WHERE ARE WE IN THE YEAR?

We are in the second semester of the 2016 academic year and it’s an extraordinarily short one – three months divided by a short week-long holiday at the beginning of September, and the last undergraduate lecture-taking place on 17 October! Your first reaction might be, “Great – more holidays!” In reality, however, it puts students under enormous pressure and really challenges our task of making whole-life disciples. The formation of students into faithful Christ-followers takes time and time is increasingly a scarce commodity. So, please pray for us, that we will work wisely with the term time that we do have with students (to know what to do and what not to do), that we will be creative in rethinking our use of the UCT holiday times for ministry, and that God’s Spirit will be powerfully at work in and through us despite these challenges. Pray also for students, as they shoulder, sometimes unbearable, pressure.

NEW INITIATIVES

The university world is, indeed, a magnificent mission field. The diversity of people and academic disciplines are breathtaking! It is into this world that we want to communicate the good news of Jesus Christ, our Lord. In order to do this, we have coined a new category of small group, called “affinity groups”, which are groups that are based around a specific activity/affinity, connected to the Student YMCA. At this stage there are a number of “affinity groups” – “maturity series” for this who want to explore doctrine deeper; “transformation conversation” for those who are eager to discern how the gospel speaks to aspects of transformation; “basadi matters” dealing specifically with woman issues (‘basadi’ is the Sotho word for ‘woman’) and, in the pipeline, “emerging scholars” aimed at postgraduates, to equip them to look at scholarship through the lens of a biblical worldview. Please pray for us as we pioneer such new initiatives, to bring salt and light into all the nooks and crannies of the university world.

MOBILISING STUDENT LEADERS

We will be devoting special attention to this aspect of our ministry. Equipping and mobilising students for service, within in the Student Y community, but also in the university world, is a vital aspect of our calling. I feel there is much room for improvement in this area, especially with the beginning of the 2017 academic year in mind. Pray for us as we identity new student committee leaders by the end of August, and as we seek to provide training in the fourth term (September and October).

STAFF & FUNDING

Our team is small, but all the members have big hearts. Liesl, Robin, Dineo and myself make up the small staff complement, with Inga providing valuable support as Office Administrator. That said, our capacity – both ministry- and administration staff – needs to increase, so we would value your prayers as we look to recruit new staff with 2017 in mind. In order to pay salaries, we will be launching a capital campaign this month with the aim of raising R350 000 for staffing. We do this in faith, so please pray that God would provide generously for our needs through friends, alumni or any other avenue.

Soothe me lemon and ginger tea
(Also has honey)

This tea is part of the Woollies collection of teas.

This is a fruit infusion tea that is a ‘caffeine – free’. It’s great alternative to normal tea.
Gently spiced, citrus combination that is soothing and comforting during the cold winter months.
The lemon, ginger and honey combination will help boost the immune system, which we all need during winter months to fight off the cold and flu.
Lemon – helps to flush out toxins and unwanted material from the body
Ginger – has warming qualities which will help burn out harmful bacteria
Honey – the best-known health benefits of honey is its ability to soothe sore throats and kill the bacteria that causes the infection.

Due to the fact that it’s a light tea it’s better to let it steep for minimum time of 5minutes, ideally let it steep for 7-10minutes

Try enjoy the natural flavour taste as is, or add a drop of honey if you desire a little sweetness ( you can also add a little sugar but I would not advice it) and of course you can add a slice of lemon for a more citrus taste.

Please do not add any milk!!!

How to Properly Drink your Tea

First and foremost never hold your cup with your pinkie finger extended. This is improper and in most social settings is considered rude. Place your index finger into the handle of the cup up to the knuckle while placing your thumb on the top of the handle to secure the cup. The bottom of the handle should then rest on your third finger. The fourth and fifth fingers should curve back towards your wrist.

When stirring your tea, be careful not to clink your spoon against the cup. Gently swish the spoon back and forth without touching the sides of the cup. When through stirring, remove the spoon and place it on the saucer behind the tea cup and to the right of the handle. Of course, never take a drink of your tea without removing the spoon first, and please never, ever sip from the spoon.

Dineo