Mack Update 10/22/08

The first week of GSM was super. Thanks for your financial and prayer support. A great group of hungry and eager students. Very encouraging feedback from the students. Many said they will promote the courses with pastor friends. After the GSM week we went to Jeffrey's Bay where we just had a great week end conference. Philip and Trenie K, a business man who has a heart for God and is excited about ministry were present from Sassleburg (sic) and we spent some time with them yesterday afternoon. They and others who were there brought up an idea that merits consideration (will describe later in this Email). We are staying in their beach house. Enjoying it immensely. A beautiful place, almost as nice as Capetown. International surf board championships are held in front of our house. As I write Carol is speaking to the ladies at a ladies conference. The ladies are excited. Good attendance at all the meetings. Packed on Sunday. Many outsiders - they had put posters up in various places and the people invited. Good feedback about the Lord's working in lives and marriages.

Here's an idea they mentioned that carries with it an exciting possibility. They are asking us to come down and do some counselor training courses in the area or to pipe it down (virtual media) by way of satellite - they say the eastern cape of South Africa gets neglected. They are going to work on seeing about the cost and the possibility of installing the virtual equipment on both ends (Pretoria and Jeffrey's Bay). If that is done it would be simple to just pipe the classes down here while they are going on in Pretoria. That would expand our outreach and impact. People from here applied for GSM last time, but were too late - classes were already filled. Met with several yesterday about the possibility of working out this arrangmenet and making it a reality. I told them that we have enough to do in Pretoria with classes and students there so that we couldn't take on any more in terms of finances and labor. They then assured me that they would do all the work - raise the money for the equipment, do the promo, do the grading of papers, etc. Leon (a former student of GSM), Wynand Fourie (pastor and graduate of TMS), Andre (Pastor and graduate of TMS) would do the work and Philip K would help in any way that he can (not the grading of course, but other aspects). Possibly and hopefully Martyn Beets one of our former students who pastors in Port Elizabeth (close by) could also help. One of the guys who met with us is into installing the virtual equipment as well as having contacts about how to get it. Philip K is really excited and looking for some way to use his time profitably since he's turned his business over to his son-in-law. He says he wants to serve and helping this to become a reality may give him some meaningful things to do. He wants to get involved. The boss of the man who has expertise in the area of facililitating satellite equipment was at the conference we presented. As soon as he heard about the satellite possibility, he came to see us and is really excited. He sees it as an opportunity to use his skills for ministry. Perhaps the Lord is putting a team together for this endeavor. If He is, we'll trust Him about the finances. The personnell seems to be in place. PTL for all of this. We're much in prayer. Hope you will be also. To have this satellite program will cost a considerable amount of money for the equipment, but will broaden our impact tremendously. Hypothetically, we could reach all of Africa without leaving Pretoria If we could do this in the Jeffrey's Bay area, we could do the same in other areas of Africa as well. Wow, the possibility excites me.

Warmly in Christ,

Wayne