On the cover

 

In this issue

• Shutting the door on the past
• Vicki the victorious, never the victim
• Inspiration from Wales
• Ps. Tim Hall fighting fit
• Making a difference, one child at a time
• CRC business networking
• One man's calling changes the life of many
• A safe haven for children in need
• Stepping up your calling
• Now is the time to stop gender violence
• New life, fresh start
• Phileo love
• Getting to know God
• Media influences
• Right for a change
• Inside out
• Turkey, the other Holy Land
• Jambo
• The Lilly of the valley
• Medical schemes
• Christmas around the world.

It is time to reflect

Our world keeps going faster and it is becoming increasingly difficult to cope with all the pressures of traffic, deadlines, demands, responsibilities - and especially messages and e-mails. If we do not deliberately stop and take time to reflect on what the important things are that should take up our time, we will forever be giving in to the pressure of scrambling to keep up with it all. If there is one thing that I know for sure it is, if you do not manage your time properly, it will control you.

 

It is now the time to reflect upon who you are, right in this moment.

 

Pastor At (pg 4) tells us to shut the door on the past and to get rid of all the baggage. This is probably the best way of preparing oneself for becoming a new person and to start the new year that is just around the corner. It is almost like a detoxification of the inner self to prepare the soul for better things to come, the new life and fresh start that Chrisna writes about on pg 21.

 

September was Deaf Awareness Month. A number of initiatives took place all over our country to draw attention to deaf people, their accomplishments and their issues. Devoted brings you real life stories of deaf people that will inspire you. Read more about the interview Marianna had with Vicki, Miss Deaf South Africa and a devoted CRC member in our cover page article on page 6. Not only will she inspire you through her story, Vicki is also now part of the Devoted team and will, through her writing talent, make a difference in the lives of our younger readers. You can also read about Nico van der Merwe, a well-known South African businessman, who did what God called him to do, namely to make a difference in the lives of deaf children. Read about Eduplex (pg 40), the school Nico founded and that took education for the deaf child to a whole new level.

 

Devoted also brings you other inspirational people in this special Christmas issue, such as Ps Ray Bevan, Ps Laila Bevan and Ps Tim Hall. All of these well-known pastors have visited CRC over the last few months to bring us their messages of hope and inspiration. Over the year our magazine has travelled to a few inspiring destinations such as Romania and Israel, the Holy City. A special gospel cruise is planned for next year and a group of CRC women have recently visited the Seven Churches of Revelation in Turkey. We bring you their experience of this wonderful land, which is often called the second Holy City, on pg 38. And to top it all we bring you another wonderful destination closer to us, Kenya (pg 36). I have not yet heard about a person who visited this gorgeous African country and did not enjoy the visit.

 

At the end of yet another year it is also necessary to look back at the highlights of Devoted, and the accomplishments of the team. The magazine had humble beginnings, a number of challenges but many, many highlights in a short space of time. It started off with 36 pages and a small group of contributors. After just three issues the magazine now consists of 48 pages and it boasts a big group of journalists, writers, contributors and loyal advertisers. I feel grateful and humbled by the support, dedication and passion of my entire production and sales team. I am so proud of them all. They work hard, are passionate about the magazine and the church and they are highly dedicated to bring you a good read and a product of high quality. I salute them all, and also you, our reader, who gives Devoted its reason for existence.

We are also proud of our new website and I hope our readers will like it too. Statistics show that it is visited often, which shows a great interest out there in our magazine.

 

Thank you to our wonderful and loyal advertisers. You helped us to bring a good product to our readers and to help them to discover life through the Gospel. You will be blessed in your business through your blessings to others.

 

I truly hope this issue will be a blessing and that you will enjoy the journey. I would also like to wish you a wonderful and blessed Christmas. I am looking forward to inspire you again next year with our testimonies, real life stories and new projects and other initiatives.

 

God bless,

Gerda