Faith like Wilde Als: young boy sounds the call

Many Lowvelders joined hundreds of thousands of South Africans at the national prayer service held just outside of Bloemfontein on Saturday.

April 25, 2017

Philippa Francis 1 minute read

MBOMBELA – “Are you ready, boetie?” Angus Buchan, internationally acclaimed evangelist, asked 12-year-old Christiaan Pannell on stage at Wilde Als Farm outside Bloemfontein on Saturday.

“Ek is reg, my oom,” local lad Christiaan responded, before blowing his shofar in front of almost one million people gathered to pray for justice, peace and hope at a national prayer service themed “It’s Time”.

Christiaan Pannell, Angus Buchan and Clive Pannell.

A shofar is an ancient musical instrument made from a ram’s horn, and used for religious purposes. Like the modern bugle, the shofar lacks pitch-altering devices and is incredibly difficult to play.

According to Christiaan’s father, Clive, the ram’s horn is often used as “a weapon of spiritual warfare”.

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In February Clive made and inscribed a shofar, in Hebrew, specially for Buchan. The inscription was John 3:16 which reads: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only and unique Son, so that whoever trusts in Him should not be destroyed, but have eternal life”.

Two weeks ago father and son received a personal invitation to attend the Bloemfontein prayer service. Photo: Dr Michael Mol

“Christiaan was not nervous at all to go up in front of all those people. It just shows how even a 12-year-old boy can do great things,” Clive told Lowvelder.

He was only meant to blow the shofar once but ended up blowing it four times. God uses us to show others.”

Christiaan attends Laerskool Clivia in Ngodwana, at which his mother, Christell also works. She said she was overjoyed that Christiaan and Clive had experienced something like this, although she did not attend.