Mossel Bay, Garden Route (October 2023) – The Mighty Men Mossel Bay Conference takes place from 15 to 17 December at beautiful Bartelsfontein Farm, and South African men from all corners of the country are now urged to diarise these dates and register their attendance.

Themed ‘Arise Mossel Bay’, MMCMB23 expects to welcome thousands of visitors from that Friday to the Sunday morning, at which time families are welcome to join their Mighty Men for a picnic and praise session.

A fine array of speakers has been selected to touch the men’s hearts with their words, so attendees can expect to ignite their spiritual life and experience true transformation during the course of the conference.

Apart from sessions led by local men that form part of the MM-fray, a handful of handpicked speakers will contribute to the weekend’s offerings. Among others, the bill features singer Jo Black, Lukas Korff form the USA, and pastors John Mathuhle and Desmond Wessels.

Since his rise to stardom in the SA music industry back in 2016, Jo Black has also gained fame for his faith and commitment to keeping the hope alive. His motto? ‘Make everyone feel like a somebody, because nobody deserves to feel like a nobody.’

As husband, father, musician and storyteller, Jo says he is “just an ordinary guy with a passion for people”. A Pretoria native, Jo started an initiative called Be That Guy / Be That Girl – a movement that helps children to nurture a positive attitude – before prioritising his music career.

Jo proceeded to launch his ‘Be That Guy Braai’ drive “to give hope and inspiration to men”. The concept spread like wildfire and BTGB-gatherings are now held nationwide on Friday mornings.

But it wasn’t all plain sailing for this friendly celeb with his signature beard: Jo underwent neck surgery in September 2018 after two of his vertebrae disintegrated. His vocal cords were compromised and doctors recommended an urgent operation.

The op was successfully performed on 9 September, 2018, but many of Jo’s scheduled performances had to be cancelled. This personal trauma was but one of the life experiences that combined to mould Jo into a most worthy contributor to MMCMB23.

Perhaps less of a rock star but right up there with the land’s most righteous is Pastor John Mathuhle, who says he can hardly contain his excitement at the prospect of addressing the MMCMB audience at Bartelsfontein come December.

John was at the heart of a miraculous intervention in 2020, when God prevented racial violence from breaking out at a courthouse in the Eastern Free State town of Senekal during a farm murder trial.

Ever since, the passionate pastor has been at the forefront of reconciliation and community development initiatives in his hometown. He encourages South Africans, especially those of faith, to stand up and make their voices heard, “because silence on issues that divide our nation also tears it apart”.

In an interview with JUIG magazine of 4 August, he challenged South Africans to take a stand and pray for strength against the forces in our country that bring division. “We must build bridges of reconciliation in this country.”

Pastor John says he is honoured to be one of the speakers at MMCMB23, and trusts that God will help him spread a message of hope and healing, “because we live in a time where we have to trust that God will heal our nation, and especially our men”.

“I want to encourage you to invite a friend, bring a son or a cousin. My two sons Johnson and Junior will join me in Mossel Bay – what a privilege! I am looking forward to having an incredible time in the presence of the Lord.

“Our Lord will have something for each generation that will be present there, and I can’t wait to meet you in person,” he concludes his video invitation to MMCMB23. Visit mightymenmosselbay.co.za to register, and then prepare to soar to new heights in your faith journey.