Band Of Brothers

A few weeks ago, whilst in Cape Town, I had the privilege of joining a group of young men who have recently started meeting together on a Friday night. Most of them have a history of significant drug misuse, some for years, and some as recently as a couple of weeks previously. They are there mainly to support each other and find strength and determination in their ongoing commitment to live life differently , and most importantly to follow closely the One who has set them free.
The group has been started by Bradley Naidoo, who himself used drugs heavily and was a gang member for many years, until over 5 years ago , he met Jesus and his life has been transformed. Since then, Bradley has developed a real heart for former friends, community contacts, and the next generation of young people growing up in the Cape Flats communities, where the role models are 'successful' drug users and gang bosses. He spends much of his time, counselling, networking and just 'being' and creating a different kind of presence in his neighbourhood, than the one he used to create, where he was feared by many.
Bradley has been drawing a group of 10 plus guys together for a few weeks, and I had wanted to go to meet some of them and hear their stories. I was also asked if I could talk to them a little about the effects of drugs on mental health.

What an amazing privilege it was to be there! The format was simple, they just one by one shared how their week had been. I was struck by how brutally honest they were, as for some it had not been easy. One had been tempted to go off and buy 'tik' (crystalmetamhetamine) and had coped with this by handing his bank card to someone in the family to look after. As the meeting went on, I saw how as they shared, they gained strength and support and ideas from each other. One spoke of how he was seeking to recreate some order and routine in his life (tik use especially destroys sleeping and waking patterns, and the ability to eat regularly and healthily), he was running at 5 am everyday. Others thought this might be a good idea for them to try as well. Another guy talked about how he was managing temptation in his thought life, every thought that he felt was unhealthy, he took hold of it, and threw it out. I shared with them that this may be what was meant by the verse in 2 Corinthians 10 v 5 ' we take captive every thought and make it obedient to Christ'. This seemed to be exactly what he was doing.
Yet another person talked about his struggle with eating, and this led onto a general discussion about how they could cultivate healthy eating patterns and lifestyles. Everyone had something to contribute, there was an acceptance of each other's weaknesses and yet a desire to press on , to reach forward to goals as yet unattained , for example with work, in relationships and in serving God.
I spoke a little about the effect of some drugs on mental health , especially in causing paranoid symptoms and psychotic experiences. This was something many could relate to but fortunately their symptoms had subsided once they stopped using. This is not the case for all, and I warned them that ongoing mental illness, of a severe nature, can be triggered by drug use.

After a while, Bradley asked if I would pray for them, which I was happy to do, but as I did I found myself overwhelmed with emotion. I don't think I have ever been with such an honest group of people and it struck me that I had so much to learn from them. I try so often to cover up how I really am, my day to day struggles , my disobedience, my failings, I fall back into certain traps over and over , just as they have. And how all of us are so dependant on God's amazing , extravagant, scandalous and outrageous grace!

A Visit To Pollsmoor Prison- 'Place of New Beginnings'

During my last visit to Cape Town in February, I had the privilege of visiting the notorious Pollsmoor prison with Bradley Naidoo and John Palm (left). It was an incredible experience and very humbling to see how , even in the darkest places, the light of Christ can shine and change lives.
John has been visiting the youth section of Pollsmoor for several years. He has himself had a number of sentences in his younger days and spent many years in the prison. It was there, 14 years ago that he met the Lord and has been returning ever since, to share the good news of the gospel with the young people who find themselves there. John explained that the numbers of young people housed in Pollsmoor has reduced recently. This is as a result of changes in the law , discouraging the use of adult penal institutions for youth offenders. It does mean, however, that those youth still in Pollsmoor are charged or convicted of very serious crimes.
When we arrived, there was a meeting of all the spiritual workers who visit the prison, chaired by the senior chaplain. It was quite amazing to see the sheer numbers of people who are regularly going in to care and show God's love to the prisoners. Some, like John, were ex-prisoners themselves, and two we met had been members of the notorious prison numbers gangs. It was also clear from what people shared that God is working there, that hearts are open and searching for peace and fulfillment .

After this meeting, we were able to go and meet the young boys in their cell. There were 37 in total in one cell, with a maximum age of 19. Bunks down each side and another set of bunks in the middle. They usually only get out for one hour exercise a day. It was apparent that John has built up a close and trusting relationship with some of these boys over time. He explained he tries also to help them , wherever possible, on the outside too. This can be even tougher as their families may well have deserted them, and they have nowhere to live and little chance of employment or education. Hard for them therefore , not to return to a life of crime. John also feels the established churches do not always welcome them and there is often distrust and suspicion when they seek out fellowship on the 'outside'.

After some introductions, the boys sang some worship songs, 'This is the day that the Lord has made' and ' Cast your burdens onto Jesus'. What happened whilst they sung totally astounded me. First I was conscious that almost all were joining in. There were one or two lying on their bunks seemingly not engaged, but most genuinely were praising the Lord! And as they sang, something very tangible changed in the atmosphere. That oppressive, dirty overcrowded prison cell was transformed into a house of praise, a place that God inhabited and was touching their lives.
Bradley then shared something of his testimony, how God had spoken to him in a prison cell at Pollsmoor too, and how later on (5 years ago now), he was saved out of a life of drugs and gangsterism and has not looked back since. I watched the boys faces as they listened; they could identify with Bradley's story, his family background and early life experiences. They were intensely concentrating and hanging on every word he said, as if desperate to believe that there was hope for their future too.
John asked if I would like to share something. I was choking back tears but I wanted them to know that their praise had transformed the place they were in and also felt God wanted them to hear the verse from 2 Corinthians 5 v17, about how in Christ we are new creations, that the old is totally gone, and they can be new people. I think with their heads they can believe this , but their hearts tell them people still see the 'old' person, no matter how much God has changed their lives. I then prayed for them and spent some time talking with a couple who had clearly made definite commitments to Christ whilst inside the prison. One of them was due to leave prison the coming week and I was left thinking that life on the outside will be tough for him, and that as the body of Christ we need to be prepared to support these fragile souls in their onward walk with the Lord.

As I left Pollsmoor, I was overwhelmed by a complexity of emotions; sadness and shock at some of the conditions, the heartbreaking stories and the needs of the prisoners, hope and respect at seeing the commitment of those working into the prison, joy at seeing the reality of changed lives and also remembering the words of Jesus ' I was in prison and you visited me ......'
I pray that those doing this wonderful work will continue to be empowered to show the love of Jesus and share His amazing grace and that the sign outside Pollsmoor ' place of new beginnings' will be more and more of a reality day by day for so many who find themselves there. I would like to say a special thanks to John Palm for facilitating this visit for me.