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19
NO
1
NEWS
WITH
THE NICHOLSONS JANUARY 1978
C h r i s t i a n F r i e n d s
It
is our hope that you all ha.v.e had a wonderful time at Christmas and that you shall
ave
many
j oys in t h i s New Year-
Of
course
most things
for
the l a st three weeks have
centered
around James and
Maria
arriv ed in Durban at about 2:30 P.M. on
th e
15th of December. had gone to Durban
early
that
morning
to
do
some
Christmas
shopping.
were
thru
so
we
could
eat dinner in
lenty
of
time to get to the
airport- As
we were ready
to
leave a couple
of
things we
were thought of Then, when
we
got
the
car at
th e
parking
garage
i t would
no t
idle and you
know
how that works on an automatic. started out by jerks. Then we h i t a
t r a f f i c
jam
down
town and
along with
a wrong
turning
a l l put
us behind
time. Once on
the
freeway
we
thought
we
ha d
i t made,
but the
freeway
i s
n ot
yet completed p a st the
a i r p o r t .
is
only a short stretch of a mile But,
when two
lanes of traffic were fighting to
g e t i nt o one t h i s
again
blocked
th e
way. We reached
th e a i r p o r t
a f t e r th e p l a n e was i n
bu t b e f o r e they ha d g o t t e n
t h e i r
luggage
Debbie Stanley and Lynton
Neethiing
had a ver_y p re tty wedding on
Friday
ni ght the
16th
o f December. This gave
James a good
chance to se e
many
o f the
f r ie n d s
he
ha d
known
in
C h r i s t i a n
tivities
Bob and
P h y llis Mills
were down from
Johannesburg for
th e wedding and
stayed for
a few
days. Two daughters-in-law o f the Stanleys are
also
h e r e . This is Ann Stanleys an d Mrs
Stanley. This period has given the
Stanley
and Nicholson
families many opportunites
t o
g e t t o g e t h e r
an d it
has been
to
have
so many.
Christmas
ev e everyone came to our home fo r a g i f t exchange
an d Christmas
Day we ha d
di nne r a t th e
Lynn Stanley home
James has been f o r t u n a t e C hri stm as t im e i s holiday time f o r
so many people
t h a t he has
been
a b le
to
s ee many
o f h is school f r i ends
He
an d Maria
have
spent
a
lo t
o f
time
on
th e
beach except t h a t c ol ds kept them a t home f o r a few days.
Ashwell
Bu k u l a
one
o f
o u r m i n i s t e r s in
Po n d o l an d ha d
h i s le g b ro k en i n t h re e p l a c e s
when they were try in g to tak e some
o f
the
d irty blocks
o ut
o f
a
church
wall
t h a t
was bow
in g o utw ar d
Barnabas
Songo
m i n i s t e r
a t
I nvut shi ni l o s t h is mother
on
th e
3 1 st
o f
December.
Sh e
died very
suddenly.
They put
he r
i n
cold st or age h e r e in town an d th e
f u n e r a l
w i l l be
to
morrow
Saturday t h e 7th. Th e
f u n e r a l
i s
to
s t a r t
a t 11:00
A.M.
but
th e
pr e a c he r i s no t
e xp ecte d to
arri ve
u n t i l a f t e r 12:00 noon- They will have many speeches an d Barnabas
said
di d
not feel i t was
n ec es sa ry f or
us to s i t
thru
a ll of them.
For
some
r e a s on
we
have had tw o
t r e e
f r ogs in ou r
home
in j u s t over
a
week. The f i r s t
wa s i n
o ur
bedroom
and
c ould
walk
up
th e w all
j u st l i k e a
f l y .
Th e se c ond wa s
s i t t i n g on
th e
window
s i l l
in
th e ba throom an d
everyone t h a t came
t o
look a t it
ha d to look c l o s e l y
to
see that i t
was
not
a
stone- It
was
s i t t i n g next
to a
bottle
and
really blended into
t h e
sha de
o f
th e p a i n t on th e
window
s i l l and
th e
b o t t l e .
James
Mabaso
one
o f th e
st u d e n t s
a t s c h o o l was he r e t o
v i s i t
one day. He s a id t h a t
h e
ha d
be e n
t e a c hi ng th e bock o f A c t s a t h is
home
and t h e r e had been
a
g r e a t d e a l
o f
in
t e r e s t . We a r e
working on
pl a ns
fo r James
to
go
to
Johannesburg to work.
We
a r e
having
problems f i n d i n g a p l a c e
f or M i ni st er s
Week,
We
wanted to hol d it in
th e
Cape
a r e a
b u t
in many
o f t h e s e
a r e a s
they have had
u n r e s t and t he m i ni st er s
o f th e
churches f e e l i t i s
unwise to
have larger
meetings-
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Malafu,
the m inister at
Queenstown, has
said
he would
l ike
to come
to school
for
the
of this year and we hope
that
he can. More of our men are beginning to see, how
school rea l ly does
help them.
e have gotten Ken
Idleman s
tapes on
the
book
of
James. I have only been
able
to l is
e n to th e I n t ro d u c t io n so f a r
Cathredral films had a special sale on some of their used films, so
Lynn
and Michael
and myself have ordered
some
of
them. Since they were on f irs t
come,
f irs t served
we do
not
know
what we
shall be getting unti l they arrive.
Amissionary going
home
on furlough,
sold
me the 20 x 40 foot tent that he had. e
ave used it in
Pondoland
and Barnaba s wil l use it tomorrow. I t
i s
much eas i e r to move
bout and put up than the other one, so
we know
we can make good use
of i t
The Indian
Church
a t
Chatsworth
in Durban
have
had the big
tent
during December. They
had extra
services
on the
17th,
24th
and 31st. They are
hoping
to be able to buy a home
thearea,
^W har eth eyar^nowwor-shipprng.Iamsure-^that-
i t woul d^b abig help to
th ir work
The
Apple Valley Christian Church, Rosemount, Minnesota, have sent
word
that
they
will
be giving us
regular
support
thru
out this year and we very
much
thank
God
for
this.
ehave had
many
letters and cards from friends
there
in the States and
i t is good
to
get word
of
the Lord s work in so many places.
May
God s richest
blessings
be
with
you
thru
out 1978.
In the Maste3 . a S^ervice
The
Nicho l s ons
FORWARDING
AGENT:
Mrs R i ch a r d
Hanson
16642 Gannon Ave. W.
Rosemount,
Minn.
55068
NEWS WITH THE NICHOLSONS
Prin ted and mailed
b y
Mad ison
Pa rk
Chr i s t i a n Church
215 Nor th 25 t h tr t
Quin cy , 111. 62301
ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED
Non-Profi t Organization
U S
POSTAGE
Quincy,
I l l inois
62301
P e rm i t 57
Hi^s idn Serv i ce s
T 1T7
KBHPIJON., im 46049
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
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^ ol.
19,
NO- 2
Dea r
Ch r i s t i a n
F r i e nd s
F\.
ON
NEWS WITH
THE
NICHOLSONS
^ February, 1978
Greetings in
the
precious name of
Christ
our Savior. We
have
jus t too much work at hand
at the present time to wri te to
you
each individual ly , so we are going to use the mimeo-
gtaph
We had
a t iui^ great time with
James
and Maria
here
to
v i s i t with
us from
the
15th
of
December
unt i l
the
11th
of
January.
Because
it
was
vacation
time
here,
James
was
able to
see man^y of
his
friends
Having been born and raised
by the sea, i t
did
not
take James long to get back and try
out
the
waves
and to see
i f
Mar ia cou ld learn to body
surf . They
did
not
get to
spend as
much time on the beach as
they
had hoped
nor get
as brown as
they
desired,
because
f i r s t
they bo th caught colds
and
then we had a heavy ra in tha t sent much d i r t down the r ive r and
nto
the
sea
If the wind was
r ight ,
the
water
on Untentweni b each looked l ike
chocolater
Alss
a rough
sea
stopped them from
servicing
th e shark
nets
and so swimming was banned
for
Th^ee d avs , excep t ns de the rocks, and that
did
not
give
much room-
En.ght
:Tudents are
present
fo r
the open,.ng of sch oo l, bu t we have word
that five more
men and
one more /Cung
woman
are
on
the i r
way.
