We had a GYC Board of Directors meeting this weekend.  It was good
to see all these people whom I respect and admire so much.

A powerful thought was shared during one of the sermons presented.

Humans are so selfish.  We even tend to be selfish in the way we
approach salvation.  Don’t get me wrong, we should love salvation,
cherish it.  Saying that “it’s the best thing in the world” is an
understatement.  But at times, we love ourselves more than we love
salvation.

Think of this:

Moses and Paul were willing to give up their salvation for the people
they were ministering to.  That’s how much they loved
others!  That’s almost a powerful thought!  But it’s too hard
for us to fully comprehend.

Try this:

Jesus was not only willing to give up His salvation–He DID.

He, of course didn’t need saving.  But Christ is SO unselfish that
He–in reality–gave up His eternal life.  The constant thought
running through His mind, perhaps from Gethsemane to Calvary, was that
there was no human way He would survive the death of sin resting on his
shoulders.  It was too great, too offensive.  Faith surpasses
reality. And faith was the only thing that allowed the thought of a
resurrection being possible.

And He decided to die anyway—eternally!

That is unselfishness.  And I am not synonymous with that!

Too often, we just care about our salvation.  Maybe it’s time that
we start caring about the salvation of others.  Maybe that is what
true religion is all about.  Maybe our salvation remains most
secured in seeking to secure the salvation of others.

I thought I’d write something so that people would quit talking about Egypt…

Chester and I are in South Africa looking for Mandela so that we can take a picture with him.  No success in finding him yet.  But we did visit the union office where he used to work.  And during our trips to the mall we read a lot about him so that I feel like I know him personally.
We are here to explore the opportunities available for starting a GYC South Africa.  So far we’ve met with Conference officials in the Southern African Union.  We’ve also been able to make presentations to churches, youth leaders, and families.  Good times.  Keep us in prayer because both of us will have to preach at two different churches this Sabbath. 
During our free time we’ve eaten a lot.  But I think I’m actually losing weight.  Too bad Shaun, our South African-now-American host, can’t say that 🙂  He’s had quite a lot of lunch/dinner invites…and boy can you tell.
We are having an excellent time with him.  We visited Cape Point, where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet…supposedly.  It was a nice climb though.  We were able to see South African Penguins too.  For more information and pictures about our trip, check out Chester’s page.  My camera battery died and I haven’t taken cool pictures like Chester since like the 2nd day we arrived.
We meet with our good friend Gerda today!  And plan to check out the Cape Town International Convention Center.  Gotta run!
Everyone, pray for Judy…she’s sick…and her birthday is coming up on the 4th 10.4!  That’s the day I get in!  So write her some nice cards and email them to her at jnamm@misda.org…no junk mail or group mail or non personal mail stuff please…and NO FORWARDS!
Power.
Israel
PS.  Here are some new South African words I’ve learned:

1.  Is it?  Mostly used instead of American word “really”
EXAMPLE
Israel: I’m going to go see the penguins now.
Shaun: Is it?

2.  Shame.  Used frequently for no particular reason.
EXAMPLE:
Israel: I hate tomatoes
Shaun: Shame

3.  Sorted.  Used instead of fixed
EXAMPLE:
Shaun: Let’s get this sorted out