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EMERGENCY RELIEF PLAN & PRAYER FOR ELECTIONS
Dear AFM Colleague,
Emergency Relief Plan
Recent floods in Durban and Port St John’s were disastrous. Many people lost their homes, furniture, food, clothes and other valuable goods. Many lives were lost. Roads and bridges were destroyed. I requested our Regional Leaders in the affected areas to do everything within their power to assist (refer to the AFM Facebook message issued on 25 April 2019 – https://www.facebook.com/AFMOFSA/).
I would like to thank our Regional Committees in all affected areas who reached out to the flood victims. They have demonstrated that the AFM takes its social responsibility (community involvement) and caring aspects seriously. I would like to urge our pastors to implement the AFM’s emergency plan which was approved of by the NLF in 2015. In terms of this plan each AFM family should be asked to bring non-perishable food, water and other necessities such as clothes and candles to the local congregation on a specific Sunday. These items should then be placed in a storage designed for emergencies. Each assembly should have an emergency committee appointed for the management and distribution of these materials in emergency times. Or to needy assembly/community members if no emergencies occurred in that year.
The lesson from the recent floods is that real disaster has a potential of leaving even prosperous communities vulnerable and in crisis. The church must reposition itself in society not only as a pastoral and prophetic agent but also priestly as a social agent for the benefit of the community.
Prayer for Elections on 8 May 2019
In five days time, South Africa will be voting. Unlike the previous elections, I sense a high level of uncertainty and some despondency from those eligible to cast votes. Failure of the government to deliver on promises made, lack of service delivery in many of our communities, corruption and impunity are some of the things causing people to lose hope that politicians will deliver on their manifestos promises.
Some voters have decided not to vote while others want to vent their dissatisfaction through spoiling voting ballot papers. There are other voices that are talking about alternative ways of forcing elected officials to do what any government is expected to do for its citizens, e.g. public protests. They reckon that public pressure through mass demonstrations deliver results quicker than a voting ballot paper.
As a leader of this church I would like to call on our members to seriously consider voting because one of the ways in which a citizen can influence governmental decision-making is through voting. It is within the power of the voters to hold those in public office accountable to the citizens of the country. Citizens can always demand accountability through civil actions such as demonstrations, if government fails to deliver on its mandate and promises. But there are many who say: “I don’t know who to vote for.” Indeed, this is a dilemma for many South Africans. Well I am not persuaded that there is a political party at this point in time which has a ‘silver bullet’ to all the country’s problems. Anybody who promises a quick fix to the country’s problems is preposterous.
Our guidance should be Biblical principles, equality, justice, ubuntu and social cohesion. I know that many of you have been praying for the coming elections. I am asking that we take time this coming Sunday, 5 May 2019 to pray for God’s intervention in the coming elections on 8 May 2019.
Blessings!
M.G. Mahlobo