I f these
a l l
arr ive ,
then i t
will make
men
and fixe
wcmen
This ic the first time for a long time that men have outnumbered
tKe uomen
We
hope that i t is a Sxgn of more men planning to prepare for proclaiming the
word of
God
The Lynn
Stanleys and
we have
booked to hear
Pat Boone
and his
daughter
sing
in
Durban,
Have had
le t ters from
a number of the
ministers asking
i f we had any used clothing for
them-
We have sent
out
some and wi l l have
to
get the
r e s t t ha t
came
over w ith the
crates
of M.chael Stanley and send them out- L^ke
everything
else the cost of
postage
has grea t
ly
increased
But we
should
also remember that the cost
o f
clothing has
gone
up a lot-
So ,
when we see how much i t cost to
ship
something we
must
a is o th in k how much i t
would
COST the receiver
to
bu/
this
same ar t ic le and
then
we may see cost is
well worth the
good
t h a t
W il l b e
r e c e i v e d
There have beei^tew
problem^ yin
our
area
or
any
part
of
Natal for
that
matter- 1 do
not
often
write
about problems
here
because i t
is so di f f i cu l t to gxve
a c le ar p ic tu re
you have
not
been
here and
see how
things
are . Bu t two things
have
come to me la te ly .
In one
of
the towns th e p eople were to ld , I f you k i l l a sheep for Chi is tmas , t hen you can
expect
your
home to be burned - I f yOU pain t your hovise for Christmas company then we
Will repaint
i t for you from your to i le t bucket , Another
said that
a young man had
told
hrm I am no longer going back to school 1 am bigger than
most of the
students
and
when
t rouble comes I am of ten blamed, but the t rouble makers
are
the younger students -
Also
I t
was said t ha t
Students
who go to
school
away from
the i r
homes do not dress
up
and take
the i r sui tcase and
leave fo r
school
but
send t he i r
su i t case some other
way, then they
go
off
jus t l ike they
are
going to another
town,
because
thei r
lives
have been threatened -
This is the word tha t
we
get
fiom most
areas
t ha t
the
ones
causing
the t rouble
are young
people There i s no doubt
that
some one is behind them. But, why are they
making
the i r
people suffer
Uke
this?
We
pray
that
God wil l
Xichly
bless
you through
th is New iea i .
S in ce re ly i n Chris t
Alvin
Vern i t a
FORWARDING AGENT:
Mrs R i c h a r d
Hanson
1 66 42 G an no n Ave W,
Rosemount , Minn
55068
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
4/19
VOL
19
NO 3
WITH
TH^
NI HOLSONS^
March 978
C h r i s t i a n F r i e n d s
We hear that many parts of America have been suffering from too much snow cold rain.
Here in Natal
we
have had
lots of
rain
but
other towns and
other
areas have
suffered
floods and wind damage A number
of
women
were
killed
by
lightening
while
attending
a
prayer meeting
in a hut.
Classes at
Umzumbi
Bible
Inst i tute are going
ahead very
well
now.
There are
16 students
present two of them are ministers
who
have re turned for more work. It
is interesting to
know
that
many
of the students
for
the past
few
years came
from Mqandulinear Umtata
in
Transkei. Today
the
majority
of
students
are
from Kokstad which is d irectly Inland from
us
about
90 miles. The daughter
of
Simon Mtshayisa minister
at Barberton
is one
of the
s t u d e n t s .
We
have
our t ickets for a tt ending
the
Passion
Play
at
Durban on
the
8th
of March.
All
of these programs are multi-racial with tickets being sold
with
out
reservation
to
all
groups.
We
hope
to
go to Durban so that the
students will
have time to look around.
The
Indian
Church
at Chatsworth are
making
plans to
have
another
campaign
in
April.
We
are
glad that we
can
a s s i s t them in th is
thru the
use of
the
t e n t .
We have
decided
t h a t M i n i s te r s Week
w i l l
be h e l d a t t h e church i n Warrenton from
t h e
27th
thru
the
30th
of April. Charlie Setumisho
one of our oldest
men is minister there.
We visited the people a t Dweshula with Nic Qwemesha on the 11th. They
are
planning a
service for the 2Sth
and
have
invited
us to come again.
We
talked with them about
having
a
tent
meeting
there
as
soon
as i t could be worked
out.
On
the 11th
when we were present
J ames M ab as o s
brother
was
also
present
to
talk
with
one
of the families about th e
mar
riage
of James to their
daughter.
He
did not
learn
much for they want other members of
the
family to be present
when they
talk about
i t .
The
only thing
he really
learned
was
that
i t
would be
costly.
They
are also
to
be back on
the
week-end
of
the
2Sth
to
talk
about
plans for
Lobolo .
One of the
men
brought his
son
to show
him
to
us.
He
is a
bright
l i t t l e
boy but
has a
speech defect in that he can not pronounce some of
the
sound used
in
words.
One
of them
being one of
the
clicks which
is
so important. He said the boys hears and understands
alright but
since he
can not speak r ight
has not
been able to
go
to
school. The lower
grades of most
schools are very
crowded and even at
the present time
many new
schools are
being
built . We
could only suggest one special school where they work with handicapped
children. I am sure there
must
be
o t h e r s
but
do not know
where
they are. Except fo r a
few chi ldren who are
b l i n d
or
can
not hear I
have
never see n an Afr ic an w ith t h i s type
of speech defect .
Good
news
for
us
i s that gasoline will
be sold six days a week from
8:00
A.M.
until
6
P.M. from
Monday thru
Saturday beginning March
3rd We have been able to
buy
gasoline only
from 6 A.M. to 6 P.M from Monday thru Thursday and from 6 A.M. unti l 12 noon on
Friday
Being able to
buy gasoline a l l day
on
Saturday
means
that
i t
will be
much easier to
get
out
fo r
week end meetings.
Lynn and
Lucille Stanley will
be leaving
for their furlough
in America
about the
middle
o f
March
John and
Heather
Kernan
w i l l
be coming to th e S ta te s
r i g h t
a f t e r Easter
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
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Freddie Sithibe
our
minister at Escourt
is
in bed with both feet being swollen and
listers a round th e
t o e s
Some have asked us when we are
planning
our
next
furlough? The Lord
willing
i t
will
be
about
April 1979.
May God bless and
keep
you in
His
love.
FORWARDING AGENT:
M r s
R i c h a r d Ha n s o n
6642 Gannon Ave.
W
Rosemount Minn.
55068
NEWS W ITH T HE N IC HO LSON S
Printed and mailed by.
M a d i s o n Pa rk C h r i s t i a n C h u r c h
2 5 No 2 5 t h
treet
Quincy 111.
62301
ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED
Y o u r s
f o r
C h r i s t
in
Sou th
A f r i c a
T he N i c h o l s o n s
mar 1 S
Non Prof i t
Organizat ion
U S POSTAGE
Quincy I l l i n o i s 62301
P e r m i t
^ 5 7
Mlssion
Servic3 3
B ox 177
K MPTON ND 06049
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
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VOL.
19
5
WITH
THE ^^OCHOLSOnSM L ^
May
9 8
Dear
Ch r i s t i a n
F r i e nd s
Tuesday is clinic day at school, with the nurse being in attendance from about 9:00 AM
unti l
1:00
PM Last Tuesday as 1 came ou t after having eaten my lunch, I was
told
that a
baby
had
diedc But when 1
went to
where
the nurse and
a number of women
were
ta lking
to
a
young gir l , 1 found that
the
baby was not dead but very, very sick and in danger of dying.
I t
seems that
the fa ther
has d riv en th e family from the home and
they a re s ta yin g with
the mother s s i s ter . The mother works
and
so is away from home from early morning unt i l
a f ter
dark at
night .
The care of
the baby
is
l e f t
to a
g i r l
who looked l ike she was about
12, but would guess t ha t she i s more l ike 15.
After some
discuss ion , it was decided t ha t the
chi ld
sh ou ld b e taken
to the
Port Shep-
stone Hospital. So I took Mrs.Tusha,
one
of t he s tudent s
at school,
and the gir l and ba
by
to
the
hospital .
The
l i t t l e gir l
gave the
baby s age
as 18
months.
