Note: EMI’s worldwide Directors traveled to Cape Town for our annual conference. With over 200 personnel working in 12 teams across 11 countries, these days of training, discussion, and connection continue to be one of the ways God works among us to shape and guide EMI.
What better way to overcome jetlag than hiking over 700m up Table Mountain on the India Venster trail?
It was a 4-hour journey of focusing on taking the next step and following our guide. At the top you can wander around, of course forgetting all about the (at times harrowing) climb.
If I had my way, every EMI office would have a skylight and atrium. This is the amazing space God provided EMI in Cape Town.
The team introduced the Directors to a spiritual practice of listening to the Lord through meditative prayer and creative expression. They do this as a team each time they work with a new ministry & project.
‘DC23’ was held in the small town of Greyton, a few hours from Cape Town. The Post House was our main host.
A recurring major topic is building consensus around how to change EMI’s financial model to be less reliant on personal support raising as we advance in our mission.
During power cuts, our conference room was especially backlit. The mural outside simply demands attention.
During an outing to Hermanus, we visited a seafood restaurant. We secured tables a little farther from the ocean than this.
Since Greyton is a mountain-biking town, several of us rented cycles for the week. After the first day of continuous rain, Phil and I stopped caring and went cycling anyway. So here we are, wet as rats.
This table reports its discussions to the group. Farai is part of the South Africa team. She decided to hold the paper higher to aid others (and perhaps conveniently hide from view).
The rain kept falling and the slides kept advancing. Is John absorbing all this or thinking about his next coffee?
Lord gave us a rain break just when we needed it for an outdoor group photo. I managed to arrange us all for Kevin to capture the shot and it was raining steadily again within 5-minutes afterward.
During a presentation inside the conference room, Phil is suddenly illuminated by a light from the ceiling. It narrowly missed his head as it swung down. We waited for him to make a profound comment, but he did not.
Graham and I stayed on after the Directors Conference to conduct ‘DevCom’ workshops on communications and development with the team in South Africa. These extra days were very full, but worth every minute.
Pauline (left) missed the first day of our DevCom workshops waiting for her South Africa visa. Even so, I was glad she was able to come and see the Cape Town office, reconnect with Thuly, and share her experiences as Uganda Communications Coordinator.
Patrick and his metal zoo in the open market square near the office. Originally from Zimbabwe, this artist makes use of discarded parts and scrap metal to create things of beauty and life-like detail.
Sally explains her proposal for goals, events, and communications / development activities over the next 12 months at EMI South Africa.
Over the last few years, South Africa Director Gerhard had repurposed a floor of this building as both a comfortable home and an office for his wife Trudie’s legal firm.
I suppose this photo gives at least a sense of the foreboding I had about plunging into the freezing water of this Atlantic Ocean tidal pool. Here at least, the experience is followed by hot coffee down the road rather than death.
This impromptu commissioning prayer after summing up the DevCom workshops was very meaningful for Pauline, Thuly, and Sally. They have their work cut out for them, but now they have a way forward.
Graham walked us past the big white Mercedes and talked us into a table at the Silo Hotel’s café. This repurposed industrial facility has an amazing view of Cape Town. We enjoyed it together before heading home.
