親愛的代禱夥伴：

        南非新冠肺炎的疫情仍然嚴峻，過去兩個月，增加了八萬八千人染疫，有三千多人死亡。從疫情開始（去年三月份）至今有一百六十三萬七千人染疫，有五萬五千八百人死亡。今年二月份曾有過第二波。最近一星期染疫人數又上升，每天二至三千人，最令人擔心的是現今篩檢出染疫（陽性）的比率是10％，有醫療專家估計未來幾星期將會進入第三波疫情，那時是六月底七月初，正值南非的冬季，是疫症最容易傳播的季節。美國疾病控制與預防中心將南非的疫情定為最高的第四級（第四級是極高危險疫症地區，要旅客避免前往）。南非政府正在嚴密觀察，並且計劃應對的方案。請您為南非政府執政掌權者禱告，求神給他們智慧應對。

        好消息是南非這星期開始了第二階段疫苗注射，對象為六十歲以上老人。目前已經種了70萬劑疫苗，但僅只是人口的百分之一。政府衛生部的計劃是在明年二月前，完成為四千萬南非人接種，平均每天14萬人。但目前只有122個疫苗注射站，每天僅能為4萬人服務。所以，必須將速度提高數倍，才能達標，這對一向辦事效率不高的政府是個挑戰。請為政府安排接種疫苗的工作代禱。求主恩待南非能得到足夠的疫苗，也賜智慧給負責統籌的人，有效地分配注射疫苗的工作。

        最近教會微信群中有陳弟兄夫婦加入，二月中旬他們在關店後在回家路上遭遇搶劫，經歷神奇妙的保守。歹徒向他們連開數槍後，將受傷的陳弟兄推下車，把受傷的妻子和車子一同劫走。不知為何歹徒迷失了方向，將車駛進鬧市，人群越來越多，最後車子竟然被擁擠的人群堵住。歹徒非常害怕，棄車逃走，太太竟然遇見自己店裡的僱員而獲救。若非如此，這纖弱的太太必因失血過多而生命不保。更奇妙的是陳弟兄僅受了輕度的槍傷，一槍從他手臂穿透，另一槍只刮傷了眼皮，沒有打進眼睛與顱骨。他分享說：「受傷後，第一次見到眼睛的傷口，我的心再也無法剛硬，我知道，如果不是上帝的眷顧，只要再多0.1毫米，我的眼珠必破，再多一公分，我必死無疑。子彈可以九十度的弧度刮傷而不傷及顱骨，唯有主的恩典，我無比的感恩。今生我們願意將自己完全擺上，為主耶穌所用。」神奇妙的拯救他們夫婦，求主繼續引領他們的腳步，給他們機會學習，為主所用。

請為這些事情代禱：

1. 請為南非政府可以得到足量的疫苗，政府官員有智慧的安排，私人企業一同合作，安排接種疫苗代禱。
2. 南非新冠肺炎疫情最近又開始嚴重起來，求主賜智慧給政府官員做好新一輪抗疫工作。
3. 為林滿足姐妹肺部手術後，使用標靶治療代禱，求主保守看顧她的身體。
4. 請為陳弟兄左手和左眼，及陳太太右手的復元代禱，求主醫治使眼睛和手臂功能恢復正常。
5. 感謝主，每週在網上的敬拜和查經都正常運作，不受攪擾，弟兄姐妹都能認真的學習。

您的同工                     
克達、雅麗                
二零二一年五月

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Dear Prayer Partners,

        The COVID-19 infection rate in South Africa has been on the rise this last two months:  with an increase of over 88,000 cases and over 3,000 deaths, bringing the total to 1,630,700 cases and 55,800 fatalities since last March.  South Africa had just recovered from its second wave in March, but recorded cases have been around 2,000 to 3,000 this past week.  The most alarming sign is that positive results are around 10% in recent weeks.  Many medical experts have warned that a third wave is approaching in the coming weeks as South Africa enters its winter season.  The dire situation can be noted from its U.S. Travel Advisory Level 4 classification.Please pray for the government as it is planning its strategies in mitigating the spread of the virus.

        The good news is that South Africa has started its second phase of the vaccine rollout campaign for all adults 60 and over.  Although 700,000 has been inoculated so far, it is only amounted to 1% of its total population.  The plan is to reach 40,000,000 (herd immunity of 67%) by the end of next February with 140,000 daily vaccinations.  However, only 122 vaccination sites are in operation administering about 40,000 jabs per day; the government really needs to speed up.  This is truly a challenge for the inefficient government.  It must concentrate on putting together all available resources to open up more public and private vaccination sites.  Please pray for the government for acquiring adequate vaccines and for wisdom in rolling out its vaccination program.

