Join us at Tifton First Methodist Church Friday and Saturday, August 8th and 9th, for a Marriage Workshop hosted by International Missionaries Percy and Ashley Thaba. The workshop begins at 6:30 Friday evening and continues Saturday morning beginning at 9:00.
The Thabas have been serving as missionaries in the Southern African country of Botswana for more than 20 years. During that time they have touched the lives of millions of people through their ministry, which has included a local television program focusing on family issues.
Along the way, the Thabas have created a non-profit foundation, Healthy Families Foundation, and they have written three books: Conquering the Giants, Dive In, and Making Marriage Fun.
“Our goal is to help people in their marriages,” said Ashley Thaba. “Repair, restore, kind of give them a tune up.
“We also want to help people in the United States understand what we, as missionaries, do in Botswana.”
This weekend’s workshop will feature information found in Making Marriage Fun. The couple will cover topics such as communication, conflict resolution, spirituality, and finances. They will also touch on more sensitive issues like personal needs, gender-based violence, and dealing with in-laws.
While the Thabas have been serving African communities and teaching for many years, this is the first time they are delivering their message in a weekend format.
“We usually go into a community and spend 18 days,” said Ashley.
In addition to visiting communities, the Thabas also produced a television show whose 26 episodes reached more than one million viewers. According to Ashley, the program “Talking With the Thabas,” followed a question-and-answer format. She hopes that the seminar attendees will come with questions.
The marriage workshop was born of a desire to address many of the social problems that plague Botswana.
“Botswana has many social ills,” said Ashley, “like broken homes, fatherless homes.
“Everybody agrees that we need healthier families,” she continued, reciting a phrase that she and Percy use often in their teaching, “fix the root, fix the fruit.
“If you can fix the family, you can fix the nation.”
Those interested in attending the workshop can go to the Tifton First Methodist website, www.tiftonfirst.org. Click on the “Events” tab and register. You will not be committing to attending, just expressing intent. If you have a specific questions that relate to the topics in their book that you would like for Percy or Ashley to answer during the weekend seminar, email your questions to ashleythaba@gmail.com
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