Prison Ministry

September 15 2020

Not Everyone Will Finish The Journey With You

Dayne Myles Blog, Community, Prison Ministry 0

The reintegration group has been planning to climb one of Cape Town’s mountains for quite some time, but there seemed to be something that kept stopping us, the rain and scheduling just to name a few. On Monday 7^th of September, 6 of us finally had the opportunity to go together, choosing Devil’s Peak as our challenge for the day. On the way to the base of the mountain, I asked one of the guys if he had ever climbed a mountain before, he hadn’t. It turned out that despite living in Cape town most of their lives, none of them had ever climbed a mountain.

You could see the excitement in their eyes, having this experience for the first time. Devil’s Peak is a grilling mountain, it is not at all easy, but these guys did not quit persevering as best as they could. One of the guys had to drop out because he had a knee problem, so he couldn’t continue. I asked the guys to come and encourage him. They said, “in this life, you are expected to do your best. If the best is what lands you here, then that is your best. We know tomorrow, when we are on the mountain again, you will not end up here, you will be able to go further.”

Looking at Jesus’ life, it was kind of a lesson during this time. We were able to speak about the fact that not everyone that started this journey with you will end with you. Just like with Jesus and the disciples. There will always be people who will drop out or fall behind, not everyone that starts this journey will finish with you.

We continued climbing the mountain, finally reaching the top, I asked the guys what they have taken from the experience. I was amazed by what they had to say. Each one described how we take the opportunity to explore nature for granted. “We think we are living life when we are in the township or when we are in the Cape Flats, but actually, we haven’t really lived when there are places like this that we can explore for free.”

It made me happy to see that they were motivated by the whole experience.

Written by Mthetheleli Ngxeke, MEP training coordinator

July 6 2015

Breaking Every Chain

Dayne Myles Prison Ministry crime, entrepreneurship, events, gangsterism, prison 0

Great to have people from all over Cape Town attend the event!

One of the things we are passionate about at The Message is seeing the chains of crime, gangsterism and unemployment broken in the lives of our youth in Cape Town. We are passionate about sharing Christ’s love with young people and seeing this demonstrated in action. One of the ways we do this is through our prisons work with young people behind bars.

On the 26th of June we hosted a production at the Joseph Stone Theatre in support of our prisons programs. We had over 150 people attend from all over Cape Town. It was an amazing evening where the talented Lauren Hannie and Obed Paatjies performed two shows for the audience. Both shows presented powerful messages that spoke about the chains of gangsterism, crime and abuse.

Chumani, Themba and Siviwe enjoying the night!

On the evening we were privileged to have Siviwe Mjongile open the evening with a spoken word that he wrote especially for the event. Siviwe is a graduate from our job readiness class in 2014 and was released in May this year. The biggest surprise of the evening was to have fourteen of our young men from our Message Entrepreneurship Programme (MEP) in Drakenstein youth centre attend and perform “break every chain” for our audience.

God moved powerfully throughout the evening and there was a powerful time of worship and prayer at the end of the event. Our prayer is continuously that Christ will be made known across this city and in the lives of young people who are caught up in the evils of crime and gangs. We truly believe that these chains will and can be broken when young people come to the realization that there is a God who loves them and has a plan for their lives.

Praying over Cape Town and for the chains of crime, gangsterism and unemployment to be broken.

We would like to especially thank Lauren and Obed for their willingness to support our work in prisons and for their amazing performances. We would also like to thank the Department of Correctional Services and especially Drakenstein Correctional Management for all their support and providing the security and oversight of the MEP students on the evening. Finally we want to thank our prisons team leader Preston Jongbloed for project managing this event and doing such a fantastic job.

We are hoping to do further productions in the near future, so watch this space!

If you would like to get involved with our Message In Prisons programmes please email us at info@message.org.za

Written by Mark Slessenger

Operations Director

July 1 2015

Camp with a difference!

Dayne Myles Community, Prison Ministry aftercare, camps, community, prison 0

Some of our graduates with Neil Hall from Hebron Community Projects.

On the weekend of the 19th and 21st June the Message Aftercare team set off for a weekend away for our Message Aftercare Camp. Our camps provide a great opportunity for our graduates to have some time away to connect with other graduates from our prison programmes and reflect on their lives.

Our camps are run in partnership with Hebron Community Projects (HCP) and the weekend included some soccer coaching, inspirational talks and our young men sharing testimonies of how Jesus Christ has transformed their lives.

The Message camps have two main objectives:

To provide an opportunity to invest deeply into the lives of our prison graduates who The Message Trust have walked a road with in and out of prison.
To serve and bless other communities with the gifts and passions God has given us.

Our first goal was achieved with some great bible teaching from our Message Prisons team. The theme for the weekend was “Rooted in…”

Chumani sharing his story with children from the local community 0f Citrusdal.

