From the poorest of the poor, to Princess of the King 

It’s not every day that you meet a phenomenal human, but here is one such person – Topsy from Clarens in the Free State. She is a highly respected leader in her community, alongside her husband Sam. She spends her life working with the poor, discipling and pastoring many. She can really preach up a storm, and even runs a business making clothes. 

Topsy completed our online course in June 2021, which was facilitated via WhatsApp. As part of the introductions, Topsy wrote about her upbringing, which we’ve asked to share as it’s so interesting.

“I grew up in South Africa in the time of apartheid.  My dad and my mom were working as domestic workers on the farm. Life was very hard at the time. As a young girl I was not allowed to go to school until the last year. The owner of the farm was saying girls needed to attend school only to know how to write or to speak Afrikaans so that you can be able to communicate well with them. My dad stood firm and said ‘no, my kids are going to school’. We were raised with the sense of ‘you are not good enough, you can’t achieve anything in life’. As if you value nothing as a black child. We were also worshiping ancestors and doing rituals.  We were told that God does not have power by himself, He needs our ancestors.  We used to believe that our ancestors are our mediator between us and God. 

I used to look down on myself in so many ways especially when I was with those that looked more educated or those with lots of money. 

Praise God in 2000 Jesus called me to Himself. Even though at the beginning of my Christian journey I struggled with fear of what if….. but Jesus revealed himself to me and changed my life. And my life was never the same.”