Aubrey Badula visits one of his gardens planted with seeds from his project with the Philipstown Advise and Development Centre in Philipstown, South Africa. Photo by Ryan Miller.
The Lord took me from nowhere to somewhere.
I was a farm worker picking peaches and grapes, but I’ve been promoted to coordinator at Philipstown Advise and Development Centre where I will supervise eight people for two years. This is what the Lord can do.
My mother was a domestic worker and lived where she was employed, so I grew up with grandparents. In our Xhosa culture, when your parents aren’t married, you aren’t important. When you are born disabled [Aubrey walks with a limpÑed.], children will call you names. You begin isolating yourself. So the devil comes in and you start using drugs and drinking a lot.
In 1998, I was locked up in jail at the police station for two days. Then the Lord began to work in me step-by-step. When I was released, I became a regular and eager church-goer. I heard preaching and teaching. By a miracle, I stopped drinking and started to use what God entrusted meÑa great mind and a great voice.
In 2000, I decided to stop using marijuana. It was a huge challenge because when someone hurt me, I smoked instead of dealing with the problem. I kept praying and I heard the Lord say, “I want to make a better person of you.”
The Lord sent people to help me.
I was down to the ground when Brother Phil [Lindell Detweiler, with Mennonite Mission Network] came to Philipstown. The Lord led us together. We met in church where I was translating for Phil. Phil saw what kind of shy person I was. He woke up what was asleep in me. From there, we built a friendship. The Lord used Phil to change my life.
I received spiritually positive things from Phil. He helped me to get training in community development and he helped me to see the importance of marriage. I married Annie in April 2008. I married her because the apostle Paul says marriage is right and I loved her. I also didn’t want the cycle to repeat itself, causing my children to repeat my hard life.
Today, I am a recognized person in this town. I rebuilt my character after I lost it. The Lord has made something out of nothing. He was crucified for people who are down-hearted and lost to lead us to victory.
Aubrey Badula works with the Philipstown Advise and Development Centre, a not-for-profit organization that aims to alleviate poverty through job creation, advocacy and gardening.
“We provide the poorest of the poor with seed because not many people can afford expensive vegetables that provide vitamins to combat tuberculosis in HIV/AIDS patients,” Badula says. “Also, the Advise Centre gives voice to people who cannot speak for themselves, like the farm workers. [White] farmers dismiss people for no reason. Farm workers lodge complaints with us. We try to reconcile the farmer and the workers. If that doesn’t work, we take it to the Department of Labour.”
Perhaps Badula’s most significant ministry, however, is the prophetic act of Christian marriage in a social milieu where such a lifelong commitment is considered foolishness. Since Aubrey and Annie’s wedding, several other Grace Community Church couples have followed their example.
Aubrey and Annie have two children, Elzerone, 4, and Aubrenicha, 1.