The
doctor
asked
t ha t the mother come
in
the
f i r s t
thing the
next morning as they
were
not
sure the baby
would
even l ive
through the
night. 1 have taken many to
the hospi ta l
who
are
sick
and
in
jured, but
none
have touched my hear t l ike th is one.
This past month has brought us more d eaths th an have touched us a t any other t ime. The
mother of Enock Zobolo died a t
the
Port Shepstone Hospital on the ISth of April . She was
only s ick
fo r
two weeks
before
her
death.
Her
bur i a l was
se t
fo r
Sunday
the
23rd.
Many
of
the
brothers wondered why they had chosen tha t day fo r
normally
funerals
are
held on
Saturday. However, on
Thursday
night
t h a t
area had 12 inches
of ra in
and
by
Sunday morning
had
had a to ta l o f 20 inches, which i s ha l f the ra in for a normal year .
Sunday a t
10 it
was
c l e a r and a l a rge
crowd
a t tended
th e f un era l.
The brother of Nic Qwemesha
died
early th is
month.
He
had
been
to
vis i t
his wife, who
had a leg
amputated.
On the way home from
the
hospital
he
fe l l into a dam and drown. He
had very
poor
eyesight. Brother
and Sie^t-er-Qwemeshawent down-fox
the-funeralr
of
May ^ ^
The
26th o f
Apri l ,
Michael Stan
ley and
1
l e f t
the
school
with
7
men,
picking up
two
more
along
the
way as we went to M ini s te r s Week
a t Warrenton.
Twenty-two
min i s t e r s
and iv o f t h e m i s s io na ri e s we r e
present fo r
the
meetings. Once
again it
was a
prof i t ab le t ime o f
study
and
fellowship.
The
a n n u a l
Con f e r e n c e
o t h e
Chu rch e s h a s b e en s t f o r t h e 1 3 t h
through
the
17th
of September at
Invu t sh in i j u s t
25 mijes
from Por t
Shepstone. The
theme
for the
meet
ing i s Evangel ism ,
-The-Qwemesha
Family with son
daughter- in- law
on th e r i gh t .
am awaiting
word from
Brother on the
r i gh t .
Mtsha yisa c on ce rn ing
Brother
James
Mabaso s
going
to N ata lsp ru it
near
Johannesburg, I am sure that to do th i s I am going to have
to
help support brother Mabaso
t here for some t ime. But 1 fee l
tha t
it i s so important to have a minister working in
Johannesburg where a t
th e p re se nt
time we
have
none. I know
tha t
the Brethren hesi ta te
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
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because
they
can
not
support a man but the work grows weaker r a t h e r than stronger as time
goes on . P le as e p ra y much
f o r th is
work.
On
the 29th o f A pril
Mark an d Deborah Qwemesha
were
on thei r way to a c h o i r
competi
t i o n ;
where
they were to sin g w ith the i r
school.
Very
near
to
Umzumbe
th e
d riv er fo r
some
reason
ran
th e bu s into
th e
d i t c h
an d t i pped it ove r . A number
of people were in
j u r e d an d
taken
to th e hospi t al . We a re so
t hankful t h a t Deborah
suffered
no
in jur ies
though she was
on
th e bottom an d Mark only suffered a fe w
b r u i s e s
on
h i s f a c e .
In the ra in
tha t
came
so
he a vily
af ter Mrs. Z o b o lo s
de a th
much damage was
done over
a
l arge a r e a .
Th e
a r e a
covered
from
South
of
E as t
London
through
th e
Transkeiand
i nt o
Mar
g ate a rea S o u t h o f
u s .
A
burden
on
my h eart r i g h t now
is what we a re going to do about camp.
We
could make
us e of a local
conference
place which ha s
wonderful faci l i t i es .
In fa c t we missionaries
used i t for a meeting place a few years ago. But
th e
cost
is
4.06 per person pe r day.
This
is about
what our campers have been
paying fo r
the week. I
am taking Brother
Quemesha
to se e
the place and he will ge t
together
with the
other
men to
discuss
what they
feel is
est
.
Lucia Mtshayisa is one
o f
our students at school. Her
father said sh e
has been writing
le tte r s
home to th e
young people at th e church and encouraging them
to
serve
Christ.
Brother
Mtshayisa said th ere has already been
changes
he could
see.
I i^eceived a long and very interesting
letter
from Milton Mafenya who attended Umzumbe
B i b le : In s ti tu t e f o r
two
years.
He
is
back
a t
Secondary School working
to get h is Matric.
He is very
busy because
they are short
a
teacher
a^d has ^to
take
at least one
class
on Sun
day when another can help.
We
just pray t ha t t he ^s pi ri t of Christ which is in his
heart
today
will continue
u n t i l
he
ca n take
h is place in th e
Lord s
work.
S i n c e r e l y
in
C h r i s t
FORWARDING
AGENT:
Mr s Ri bhs i r d
H anson
1 6 6 4 2
G a n n o n
A v e W.
Ros em ount
Minn.
55068
NEWS WITH
T HE N IC H OL SO NS
P r i n t e d and
m a i l e d b y
Madison P a r k C h r i s t i a n Church
21 5 N .
2 5 t h treet
Quincy 11.
62301
ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED
T he N i c h o l s o n s
_ Non-Profit Organization _
_ U.S. POST G _
_ Quincy
I l l in o is
62301 _
Permit
Mi s 3 i 0 n 3 o r v i c s
B ox 1 7 7
KEMPTON I N D . 4 6 0 4 9
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
8/19
Vol.
19
NO
7
NEWS
WITH
THE NICHOLSONS Ju ly 1978
Dea r
Ch r i s t i a n F r i e n d s
You are going to begin to wonder what ha s happened
to
us for we wrote no l e t te r
las t
month. We did not have much news then
and
th i s month ha ve b ee n
on
the go so much tha t we
have n o t ta k en t ime t o wr i t e .
The African
Schools
closed
early
l a s t
month
so
as to be
out
before
the
16th of
June
the
Anniversary
o f
Soweto.
Thus
the children
would
be
a t
home
there
was
any
problem.
Because
some
of the parents also wanted t he i r children
home
Umzumbe
Bible
Ins t i tu te also
closed ear ly .
I t
never seemed
tha t th e m i ni st er s here really
got going on camp. I
ta lked
to
them
about i t
but
did not invi te them to our home
for
tea and to make plans for camp. One of
the men cal led one day when I was away
and
told Vernita
that
he would
cal l
Qwenesha to
ta lk
with him
and
then would
ca l l
me la ter
but nei ther of
us
heard from
him. So we
only
had
abou t
25
ch i l d r en from
th e
chu rche s .
We
did have
another problem. The specia l exams tha t
certain classes
have to take
have
been set up from November to October so in most every school these young people had only
4 days
vacation. Two of
Brother
Qwemeshas
c hil dr en a re in
this
group.
On
Friday
the
7th I taught my
class
at Umzumbe using
slides
on the book
of
Samuel.
Mrs.
Qwemesha
prepared dinner
for
us
after
which we
lef t
at once for Ntabamhlophe at Es
court. We arrived a t the school
where
services were to be held at 5:30
that
evening.
I
showed the slides on
1st
Samuel and preached to them. They had some of their choirs sing
and gave an oral tes t to those
present. This
was done by one of the young men.
Saturday
morning and
afternoon Vernita and I
heard
the
students give the i r
memory work
and marked them on what they did. There were a good number who did very well on this .
They
le arned the
books of
the Bible scriptures
for
the
steps
of salvation
and
scriptures
concerning
th e
New Testament
church.
There were about 30 who did
this
so i t took quite a
time.
That night the choirs sang
and we
were
to judge them.
After
showing more
slides
preaching
to
them we
presented the
winners
with
their
prizes;
a ll
who
had
a
part
received
sweets
and
an orange.
Sunday
morning
Vernita taught
the
women
and
I
taught
the
men. I
had the
communion
ser
vice
during the morning
worship
hour and we
drove back home
that
afternoon.
Monday morning was washday
as
well as gett ing
things ready
to go
to
Pondoland. I had
taken
Zulu
m ate ria l to Escourt; now a l l
had
to
be
changed
to
Xhosa
We
l e f t
for
Pondoland
on Tuesday morning with Wilford Mouli going with us. arrived at camp about 11 a.m.
where they had jus t completed the i r Chapel services.
