Page 1 - Good News April 2014 paper
P. 1

t was a cold evening. The skies were patchy with     giant warehouse could not seem
             clouds and chilly winds gusted from the peaks.       more opposite. It was a sad reality
          IHoward drove me to the church where I was to           of  modern  life,  but  I  could  do
          preach.  That  first  Friday  night  as  I  sat  on  the   nothing  to  fix  the  gulf  between
          platform I looked across a gathering of 200 people;     young  and  old  in  Kimberley,  or
          there  were  no  young  people.  I  leaned  over  to    anywhere else in the world. Only a   suggested. I nodded. As I opened the door, the blast
          Howard and asked, “Where are the young people?”         revival of faith in Jesus could do   of music must have knocked my hair back! In that
          “Reinhard,  would  you  like  to  know  where  all  the   that!                              instant I received a spiritual vision of the reality of
          young  people  in  Kimberley  are?”  Howard  I  would  go  back  and  preach  my             the disco. In the flash of the strobe lights, I did not
          answered. After the service, he drove through the       heart out to the old people again    see young people dancing with joy. I saw frozen
          streets until we reached a large warehouse, ablaze      on Saturday and Sunday. Perhaps      images of boredom, fear, loneliness and insecurity,
          with gaudy neon signs. One large sign blinked out       God would move in their hearts,      one after the other, captured on the faces of those
          the word, 'disco, disco, disco'.                        and they would begin to make a       young people. Each of those haunted faces spoke
          The parking lot was jam-packed. I could hear the        difference in the lives of their own   to me of emptiness - pure emptiness!
          boom  of  the  heavy  base  beat.  “This  is  a  den  of   young  people.  That  seemed  the   Now I knew what the Spirit had wanted me to see. I
          iniquity,” I said sadly. Howard nodded, “This is the    best I could hope to achieve.        felt the undeniable compassion of Jesus surging
          latest  thing,  Reinhard.  It  is  a  'discotheque'  and   But as I turned to get into the car, I   within  me.  I  wanted  to  weep  for  the  precious,
          young people flock here.”                               stopped  in  my  tracks.  The  Holy   searching young people of Kimberley. They lived in
                                                                  Spirit began to speak to me. I had   the city that was diamond crazy, yet they did not
                           Drawn to the world                     no idea what the Spirit wanted me    know  that  they  were  the  diamonds  God  had
          I felt a shiver go down my spine. How could the         to do, but I knew I could not leave.  created. They were more precious in His sight than
          Church  compete  for  the  attention  of  their  youth                                       mountains of wealth. He cared enough to die for
          against such a temptation? The quiet little church            Empty, lonely people
                                                                                                                         Continued on p. 12
          building we had just come from, and this pulsating,     “Let's take a look inside,” Howard                     Continued on p. 12
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