After 43 years of temporary locations — including 28 in a two-car garage — the Toekomsrus Church of the Nazarene has a new home strategically placed to impact their community for Christ.

For many years, the congregation met in a classroom at a local school. Twenty-eight years ago, Pastor Saul Sedith built a garage to accommodate the church before he even built a house to accommodate his young family. Eventually, the church took over the pastor's home and yard as the church was bursting at the seams of the garage.

Since 1980, the church has been asking the local municipality for land that could be zoned for a church. Many other churches and religious organizations have been looking for a place to call home, but the municipality has never allowed land to be used for church purposes.

Today, Toekomsrus is pastored by Eunice Sedith, a young pastor who has a passion for reaching her community for Christ — a community damaged by poverty, unemployment, crime, drugs, alcohol, teenage pregnancies, and high school dropouts. She has a passion for children, youth, and young adults — those who are most vulnerable in her community.  

In February 2017, former pastor Saul Sedith noticed a "for sale" sign at the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses, not far from where the church had met for decades. Eunice, who has led the church for 12 years, contacted the Church of the Nazarene's Africa South Field, along with the help of another pastor, to find out about securing Alabaster funds to aid in the purchase of the building. The Alabaster funds covered about 1/6 of the total price of the church, and the congregation is working hard to raise the rest of the money. With the help of an interest-free loan and a generous donation from another church on the district, they are nearing their goal.  

After just one month in their new church building, they have experienced unprecedented growth. Eunice said that every time their doors are open — whether for youth service, worship practice, or church cleaning — people arrive in tears, asking for prayer.

"I just sit in the back of the church and wait to see what God will do," Eunice said. "I just wait to deal with the walk-ins." 

Prayer is requested for this church as they raise the remaining money to pay off the building.

--Church of the Nazarene Africa via Out of Africa