ccm Cross 0049
February 26, 2013

Apostolic Faith Mission Church
Somerset West, South Africa
ccm Cross #0049

GPS/DMS 34.0757° S, 18.8433° ECross 0049 Somerset West SA web 1

Additional photos after Devotion

3222 cdd The Apology
Cyber Daily Devotion
Volume 14 Number 048

Today’s Author: Pastor Bill

Scripture: Romans 1:16a
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,[a] for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes” NKJV

My name is Pastor Riaan Hart and this is my testimony of how the Lord Jesus Christ set my feet on the path of righteousness. My wife is Isabel and together we have two young boys Kyle age six and Liam age three.

My story begins in my youth. I was the youngest of four boys and from my earliest thoughts I wanted to serve the Lord and be a Pastor. At the age of 8 I was at Bible Camp and heard that there was more to a relationship with Jesus Christ. A personal walk with the Lord was possible and the Holy Spirit was a real entity. There was an altar call to receive all Jesus and the Holy Spirit had to offer and I burst forth to receive. It was monumental as I received Christ as my savior and the Holy Spirit came upon me and immediately I began speaking in tongues. (That happened 20 years ago right here where we are planting this cross today.)

My parents were active in church with my dad as the music director and mom on the piano. I was in Sunday School and active in everything church had to offer.

When I entered high school I learned that everyone did not think as I thought. When mentioning my goal to be a Pastor I was ridiculed, ostracized and made fun of. But it only made me more determined to serve people as a Pastor.

When I graduated from high school I went on to University and graduated there with Christ in my heart and ready to serve the Lord. My local church immediately asked me to become youth pastor and spread the passion of my heart for Christ to the youth. Then it happened. Just when everything was coming together I was spiritually knocked down, attacked and severely wounded by the leaders in the church. I never thought such pain existed. I resigned immediately and ran as far from church as I could — wounded and confused. How could my pure heart be spiritually attacked and wounded so.

For the next six months I wandered from church to church looking for acceptance. A place to call home and love the Lord without condemnation. Week after week I held on to Jesus by my boot straps but could not make sense about where I was and where I was going for the Lord.

Then Jesus spoke to me in my spirit. Just a few words that I’ll never forget. He said, “you must go and apologize.” Anger gripped me — I had done nothing wrong — I was wrongly attacked — I was the wounded one! For days the words kept coming to me like waves in the sea, “you must go and apologize.” Finally I capitulated to the Lord.

I returned to the church and apologized for my behavior. I was received, accepted and re-instated as youth Pastor. Over the years this has become the cornerstone of my walk with Jesus — HE speaks to my heart and I listen and act. A few years later I was elevated to Pastor and have been here ever since.

Our ultra modern church building was in the City of Strand, by the Sea, in the  Cape Town Area. And this retreat/camp was just a few miles from our church. This same retreat/camp where I received the Holy Spirit that became a special place in my heart. Our denomination for years held pastor retreats, camps and meetings here. Then as the years passed the need for a retreat and camp place was replaced by local church events. The camp area became available and we as a church prayed about how we could be used with this property. The Lord answered and we moved from our ultra modern church by the sea to the camp. Now as a church we use the facility to minister to the homeless, poor and addicted throughout our area.

The Lord has provided many spiritual, emotional and physical healings over the years and two stand out the most. We were holding a prayer meeting and my predecessor Pastor humbly and respectfully shared that he had been struggling with the dietary restrictions and injections for diabetes. He asked us (ordinary men and women like you and me) to pray and ask the Lord for a healing in this area. We anointed him with oil and laid hands on him while praying. He felt it and we knew it — he was healed by Jesus that day. He went home and threw away all his very expensive medicine — to the chagrin of his wife who was not present at the meeting. He lived another 20 years with no diabetes insulin. Finally going home to be with the Lord due to “old age.”

Another prayer meeting we were standing in a ring, holding hands and asking the Holy Spirit for direction and power — a bolt of fire fell into the middle of the prayer ring. It knocked all of us to the floor. Over the next few hours as the people lay on the floor they began speaking in tongues, prophesying and ministering to one another. From this prayer meeting many new ministries for the Lord were begun and continue and are thriving even today. Including our current mission: “To be Servants in worship to the body of Christ and our community. We live this out by serving people, saved and unsaved with the love of Jesus that He Himself poured out in our hearts, and through serving our goal is to lead people to Spiritual Maturity in Christ.”

My favorite Bible verse is: Ephesians 1:13 “In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise” NKJV

Pastor Bill, thank you for bringing this Cross into our life and helping us place it by the N2 Super Highway, where we believe it is the most traveled highway in South Africa during tourist season.

This Cross will be a light unto all of South Africa as they pass by and to our local community as well. It stands a symbol of Jesus who died, was buried and rose again for my sins and your sins.

Prayer: Father give me the strength of Pastor Riaan — as against all odds — he humbled himself — swallowed his pride and apologized. There by removing the stumbling block holding back all that Jesus and the Holy Spirit had for him in ministry and life. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!

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Digging the hole 2 meters deep

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The ladies of the church came to pray
and help out any way they could

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Attaching nuts and bolts

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Checking for durability

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Pastor Bill shows slides on how to lift Cross

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The ladies pitch in to pull on the ropes

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Lining up the Cross

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Checking the ropes

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UP

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UP

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FIRE IN THE HOLE

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Back filling hole

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Anchoring one of the corners

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Pastor Riaan checking for stakes

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Pastor Bill interviewing Pastor Riaan for testimony

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Everyone got involved from prayer to
hoisting the Cross making this perhaps
the smoothest Cross planting yet!

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Plaque “Declaring God’s Glory” over
Somerset West, The Strand and
all of Southern South Africa

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This Cross stands guard over perhaps
the busiest intersection in all of
South Africa during tourist season.
To God Be All The Glory!