December 2007

Anathoth is the headquarters of Africa Upper Room Ministries. On five acres of land near Johannesburg, South Africa, it takes its name from the Jeremiah passage in which land at Anathoth is purchased as a sign of hope for the future. Anathoth is, for Upper Room Ministries, a sign of hope for the future of Africa. This newsletter from staff-person Roland Rink brings news from this important ministry.

"IT'S ABOUT THE CHILD"

Christmas greetings to you from all of us at Africa Upper Room Ministries. We have included a number of photos taken of children of Africa. After all is said and done, it really always is about the Child! Some thoughts for the Season from each of us:

• As we celebrate the birth of Christ, I am reminded of children around the world who, like Him, wander the streets, homeless and destitute. Christ came to make a difference in the world. May we take on the challenge to transform the globe, so that we may share in the joy of the season. A happy and blessed Christmas season to you and your family.
- Nancy Herron, AURM Administrative manager

• This year is almost over and it seems as if the year has just flown by. Once again we are at the beginning of Advent. For me this is always a time of reflection on the year gone by and on the Christmas event itself. It is so easy to get caught up in the commercialism and the business of Christmas that we actually forget what Christmas is all about. It is a time of giving, a time of rejoicing, a time to remember. It is the remembering why we rejoice that I focus on. We celebrate because of a God who loves us so much that he brought His only Son into this world so that we could know His salvation and His love for you and me.

May you take time out of your busy schedule this Christmas to just stop and remember that God loves you and what the Christmas story may mean to you. May you remember the Babe in the manger and may that Babe become real for you this Christmas as you celebrate His coming again with your loved ones. May the joy of Christmas be with you and your loved ones.
- John Mitchley, AURM books

• Christmas seems to come so quickly in our part of the world. In colder countries, the snow and cold seems to ring in the festive season and the atmosphere builds up with Christmas trees being cut down and decorated. Our hot summer days with buzzing Christmas beetles and thunderstorms are typical of our Christmas atmosphere. Whatever we find the "right" season to celebrate Christmas is not what is important, the fact that we do celebrate Christmas is all important. We celebrate that our God is an awesome God, He is our mighty Lord and God who rules over this infinite universe and yet He came to us in Jesus Christ. He came to show us His great unending and unconditional love for each one of us. He came to draw us to Him and to live within our hearts. Our response to this wonderful amazing love is for us to bring Christ's love to those around us with gifts of generosity of spirit, unconditional love, compassionate care and our focused presence with those who need a friend.

May this Christmas be a time of proclaiming and celebrating Christ as King of our lives. May God's presence fill our lives today and throughout 2008.
- Renny Stoltz, AURM accountant

• It's December. It's nearly Christmas. The strong summer wind that blows along the West Coast of the Western Cape is moving the branches of the large tree outside wildly. White horses cover the ocean that can be seen from the Guest House where I live and work in this small fishing village. The vegetation is already brown and dry from the heat and the strong winds. A very different scene from that depicted on the usual Christmas Card. However, as I look at my bookings for the days over Christmas I think of the strangers that I will welcome into my home/guest-house on this special day. It makes me think of that first Christmas.

Joseph and Mary arriving as strangers at the inn. Jesus born in a strange place. There was no room for them and they weren't made welcome. I'm unable to spend Christmas with my son and daughter-in-law in London and my other son and his fiance 160 kilometers away in Cape Town, but I am fortunate to have the opportunity and privilege of welcoming strangers into this "inn" and a chance to make them feel welcome and loved. Maybe they'll be people like last year who came away to a strange place because for some reason or another it was too painful to remain at home. May this Christmas be an opportunity for each of us to show love and care and in this way welcome our Lord Jesus Christ and say "Yes, Lord Jesus, there is room for you".
- Elaine Richardson, AURM Western Cape Marketing

• Christmas for me will be busier than usual. I have resumed duties as our parish organist (after a break of 5 years); so it's back to weekly choir practice preparing for the Advent and Christmas services (midnight mass starting at 11:00 pm, ending about 1:00 am and then, after a few hours sleep, the 8 am service on Christmas Day). For the midnight service I always hope for cooler weather as it can become uncomfortably hot up in the choir gallery. Down below extra chairs will have to be brought in for the more than usually large congregation.

To all at Upper Room Ministries, throughout Africa and abroad, I pray you will experience the warmth of the Christmas season with family and friends. May the joy of the birth of the Christ child fill all our hearts with renewed hope. Thank you for your friendship, love, and support throughout the year. Peace be with you.
- Beatrice Smith (African English editor, Cape Town, South Africa)

• Christmas in the sunshine. There must be something more significant than building sandcastles on the beach instead of snowmen on the lawn. Perhaps it is hidden somewhere in the story of a bent over women who, despite her disfigurement, still saw it important to go to the Temple to worship her God. Jesus, as always, did not miss the opportunity, called her forward and placed his healing hand on her body and life. Wonderful. Then the problem. There was a protest from the religious leaders who felt that Jesus had broken the law. So what do we learn? We learn that there was no room in the hearts of the leaders to acknowledge that a most special miracle had happened, and if we are not careful then all the clutter of Christmas 2007 will make no room for the miracle of the birth of Jesus in our hearts. Open doors of welcome or no room, that is the choice that we faces every Christmas. Blessings of Christmas to you all.
- Gavin Leverton (AURM marketing, Cape Town, South Africa)

• I am sending to all of you out there a message of joy that will ever grow if "WE" meet "HIM" (Jesus) again -- "again for the first time." Each year Christmas is a reunion time, meeting the extended family again, having fun together. Learning again from the elders of the family and the community about the meaning of Christmas for each individual member. How we should rejoice with the sun as it plays its joy to the world on the Christmas morning. Children rise up before dawn to watch the rising sun display its beauty, giving hope to the hopeless and the helpless. It not only is said by word of mouth, but it is acted as sharing begins for the day.

Coming back from the rising sun, the time of celebration begins as we share in massive meals that are very different from any that we have had during the year. At this time people begin to visit from house to house, each person sharing what they have, in this way sharing not only their food but their joy, their being and their love.

This time, may we be able to share of ourselves. Sharing our joy, our peace and more especially our HOPE of the coming Christ child.
- Ike Moloabi (AURM marketing, Gauteng, South Africa)

• As we gather into the rituals of the season we remember with wonder again, the amazing, outrageous Love that the Father has for each of us. We have tried our best to obliterate the sanctity and message of the Coming by means of plastic, commerciality, money, busyness and any other device available. The miracle is that the true meaning of Christmas is still there for all those who wish to see. The Word made flesh. For you, for me, for all humanity. We run, we hide, but we cannot escape the fact. God is with us. We are not alone. May the sweet new scent of the stable linger long in the nostrils of the ignorant. May the sharp stench of the stable reawaken those who believe. Peace is still our most vulnerable, our youngest sister. Cherish her, protect her, nurture her, give her a space to grow.

It is always about the Child.
Roland Rink