I recently learned of the passing of a dear friend and a profound influence on my life. Dr. Paul Cromhout was the founder of the Small Projects Foundation, a South African ministry that served marginalized communities across the continent through thoughtful and innovative community-based projects.
Paul was a tall, lanky fellow with a brilliant mind, a huge heart, and, best of all, a dry sense of humor that matched my own. We spent many an hour rumbling across South Africa in his white Land Rover, pontificating about the best ways to walk with the poor and disenfranchised in this divided country. He was truly one of the most pleasant people I have ever met.
But this is not meant to be a eulogy. Paul wouldn’t have wanted that. This is more of a story. A story of how God can use one man to set in motion a campaign that would impact the lives of many people he would never even know. The Bible is full of such stories. But now and then, we see such a story played out before our very eyes. When we do, we should stop and pay attention.
A Chance Encounter
I first met Paul in a rural village in South Africa’s Eastern Cape, quite by chance. We both attended a meeting hosted by another organization. I was there on behalf of 25:40, a ministry Amy and I founded to help children in South Africa (where I spent my childhood). Paul represented SPF. We got to chatting and quickly realized we had a common cause. We at 25:40 wanted to help poor, marginalized children in rural communities, and he, through SPF, had the means to do so.
Before the meeting, God had brought to my attention the children of another forgotten part of the Eastern Cape, historically known as the Transkei. God had led me there through another individual (another story), where I witnessed many children struggling heavily with poverty and neglect. It was such a sad situation, and we immediately felt called to go there. Still, we had no clue how to begin to help.
But Paul did.
Through SPF’s help, we began by organizing women in 32 villages in the region to conduct surveys of children in their villages. They were trained to identify children who met the criteria for an orphaned or vulnerable child (OVC) as defined by the South African government’s welfare department. After a few months, the women returned with the results. And they were shocking. The women identified 1,504 children. My first thought was “Oh my goodness, what on earth am I to do now?”
Life was easier before I knew these children existed, when they were more of a theory. But now I knew them. They were actualized. I now knew of hundreds of children living in, at best, severe poverty with only one parent or caretaker, and at worst, in child-headed households. Once again, I found myself clueless about how to begin helping. I didn’t know.
But Paul did.
One Child at a Time
Paul had a plan. A few plans, really. And they were founded on a principle captured in our motto: to begin with the first, and help one child at a time.
First, we would help each child get seen. Second, we would help each child get fed. Third, we would help each child get educated. We could retain advocates for the children to ensure they had birth certificates and were registered with the government (thus qualifying them for government support). We would also supply them with materials and training to grow square-meter gardens so they could both grow food and gain a sense of worth by contributing to their households. And finally, for longer-term support, we would initiate a series of after-school care programs that would provide food, counseling, and tutoring to address the dire lack of competent care and education in local schools.
But Paul noted that we couldn’t do any of this without a solid base within the community itself. We needed an insider. There was a mission we were both familiar with in a village called Canzibe. The missionary who had served there for decades had just retired, and his replacement had only just arrived. Paul thought it would be an opportune time to pay him a visit. Poor fellow never even knew what he had coming.
A Calling Comes Full Circle
After a long drive on very rough roads, we pitched up on the missionary’s doorstep and knocked on the door. I can’t imagine what must have gone through his head when he opened the door to see a tall, thin, white South African and a stocky American of Italian descent staring back at him with the awkward smiles you typically see on door-to-door salesmen. I seem to recall the missionary, whose name is Wikus, thought we were Mormons.
Being a Christian, Wikus welcomed us into his new home nonetheless. It was in a bit of disarray, given that they had only just arrived on the scene themselves. But we found a way through the clutter, sat down on the couch, and explained why we were there. I told him I was with a ministry dedicated to helping vulnerable children in South Africa.
His jaw dropped.
I said it was called 25:40, after the verse in Matthew 25:40 in which Jesus instructs that whatever we do for the least of our brothers and sisters, we do for Him.
His jaw dropped further.
Seeing obvious curiosity on my face regarding his look of surprise, Wikus said: “You won’t believe this.” He went on to explain that just that morning God had convicted him that he must find a way to help the many poor and vulnerable children in the community he was sent to serve. But, being all alone in a very remote place without help or resources, he did not know how he would even begin. So Wikus did faithfully what we all should do in such circumstances. He prayed.
And God answered.
I’ve never conceived of myself as an answer to prayer, but indeed, with God all things are possible. But there was more. Earlier in his life, Wikus had founded a ministry for orphaned and vulnerable children based on Matthew 25:40. Things had come full circle, and that was only the beginning.
The Rest of the Story, So Far
25:40 is now 23 years old. In those 23 years, hundreds of children across South Africa’s Eastern Cape have been introduced to the love of Christ through afterschool care programs, preschools, and several initiatives aimed at supporting and building young leaders. Wikus now oversees a staff of dozens of believers, who are building a foundation for the future of their communities. We don’t know what God will do next with this story, but I will never forget how it started.
A couple from America had a passion, and a man named Paul had an idea. If God had not used Paul as He did, I would not have the blessed opportunity to tell this story here, or anywhere for that matter. And this is just one story of how God can make a difference through one man. Paul generated many other stories throughout Africa during his years of ministry. But the best part of them all is how they are woven together through one man’s faith in a God Who authored everything.