They
gave
us
classes to teach follow
ing
th is .
Vernita had p re pa red f la nn el gr ap h pictures
for
them
and
I once again
used
1st
Samuel. They had 158
students present
plus a good number of
adults so
they
divided the
group into 6 classes . I ha d my c la ss in sid e
because
of using
the
s l ides . Before dinner
I showed them
the
f i r s t
of
three
films
on
the
l i fe
of
Paul. In
the afternoon
we
had one
more class. On
Thursday
we taught
classes
taking a new group
about
every 45 minutes.
We
used the
films
on
the
l i fe
of
Paul
a t
Umzumbe and at Pondoland; they really enjoyed them.
We wil l
be
using
them
in
many
of our t rave ls .
came
back
home on Thursday afternoon because I had to go to Durban on Friday
to
bring the
tent
home. I t was used
for
almost 3 weeks by
the
Indians in Chatsworth. All
that I talked to in Durban thought they had had a good meeting. The
woman
who allowed her
back yard to be used
for pitching the tent
cooked a meal for us each time. The first time
I was not sure what I was eating except for the bread but i t was good. She says
she
wants me
to
come
back
some time when she
has plenty of
time
to prepare
a
meal.
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
9/19
At Warrenton, I had
talked
with
Simon
Mtshayisa about
a weekend camp there on the 21st
to
23rd of July when we would
bring the gi r l s
back to schools Because school closed ear
l ier
I wrote him
that
we could
not
come He
wrote
back asking us
to
please come i f
only
for the
weekend
as they
had
invited
the
other stations
around Barberton
who
were
looking
forward to our coming So we are planning to leave mzumbe after I
teach
my classes on
the
20th
and drive
par t
way
that
day
and arrive
in Barberton on the 21st.
e
will be picking
up
James
Mabaso
in Escourt,
so he can go along
and
make plans
with
Brother Mtshayisa to vis i t Natalspruit. e a re help ing James with the money for his
Lobolo and
we
hope
that
most
of
i t
will
be
paid
off
this
month.
I
will
help
them
put
up
the tent
for
the party they will have at Dweshula on the
29th.
e
will
not be able to at
tend as we have already been
invited
to the Stamms for Floyd s birthday
supper
on
that
day.
hen
James
goes to
Natalspruit , we
shall
also
be responsible for
55 a month
of
his
salary,
The 6th of August, we are
to
go to Mbumbulu for services
with
Jeramiah Gcuda
be
taking
a load o f
students with us.
We will
The church a t Invutshini has
the
building erected
tha t
they wil l
be
using for the d in
ing
room at confei^ence^ They are
work ih^^
th e
Icrtcheh,
so everything~l.s Inovihg^ forwardr
we l l fo r Confe r ence .
Vernita
and I
are
planning
the
beginning
of
our
furlough
for
April
of
next
year.
Our
re turn fa res wi l l
be
about 1900 for the two of us.
You
are
in
our thoughts and prayers
often.
FORWARDING AGENT:
Mrs . Richa rd Hanson
16642 Gannon Ave. W
Rosemount, Minn. 55068
NEWS
WITH
THE NICHOLSONS
Prin ted
and mailed by
Madison Parq Chris t ian Church
215 N. 2 5 t h t
Quincy,
I I .
62301
ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED
Your s in Ch r i s t
Alvin
Vern i t a
Nicholson
Non-Pro fi t Organiza tion
U . S . POSTAGE
Quincy,
I l l ino i s 62301
P e rm i t
57
11SS I on oorvicss
Box 1 77
KSMPTON, IND. ;c04
9
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
10/19
VOL.
19
NO . 8
NEWS WITH
THE
NICHOLSONS
Dear
Chr is t i an Fr i ends
How
quickly
the
t ime
goes by;
we t h a n k
God f o r
this f o r it is
th e abundance and
not lack
o f
it
that
helps speed the time by ,
SEPTEMBER
1978
m
month
one
o f t h e b r o t h e r s
o f
v
Enock
Zobolo
took his l i fe by
hanging. often
t a k e
does happen. This brother i
had some m de ^^^H||||^H||h^BH|^H
l ook
l i k e
he had s cabs
on
h is
body
so
he had
never
held
a job ^
away from home nor had he
mar-
ried. I would have guessed that ^
he was in his thirties- y task | |m||||^ilB| |^P^ ;
was
to
help
them
take the
body
WARRENTON
CHOIR
back home f o r it had been
brought here by
the police that
the Doctor
might
check
i t but I
did
not attend
the
funer
al
neither
did Barnabas
Songo nor Nic Qwemesha In
fact ,
I am
not
sure i f any one attend
ed outs ide of h is b ro th er s
and
other men of the immediate family.
One
of
the
men in
the church
at
Barberton
is
a qualified
electrician. He
works for
Escora which controls
most
e lec t r i c i ty
here
in South Africa. Escom sent him fo r specia l
t ra in ing . He and one of the other men, who also
works
fo r
the e lec t r ic
company,
are
re
wiring the Barberton Church. The switch for
the l igh ts is
on
the
fuse panel in
the
front
of the
bui lding. They have ju s t one se t of
l igh ts
now down
the
middle of
t he b uil di ng .
They are putting the
switch
back
by
the door and p uttin g in two rows of l ights which
will
be over
the seats-
They
would
l ike a glass
with
the name of
the church
wri t ten
on
i t .
Then
they
will
put
a l ight
behind i t
and mount
i t outside
so
that
i t
can
be
l i t at n ig ht.
Later , they
will
be rewiring the minis te r s home as well, to put in hea vie r wiring and
mo r e outlets
a s well
Plans
are
to go
to
Johannesburg
on
the 2Sth of August and take James
Mabaso
with us.
Simon Mtshayisa wil l meet us there and he and James wil l v i s i t
Natalsprui t
Friday
evening
and a l l day Saturday. We hope
to be present with them fo r se rv ice s on Sunday morning.
Thus we hope
af ter
Conference
that
James
will
be moving there as Minister
James
is
wait ing
for David Mbhele and
some of his brothers to come
and see
the
ca t t l e
tha t he has a t his home
and
then
he hopes
before
to
long
he
will know when
he
can
get mar
ried
The
Invutshini Church
has
the i r kitchen and
dining rooms
bui l t and
ready fo r
Conference,
They have
been busy
get t ing
some of th e other things
ready
as well . I t
i s
good to
see
tha t t h e i r work
i s done
well
ahead of
t ime.
They have
made
the dining
room
o f cement
blocks and have
plas tered
i t . Beginning
in
the New
Year,
they want to begin a
Creche
there
for working mothers- The
Chief has
promised i f
they
s t a r t the work, he will
give
a place
fo r
a b ui ld in g to
be
erec ted
Anna Songo has been studying with a woman here in
Port
Shepstone so that she can be a
teacher with
Operation Upgrade -
This
i s
the s implif ied
method
of
teaching
older people
how to read and write. Ana is also working toward complet ing her high school work, with
the
hope that she
can
go on and
be
a teacher some day.
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
11/19
I do
not
believe I told
you
much about the meeting that Mbhele had for his daughter
l as t
month.
We took the
t ent
se t i t up there on Friday
afternoon
and went back on
Satur
day morning.
They
had
kil led
two
animals
so had
plenty
to eat. Some of the
people
ate
raw meat
but
I
did
not see
any
of the Christians do that . They brought us some of the
l ive r
f i r s t w hich had been roasted over the
f i r e . I t
was brought in on a
wooden
pla t t e r
on e
cut into small pieces
and
we
jus t helped
ourse lves .
After t h i s we
went
to the
hi l l top
nearby where Mbhele spoke f i r s t mostly of h is
de
s i re fo r his daughter
to have
a Christ ian wedding an d not one following the customs of the
fathers .
A
couple
of
the
other men and I spoke for a few
minutes. Singing
was next
by
the
home group who
sang
several songs. The Mabasos used
the
students from school
to
make
the i r
group
a l i t t l e larger
an d sang
as well .
Then
we
went
back to the
house
where we once
again had meat
from
the
wooden pla t t e r .
