the Cape province

v  Pray for our next school to start soon – Relationship school and Student Prophetic school.

v  For our current online schools – TPM and Prophetic school – for staff and students.

v  Please pray for Sai-moon and Charity leaving for Myanmar this week – please pray for their safety in a current unstable country. We will really miss them.

v  Please pray for our finances to go to the YWAM National meeting in Jeffreys bay next month.

Contact Us

Email: ywampotch@gmail.com

Facebook pages: Ywam Potchefstroom,  WikusChristien Vorster

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Website: http://ywampotch.com

http://wikuschristien.blogspot.com

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