First day in Cape Town

There were about 75-100 Lausanne delegates on the 11-hour flight from Amsterdam to Cape Town, which arrived here Thursday evening. Many of us had traveled for more than 24 hours, coming from the US, Canada, Brazil, and even from New Zealand.

Friday is a rest day for most of us, and first impressions of Cape Town are beautiful. The weather is marvelous, the hotel staff are exceptionally kind and helpful, and there is excitement in the air as Christians from around the world are meeting each other over breakfast tables and in the hotel lobbies.

This afternoon my roommate, Greg Johnson, who leads an evangelical network in Salt Lake City called Standing Together, and I are meeting an acquaintance of mine for a tour of some townships. Eddie and Rothea Jacobs are South Africans who founded and pastor Cape Town Embassy Church, and they have a ministry in the impoverished Cape Town flats – or townships. Look for more later.

Again, please keep praying for the delegates from China. Obviously our prayers now are for their encouragement as most have been denied exit visas by their government. Pray that they will be encouraged by the Holy Spirit even though they suffer the disappointment of being separated from this global gathering of the body of Christ.