With an influx of tourism, media, players, and spectators, South Africa is hoping for the best from the 2010 World Cup. But in the midst of it all, there is an undercurrent that many may not be aware of. Many men, in the afterhours of such games, find themselves seeking out sexual services as a remedy to loneliness or lack of fulfillment. The MST Project would like to be there offering the light of Christ in the midst of it. We have not come to stop men (as all are free to make choices), and we have not come to save them (only our Christ can do that), but we have come to meet these men and have genuine conversations that point them towards God’s transforming love.
We are also here in a sort of testing phase. As the MST Project expands to fulfill its vision, we feel led to serve at global sporting events such as the Olympics and the World Cup in the future. This 2010 World Cup is our first opportunity to see what the MST Project will look like at such a large sporting event in a completely different cultural context.
Finally we hope to inspire the local church and those who are serving here in South Africa. We will be sharing the vision of what it looks like to love men involved in the sex trade through a two-day seminar culminating in an opportunity to implement what they are learning through a time of ministry on the streets of Cape Town. Our prayer is that this time would be the beginning of a longer-term local MST Project presence in South Africa.
Written by Tyler