Later
they gave us a full meal
Because
there were many preachers there I
did
not stay
for the
night service
I wentbaekbut it wasto
pray
wi th t hem aj d
have a meal with these
loay
ing;
they l e f t
around
noon.
The students from school had come to take the tent down for
me I
brought
a load of people back
to Port
Shepstone. They
were to
take the t rain
to
Durban .
May God richly bless
and keep
you
FORWARDING AGENT:
Mrs . R i c h a r d Hanson
16642 G ann on A ve .
W
Rosemount Minn. S506S
NEWS WITH TH E NICHOLSONS
Printed and
mailed
by . . . . . . .
Mad i son
P a r k
Ch r i s t i a n Chu r ch
215 N. 2 5 t h
S t .
Quincy I I .
62301
RESS CORRECTION
REQUESTE
In Chr i s t i an Love
Alvin Vern i t a Nicho l son
Non Profi t
Organization
U . S POSTAGE
Quincy
I l l i no i s
62301
P e rm i t
5 7
l^ io sio n Z 2v -i
B ox 1 7 7
KSMPTON
IHD.
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
12/19
VOL 19 NO 9
N WS
WITH
THE
NICHOLSONS ^ OCTOBER 1978
Dear
C h r i s t i a n F r i e n d s
I t
almost seems
like our
summer has arrived.
We
have been getting some rain and
with
t
high humidity,
which
makes
i t
seem very warm.
. V
Conference has come and gone. I t was wonderful to be able to
visit
with so many of
the
Yet
for me there is little time for
just
visiting.
There
are
many
things
which
the people
are looking
for,
or
there
are questions
that
need answering. Yet
just
to
see
many of the
brethren
together
in
one
place is
a great b le ss ing
Perhaps i t would be good to
l ist
some
of
the things the people wanted. There were Bi
bles,
New Testaments and
Hymn Books (these especially
in Zulu Xhosa and Afrikaans and a
few in English). Then there is
the Lift
of Christ in Zulu and Xhosa. There are the sup
plies used by the churches,
but
most of these 1 let the ministers look after in their meet
ing. There
are
quest ions about church
sites
and
buildings,
discussions concerning church
plans and the information they must get before plans can be submitted for approval.
Then
there
were bananas pawpaw medicine from the drug store, a gas pump repair kit
fo r
a Chev
Pick Up and many more. Also many requests
for
pictures of individuals, families and groups
and once you ge t
the
camera out you know there will be more get in line for their turn.
Thank God t h a t we
can s e r v e
even
i n t h es e t hi n g s.
We put the 40 x 40 tent next to the church but there never was a night that
i t would
hold
all
of the people. There were
more
than 250
who
sat
down
to the
tables
to
eat
each
meal. This was the only place that we heard much complaint and that was that
i t
took them
so long to feed the people.
Four ministers from Pondoland hired a bus to bring a load of people- One of the min
i st e r s
said
that th is was a real break
thru ,
he
brought
20 people
with
him
and they a l l
came prepared to pay their table
money
They have attended the two conferences in this
area before, but then they
brought
the i r own food and cooked i t because i t was cheaper.
Another
one
of the
ministers
told
me
that the people are
now
p repa rin g so that they
can
h i r e a bus
to
t a k e them to
Barberton
next y e a r
Mr. and Mrs,
Robert
Mills came from
Johannesburg
on Tuesday and
stayed with us u n t i l
Monday. Mr and Mrs A1 Zimmerman
flew
up
from
Capetown on Wednesday and Floyd Stamra
brought them
down.
The
Zimmermans stayed
u n t i l
Sunday, when
Floyd to ok them back to Dur
ban. The Zimmermans
s lept in the Stanley s t r a i l o r house,
which we
had parked behind our
house.
Floyd Stamm stayed
unti l Thursday and then brought his family
down on
Saturday and
they with the John Kernans,
who
also arr ived
on
Saturday,
stayed
a t
one
o f
the
h o t e l s .
Thursday and Friday
nights
we had a
Braai
(Barbecue; here
at
the house, so that we
could
a l l
v i s i t t o g e t h e r .
I
thought
that
I
would get out of
the
job of directing the work. F i r s t because
a f t e r
four years they adopted a new
Const i tu t ion ,
which
allows
any one to hold any o f f i c e except
two t h a t they designated
f o r
miss ionar ies a t
large-
Secondl y, b ec au se
we are planning our
furlough
for
next year
in
April.
But
they asked
that
I
p le as e c ar ry
on
unt i l
furlough
t ime
and then Bob Mills
will
f i l l out the
time-
So I am busy get t ing the
m i n i s t e r s
cards
ready for
them and some other work t h a t has to be comple te d a f t e r the meetings.
This means
that
I must plan
for minis te r s
Week
which i s set
for the
middle
for March
a t
Upington.
I t w i l l
a l s o
be the t ime f o r
th e
dedica t ion
of the new
church V: ilding t h e r e .
Upington i s
almost
900 miles from
here, being
on the west side
of
th e country
not
far from
South West Africa . I have never been t h e r e before and am
sorry
t h a t
t
w i l l have to
be
a
quick t r i p .
Perhaps
we w i l l
h i r e
a small
bus
and a l l from t h i s s ide
can
t r a v e l
together .
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
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MINISTER S HOME NATALSP RUIT
NE R JOH NNESBURG
Our only sorrow
during the
week
was t h a t Ve r n i t a d id n o t
fee l well enough
to a ttend the
meetings.
She
has got ten
a l l
her
cooking
and
baking
done
early
and
had it in
th e
f r e e z e r . She
had
made
new cur ta ins
fo r Mrs. Songo
so she could be
happy to
have the
people
in
her
home. She
had
been
asked
to sing a Xhosa song
a t
one
o f
th e se rv i ces and had been
prac
t ic ing
on
tha t
then was
unable
to go .
We
visite th e chu r ch t Na ta l
spui t
with James Mabaso the week
end of the 26th
and 27th
of Aug
ust and the people there
are wait
ing foii
hd.5 cbmingT Now he and
the young
woman
wil l
be
married
Umzumbe Bible In s t i tu t e The wedding i s
between
t
10 : 30
A.M.
on t h e 7 th of Oc t o b e r
t
King
James Mabaso and Phi l i s iwe Mshele.
Please keep us in your prayers as there is so much work to be done that
we
do
not
al
ways
know which way to
turn .
In th e Prec i ou s
Name
o f Ch r i s t
Alv in 6
Verni ta
Nicholson
FORWARDING AGENT:
Mrs . Rich a rd Hanson
16642
Gannon
Ave . W.
Rosemount Minn. 5S068
NEWS WITH THE
NICHOLSONS
Pr in ted and mai led
by
Madi son Pa rk Ch r i s t i a n Church
215 N.
2 5 t h
S t .
Quincy I I . 62301
ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED
Non-Prof i t
Organiza t ion
U.S .
POSTAGE
Quincy I l l ino i s 62301
Permit 5 7 ^
^
Ki s s i o n
Se rv i c e s
Box 177
KEMPTON
INp. . :6049
.0 7 n
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VOL.
19 NO .
1 0
D e a r Chr i s t i an
Fr iends
NEWS
W IT H T HE N IC HOL SO NS
pre. ^
NOVEMBER, 1 9
s Christmas draws
near
we remember again th e advent
of ou r
g lo ri ou s Savi or Jes
Christ.
We
pray for
you
all a blessed Christmas and joy imparted by the Holy Spi
throughout the ew Year. We are sure that many of you would like to share some of o
spring weather.
The
flowers
ar e
in
bloom
everywhere and
i t
is
really
pretty.
n the 26th of October, Vernita and I left here to
go
to Kimberly
We
had only pla
ned to
drive
to Bethlehem
for the
first day. Here
we
were able to
rent
a Rondavel, wh
had
been divided into four
rooms
and
was completely furnished for 8.12. It is in a pa
jus t o u t s i d e of town an d on th e shores
o f
a man made lake.
When I went to get
th e thing s ou t of
ou r car
th e man
came
ou t
from
th e
next door Rond
vel and we greeted each other. Then later they
came
to
talk
with us. Since they
kn
from our license plate
that we
were from Port Shepstone, he asked
i f we
knew of one of t
families down here and we did. It so happened that Saturday night Michael and Caryl St
ley would be
visiting
with his son and daughter-in-law
in
Pietermaritzburg. His daughte
in-law
comes
from
Port
Shepstone.