Preston Jongbloed, our prisons team director shared about being ‘Rooted in Sin’. Kwanele Cement, our prisons team Pastor shared about being ‘Rooted in Community’. Vuyo Nyabaza, our Prisons team worker shared about being ‘Rooted in Relationship’. Each talk sparked deep and meaningful conversations for our graduates.

This camp offered opportunities to encourage and speak truth into each young man’s life. This was often done informally whilst walking in the local mountains and around the fire at night.

Our second goal was achieved in a number of ways. Firstly we ran a soccer-coaching event at Paardekop Primary School with 200+ children. Secondly, our graduates were able to oversee and take part in the Hebron Community Projects youth day where 100+ youth came and enjoyed a full day of activities.

Two of our job readiness graduates Siviwe and Chumani shared with the youth about the importance of education, following your dreams and gave testimony of how God has changed their lives.

Overall the weekend was amazing and we would like to thank everyone who partners with the Message to make our camps happen. We especially would like to thank Hebron Community Projects & The Department of Community Corrections for all their support.

Pastor Kwanele Cement sharing about being “Rooted in Community”

Here are some quotes from some of our aftercare camp participants from the camp.

“This weekend was about Brotherhood, I’ve grown spiritually, learning that Christ is the foundations”

“I’ve enjoyed sharing this weekend with people of different races, especially those that love, care and support me”

“I’ve enjoyed camping on the mountain and being around people that care for me”

Written by Adam Edward Bull

Message After Care Coordinator

April 21 2015

Message Academy in Cape Town!

Dayne Myles LocalChurch, Prison Ministry CapeTown, Evangelism, ministry, mission, Prisons 0

Look at the nations, watch and be utterly amazed. For I I’m going to do something in your days that you wouldn’t believe, even if you were told.

(Habakkuk 1:5)

Working with City Mission in Khayelitsha

The Message South Africa hosted our first Academy Team from the UK in March. We were so blessed to have had the opportunity to meet 11 amazing individuals! The Academy consisted of a group of gifted individuals in the arts, who used their gifts not for their own selfish ambition, but to serve and bring glory to God who gifted it to them in the first place. The Academy Team gave 100% of themselves for two weeks. The team would come home at night and be exhausted but they were always in prayer and relying on the Lord to push them through. Even up to the last day of their visit the Lord used them in incredible ways. The team served with The Message Trust in Salt River, Nyanga, Khayelitsha, Drakenstein Prison and Pelican Park.

While in Salt River the Academy met a group of 70 people living under a bridge. The joy, love and grace they showed the people of South Africa was beautiful. They beat boxed, shared testimonies, performed songs and spoken words on a daily basis, and were able to reach so many individuals in the town ships and prisons. Something that really stood out was the fact and reality that God makes us strong when we are weak. In 2 Corinthians 12:10 it states, “For the sake of Christ, I am content with weakness, out of old mattresses, bits of burnt wood and plastic sheets. All of which had been saved from when their houses were set on fire. Even with zero income these individuals painted a beautiful picture of joy and beauty amongst a heap of rubbish.

When visiting Nyanga, where we are in the process of establishing an Eden Team, they took part in a church service and was able to go on a prayer walk through the streets. While walking one of the Academy members, Naomi, had the opportunity to speak to a woman. The woman explained to her the crime rates and how there isn’t a week where one family doesn’t get robbed. Another girl said since she could remember she hasn’t had her Christmas presents for longer than a week because they get stolen.

The Academy Team from left to right , top: Dan, Lucy, Abby, Elisha, Matt (leader) & Ben. Bottom: Demi, Maddie, Naomi, Abdul & Daniel (out of picture)

When they visited Khayelitsha, they did different outreaches throughout the area with 14 young men who are involved with City Mission Group. They meet in a room that can only be described as a square tin can in the middle of the township. The Academy Team played music, performed and shared testimonies. At one of the locations they were able to speak with a group of youth aged between 15-20. Eventually a group of 100 school children ran over they visited in the morning, and then the prison actually opened up in the evening for us, which has not occurred in over 13 years. The prisoners listened to their performances for about two hours. They were so grateful for the Academy to spend time with them. When Preston preached that evening we watched 7 men give their lives to Christ and were able to pray for even more. It was an absolutely beautiful experience. The prison became in my eyes a place of freedom that night, not of chains and incarceration.

The last part of the trip the Academy Team spent in Pelican Park. It is a new area in Cape Town and not well known amongst those living in the surrounding areas. It will also be home to the Message’s second Eden Team.

The Academy was involved in their Easter Sunday service, as well as, a concert. They spent the day building relationships with people in the community and handed out flyers to spread the word of the upcoming concert. Over 100 people ended up attending and it was such a great night. At the end of the night there was a response time and children, mothers and friends ended up responding. The moment was magical to say the least.