        A couple just joined one of our WeChat groups.  In mid-February, Brother Chen and his wife were robbed and hijacked on their way home from work.  He was pulled off his car after being shot at a few times.  The robbers drove away with his injured wife.  For some unknown reasons, the car went into a busy area of town, and the robbers lost their way.  They were stuck and decided to abandon the car and fled.  One of Brother Chen’s employees happened to be close by and sent his wife to the hospital.  That definitely saved her life from her severe loss of blood.  The other amazing thing was that Brother Chen was not seriously hurt.  One shot went through his arm to his wife.  The other shot hit just above his left eye, and miraculously made a 90-degree turn out of his face, missing both his eye and his skull.  He said in his testimony, “The first instance I saw my wound, I could no longer be stiff-necked.  I knew if it was not because of God’s mercy, who could be such a skillful snipper.  Who would have imagined such a 90-degree angle shooting that only left a scratch on my eyelid?  If it were 1mm lower, I would have lost my eye; if it were 1 cm deeper, I would have died.  It could only happen by God’s grace!  I am extremely grateful!  I will lay my life before the Lord and live only for Him!”  God is indeed their wonderful Savior!  May He continue to guide them in their Biblical studies and to lead them in His service.

Thanksgiving and Prayer Requests:

1. Please pray for adequate supply of vaccines for South Africa and the smooth administration of shots through the private sector as planned.
2. Please continue to pray for wisdom for the South Africa officials to set up effective measures against the spread of the virus, especially during the coming third wave of infections.
3. Please continue to pray for Sister Lin for her quick recovery from her lung operation as well as her emotional and spiritual wellbeing.
4. Please pray for Brother Chen and his wife’s recovery from their gunshot wounds.
5. We thank the Lord for the smooth running of the various Bible studies and worship services as brothers and sisters are encouraging one another with one heart and in love.

In His service,        
Ko-Ta & Christina

親愛的代禱夥伴：

        南非是非洲大陸上新冠肺炎疫情最嚴重的國家，從去年至今，南非已有154萬4千人染疫，5萬2千人死亡。現時疫症仍未止息，過去的二十四小時裡又有965人染疫，15人死亡。前一天有1387人染疫，46人死亡。最近幾個星期，疫情比上個月減緩一些。但是，由於政府下調防疫到第一級（最寬鬆的等級），人們擔心疫症個案又會再度飆昇。專家預估南非可能像歐洲的疫情，在五月份會再嚴峻。最主要是因為目前已經接種疫苗的人數比例尚很低，只有23萬1千的醫療人員接種疫苗。最新的好消息是，南非衛生部長公佈政府將在五月開始設立二千個疫苗注射站，希望每天能夠為20萬人打疫苗。求主幫助南非政府按時得到足夠的疫苗，希望因著更多國民都打了疫苗，使南非染疫減緩，生命得以保存。

        復活節假期的來到，也給南非防疫帶來挑戰。最近感染人數減少，有人認為疫症就此靜止，宗教界要求政府開放教堂舉辦大型室內聚會。然而，專家認為群聚會增加疫症感染的機會。群聚是很冒險的，復活節期間反而是應該提昇防疫等級，更要限制聚集的人數和活動。在雙方爭論不休下，可看出南非政府治理的不容易，求主賜智慧給南非政府做好抗疫的管制。

        美國川普政府以國家安全利益為理由，發出行政命令要禁止使用微信的案件，因為新總統拜登上任而改變。新政府要求中止該項禁令的法院程序，以便可以有時間暸解微信軟件是否真的有威脅到美國的安全，並重新評估。感謝神，現時在北美可以繼續使用微信軟件，使我們與南非各教會弟兄姐妹的通訊不會被影響。

        每週查經前，大家都會聊一聊，彼此問安。遇到有要事商討，會再私聊，每週見面亦很親切。雖然是經由網路，但大家也熱烈參與討論，不太發表意見的人也漸漸開始分享。崇拜是以語音形式進行，方便弟兄姐妹在有空時再收聽。大家都很守時，每週準時上網聚會，感謝主。

請為這些事情代禱：

1. 請為南非可以獲得足夠疫苗，按照預定的安排注射防新冠肺炎疫苗代禱。
2. 復活節假期將來到，求主賜智慧給南非政府做好抗疫的管制。
3. 求主幫助開店和開廠的弟兄姐妹，作好每天防疫保護的工作，保守他們的健康。他們的顧客大多不注意防疫，進店才戴口罩。
4. 感謝神，目前美國司法部宣佈暫停申訴微信禁令，我們可以繼續用微信服事弟兄姐妹。
5. 請繼續為林滿足姐妹肺部手術後的康復代禱，求主保守她的身心靈。