We
had
at least
a 2h hour
v i s i t
together.
We arrived in Kimberley
at
about 3 P.M. on Friday went f i rs t to the minister s hom
They
gave us cool
drink
then the minister wentj^ith us to th e office so we could get
permit
to
enter the
African Township. Shortly a f t e r leaving
the
of f i c e I found
the c
was only
in
second
gear
and th e shift was not working. We stopped at a store for
so
food and being automatic, I di d not dare stop the motor, so Vernita
ra n
in quickly to g
some things fo r us I stopped at the f i rs t garage for help and he took us ri ght in.
s t i l l ha d a
problem fo r
I knew the o f f ic e a t Riverton
Recreational
area closed a t 5 and
had
not
booked a Rondavel. So I
called
the
town booking office and they told us
th e
na
of
the
one
we
could have and
said
they would ask them
to leave i t
open for
us;
no probl
there. Here they have th e bare
necessities
and for this
we
paid 4.70 a day. Many peop
who
l ive
in
Kimberley
rent these
for
the
week-end and
v i s i t
with
friends or
j ust
to
g
away
from tow n.
Our purpose in
going to Kimberly
was
to
meet with
th e church
and t a l k with them abo
why
they
ha d asked t h e i r minister to leave and why
they
had
not
paid him
a l l
h is sala
for
the l a s t six
months. We
would not usually do this , but
the
l a s t 4 ministers had l e
under not too happy circumstances and no one wanted to go to Kimberley to minister. The
were four men who
were
chosen to be present a t
the meeting
with us but only one of th
m a d e it
Saturday afternoon when
th e
meeting
star ted
th e t h unde r
a n d th e r a i n a l so
s t a r t e d .
T h e
p e o p le
sang
d u r i n g
t h e
r a in ,
sometimes
it wa s
a l m os t im p o s s ib le to
h e a r
them b e c a u s e
o f t h e
no i s e
o f th e r a in o n th e
i r on
r o o f . T h e mee t
ing was
n ot
so
very di f f icul t ,
however af te r
we
began to
g e t t h i n g s
s t r a i g h t e n e d o u t
a b i t .
The
elders ha d
passed a law as
most
people
p ut
i t , tha t I f
yo u d id not
a tte n d church
o r
give r e g u l a r i l y when
yo u
died yo u could not
be buried e i the r
from
t h e
church o r have th e
min i s t e r t a ke th e
s e r v i c e .
T h e l a w
had
c o m e
home and it
one o f th e e l d e r s . I am
s u r e
t h e r e were some more t h i n g s
b u t
he being on e
o f th e strong men in th e
c h u r c h
had worked
fo r th e m i n i s te r s d i sm is s a l . A fte r we had
ta lk e d f o r
almost
3 h o u r s t h e y i nd ic ia te d t ha t
the m ajority of th e
people
were d es iri ou s o f
d
8/10/2019 Nicholson Alvin Vernita 1978 SAfrica
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ernita and I will leave home on the 16th and load James furniture etc. early on the
so that we
can
be in Johnannesburg shortly after noon that day.
James
will begin his
with
the Natalspruit church the next day.
The
church had asked
him
to begin be
Christmas. Thank God
that
he
will
be going
there
to work
him
a t h i s home
t h i s
l a s t
yea r .
However God
has
great ly
I
have had
to replace the
motor
in the
W
The
old
one
was
working
very
good
until the
wheel came loose. When we
took the motor out
we found
that
it
was not the
first
time
had
happened,
so
it
could not be repaired. We had
put
a good number of miles on the
but it was still under guarantee. This did us
no good
for the man from whom
we
the motor
had
gone
out of
business .
We had a supper for the
teachers
of
Umzumbe
Bible Institute at
Lynton
and Debbie
Stan
Neethlings
farm
on the 14th of November. We will have a supper for the students at
on Tuesday, the 21st. Then on the 26th and throughout the
week we
will have white
from the University of Natal at Pietermaritzburg giving a week of their time to
work
around
the school. School itself will close on the 6th of December.
Vernita
and
I are thinking of taking those students
home
who
go
South.
Maart
Joseph
me to preach at the colored Church in Graaff
Reinet
and take the projector and
show
pictures on the life of Paul. If we
do
that we will visit churches in that area for a
Anyone
want
some
monkeys?
You
can
have them for free. They are eating everything that
pawpaw,
avocados, mulberries and even the green beans. They use to run
the sight of a person but now
if you do
not make
any quick
moves
toward them they
will
let
you come up t i l l you are within fifty feet
of
them.
We
thank od for the wonderful way that
e
has cared for us. We thank all of those
who
e prayed for us for we greatly need the strength of the Lord.
You r Co -Worker s
in
C h r i s t
Al v i n and
V e r n i t a
. Sandra will be making up our schedule
for
us in the states so i f you have any ques
ns or requests please write to her.
AGENT
R i c h a r d Hanson
G an non A ve . W.
Minn. 5S068
WITH
THE
NICHOLSONS
and
mailed
by
Pa rk C h r i s t i a n Church
N.
2 5 t h t
Non-Prof i t
Organiza t ion
U . S . POSTAGE
Quincy
I l l ino i s 62301
P e r m i t 57
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Atvin Nicholson and
Michael Stanley
pose withthis
year s students at Umzumbe Bible
Institute.
Th e
students
represent th e following home languages:
Xhosa , Afr ikaans , Zu lu ,
and
Siswati.
T hy
word is
a
lamp unto
:aiy
fee t
and
a
l igh t
unto my paths
s lms
1 1 9 : 1 5
SOUTHr
a F M C O N
/
TORCH
Kimberley
^
Bible
College
Port Shepstone
ope
Town London
V olu me 2 9 Four th Qu ar te r, 1 97 8
N u m b e r
uu y
a J l
Lynn and
Lucille
Stanley
will
be enjoying
a
Minneso ta Chr is tmas with Duane, Kathy , Amber ,
and Ryan Larry and Marguerite and Lynton and
Debbiethis
year, t>efore
returning
to South
Africa
in
January, 1979.
Michael,
Caryl,
Dlna,
Diane,
and
Dawn
Stanley
will
spend
a
quiet
Christmas in
South
Africa
with none
of
the family
here
th is year .
\ ojUP
Alvin
and Vernita Nicholson look
forward
to th e ne w
year when they will be returning to
th e United
States
on furlough.
Anne S t an l ey
in
Indiana
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2
Sou th
African
Tor ch
LARGEST CONFERENCE
EVER
favorite pastt ime at Conference posing for
Th e
mini st er s t ook t he i r
turn. N ote
th e
rs and overcoats it was quite cold thisyear.
The a n n u a l C on fe ren ce o f th e
was
held a t
Invut sh in i
Church
Chri s t
near Ramsgate
from th e
13th
the 17th
of
September.
Barnabas
n go i s t he
minister.
With mo re
than
250
people
paying
monies,
this was
the largest
that
we have
ever
h ad. F ou r
and ministers hired a bu s to bring
to Conference. There was one mini
s
an d
several
cars. Others
came
by
transport.
Wednesday
night is
always
a
long
with
welcoming speeches an d
music
by the choirs. A1
brought
the opening
speaking
on Evangel i sm in
e Home .
The
theme of Evangelism
as
emphasized in
al l
th e messages.
Because
of the
lack
of
space,
we
could
erect th e 40
foot
by 40
foot
tent. This
for th e
day
time meeting without
ny
trouble,
but
was
never enough space
r th e
night
meetings. Many
ha d to
s t and
out s ide and look in
After talking
about
it for
four years
a
new
constitution was
accepted a t this
year's Conference. The textwas read
an d
a few
points
explained at a meeting on
Friday. On
Saturday
morning
it
was
passed
without d iscuss ion.
Ther e a re
now
only
four office s which are
designated
for
specific people. Two of
them
are
reserved fo r Bre thren and
the
o the r two
are
des igna t ed fo r
missionaries.
When it came to voting for
th e n ew committee,
th e
work
was done
very quick ly ,
fo r
they
re-elected
those
who had been holding
office.
