Bethesda Evangelical church in Broadlands Park is a quarter-of-a-century-old and held special birthday celebrations over the weekend.
To mark the milestone, congregation members held a dinner for select guests on Saturday evening (24 September) and a special service on Sunday afternoon (25 September).
The service was preceded by a procession from an open tract of land visible on entering the area, off Broadlands Road, to the church in Stork Road, where the service was held outdoors.
Pastor Colin van Wyk, who has been at the helm of the church since its inception in 1997, said the celebrations were all about giving thanks to God and the building of His kingdom. “From 1997 to 2005 the congregation did not have a brick-and-mortar building, and we had to move from place to place,” he said.
“In 2005 we purchased the land where the church is now located and in 2007 moved into our building. God used this church as a beacon for addicts who have totally changed their lives around.”
Van Wyk said what makes the church so special is that on Sunday, after each service, the chairs get packed away and the church turns into a community centre where residents stand to benefit from various free health services, including dental clinics and HIV testing.
