neologism for this season Encouragement: All is Well

I have always been intrigued by the story of the Shunamite woman. I deeply admire her radical empathy, strength, wisdom, humility, hospitality, kindness and unwavering faith. I would reflect on her words: “All is well”. Despite her great distress, with everything inside her and at the height of her agony she managed to answer: “All is well”.

This scripture reading led me a little farther along to 2 Kings 8:V5-6. “My lord king’, said Gehazi, ‘this is the woman, and this is her son whom Elisha restored to life’. The king questioned the woman, and she told him about it. Then he entrusted her case to an official, ordering him to

restore all her property to her, together with all the revenues from her land from the time she left till that day”. It was then that I realized the immense privilege we enjoy as Christians; we are encouraged to turn our prayers toward the King of Kings! Before God Himself we state our case! And all that we think we have lost in our season of dryness, our season of wilderness, our God will restore! Our God will restore everything from the time we went in until the time He brings us out! Yes, surely: “All is well”!

Like the Shunamite woman, I too experienced seasons of loss and pain. To the world, it may have appeared as

though I was winning! Surely, this must be her SEASON! Launching campaigns and building brands, impacting lives and empowering women. But on the inside, oh, on the inside I was dying, crippled by the heat of the scorching desert as I wandered aimlessly in a wilderness that seem to know NO end! Yes, this was indeed a season.

A season of dry bones, a season “BY HIS GRACE I BELIEVE of doubt, a season I HAVE BEEN REDEEMED; of complete alienation and BROUGHT TO A POINT isolation; a season IN MY LIFE WHERE I HAD of sheer silence, a SURRENDERED THE THINGS season of tears, a OF MY PAST AND RESOLVED season of pain so deep that my soul TO LIVE A LIFE WORTHY OF cried out in great THE PROMISES OF CHRIST” sorrow without a whimper, without a sound, no tear left to weep, a season of deep personal grief, a season of utter distress, a season of plentiful questions. Day in and day out, I would cry out in earnest: “Lord, when will this all end?” None of this made any sense!

By his grace I believe I have been redeemed; brought to a point in my life where I had surrendered the things of my past and resolved to live a life worthy of the promises of Christ by his glory and for his glory. I loved God and it was beautiful. Why would God “dust me off, clean me up, have me taste the beauty of his majesty for a short while, then thrust me into a vast waste, so ghastly, and literally leave me there without trying to move me out of it?

The questions kept coming and my disdain kept amounting, desperate to attain some sort of feedback and affirmation from God. It took me a while to figure that I was asking all the incorrect questions, praying toward ineffective prayer points. My baby-faith could not fathom the thought of a wonderful God, who wanted me to trust in him only. Who wanted to show me without any reasonable doubt that He alone was my provider, He alone was my rock and salvation. In Him alone was my hope. Our God is not a man that He should lie nor a son of man that He should repent. Will He say a thing and not do it? Will He make a promise and not keep it? Even in times of hardship, we can confidently declare with the Shunamite, “all is well”.

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BUILDING A COMMUNITY OF ‘CHANGEMAKERS’

BY BIANCA GILBERT “And don’t forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God,” Hebrews 13:16.

We often forget the impact and power an act of change holds. We are often informed about individuals who sacrifice and work tirelessly to make a positive difference in the lives of many. They take many shapes and forms, young or old, and aren’t restricted by their creed, culture or need. Regardless of how big or small the act performed, they should teach us one thing: having the intention to do something isn’t enough, action enables and inspires change.

Have you been wondering how to serve God in your youth? Or have you asked yourself what you can do for God? As a young person, you should be inspired by acts of change. These individuals are and remain motivated to act - despite the enormity of the obstacles that they face. Reflect for

a moment on your professional and personal interests. What expertise and skills do you possess? Are you a change-maker? You may think you aren’t experienced or talented enough to be a change-maker, but the Bible has many examples of ordinary individuals who were selected to carry out acts of change for the better of others.

Moses didn’t think he was a leader or speaker, but God selected Moses to bring the Israelites out of slavery. David was the youngest of all his brothers and seen as feeble, but God selected David to defeat a giant and eventually made him a king. Every person is of equal value regardless of race, gender, age, and social standing, and each person are unique and significant to God - use your individuality to bring about change.