A few
changes
were
made whe re p revi ou s
office-bearers were not
present.
It
is well
understood
amongst
th e
Food
by
the
bucketful When yo u have
to
feed 250
people a
bowl
of mealie meal in the
morning,
this
seems to be t he easi es t
way to handle it.
i i
Four th
Qua r t e r
by
Alvin Nicholson
Most
of
th e women wear uni forms t o Con fe r en ce
(and Women 's Meet ings
at
home). Married women
wear b lack sk i rt s , smocks
with
white
collars, an d
black hats an d shoes. Unmarried
girls
wear black
skirts and vests
with
white hats and
shirts,
people
that
th e committee's responsibil
it y is to care
for
matters deal ing with
the
government, especially
applications for
church
sites,
which
cannot
be
made by
individuals or local churches,
and
with
the planning
fo r
Minister's
Week and the
Annua l
Confe rence . Even
th e
Commit tee
was
able to complete all i ts bus ines s i n
less
t h an
t wo h o ur s
The Minis t e rs Week
fo r
1979 h a s been
invited
to Upington
at whi ch t ime
the
new
church
building
will
be
dedicated.
This meeting will
probably be held
during March. Upington is in the
fa r
north west
part of
th e country, near
South West Africa, and
has
never been
host to any meeting
of
this type
before.
The A nnua l Confe rence h a s been
invited
by Simon Mtshayisa a nd the
people
of
Barberton
to
meet
with them
in
1979 .
THREE
CAMPS IN TWO WEEKS
Because of th e
closing
of the Afr ican
two weeks
early in June, and
ou r
being
able to
find
a
place
to meet for
we had a very
small
camp
the first
of July
at
Umzumbe
Bible
Institute.
On
Friday the
7th of
July
I
taught
a
class
at
school, then
drove
160
to Estcourt to be
there
fo r
th e
of
their
week end
camp that
At Estcourt
t h e m i ni st er works
ou t a
program,
which
is to be taught
th e children over a period
of
time. At
he week-end camp they answer
an d give scripture references
what t hey have le ar ned. They also
their memory
work.
Saturday
and
afternoon
Vernita
an d I
our t ime
taking the children
on e
by
thru
their
drill. Saturday night we
to their choirs and judged them.
the
choir singing we
gave out th e
to
those
wh o had done best. Al l
o took
part
received an
orange.
by
Alvin Nicholson
M
Brother Sogoni gave t he c oo k s a h an d. H e d is he d
up their meat
with a stick.
Tuesday Verni ta
and
I with
Wilfred
Mdululi from Umzumbe Bible
Institute,
went to Pondoland to have a part in their
camp
there. They had 158
children
registerd an d
a
large
enough group of
adults
that
they
ha d
six
good
sized
classes. Because I
was
using slides my
classes were held in
the
church building.
Vernita
taught
her c la ss
outside
using
flannel
graph materials. Each period the
students would
move
from o ne c la ss to
th e
nex t
In al l the camps we used th e
three
films
that we
have
gotten on
th e
life
of
Paul.
The impact
of
these
films
ha s
been
great.
Already
th is year
I
have had
invitations to two camps, which I shall
no t
be
able
to
take because
of
ou r
going on
furlough.
One of
th e camps is at
Middleburg, Cape, whe re we have no t
had a camp
fo r
several years . I am
sure
that
one
ofthe other missionaries will
try
t o h el p t hem.
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Four th
Quar ter Sou th
African
Torch
Page
ACTING
PRINCIPAL
by Michael
M.
Stanley
shopping trips.
Thursday is another
light day whe
teaching
is concerned.
I
leach for tw
hours and spend
th e
rest
of the t ime
the
office
working
on l esson
recording
school
purchases an
writing letters. At 10:00 a.m.
th
faculty meets together
for tea.
This
one
of the few
t imes
that all of t
faculty is together in one place. Wh
faculty meet ings are
called
t hey me
at 1:30 p.m. At
other time s
th
afternoon
is spent in work
around
th
school
or on
th e road. I n t he e ve nin
th e
missionaries
ge t
together
f
supper
and
prayer.
We are a lwa
happy when
th e
meeting
is held at
o
house
becaus e
t h en
we
do n ot h av e
carry
sleeping children
over the
rou
road
home
late a t night.
Friday
is
th e
busiest
day o f
th e
week.
the morning the
class schedule
broken by
th e chapel
service.
I
teach
hours
an d then
have to go
an d pick
Mrs.
Hul ley who
is
our typing
teach
so that she
ca n begin teaching
at
2:3
My
time
is taken up between th e offi
and students unt i l 4:30 when I ta
Mrs. Hully
home
and
collect
th e
scho
milk from a
nearby
farm.
Saturday is
o ur day when we ar e
home.
When we a re aw ay
visiting
church,
it is
just
another
work
day.
Jus t
in
case
th i s rou t ine
does
n
provide enough variety we
have thin
like
th e annual
conference, wedding
minis te r s
week
and
a
n umb er o f o th
e ve nts w hic h
demand
t h a t we
ma
changes. School holidays
ar e a
welcom
change which
give
us a
chance
to
g
some
work around
ou r h o u s e d o ne
as t h
seems to ge t
neglected
during th e scho
yea r
Now
t h a t I
have worked this rou t ine
f
3/4
of a year I
am looking forward
to t
end
of
th e
school
year and a
chance to
s ome
woodwork
S in ce my father left
fo r
the
States on
furlough I have been Acting Principal a t
Umzumbe
Bible
I ns titu te . T he year is
proving
to be
a lo t of
work
and also a
valuable experience. I will
be glad
when
my
father
returns
and
my
workload
is
reduced.
Now t h a t
we
have ente red th e f ina l
quarter
of the school year, I think
that
I
can say that my
schedule
can be
described
as
a routine; though it never
becomes
so
regular that it
is
monotonous.
This
is how it
goes.
Sunday
is th e
Lord s
day whether I am at
home,
at school
or
visiting
one of th e
African
churches.
Because
of my
responsibilities
at th e
school,
I have
not tr av elled a s much t his y ea r
as
I
have
in
the past. N ext
year I
hope
to
change that.
Monday morning
is
taken
up with
teaching.
This
is on e of my heavy
days where
teaching is
concerned. The
afternoon
begins w ith
supervising
student labour (a task which I
do
not
care for and then I
tr y
to complete
some
of the
r epai rs a round school
which
I have to do
personal ly . Some
times an urgenttrip to town or pressing
paperwork
interfere with
my
schedule.
Tuesday only requires that I spend one
hou r i n
class so
I spend th e rest of the
morning prepa ri ng lessons,
marking
papers and
taking
care offinances. The
nurse comes on Tuesday and so I
have
to
prepa re the
money f rom powdered
milk,
which
she brings, for
banking.
I
also give
F^riscilla
Nodwengu her
s e c r e t a r i a l wo r k Sh e i s
a
teacher/secretary and
helps to
keep
school
r ecor ds up
to
date, as well
as
doing some
typing.
At 1:00 p.m. the
nurse is ready to r e tu rn home so I
load
up he r
new
supplies
of
powdered milk
and then
drive
the
10
km.
6
miles) of
twis ting grave l and mud roads which
lead to he r home and clinic.
In th is
short
distance
there
are
4 s t reams which
have
to be
crossed and n on e o f th em
has
a
bridge.
In
wet weather
t h is can
The Sou th African TORCH is a publi
ca t ion o f
th e S ou th
A fr ic an C h ur ch o f
Chr is t Mission, and is
pub li shed fou r
times
each
year
in
February,
May, Au
g ust and
November by Mission Services
Association
at Box 177 , Kempton, In
diana
46049. Second
Class Postage
paid
at Kempton, Indiana.
Four th Quarte r, 1978
Numb e r 4
m
Michael
Stanley, acting principal of
Umzumbe Bible
Institute, talking to
some
of
the
Afrikaans students,
of which we have more than usual this year.
cause problems.
Once there
I am
often
asked to hel p w it h m inor tasks which
have ranged from
repairing
an earring
to connecting a 48
kg.
106 Ih. gas
cylinder. Our relat ionship with
th e
nurse
has
always been good
and
sometimes I find myself thinkingofher
as one
of
ou r
staff
membe rs , e ven
though she is employed by
th e
government.
