Be a moja minister with JBC

Heita, Hola! Can you believe that we are just a few days from ending the year?

I don't know about you, but for me. This year flew like a blink of an eye. I mean one minute, I was enjoying a scrumptious breakfast and enjoying the fellowish with the new students from the Johannesburg Bible College.

The next, I see myself at a packed Rosebank Union Church where amongst other's graduating from the college class of 2024 class is Isibaya actor, Patrick Muziwakhe Mathabela. Mmm-hmm! I don't know how you feel, but I think the bar has been raised on the South African story telling side. Yes, you guessed it right. Almost all story tellers look to the book of life for inspiration. I mean even the most watched movies of all times have the Biblical themes,hate, love and jelousy and joy.

So, what a great way to start the year for me in February 2024 as I celebrated my 28th year walking with Jesus and than to be in a classroom full of freaks that loves the same man as I do. I mean to be so into the player of all players to a point that they will spend every morning between 7.30 am and 12:30 noon learning not only about him but the father of all creation. Yes, baby.. My year was very productive, entertaining and weight gaining too as I grabbed two slices of bread with peanut butter or jam. Or scrammbled egg and a filter coffee every morning before joining a group of Johannesburg based Bible freaks whose position in the different churches varies from ushering, choir, cleaner, pastoring, counselling and some just mere memembers of the church but want to grow in the Lord and understand his word.

The 20-year-old college which had partnered with Rays of Hope for class accommodation in 2024, Rosebank Union Church and The Kitchen restuarant which provided Wednesday fellowish lunches. Opened its doors to almost every one in Alexandra Township and surrounding areas three years ago.

I mean, it didn't matter which background you came from wether you passed matric or not.

As long as you could utter basic English and show initiative in wanting to learn and understand the Bible. The college's principal, Nat Schluter was eager to travel as far as United Kingdom and the United States of America to find someone who can sponsor a student who cant really afford to pay the now R19 500 fee or R2000 registration.

. Not only do they make you understand the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, they also encourage students to be more practical with the Bible in their every day life. I remember the very first term, as part of the practical of how to engage the word of God. The College had brought in people from journey South Africa, an organisation based in Johannesburg. They were so opened about some of the topics often church shy away to speak about.

I remember the speakers quite well, speaking about being gay and the church reaction. Another had struggled with keeping up with people's expectations and not living her life according to how she would like but rather what was expectated of her. A male guy came and spoke about how an absent father led to him being molested by a pastor that he trusted and looked up to.

He also kept this a secrete and allowed it to happen many times even though he didn't like it but wanted to please the man who had by then instilled all fears at him. If you thought, cigarrette was the only bad habit in life, think someone eating a jar of jam as a habbit everyday because they wanted to gain weight.

The third term was on another level as we had the annual Mission Day at the College. Some of the organisation who came to speak to us included Open Doors which work with persecuted churches, Mr Hendrick Chili highlighted how Christians were being killed in countries like Mozambique to a point that they now had underground churches. While Wits University resident pastor, Priviledge Tafirei said the gospel was needed most in at Universities. "People now hate Christianity because there are no faithfull Christians today. We have professional missioneries who care about budget yet the teaching about the gospel is needed most", said Tafirei.

In Africa, there are many countries where churches are persecuted yet they grow. One of those places is Nigeria. The church grew so fast in Nigeria that new believers have little chance to be discipled. According to operationworld in Nigeria, much of the division and false teaching enters into Nigerian churches mostly it is prosperity teaching which distorts the gospel. The fourth term was even on another level especially for us ladies. We got to attend the annual Women's Conference that was held at the the main campus in Auckland Park. One of the things that the college encourage is students volunteering either at the kitchen or in any of its event. I was fortunate to be the head usher girl at their third annual conference with the black and Gold theme. Here, I got to make new friends some as far as their Soweto branch. Others who had travelled all over the world to study at the Auckland Park Campus. Did you know that women need to take supplements when they are on their monthly period? I was really surprised when one of the speakers, Busi revealed this to all woman. The college offeres amongst others a Women Serving Chirst coourse. Like all their courses, you get a Ministry training course when done and it includes, Biblical womanhood, Women engaging with God's world, Communicating God's Word.

By the end of the courses, one is able to start a church with a full support from a body that support South African Churches. Or be effective members in their church. This year's students drew congregants from TBL ministries in Alexandra Township, Rhema Church, Anglican church in Pretoria, Christ Embassy, God Never Fails and Assemblies of God to mention but a few. Anyway, my year was fun and full loaded with everything about the Bible. I know everything is the result of the fall but will see if next year I will be able to stand infront of the audience and preach or like Bab' Patrick, I'm only good for camera's on TV. Anyway, as the president, Mr Cyril Ramaphosa asked during his innaugaratin in 2019 Whom shall I send, I will respond in a dance like the class of 2024.... THUMA MINA! For now please familiarise with your pastors in the following videos they are in no particular order: 1) Buti Lucas mama Rahab 2) mam Manina 3) 4) Sister Khanyi 5) Sister Mathabo 6) Brother Mbongeleni 7) Sister Lebo A bonus video is when the College pulled an Opera Winfrey on Alexandra branch pupils.

Africans do we still have Ubuntu?

FEW years ago, just before the Covid 19 lockdown. I had the pleasure of meeting up and be part of a small acting workshop group that met every Sunday afternoon at the workers museum in off Mary Fitzgerald Square down town Johannesburg. Back then, I was preparing and focusing on going full time on my art.

By then, I had done everything that I thought would please amongst others, my father who was against the idea of me becoming a full time artist and making a living out of it as my childhood dream. I had ticked all the boxes to prove not only to the public but to myself that I was educated enough to make and maintain myself through art.

