By Jen Pillinger

Sometimes partnership takes the form of lively entertainment events with a higher purpose. Our Voices of Jubilation worship concert brought together churches from all over Johannesburg and performers from as far as Switzerland. The concert was held as part of the run-up to our 2025 Jubilee celebration, which will mark Wycliffe SA’s 50th birthday. It was also a competition with prizes to be won, including the opportunity to perform at the Wycliffe Global Gathering in November and be featured on our Jubilee album which will be released next year. The performers had all written their own music on the Jubilee theme, and were evaluated by the judges during the event to determine who would be awarded the prizes (a tough call, given the quality of every piece performed).

The concert itself was a vibrant event, filled with praise, dance, laughter and unforgettable music. 

The Performers

The Kom Translation team from Cameroon was the only one to perform a song in their own native language, recorded on video and shared for the audience to enjoy. Njabulo Langa, a rapper from Sceptre Ministries, instantly elevated the energy in the room with his lively performance of “Lay my Life”. Alan Webster and Busani Mcingolwane each had the room singing along with their catchy tunes, “Breathe Upon Us” (Busani) and “Only Jubilee” (Alan). House of the Lord could not perform live, but their recorded video of “Voice of Jubilation” brought a spirit of reflection and worship to the room.

The Winners

First Place: Breakthru Life Church

Tanya and team exploded into their performance with jumping and dancing that had the audience on their feet in seconds to be part of the action. Their upbeat song, “The Great Reset”, was an instant hit.

Second Place: Naledi Grace

Naledi Grace wowed us with a beautiful rendition of her song, “Jubilee”, which captured the competition theme perfectly.

Third Place: Elfi Bohl

Although she could not be present at the event, the recorded video of Elfi’s song “I Too Dorong” made a real impression. She played the song on the Kora, an instrument of the Gambia, and sang in both English and Mandinka.

Special Thanks

While the concert was centred around the competition artists, they were not the only ones who made the event a success. Mesuli Tshele and Sizukiwe Vimbani opened the event with worship and praise, setting God at centre stage of the proceedings. Our MC, Lesego Nyoni, did a stellar job of leading the audience through the event with humour and energy, and our judges must be commended for making hard decisions in a short time frame. Our guest band from JTL Ministries (Jesus Christ to all Languages) contributed their own Jubilee-themed song in which they thanked Wycliffe SA for the work done, and had people dancing in front of the stage to the worship songs. We must also thank Rosebank Union Church for the use of their venue! 

There are many others who worked quietly in the background, and each person who attended was a blessing to have. In all, there were 7 churches represented and more than 140 people who took part.