Having the Academy Team come down from the UK was such a blessing. To see them transform the lives of those around them and watch their lives be transformed at the same time is a perfect example of Christ. Christ is always moving and if that isn’t encouraging I don’t know what is.

BY BETH ANN BIELIK

March 13 2015

Gangstars at Design Indaba

Dayne Myles Crime, Prison Ministry CapeTown, crime, enterprise, entrepreneirship, sou 0

Gangstars at Design Indaba!

Cape Town Convention Centre: 27 February – 1 March 2015

The Design Indaba was where our first Message enterprise began in 2012. Cow Africa http://cowafrica.com showcased their design skills by renovating an old caravan into a Food Truck that served gourmet soft serve.

The Soft Machine team were excited to be back at this conference 3 years later to showcase the legendary creativity and design, but this time in the Food Truck section.

Jade and Siphe are our first two Gangstar apprentices in The Message and have become a dynamic team since we employed them to operate The Soft Machine! Our caravan had a constant queue of people eager to taste the variety of flavours including Milktart, Salted Caramel, Amarula/Coffee, MoerKoffie and a variety of sorbets. Our customers gave plenty of “ooh’s” and “aah’s” as they tried the different flavours and some even grabbed a selfie pic with our awesome caravan!

Both Jade and Siphe sparked many conversations when they showcased their Gangstar Enterprises t-shirts! This gave them both the opportunity to share their personal stories and more about The Message Trust. People were excited to hear that this was no ordinary business, but one with a focus on providing hope and work opportunities for previously marginalised individuals.

The Message vision is not to just serve delicious gourmet soft serve ice cream but more importantly to raise up generations of Urban Hero’s equipped with micro-enterprise business skills.

We believe in creating a safer South Africa and seeing young people fulfil their God-given potential. We have no doubt that our Message enterprises will produce many more Jade’s and Siphe’s – young people who have turned their backs on crime and gangsterism and are now focused on a bright future full of hope and purpose.

By Jessica Longe

Enterprise Project Manager

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December 11 2014

Preparing for Release!

Dayne Myles Prison Ministry CapeTown, entrepreneirship, prison, South Africa 0

On Saturday 6th December 22 young men graduated from the first Message Trust job readiness course that was run in Drakenstien Youth Prison.

The course was a huge success as the young men went through an intensive 36-hour course, which prepared and trained them for employment opportunities once released from prison.

Many young men leave prison with no plan or vision for their lives. Ex-offenders have little hope of finding work and being able to reintegrate successfully back into their communities. Youth employment in South Africa is over 40% in many poor communities. Every young man released from prison faces enormous challenges to find employment and provide for himself and his family.

The Message job readiness program trains and equips young men to be prepared for the challenges they will face once released. Every young man was trained how to ‘pitch’ their vision statements and also taught how to develop practical goals to help them work towards their vision statement. Many of the inmate’s vision statements were inspiring (see some examples below).

One highlight of the course was each young man delivering his life vision to the class, guests and to everyone present on our graduation day. Two young men from the program have already been released from prison and our aftercare team has developed an aftercare plan for them to reintegrate them back successfully back into society. The Message will continue to monitor the other young men in the course with many due for release early 2015.

Because of the success of this first job readiness course The Message Trust will be running more job readiness courses in 2015 in partnership with Learn to Earn and the Department of Correctional Services.

The Message Trust are also looking forward to the first Message Entrepreneurship Program in Drakenstein Youth Prison, which will be launched in mid February 2015. Some of the young men who completed the job readiness course have applied to do the 6-month intensive course.

We have seen great progress in each of the inmates we have worked with and look forward to continuing to mentor young men in prison so they can have the support in place to fulfil their God give potential both in prison and once released.

Here are some of the vision statements of the young men on the job readiness course:

Inmate from Maccassar: “I want to be a great father to my children and a good husband, I also want to train to become a chef”

Inmate from Nyanga East: “I would like to become an entrepreneur and run my own businesses within my community and create employment for more than 2000 youth”

Inmate from Ebenezer “I want to help the youth in discovering their talents and abilities through developing a youth community development initiative”

Inmate from Guguletu: “I want to open a business that offers support and advice to small businesses in poor communities and gives back to the community”

Inmate from Old Crossroads:“I want to go back to college and study to get a degree in project management”

Inmate from Khayelitsha “I want to be a leader and role model to my family, a man that others can look up to and someone who can be a positive example”

Inmate from Steenburg “I want to become a successful journalist and to study further to become an editor and own my own newspaper””

Inmate from Mitchells Plain “I want to be a family man who is earning an honest living”

At the Message we will be encouraging each young man in their visions and our prayer is to see these young men fulfill their dreams and passions in the years ahead.

If you would like to learn more about supporting our prison work and future job readiness courses please email info@message.org.za