Unexpected Connections in South Africa
By Martha Barnett, New York State Team Member

Little did I know that God had planned much more for me in Cape Town, South Africa, than I had ever expected. Prior to my trip, the Lord arranged an unexpected encounter with two lovely Christian women who were attending the 4-14 Window Global Summit in New York City.  I was part of a small Moms in Prayer team helping with the resource table at the conference. 

Thea and Esther, friends from the Cape Town area, were very interested in learning more about Moms in Prayer as soon as they saw the brochure on our resource table. Esther was especially convinced that prayer for children and schools must spread to her country. Since I was planning on visiting Cape Town the following month, I expressed my willingness to present the Four Steps of Prayer to her community. Esther gladly accepted and upon returning to South Africa, she went right to work making arrangements for me to share the vision of Moms in Prayer International in her community just one hour from Cape Town.

In preparation for my visit, Esther, Thea and others prayerfully spread the word that I was coming from the U.S. to introduce Moms in Prayer International to those who wanted to be a part of mobilizing prayer for the children and schools in South Africa. As a result, 60 women eagerly welcomed me and participated in a Saturday morning presentation and workshop. The openness, love and appreciation expressed by the women was one of the greatest experiences of my life. I could see how the prayers for South Africa, poured out from the Moms in Prayer International field ministry team, had prepared women to respond right away to the mission and vision of the ministry.

But God had much more planned for me during this trip. On my first day in Cape Town, I walked the grounds of an historical church and discovered a small group of Christians meeting for worship. I joined their evening service and told them about Moms in Prayer International. The pastor’s wife invited me to a ladies’ Bible study at another larger church in Cape Town.

Among this new group of women, the Lord gave me an additional opportunity to talk about prayer, sharing the great need for our kids and schools to be prayed for in a focused, scriptural way. The women connected to this vision right away and several of them wanted to know more, so they arranged a meeting for me the following week. Fifteen ladies joined me and again, I could see how God had prepared their hearts with eagerness and excitement about praying regularly for their children and schools! The women made copies of some extra handouts I brought and checked the Moms in Prayer website to make sure that every woman present had a resource to help her pray according to the Four Steps.

While in Cape Town, the Lord arranged yet another meeting, this time with Magdalene, or “Mackie,” who had learned about Moms in Prayer through a Facebook friend in the U.S. Mackie and her husband greeted me warmly and soaked up everything I shared with them. I gave Mackie a Booklet and discovered that she started a group two weeks later! 

Since I have returned to the U.S., at least five groups have started in the Western Cape of South Africa! We also have moms praying and inquiring about Moms in Prayer in five of the nine provinces in South Africa. Praise the Lord!

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10 (NASB)