Pioneers for Empowerment
We at Living Way are humbled in the way God has provided for us both financially and physically to make this ministry a reality. Our ministry is to empower local people with skills so they will be able to provide themselves with a sustainable living. The mission is to spread the good news of Jesus Christ in a life-changing way and to encourage people to follow Christ. Six months ago we were in search of some property in the Southern Peninsula where Living Way would be able to have its headquarters. Through a lot of prayer and God being faithful, Living Way now has a home. We took over an abandoned skills training facility on December 12th but didn’t get moved in until the first of January.
It is so amazing because we are located right next door to the first township that Living Hope worked in and we are very close to other communities making it easily accessible to all. It has taken about 4 months, but the Living Way Campus is beginning to come alive. We have had a couple of teams from the USA in January and February to bring us much needed resources. They came with funds to help pay for some of the cleanup and they, along with hired local labour, got the buildings looking great and the grounds cleaned up. We also have individual volunteers that are here for 3 to 6 months that are helping maintain the premises.
The front six offices spaces are now occupied with other NGO’s, an advanced computer training class, and a high quality arts and crafts training course. We are also very excited that 3 out of our 5 incubator business offices are being occupied by our entrepreneurs that attended the Living Way Entrepreneur classes last year. We have a missionary, Wendy Ryan with Evangeline Ministries, who began sewing classes 3 years ago at our Living Hope site but has now transitioned over to the campus. Wendy continues to hire local people to teach the class and then provides the students with a new sewing machine at graduation. Wendy has also put together a computer training course to begin in the next couple of weeks. The program relies on donated equipment and local experts to provide check-ups and minor repair so we have machines to use. This will be a very basic training class and we hope to be able to fill it up with people eager to learn.
Beginning 20th of April, we will start our 3rd entrepreneur training class. We desire to have students with brilliant ideas or existing businesses that we not only train them how to become great business owners but to teach them how to have character and integrity in their business. We do this by incorporating Biblical principles into our teaching. Some other organizations on the property include an existing clay/pottery class and an educare Centre. The Educare Centre is busting at the seams with young children eager to learn more. They have a program where a lot of the kids attending will be qualified to attend the best Primary School in the area once they reach grade 1. Of course they have to meet the requirements of the school. This is such a great opportunity for those in underprivileged communities to get a head start in life.
We have a chapel where we meet every Wednesday morning to pray for the community and the ministry and we facilitate a Bible Study on Wednesday evenings. We have savings clubs in the communities that help to empower the people so they are equipped to manage their finances the way God would want them to. Lastly, for now, our worker readiness program is coming together with the help of another volunteer and this will in turn train the students how to be better employees in their jobs. We have more buildings and opportunities to be filled but for now, God has entrusted this much to Living Way and we want to be good stewards of what he has given us. Please continue to pray with us for the life-changing impact this ministry will have for the people of this area.