您的同工                     
克達、雅麗                
二零二一年三月

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Dear Prayer Partners,

        South Africa has the highest COVID-19 infection rate in the African continent.  As of now, more than 1,544,000 cases have been reported with 52,000 deaths.  Yesterday’s data (965 new cases and 15 deaths) shows a slight improvement from the day before (1,387 cases and 46 deaths).  Even though this month seems to be heading to a decline, some experts are worried that a surge will return in May as the government decided to keep the lockdown at the lowest level.  The current low vaccination rate is actually the main concern because only 231,000 medical workers were vaccinated so far.  There is, though, a bit of good news that the Health Department just announced the opening of 2,000 vaccination sites in May, targeting for 200,000 shots each day.  Please pray for the undisrupted supply of vaccines so a high percentage of the population will be protected from the virus, thus stopping the spread and saving precious lives.

        As the Easter holiday is approaching, South Africa faces another challenge.  People tend to interpret the latest infection figures as a sign of success.  Some religious leaders have petitioned the government to allow for large-scale indoor gatherings.  Health officials at the same time warn against such provision and caution the high probability of a returning spike in cases.  The government is indeed in a great dilemma.  Please pray for wisdom for the government to make the right decision in this matter.

        The court case on banning WeChat in the United States came to a halt as the new president was inaugurated on January 20th.  The new administration has now asked for a suspension of proceedings while it revisits whether WeChat really pose a national security threat.  That means we can continue to use WeChat in the US to serve our brothers and sisters in South Africa.

        Before our weekly Bible studies, we usually have a wonderful chat and update each other.  If needed, some of us will continue in private chats after the meeting.  Everyone looks forward to this wonderful sharing and learning time together.  Some of the brothers and sisters have since become more relaxed and involved in the discussions.  Our worship services and sermons are in pre-recorded audio form; this also allows members of the churches to review again later.  We thank God that everyone is on time for all the meetings on line.

Thanksgiving and Prayer Requests:

1. Please pray for adequate supply of vaccines for South Africa and the smooth administration of shots as planned.
2. Please continue to pray for wisdom for the South Africa officials to set up effective measures against the spread of the virus, especially during the upcoming Easter holiday.
3. Please pray for brothers and sisters who open stores and operate factories. As most of the customers only put on their masks while walking in the stores, they face a higher risk of being infected.
4. We thank the Lord for the latest development in the WeChat court case. Please continue to pray for the total dismissal of this case so we can serve our churches in South Africa with WeChat while in the US.
5. Please continue to pray for Sister Lin for her quick recovery from her lung operation as well as her emotional and spiritual wellbeing.

In His service,        
Ko-Ta & Christina

親愛的代禱夥伴：

        二零二零結束，人們滿以為疫情亦會隨著一年過去而告終結，大家夢想新的一年將會有美好的正常生活，可是，去年底英倫發現變種疫株，而這種變種病毒很快在英國急速擴散，大家的美夢亦隨即幻滅了。

        這英倫變種病毒極易感染，迅速取代舊病毒株，成為主流毒株，並使疫症感染個案再度增多。從二零二一年開始，全球各國都面臨更嚴峻的疫情。去年十二月份在南非已出現變種病毒，南非的變種比英倫的變種更容易傳染，使南非疫情感染快速擴大。從九月到十一月，南非已有12萬人染疫，新變種病毒在過去兩個月造成63萬人染疫，增加了500％。同時，這兩個月因染疫而死亡數字已超過二萬人，亦超過去年十二個月的總數！南非變種病毒的感染容易度及引起傷害的嚴重度，實在可怕。這當然對南非醫療系統造成很大的挑戰，使醫院病床及加護病床都不敷應用。在南非，沒有華人染疫人數的正式統計，只知道有人從疫症中康復，也有人因染疫過世。在開普敦，有華人教會因為沒有停止群聚、防疫不佳，導致有傳道人因感染而過世。在德班亦有傳道人因為發放物資過程中，沒做好防護而染疫，雖然後來她可以康復過來，實在感恩，但由此可見疫情十分嚴峻，每天嚴緊的防疫的工作，是不可鬆懈的。在疫情之下，弟兄姐妹每天都要面對不同的挑戰，其中一項就是要勸導一些不守法不戴口罩的顧客戴好口罩。疫情的嚴峻也提醒我們，保守我們生命的是神，我們不必過度懼怕，只要警醒並存感恩的心生活便足夠。

