Our missionaries and their families live sacrificially and with the heart of God. It is our goal to fulfill the mission that God has given each of us to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and care for the hopeless and the hurting.
“For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place.”
1 Thessalonians 1:8
The Kelly Kosky Family – South Africa
In the mid 1980’s, Kelly and his wife, Kathy, and their children decided to move permanently to the Republic of the Transkei in Africa to commit their lives to reaching the unreached among the Xhosa tribe. The Lord has worked through their ministry to reach tons of thousands of Xhosa people. With the Lord’s help, the Kosky’s have started over 100 Xhosa speaking churches and established a Xhosa Bible School which opened in 2001. Kelly has over 100 Xhosa leaders whom he is discipling and is in great need of structured Bible training.
Kelly is the Director and Founder of Transkei Victory Christian Ministries, which reaches out to the rural tribal Xhosa villages and the men who live in the city shack towns. He is also the Director of African New Life Ministries, which focuses on the Xhosa people living in the ghettos. In addition, the Kosky’s work with World Outreach Ministries in Marietta, Georgia, a charitable organization that gives oversight to all their financial affairs.
Kelly & Kathy Kosky
P.O. Box 111
Simonstad, 7995
South Africa
Kosky@compuserve.com
KOSKY MISSIONS: Update
It is either steamy hot or pouring with rain here in the Transkei. While we travel from Lyzio to Qhmobo, we were caught in a down pour. The road and trails were washed out, so we went over the ridge into an unreached village of Xmaro. The village took my evangelism team and me into their care. In the main hut made of mud and dung, we sat around the open indoor fire and tried to dry off. It was during this time that the village chief and two head men entered the rondoval (grass roofed hut) where we were resting. No words were spoken for the first hour, but the women brought in some bush tea to warm us up. Then after enjoying the bush tea and the village bread, the chief began to speak. He asked who we were and where did we come from. Two of my leaders did most of the talking. After they checked us out, the chief asked "who the white man was and why is he here?" It was explained that I have come from across the waters (ocean) and have brought a message from the God. There was a long silence while the chief and the two headmen smoked their pipes. Then they left.
Lying on the mud/dung floor I fell asleep with my head on my pack. I don't know how long I was asleep, but when I awoke the hut was full of villagers along with the chief and one of the headmen. There was some soft talking among the villagers, and then the chief stood up and asked me to share the message. At first I was unsure if I was still asleep of if this was a dream. But I stood and introduced myself. There were some giggles from the villagers, as I accidentally introduced myself as a frog. One of my leaders pointed out my error and after a big laugh I corrected myself.
I shared that evening about the true and powerful God who loves them and sent me with the message of His love. As these people have never heard the name 'Jesus', I had to start from the beginning and shared the gospel. Over the next three hours of preaching more and more people arrived, until the hut was jammed full of villagers. Some villagers looked through the small windows to see and hear the Good News.
At the end I asked if there were any people here who wanted to invite the living/loving Savior into their soul (hearts). At first everyone seemed to look around at each other, but no one responded; then the chief stood up and challenged me to prove that what I was speaking was true. I asked him to come forward and allow my leaders and me to pray for him. He was a brave chief. He stepped forward and we began to pray. After 30 minutes of prayer, the chief began to cry. At that point everyone looked down, as no one was to see the chief crying. We continued in prayer, and many more people came forward for prayer. By sunrise most of the village of Xmaro, followed the chief's example and chose to commit their lives to the living Lord.
As the sun light broke through the cloud and began to shine on Xmaro, the people began to shout and sing. By mid morning the ground was dry enough for us to continue or journey to Qhmobo. Many of the villagers traveled with us, but the old chief remained behind. I left two on my team in Xmaro to continue to disciple the new believers.
At Qhmobo we couldn't find any villagers at first, then we came upon three children and they told us that the people were hiding because the witchdoctors had warned the village about us. So we just sat under the large tree in the center of the village and began to sing. We sang and prayed for most of the afternoon. After a while the villagers seemed to come out of hiding and were curious as to who we were and why we were singing. Soon we had a crowd of people looking to see why we have hiked into this remote village.
It was then that one of my leaders stood up and began to preach 'hope and live' to those who were previously dead and hopeless. As the speaker began to shout the Good News, more people came. But then the old village began to shout the Good News, more people came. But then the old village witchdoctor came into the gathering. Everyone was surprised. The old witchdoctor didn't say anything; he just sat and listened. We continued to share how the Lord Jesus can heal and bring new life. It was then that the old witchdoctor stood and asked us to come to his kraal to pray for his son who was dying. Three of the team and I left the meeting and followed the witchdoctor into the jungle, while the remainder of the team continued evangelizing. After walking through a very muddy trail we came upon his grass roofed hut. This isolated dwelling was alone and outside the main village. As we entered the rondoval we saw the boy wrapped in a blanket. He was shaking and had the fever. Even though the boy was semi-conscious, we introduced ourselves and our Lord Jesus, and told him that our Lord can heal. Then we began to pray. After two hours of prayer the boy opened his eyes and asked for water. He sat up without assistance. The old witchdoctor ran to his side and began to cry. The old man cried, while the boy looked at us in surprise. We stayed for a while and then rejoined the main meeting. We are unsure as to what happened in the witchdoctor's hut, but we sensed the Lord healing the boy.
The main meeting had tripled in size since we left. Each of the team took turns giving testimonies and preaching. There was excitement in the air. Then the old witchdoctor returned and came forward and asked to become a Christian. Many people followed his example. As some of us moved on to the next village, we left several teachers to disciple the new converts. I am told that the villagers of Qhmobo have chosen to become a church and asked for more of the word of God. Fortunately we had an extra Xhosa bible to leave with the village.
As I continue on the way, I am anxious to reach one more village before returning home. Please join us in praying for Qhmobo, and the thousands of unreached Xhosa villages of the Transkei. Thanks you for allowing us to reach these hidden villages for Jesus. You are a big part of His plan. Without your prayers and support, we could not be bringing hope to the hopeless. Thank you for joining us in reaching one more village. God bless you.
In His service in Africa,
The Koskys