Through working as a domestic worker, security guard and later print journalist. I had earned all the experiences needed to manage, budget and use my money wisely. So financial savy that, when I started my beads business, I had no car instalment as the Toyota Etios 2012 model payment was long over even before I purchased my second property.

My surburb flat allocated at the back of the fluent surbub of Melrose Arch, a five or ten minutes drive to Sandton Mall and a walking distance to Alexandra Township together with my son were the only huge responsibility I had then. I was so prepared for the future that even in my wardropethrough out the years,had special clothes for that audition job for a TV presenter/ talk show hosts or a role of a classy businesswoman on the biggest South African Soap Opera, Generation the Legacy.

I could speak at least seven South African languages then and the magazine and TV had trained me enough on what to expect. So me being with this crew on a Sunday was a step closer to my dream world.

One of the sister, I met at Melrose Arch Camphor Cream advert auditions told me about these classes which were offered for free for any inspiring actor. But the lady forgot to tell me that the person giving them was a Nigerian national.

I'm not sure if she had kept that information from me deliberately, knowing how I will act towards the information. The only part I got was that, he was the director of of Isibaya, a popular drama series that was airing on Mzansi Magic daily,it was quite big on our telies then. His name he did tell me, but out of arrogancy, I thought he was either Vhenda or xhitsonga or Pedi.

So there I was in the workers museum every Sunday amongst other inspiring actors some who had done a bit of TV work while others were still hustling to get in.

The guy was so nice. Coming to his work shops made me forget my troubles with the big Sunday national newspaper then. Lets just say, it had some attachement issues and I was just enough with being bullied for a salary. The bullying had made the passion for writing and reporting on national stories on print vanished. Instead, I was looking at the other means of telling and documenting our African stories. Coming to the acting workshop though was a therapy, it reminded me of the 90s British sitcom, Mind your language which aired on SABC1 but this was an African version of it. The Mr Brown was this Nigerian guy, with students from all over the township of Johannesburg. He spoke English, his students could hear him but others find it very hard to express themselves in the language. As a reader, you need to understand how apartheid affected especially the black men's education system in order to know and enjoy how these young actors reacted. But the nicest thing, the master was patient, no one had wrong answers in the class. Some answers were right but not for use in the current moment, they were prophetic answers. His work ethic made me forget one of my my life rule ie....Stay as far away from Nigerians as possible especially when have no back up. Sorry Nigeria but in South Africa, Nijas are notorious for many things ie abduction of girls and forcing them into prostitution. As a journalist, one of the most inhumane brutal stories ive ever done was that of a small body of a teenage girl thrown out of the fourth floor building in Central Port Elizabeth. The three Nigerian men who were well built and more masculine than her were trying to force her to take drugs. This was a high school girl from New Brighton, a member of an Apostolic church and the only child her mother had. Nor will I ever forget the humiliation, dissappointment and betrayal of Nolubabalo "Babsie"Nobanda from Grahamstown. She was well educated, came from a well off family what she did didn't add up with her character according to what I picked up from relatives and friends. But like all stories, there was a Nigerian man behind her betrayal. I interviewed her family soon after her arrest and dumped the SA drug mule in Thailand. Her story read like something in the movie and yes, there was a Nigerian brother played with her innocense. He didn't care of the pain, humiliation he had caused to not only the family but the community and South Africa at large. Trust was already broken even if you met a nice one there was always that...."But you are Nigerian my friend, I dont trust you" Anyway, the guy heading the workshop was generally nice had his coworkers from the drama coming in to talk to us or help him out. I remember one of the event he took us to Sandton convention centre to present our short theatre play on xenophobic, it was so nice I even twitted about it,

Khanyiswa Ndabeni🇿🇦 (@ndabenik) posted at 9:14 am on Sun, Nov 17, 2019: Nigerian artist, @iam_kcee and I were preaching the same message at the @RiseupNija an event aimed at uniting Africans and saying no to Xenophobia https://t.co/eS8nlVdJKk

I was sold to the whole Idea, with little knowledge of what the root course of the so called xenophobic attacks.

But I was all over preaching no xenophobic and even gunned an interview with NijaTV. Telling the whole continent and the world how we needed to stop the hate and start loving each other.

Lets just say, ugal was already running with the vision with no direction. But the little information from the stiries i picked up and read while doing full time print journalism. To be quite honest, it is only now when I think of it.... Were South Africans really xenophobic or were bullied by our own African brothers out of everything they had. No one dared to really listen to the voice of SA then, it is only now through drips and drabs that we seeing the real cause.

Bullies have been at it and got away with it for a long time while even the good guys were painted with the same brush. As Africans, what happened to our communal set up. Why would a fellow country men keep quiet when another is doing wrong as this affects the image of everyone from that country. Black leaders, do they stop to lead and guide their people once their outside their homestead? Im saying this because I've seen for myself that some of the incidents could have been avoided had a leader rose up and told their people to stop it.

From South Africa to Nigeria With Love

From South Africa to Nigeria With Love

It is so amazing how a simple few pieces of precious stones could break the ice to know all the juicy details of a person's special occasions. I've heard stories about that beautiful perfect wedding, Wakanda inspired parties events, church gossip, soccer team's disappointing performance, traditional events, struggle heroine remembrance, and family reunions. 

Women will pour out their souls at you to save the day. It's like your creation is that perfect piece of a puzzle that completes that special day, and leave everybody talking about her African Jewellery more than anything else of that day. 

Recently two brothers who leave two continents apart exchanged my new stone creation as a gift. One brother is based in the U.S  another here in SA.  Both of them are from Nigeria and attended  a family gathering there.

A collection of 12 bracelet made of stones were specifically made for men and we are now looking at making for women.