        南非有一些華人希望及早接種疫苗，就藉著返國辦事而在中國接種。當然，也是因為南非政府疫苗接種的計劃一直不透明，在南非我們只知道到政府已訂購疫苗，但是品牌，價錢，數量，開始安排接種的日期等政府都沒有公佈。南非政府預計要為三分之二的人口接種疫苗，但是，不知道疫苗的實情令很多打算接種的人不安心。但是，南非的疫情持續嚴峻，專家警告若疫苗接種遲延，將來還可能有第三輪的疫情高峯。疫情使南非經濟下滑，現今要花費大量金錢購買疫苗，對南非政府而言，這是一項艱難的任務。請為南非政府禱告，求主為他們開路使南非國民早日得接種疫苗。

        美國川普政府以國家安全利益為理由，用行政命令禁止使用微信的案件，一月十四日在美國舊金山第九巡迴法庭上，由三位法官判定暫緩執行原定9月20日生效的命令。法官判詞指出政府可能越權介入這個案件，妨礙了人們的言論自由，而關閉微信後，亦沒有提供其他的代替方案。法官收取了政府的申訴，到目前案件還沒有結束，亦沒有進一步說明，可能將會繼續擱置。請為我們能繼續使用微信服事代禱。

請你為這些事項代禱：

1. 感謝主，教會每週在網上的敬拜和查經都運作正常，弟兄姐妹都按時出席，認真的學習。
2. 感謝神，我們可以繼續用微信服事弟兄姐妹。請為微信禁令能夠早日的得到解決代禱。
3. 求主賜智慧給南非政府做好防疫，幫助官員能認真執法減低疫症的傳播。
4. 求主幫助南非政府及早為人民安排接種疫苗，使疫症得以控制。
5. 德班教會的林滿足姐妹癌症轉移至肺部，感謝主，她的切除手術很成功，請為她手術後身體的復原禱告。
6. 求主幫助開店和開廠的弟兄姐妹作好防疫保護的工作。也求主保守他們出入的平安。

您的同工                     
克達、雅麗                
二零二一年一月

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Dear Prayer Partners,

        The end of 2020 gave people a wishful dream of the end of the pandemic and brought about a flesh start of normalcy.  However, that dream was dashed when a variant of the virus stormed through UK with quicker and wider infections.  The year 2021 actually started with a new surge in all the countries throughout the world.  A variant was also found in South Africa during December 2020.  It is spreading even faster than the UK variant and has been causing more deaths.  In South Africa, there were 120,000 new cases from September to November of 2020.  New cases of the variant has jumped to 630,000 during the two-month period of December 2020 and January 2021, a 500% increase.  At the same time, the death toll was over 20,000, more than the last 12 months combined.  This puts enormous pressure on the medical system, and beds in the hospitals and ICU’s are in alarming shortages.  There is no official data on the infection rates and resulting death figures for the Chinese population in South Africa, but we do know of people who had been recovered as well as those who had passed away.  One Chinese church in Cape Town continued to hold meetings during the lockdown period.  Some among the congregation were infected, resulted in the death of the pastor.  Another pastor in Durban got the virus when she disturbed food parcels to the poor.  We thank God that she had since recovered.   Therefore, no matter how the situation looks, we still need to exercise all precautionary measures possible to protect ourselves.  The greatest challenge for our brothers and sisters, though, would be to strictly enforce mask wearing for their customers.  Nevertheless, we should not be overly anxious because our God will keep and protect us.  We need to be on high alert, but we can do it with thankfulness.

        Some Chinese opted to receive their vaccination in China when they returned on their business trip.  This is mostly due to the lack of transparency in the government’s plan in acquiring and distributing of the vaccine.  The announced plan is to vaccinate 2/3 of the population, but there is no date in sight as when the general public will have access to it.  The experts warn that if the coronavirus cannot be brought under control soon, the delay of vaccination will cause a third wave of infection.  The economy has already been adversely impacted, the dire situation compounded with the need of payment for the large amount of vaccines.  Please pray for the government in its efforts in securing enough vaccines for South Africa.

        The case for the US government to ban WeChat was presented to the US Court of Appeals in San Francisco on January 14th.  It was the court’s opinion to continue to suspend the Executive Order due to a possible infringement on the users’ right of free speech and the lack of alternatives offered by the Order.  This case is still pending.  Please continue to pray for a favorable result so we can continue our ministry on WeChat.

Thanksgiving and Prayer Requests:

1. We thank God that our on-line meetings are in smooth operation with good attendance and attentiveness.
2. We thank God for our continued ministry on WeChat. Please pray that the ban will finally be denied.
3. Please continue to pray for wisdom for the South Africa officials to set up effective measures to halt the spread of the virus and pray for the people to comply with these measures.
4. Please pray for quick administration of vaccines for South Africa.
5. Please pray for Sister Lin of our Durban church. Her cancer has spread to her lungs.  We thank the Lord that her operation was successful.  Please pray for her full recovery.
6. Please continue to pray for the health and safety of our brothers and sisters.

In His service,        
Ko-Ta & Christina