The res t
of the afternoon
is spent wit h m inor tasks around
th e
school
Wednesday is
shopping
day. I usually go
to school in th e morning and give th e
students
their
work
assignments
and
see that they actu ally g et to
work.
Occasionally this is
the
tim e w hen
students choose to bring up problems so
my quick
trip
over
to school candrag
into
hou rs . Once
we get
t o t own we
take
care
of
our own
purchasing
as
well
as
t ha t o f the
school . Often
the
school
purchasing
involves buying personal
items fo r th e students. I have bought
everything from aspirin an d cosmetics
t o l ad ie s u n de rw e ar
The
s t u de n ts a r e
usually more embarrassed
at
placing
th e
order than I am a t making
the
purchase. We usually leave
town
when
th e
businesses close and everyone is
t ired f rom
a full day. It
will be n ice
to
have
G ra ndpa a nd G ra ndma back to
help
take
care of
th e
children on
such
CRECHE AT INVUTSHINI
by
Alvin Nicholson
Anna Songo
an d two of the
women
from
the Invutshini
Church have passed
t he ir e x am i na ti on s and have
become
teachers for Operation
Upgrade.
This is
a program for teaching adults, especially,
to read and write. They
hold
two class
periods each week at
th e church.
F o r C o n fe r e n c e th e c h u r c h
a t
Invutshini buil t a new
building
to use
as
a
dining hall.
But that was
not
th e only
thing they had in
mind.
The buil ding i s
to b e u s ed n ow
as
a crechefor
the
children
of
working
mothers.
It will be
supervis
and cared for by women of th e churc
After
they
g et th e work
going
well,
t
chief of that
a r ea ha s
promised
them
la
fo r
i ts
own build ing .
They could us e a case of powdered
mi
e ac h m o n th and s ome for t if ied food
f
these
children,
fo r
it
is known from oth
creches t h a t s ome o f t h e c h il d re n
a re n
receiving enough food a t home.
We
wou
l ike to be able to
designateR5 0
a
month
th i s work fo r a while.
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4
S ou th A fr ic an T O RC H
Published quarterly
for
the
following:
MISSIONARIES
a n d
t he i r
F O R W A R D I N G
A G E N T S
M r a n d M r s A l v i n N i c h o l s o n
and Family
P .O . B ox 2 1 9
P o rt S h ep sto n e
Natal
South Afr ica
Forwarding Ag en t
M r s . R i ch a rd H a n s o n
16642 G a n n o n
Ave. W.
Rosemount M innesota 55068
Mrs.
A n n e S t a n l e y
Columbus Indiana
Forwarding Agent
Mr.
an d
Mrs.
Donald
Barnes
R o u t e 1
Lyle Minnesota
55953
Mr . an d Mrs. Ly n n
S tanley
a n d Fa m i l y
P . O . B ox 2 19
Port
Shepstone Natal
South
Afri c a
For war di ng Ag en t
Mrs.
Sybil E v a n s
B ox 18 1
St .
Jo sep h
Illinois 61873
M r.
a n d
Mr s.
M i c h a e l
Stanley
and F a m i l y
P O Bo x
2 9
Por t
Shepstone
N a t a l
So u t h
Afr ica
F o rward in g A g e n t
M r.
an d
M r s .
R i c h a r d
E c kma n
Ro u t e 2
Kimball, Minnesota 55353
F U R L O U G H
by Lynn L. Stanley
Furlough time is a most
interesting
me. I have found myself attending
classes speaking at Faith
o mise R allie s and m issionary
visiting both churches
we
h a v e
been before a n d a n u m b e r
f new o n es w here
I h a v e
n ev er b ee n
eviously. It is a
happy
t ime as we make
w
a cq ua in ta nc es a nd r enewi ng
with o ur
supporting ones. It is
lso a difficult t ime as we
tr y
to keep in
w it h t ho se w it h
w h o m
we
w o r k
th e Mission Field.
It
is difficult to be
f rom wife or
husband
for
long
as
well. We collect needed items
ta k e b a c k with us
a n d wo n d e r if
we
Sou t h A f r i c a n
To r c h
Four th
Q u a r t e r
M A B A S O S T O
N A T A L S P R U I T
by Alvin Nicholson
Vernita
an d I arrived in Johannesburg
o n th e
25th
o f A ugu s t w ith J a m e s
Mabaso
so
he
could
visit
th e
congrega
tion
at
N a ta l sp r u it . B r o th e r M t s h ay i sa
w h o
h a s
min i s te r ed th e re a l s o c a me d o w n
from Barberton to
h el p h im .
B r o th e r M a b as o
was
well r ec ei ve d b y
th e
church a nd t he y w a nt hi m
to
come as
s o o n
a s h e c an .
H e a lso m et
a
n u m b er o f
people whom
he
h ad k no wn w he n
he
worked in Johannesburg an d they
were
happy to know
he
w as coming to minister
th e r e
T h e wedding
fo r J a m e s
Ma b a s o a n d
P h i l i s i w e
M b h e l e
w ill b e h e l d a t
Umzumbe
Bible
Institute
on
Saturday
the 7 th of October. We
ar e
v er y m uc h
looking
forward
to this occasion
and
pray
fo r
this
young
couple
as
they
prepare
to
move
to th e J o h an n e sb u r g a r ea to work
th e r e
should plan on
taking
it or
trying
to ge t in
on
th e
field.
W h a t a b o ut
a c a r
s h o u l d
we bu y a larger
one and
e nj oy m ore
comfort a s
we
travel
o r s h ou l d we us e a
sm aller one and ge t by somewhat
cheaper
as
far. as travel expense is
concerned?
In
ou r
c as e t he re i s a ls o th e
problem
of
h o w
th in g s
a re g o i n g a t
th e
Bible
Training School and
th e
feeling that we
should be
back
there helping. Probably it
is
t h is l a tt e r
problem
which
is
t h e h a r de s t
to
handle
as we know
th at
every m ont h
we a r e a w ay there will be
t b a t
much
more
adjustment when we return.
Whenever
we hear
of
a ne w problem we are
concerned a bout
th e
solution even
though we know
th at
tho se th ere are
capable
of h a n dl i ng t h e m a tt e r. A f te r 25
years
th e
mission
field is
HOME.
I
w o n d e r
i f
th e t i m e will
not
c om e w he n
man y missionaries
will
be taking shorter
and probably
a t
shorter intervals a
furlough p er io d to k ee p i n c on ta ct with
th e people
a t
home? In o ur c as e it wil l
give us the ch ance to se e more
of
th e
grandchildren
as
they grow
and
to meet
again those of our children
who
have
remained
in America. It will also
help
us
to have a
more
personal
relationship
with
ou r supporting
churches.
It h as
been
a r e al p l ea s ur e to se e th e
i n te r es t w h ic h h as b e e n
shown
a n d
to
hear
people s ay th ey
are
pra yi ng
fo r
us
an d th e o th er w or ke rs o n the field . W e
ha ve seen additional income pledged and
know that
when
we go
back
in Januar y
1979, we
should
be in b et te r p os it io n t o
expand
th e work th an
ever before. Most
of ou r projects have been me t in part or in
full.
Praise
God Th e
typewriters
to
upgrade t h a t par t
of th e
school have been
paid for.
Additional
salar y fo r th e
Th e
church building an d
minister s
home at
Natalspruit where J a me s an d
Philisiwe
Mabaso
will
be
working by
th e
en d of
October.
A fr ic an t ea ch er s ha s been pledged.
Money
h as
come in for an adequate
watersystem a t
th e
school which is badly
needed.
Probably
money
will
be on
h an d
to help with th e replacing of th e original
c h u r c h - c l a s s r o o m
a t
U m z u m b e . This will
give t he A f ri ca n b r et h re n o ne t he y ca n be
proud of
at th e
logical center. All this is
possible
b ec au se t he s up po rt er s of the
work
have
been
generous
as
they
have
heard of th e
needs
in ou r part of th e
w o r l d .
T h e N at io n al M is si on ar y C on v en ti on
was a special
blessing
fo r us. Will it be 8
years before
we get to
a tt en d a no th er
one?
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