5th Sunday of Easter Preparation
Psalm 130 • Ezekiel 37:1-14 • Romans 8:6-11 • John 11:1-45
Coming Events to Diarise:
Monthly Day of Prayer & Fasting – 11 April2026
Denominational Conference 2026 – 23-26 July 2026, Hilton Dallas Lincoln Centre, Dallas, Texas, USA. (Registration Open) – To Register, Click Here:
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Greetings in the name of the life-giving Spirit of God.
As we approach the Easter weekend in two weeks’ time, the world is in crisis. The War in the Middle East is creating global shortages of oil, which will affect world economies, and create more hardships. It is unclear how long the war will continue. Some preachers are calling this war the start of Armageddon. It is doom and gloom.
There was a time when the people of Israel also experienced doom and gloom. They were in exile, there was no hope, and they were dying in a foreign land. They lamented “our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off” (Eze. 37:11). However, God sent them a message of hope through Prophet Ezekiel.
“…My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. 13 Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. 14 I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.” (Eze. 37:12-14).
This is what Easter is about. No matter how gloomy it looks, God has given us hope in the death and resurrection of Jesus. As we celebrate and commemorate Jesus’ death and resurrection in two weeks, let hope and a vision of the future be central in your minds.
My prayer for this week is for hope to rise amongst us this Easter. Amen!
PRAYER REQUESTS & UPDATES:
Sick Brethren: Please continue to pray for the brethren who are suffering from various sicknesses.
Easter Celebrations: As we count down to the Easter celebrations, please pray that we may all personally and collectively experience God’s goodness that are revealed through the cross and the resurrection. Amen!
Have a blessed weekend!
Shalom!
Takalani
___________________________
REPEAT ANNOUNCEMNTS NOT TO BE READ IN CHURCH SERVICES
NATIONAL BUILDING FUND NOW ABOUT R1.6 MILLION
The National Building Fund has now reached R1.6 million.
Please support your congregation’s Building Fund by contributing additional offerings monthly or once off to the dedicated bank account as follows:
· Bank: First National Bank (FNB)
· Name: GCI Building Fund
· Account No: 6304 180 7835
· Deposit Reference: Name and Surname
You can also fundraise as a group or alone. You may have items that you no longer need or use which you can pawn and donate the funds, or approach friends and family who may be able to donate to the fund. If you need a letter to request donations please feel free to contact me.
Monthly Day of Prayer and Fasting –Saturday 11 April 2026
Our next Day of Prayer and Fasting is on Saturday 11 April 2026. Please see the dates for the rest of the year below, and diarise accordingly.
Please find some video links on Prayer and Fasting if you want to know more. Here are the links:
1. Fasting- The Forgotten Spiritual Discipline – https://youtu.be/7MgrVj_w9sY
2. Fasting Questions and Answers 1 – https://youtu.be/Mkk3U2KvPHg
3. Fasting Questions and Answers 2 – https://youtu.be/CghD-uxBbFk
4. Fasting Question and Answer #3 – https://youtu.be/ajKaWRgreLw (Question #3: How should I fast? Are there different types of fasts?)
Future Days of Prayer and Fasting:
· April 11
· May 9
· June 13
· July 11
· August 8
· September 12
· October 10
· November 7
· December 12
February 2026 ISSUE OF FACE TO FACE PUBLISHED
Our February 2026 issue of the online Face To Face magazine has been published. Please find it here: Face To Face
Parable of the Vineyard Workers
The Church Is A Temple
I Will Hold Your Hand
Online Bi-Weekly Bible Study – 1 April 2026 – New Series on Ephesians
Please diarise and join the biweekly Online Bible study every second Wednesday at 19:00. The current series is: The Book of Ephesians.
To connect to the biweekly Bible Study, here are the details: Click
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89054374373?pwd=NFZVaFJjVGxqQjc5K0YyeWEzVVZMUT09
OR enter the details below to join the meeting:
Meeting ID: 890 5437 4373
Passcode: GCI2021
Time: 19:00
OFFERINGS: (should Christians pay a tithe?)
Even though some churches are not able to meet, we urge you to continue to give your weekly Thanksgiving offering that you would normally give during church services. The bank details for EFT and Cash deposits are below:
The Banking details for both the weekly Thanksgiving Offerings and the monthly Freewill Offerings are as follows:
EFT PAYMENTS
GRACE COMMUNION INTERNATIONAL-S.A –
Account No: 593 800 27523 – FNB Current Account Number
Ref. NameSurname Church
Please reference your offering so that we can send a receipt.
CASH PAYMENTS
GRACE COMMUNION INTERNATIONAL-S.A –
FNB Account No: 74451599946
Account Type: 32 Day Notice account
Ref. NameSurname Church
Please reference your offering so that we can send a receipt.