Loyiso

Loyiso

Many of us know Loyiso Bala as the brilliant young RnB artist who's not only known in South Africa alone but all around the world. And despite his success he remains a down to earth and humble being. He was recently in Cape Town to sing happy birthday for Madiba at the Greenpoint Stadium where Man UFC was playing local club Ajax. Loyiso who launched his latest album Love Complete in July last year has shared his story with us:

My first encounter with the Lord was at the age of 7. My cousin, who was 19 years old at the time, took us in. This is after we had been tossed to and fro from relative to relative due to my parents having been separated and my mom moving to Cape Town. My cousin was a petrol attendant and God stretched his salary to cover the needs of all three of my siblings, his mom, sister and his sister's child.

' …even though i walk through the valley of the shadow of death, i shall fear no evil…'

He was a born-again believer and became the father that I never had (my dad had passed away about 2yrs prior). I got to experience unconditional love for the first time in my life as my cousin gave of himself selflessly to making sure that we were educated, well fed and most of all, appreciated.

'…surely your goodness shall follow me all the days of my life…' Psalm 23

He used to take us around to sing at community functions and churches in the hope that someone would snatch us up and give us a better life than what he could afford to give us. It was at one of these churches that a man preached about Jesus. He spoke about the power of being in Christ and the fellowship that we could enjoy by being in Him. I heed to the call and accepted Christ.

' …I will lead them beside streams of water on a level path, where they will not stumble,because I'm Israel's father…' Jeremiah 31:9

Since that day, God has turned our lives around. We have become the most respected family in our Uitenhage community compared to the poor family that we used to be viewed as. Not only did God raise us up to glorify him throughout our nation and the rest of Africa, but to also be the beacon of hope to all nations. He has made sure that as He is, that we are too in this world.

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Gateway News

Gateway News

25 years ago I was an arrogant young South African newspaper journalist who thought Christianity was for weak people who needed a crutch to help them face the challenges of life. My wife, Val had become a Christian a few years previously while we were living in Zimbabwe where I was posted for two years. I magnanimously (or at least, so I thought) tolerated her delusion but made it clear that it was not for me. But during a season in which I was working at night as a sub-editor in Port Elizabeth I used to stop at various drinking holes late at night and got into a lifestyle that even I could see was self destructive and incompatible with my role as a husband and father of two dear little girls. So one day I decided to take the advice of an acquaintance, given to me at a braai about a year previously: "You should read the Gospel of John". I read it and knew immediately in my heart that this was truth. Val had been praying for the years and the Holy Spirit was wooing me. As a step of faith I left my newspaper job about a year later to get out of night work and to share more of my life with my family. In the years that followed I worked in various freelance media fields.

Fast forward to June 2010 by which time I was a partner in a small real estate business in PE. I started a blog in which I posted testimonies about amazing things that God was doing in various people’s lives. It was good to be writing again after a break of quite a few years. Man, I thought, it was especially good to be writing Good News instead of all the bad news I used to write in my old newspaper days!

By the end of 2010 I knew in my heart that the Lord was calling me into full-time Christian writing. I shared this with Val and early in 2011 we asked elders in our church to help us test the call. Within days of getting a go-ahead from the elders I had a coffee meeting with Trevor Jennings, a friend and coordinator of Transformation Christian Network, a ministry that links leaders in Nelson Mandela Bay with the objective of transforming the city. By the end of our coffee chat, we decided to startGateway News.

And so, in February 2011, by faith, we launched Gateway News with the objective of reporting Eastern Cape Christian news. Very soon we realized that God had a bigger vision for us and we adopted a national focus. The Lord continued to stretch us and today our vision is to reach every Christian in South Africa with quality, local, national and international Christian news and news from a Christian perspective.

In Matthew 9:36 (NLT), we read: ”When He (that is Jesus) saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." I sense that Jesus looks with compassion at Christians in South Africa today whose opinions are being shaped by media sources that inspire fear rather than faith, and which call right wrong and wrong right. We are trusting God to grow and use Gateway News to inform, encourage and activate Christians: to help them to live out a biblical world-view.

God has been faithful in bringing us stories of amazing things that He is doing in our nation. We have been privileged to report on inspiring news that no secular news provider would publish. In our first year we had the joy of seeing some “activation” happening on a grander scale than we could have anticipated, when we were used as a catalyst in staging a mass prayer day at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. Another goosebumps moment was when we were given the chance to say a few words to the men at the 2012 Karoo Mighty Men Conference, and 1 000 men subscribed to our newsletter there-and-then via sms. We have been blessed by talented Christian writers from various parts of the country who are making a valuable contribution as columnists. And yet, we are also aware that we are still only scratching the surface of the Kingdom stories and perspectives that need to be shared with our people. We are aware that we are totally dependent upon the Lord to reach the readers, recruit the writers, and raise the resources and partners needed to realize the task before us.

And so we hold on to words like “Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.” ~ (Zech 4:10 -- NLT).

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The Uprising

The Uprising

I have had the privilege of growing up in a Christian home; my parents were and always have been very supportive of me and my vision. In 2002 I gave my life to the Lord, and although I had grown up in children church, I for the first time understood fully what my decision involved..

'you are the light of the world'

High school was an interesting time for me as I began to flourish at sport and was selected for both the provincial team and the 1st team at my school, St. Stithians Boys’ College. With the sport and recognition I began to enjoy the social scene and all that comes with top level sport. In 2009 I realized that what I had dreamt my life was going to be and what God had planned for me were two very different things. I de-registered from my degree, and began to pursue a life in ministry. I enrolled to study theology, and the rest as they say is history.

'a city on a hill cannot be hidden.Neither can people light a lamp and put it under a bowl'

The Uprising came about in 2011. However I had had the concept placed on my heart as early as 2009. My first year out of school I felt that God was saying that Jo-Burg, the city built on materialism, and on the pursuit of personal gain, had influenced the churches of Jo-Burg. Where ever I looked it felt that there were many churches, but that they were more concerned with building their own individual empires. Where as God was calling the church, all of it, to be building His Kingdom, not focusing on individual empires and recognition.

As a result a group of youth pastors that I had been working with came together and decided to form The Uprising. Our intention is to build a movement behind which all of Jo-Burg’s youth can unite behind. We envision that we will become a worldwide youth movement. Whereby we ignite this generation to become a generation of change.

'instead they put it on its stand so that it may give light to everyone in the house'

We are a stand alone organization, uninfluenced by individual churches. And that is what sets us apart, at any event we focus on creating excitement and showcasing the youth of Jo-Burg, but with the ultimate goal of guiding the flock into youth groups within their area.

'in the same way let your light shine before men' Matt 5:14-16

We are a movement of many youth groups, individually run, and with their own way of doing things, but we are united behind one banner, the banner of Jesus Christ, and the desire to bring about a revolution among this generation, one that will change this city, and the world for Him.

'that they may see your good deeds and praise your father in heaven.'

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