Goldfields Convention 2023
Goldfields Conference used the opportunity to attract the youth to the church when it hosted its Easter Convention from the 7th to the 9th of April at Goodland Fountain Group campsite in Cullinan, just outside of Pretoria.
This event which was organized by the Goldfields Conference Board of Administration (BoA), was well attended, with representation from 7 out of 8 circuits. The majority of the attendees were youth under the age of 21. That required the BoA to organize a program that would entertain this age group. Activities like soccer, swimming, and Talent Show were added to the program to ensure the youth was entertained. This also required the circuits to get consent from parents to transport the youth to Cullinan and also be able to enter the premises since the location has wildlife (e.g. springboks).
The program on Friday started with the sharing of the 7 sayings of Jesus at the cross. A lot of young people gave their lives to Christ during that time. The evening was disturbed by Load Shedding. During that period, a Q & A session was conducted where Youth was given an opportunity to engage with a panel made up of leaders and mature Christians. In this session, the youth was given an opportunity to ask any questions they have about life challenges.
From there, each day started with morning devotions at the Hall, where prayers were made for the youth and other ministries that were present at the Easter Convention and also for the needs of the Goldfields Conference. Saturday was given to different ministries to discuss and align their year action plans, in order to share their plans at the plenary. The afternoon was given to outdoor activities which included swimming and soccer. During the soccer matches it was evident that Goldfields really does have talent from the pastors to young boys and girls. The evening ended with the Talent Show, where groups and individuals participated. This included singing, poetry, and dancing. The Winner from the individual category was Zakhele Thwala, from Natalspruit Circuit. His dance moves left the audience stunned. All the participants in the individual category were also awarded some goodie packs. The winner from the group category was the Natalspruit circuit, winning with their song that included a poem. Superintendent Rev AB Sithole was very happy about the success of the convention and said these words, “In these challenging times in our country where young people seem to be unruly and without hope, and in our churches where young people have lost their love for the things of God; I was amazed to witness young people who are hungry for God and want to live for Him. Praise be to the Name of the Lord for still calling our young to follow Him. I was especially blessed to see fathers playing with our boys and girls, what a blessed time of fellowship!”
Sunday ended with service and a photo shoot with all the attendees. After that was a brief pep talk with the girls, which was followed by Lunch and the convention ended. The BoA appreciated the success of the event when they said, “Words of appreciation also go to the catering team for the first-class mouth-watering meals served throughout the convention. Natalspruit is worth mentioning with the highest number of attendees. What made this convention stands out, is the having young people as the majority in attendance. This gives us hope for the future. It means that we are preparing for the church of the future today.” To God be the Glory!