“There is more happiness in giving than there is in receiving,” (Acts 20:35). While others may regard small acts of change as insufficient or inconsequential, minor

adjustments in mind-set, behaviour and outlook oftentimes result in a greater outcome in the lives of others. These acts of kindness ultimately contribute to establishing a revolutionary network of change-makers. Acollective effort to act for change is what is needed to contribute to meaningful development and improve the lives of those who need it most. This is especially needed in the current context of collective trauma; due to Covid-19. The sheer extent of need that exists within our communities might be great and appear to be daunting to address, but it is certainly possible. The good news is that we can all be change-makers, whether it be a random good deed, using our skills to help those in need, or pursuing a largescale community development project. We have all been blessed with the ability and skills to make a difference, but it is up to us to unlock this powerful capability.

“In finding my purpose and making an impact, I started by thanking God first every day for the gift of life and for opportunity.”

The Soweto uprising was a series of demonstrations and protests led by black schoolchildren that began on the morning of 16 June 1976. The uprising spread throughout South Africa and changed the country’s socio-political landscape. The revolt was against apartheid policies that made mandatory the education of the Afrikaans language, which was the language of the oppressive apartheid regime. It prevented children of colour from reaching their full potential. A black education department compiled a curriculum and the aim thereof was to prevent children of colour receiving an education that would lead them to aspire to positions they were not be allowed to hold in an apartheid society. The day changed the course of South African history. 16 June 1976 was the catalyst for the revolt against apartheid and was taken up by the school children of Soweto. The youth uprising ended the political acquiescence of the former decade. It was a day that ended in the bloodshed of schoolchildren at the hands of police brutality. It exposed to the world the injustice of the oppressive regime through the media in the iconic photograph of a lifeless Hector Pieterson. Life lost and blood shed for the right to be treated as human beings.

The energy and the defiance of oppression by South African young people did not die with Hector

BY MAGISTRATE T C LENDORE

Pieterson and so many others who lost their lives that fateful day. We are humbled by the men and women who went before us so that we can today be free men and women. This is evidenced by a new youth uprising in the form of the 2015 “Fees must fall” student protests in a free South Africa. On 19 September 2016, the minister of higher education, Blade Nzimande, announced that the country’s tertiary education institutions were facing financial challenges and that South Africans were having trouble affording tuition. He proposed an increase of no more than 8%. The next day protests erupted. Police fired stun grenades, tear gas, rubber bullets and students retaliated.

The discontent that had been brewing for years exploded and students were no longer accepting the burden of being saddled with student loan repayments in an already high unemployment economy. While 1976 focussed primarily on the racial injustices, the protests of 2015 took on an economic hue. An economic hue which is a product of the racial injustices of the past in that people of colour were and still are being denied access to education, land, economic liberation and still suffering marginalization in a post-apartheid democratic dispensation .

It is clear that these two youth events shook the foundations of this country and fundamentally impacted the course of history. Robert Kennedy said that, “This world demands the qualities of youth; not a time of life but a state of mind, a temper of the will, a quality

of the imagination, a predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite for adventure over the life of ease.”

Today, 26 years into democracy, South Africa is still facing great challenges that cannot be whitewashed or ignored. Too many people today still endure tremendous hardships and great injustice. A new, more prosperous and more confident South Africa must emerge because of this generation taking its place on the world stage. Here we learn that history is in our hands.

I believe that as youth I am writing to an audience of aspiring doctors, lawyers, engineers, business people, politicians, educators, scientists and other innovators. I believe that this is a courageous youth, not afraid to fail, with a Can Do attitude. I know that this is a youth which fights for their families and cares for their communities who want to lift themselves to reach their dreams.

In facing my challenges, in endeavouring to become more than I could imagine, in finding my purpose and making an impact, I started by thanking God first every day for the gift of life and for opportunity. Everything that I have accomplished and attained in life is by His grace and because I acknowledge him as my source. At the age of 33 I was appointed as the youngest female magistrate in the Western Cape coming from a past that never could have predicted my present because in my life I acknowledged the gift of His grace.

Blessings in Christ