It’s an impossible challenge to do justice to all that happened on the southern African GAT to Soweto and Botswana – from the amazing local teams, the support of the South African Alpha office and of course Nel, our relationship manager, as well as the people whose views changed, the girl who was healed and how we all as a team changed.

There was a moment when something hit me right between the eyes. I was in Botswana on our second two-day GAT, the first having been Soweto, and I was leading a dynamic prayer session to start the second day. There were about 120 people in the room. And a voice said to me: “You haven’t even been a Christian for a whole year yet.” I think there have been times in my Christian life where that voice would have probably added the words “you fraud!” But on that day I knew it was a voice telling me that I really was not unworthy. That I really could be used by Him, and that if I surrendered it to Him, and had the right heart, He would use me. It was an incredible feeling.

It all started in Soweto. It’s an incredible place, full of a lot of very emotive recent history and also full of contradiction. There are some nice houses in nice streets, but there are also squatter shack colonies.
On day two we went to mass at our host church, Holy Rosary in Phiri, who gave us an amazingly warm welcome and fabulous support for the event. I think it’s fair to say all seven of us shed at least a few tears when the local worship started, most of us were in floods listening to some of the prayers - giving, self sacrificing, grateful and unselfish prayers that were a lesson to hear. By the end of the day we had visited three other churches, including Methodists and Anglicans - all of them were breathtaking experiences. It had been an interesting two day build-up to the event itself, and we all felt that the Holy Spirit was hovering close – perhaps with good reason. Disruptions were abundant – including a taxi strike, meaning that most of our delegates would be forced to walk 1-2 hours to get to the event. It seemed to us that such opposition to the event meant there were good things in store. I think on Monday that feeling allayed a lot of nerves – four of us had not done a GAT before, but we all had felt, over team prayer that morning a sense of peace that this wasn’t about us, it was about God, and he was going to show up because he wanted things to happen.

During the event we were very blessed by the Holy Spirit. We had manifestations and healing. Prayer ministry time was the most intensive experience I have ever been involved in. Here I was in the front line, and under enough pressure to really put myself, my ego and my fears to one side, and just invite the Spirit to do His stuff – it’s so faith building.

The travel and early mornings left us weary, but the social transformation days in Botswana were revitalising. We had raised money in advance for the HIV day-care centre - opened and run by retired nurses who still feel they have a lot to give the community. It now helps over 1100 clients. We had an amazing time, playing with the kids (everything from blowing bubbles to hula hoops and Frisbees), chatting to the adults and witnessing a very competitive game of scrabble. The next day we visited a prison – a very moving experience for me. I think you have to actually be inside a prison to start to understand why Jesus calls us to bring comfort to the captives.

When day one of the next GAT arrived we were all exhausted, but just as buoyed by the peace and the words we were getting in team prayers. We felt the Spirit wanted to be there and we just had to make plenty of room for Him. We were blessed with two Bishops at the opening of the event. The lesson we learn is that you cannot tell two Bishops they have a five minute slot. I doubt you can tell one Bishop that either! Both Bishop Musonda Mwamba and Bishop Cosmos Moenga were entertaining and inspirational, as indeed was the Dr Moeti who opened the event formally.

I gloss over my overacting in the “how not to lead a small group on Alpha” theme. Except to say that it was rather worrying that many people in Botswana thought it was exactly how to lead a small group on Alpha! I think we were all a bit shocked by some of the fire and brimstone in the air at first, and were definitely all overwhelmed when people came to us at the end of the day to say. “You’re right, we get it!” Of course it isn’t about us being right - Alpha is doing God’s work, and doing it successfully, so if we can be present when someone “gets it” then it’s awesome.

So here I am, many words later and I haven’t told half the stories. You haven’t met Florence or Josephine, or Mogkadi - so many people without whom we couldn’t have survived let alone achieved. You haven’t met the couple of hundred people involved in the GAT events as delegates and who changed our lives by being there and listening to us.