A few weeks ago, I approached my local church, Doxa Deo Hatfield, to present the Venture course. Venture is part of our Leader Impact strategy, focusing on how to start making disciples in the workplace.

Doxa Deo had already planned an outreach for May 25th, and the Venture course provided an opportunity for people to be trained before participating in the outreach.

In April and May, a group of 9 people joined me at 7 am on Saturdays for the course. This was a challenge for me as I usually like to sleep in on weekends, but it was clear that God had other plans.

Initially, we met for an hour, but after the first Saturday, we realized we needed 2 hours. Time flew by with engaging content, lively conversation, and growing excitement.

The main message I aimed to convey was that we are called to make disciples of Jesus, not just converts. We achieve this through relationships and knowing what to share when the time comes.

Doxa Deo’s outreach event, called Street Store, was a one-day pop-up free clothing store for the homeless. Five church campuses collaborated to collect clothing and resources to help the people of Tshwane central. We guided each person through the store, helping them get clothing, a cup of soup, bread, a Bible, and a vitamin shake. Along the way, we engaged in conversations about faith.

I had the opportunity to guide 10 men through the Street Store. With 4 of them, I had meaningful conversations. The first man I helped knew nothing about the Bible, so I showed him how to find scripture references and explained the layout and purpose of each book. Empowering him to read the Bible energized me for the rest of the outreach.