March 6, 2025 • 45 mins
Karin’s grand adventure includes being raised in South Africa, excelling at tennis, losing her father to cancer - a tragedy which opened the door to meeting her Heavenly Father. It’s also a story of prophetic dreams, beautiful confirmations, rich relationships, miraculous provisions, and a move across the world… by faith…
• The remarkable life of a centenarian who plays tennis at 103
• Living beyond oneself: the power of serving others
• Karin's journey from South Africa to ministry in the U.S.
• Inspirational moments: meeting Nelson Mandela
• Intergenerational hopes: empowering the next generation
• Purpose in adversity: faith and personal calling
• Finding connection and meaning in community
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Karin Kriel (00:00):
She was still playing doubles tennis.
Piet Van Waarde (00:03):
She was still playing doubles tennis at 103.
That's impressive.
Karin Kriel (00:08):
She played the violin and she would go to the
neighborhood store and she wouldplay violin and she would raise
money for them to redo thedecor of her side of the
retirement village that she wasliving in.
That was her aim.
And I asked her this question.
I said what keeps you goinglike this?
(00:33):
Because, I mean, this is apretty big feat for a lady of
her age, right?
And she would say I get upevery morning for a reason that
is beyond something for myself.
I get up for an aim that willnot be serving my own goals or
myself.
I get up for someone else.
I get up for something that'llmean something to someone else
and I was just like yes.
(00:54):
Yeah, yes, yeah, that'll workand so it just resonated with me
so much, this lady inspired meso much, that I was like, okay,
I want to be like this lady oneday that lives beyond 100 years
old and is active and fun andspunky and she lives for the
(01:16):
pleasure and the joy of thosearound her, not for herself.
And so Sounds like Jesus alittle bit Right, and I think he
was fun and spunky.
Piet Van Waarde (01:26):
I wouldn't play tennis at 100 and whatever well
, thank you for joining us foranother sidewalkwalk
Conversation and I am delightedto bring a ferner in on this
(01:48):
chat, but before I introduce youto our guests, I want to say a
special thank you to our sponsortoday.
I have been sponsored this yearby Shoreline Church, and so
Shoreline is going to bereferenced, I'm sure, through
this conversation as well.
So I thought I would mentionthe fact that they support the
Van Ward Foundation, and thatfoundation supplies a lot of the
(02:12):
resources that we are able toprovide, both through this
podcast, newsletters, other filmprojects, and so I'm grateful
for the contribution thatShoreline Church makes.
So thank you to Shoreline.
My guest today is from SouthAfrica.
Karin Kriel (02:30):
Yes, well done.
Piet Van Waarde (02:31):
Which, back in the day, was a Dutch colony.
So would you please welcomeKarin.
Thank you for joining me today.
Karin Kriel (02:37):
Thank you so much for inviting me to come and for
being able to say where I comefrom so well.
Piet Van Waarde (02:43):
Yes.
Well, people are going torecognize right off the bat that
you come from a place notnecessarily Texas.
Karin Kriel (02:50):
Yes, absolutely.
I'm sure they will recognizethat, and we've lived here now
for seven years and my accentremains South African, and so
I'm glad it has, because I thinkit's best to just stay true to
who you are.
Piet Van Waarde (03:04):
Well, it makes you so.
It like adds a cool factor ofone or two.
Thank you for saying that.
I'm not sure everyone feelsthat way.
Karin Kriel (03:12):
Oh, I love it.
Piet Van Waarde (03:13):
I think it's great.
I think it's great.
We should actually try and talka little South Afrikaans.
Karin Kriel (03:17):
Oh easy, I could do that all day long yeah.
Piet Van Waarde (03:21):
Was that your first language?
Karin Kriel (03:22):
Oh yes, we still only speak Afrikaans at home.
Piet Van Waarde (03:26):
No kidding.
Karin Kriel (03:27):
Yes, the boys, we only speak Afrikaans, we speak
Afrikaans.
Josh is studying in Dallas, nowmy oldest, and when we phone
him we only speak Afrikaans.
And his friends laugh and enjoyit so much, and so he always
puts us on speakerphone and wehave to say things, and so only
Afrikaans, yes, and so he alwaysputs us on speakerphone and we
have to say things, and so onlyAfrikaans.
Piet Van Waarde (03:45):
Yes, All right.
Well, let's get started there.
So you grew up there.
Tell me a little bit about yourgrowing up years Like, what was
it like?
I mean, it's very obviously aWestern culture, but maybe some
differences.
How was your growing up?
Karin Kriel (03:59):
years.
Yeah, so, growing up in SouthAfrica, I was born in 1980.
I have no problem saying that.
And so interesting part ofhistory in South Africa is I was
born in 1980 and a bigturnaround in South Africa was
in 1995.
What's interesting about thatis in 1995, the Springboks, the
(04:21):
rugby team, actually won theWorld Cup the Rugby World Cup
right, and so it was reallymassive in our country.
So by that time I was 15 yearsold.
Now rewind I was born in 1980.
And so growing up in the 80s Idon't have to really explain
that vibe much, but in ourcountry in those years there was
still a lot of what we know asapartheid right.
(04:44):
So a lot of Americans would befamiliar with that term.
So there was a lot ofseparation, segregation between
white people and black people.
I think there's someassociation of that and in the
history of America there's some,I would say, a resonance where
people could say, oh, I knowwhat that feels like.
I know what that feels like, Iknow what discrimination feels
(05:06):
like.
I grew up as a white Afrikaansgirl in a city called Pretoria,
which is the capital city, whichis where the government is
right.
So there was a lot of thattension in our city, the city
that I grew up in, and there itwas a lot to do with the church,
right.
So my dad was on the churchboard and you would feel that
(05:29):
tension in the house.
you know kind of the politicaldiscussions and the church
discussions were all the same,and so I grew up in a city where
that was kind of, you know,front and center for me growing
up as a white, afrikaans girl.
Piet Van Waarde (05:42):
Yeah, I bet.
Karin Kriel (05:43):
And then being, you know, a teenager, I was also
aware just of racism, but alsoclassism.
So being a privileged whitegirl then was something that I
had to deal with growing up andknowing that.
Well, now, as 1995 isapproaching and the World Cup is
(06:04):
being played and PresidentNelson Mandela is now part of
this big move where he is nowfreed from jail and he is now
the president of our country,and he is now really making a
massive move, not justnationally for us, but globally
in the world.
And just as a girl, navigatingthat as a teenager was massive.
(06:36):
I grew up with my mom, and herparents had a farm in the free
state in the middle of thecountry, and they had farm
workers, black people, and soyou would think that that
segregation was bad there, butit wasn't.
I grew up with a beautifulexample of appreciation.
They valued the people.
They would paint their homes inexactly the ways that they
would want it to be.
I grew up playing with themlike the same way that I would
(06:58):
play with my friends at school.
There was no difference for mein the way that I appreciated a
black person to a white person,the way that I appreciated a
black person to a white person,the way that my family raised me
, and so when President NelsonMandela became the president, we
were happy as a family, we werecelebrating it, and so my
upbringing really was somethingthat I am so thankful for to
(07:22):
this day.
The way that I grew up in acountry where racism and that
racial tension was bad.
It was ugly.
It was not bad and ugly in myworld, In my personal world.
It was something that I wastaught was bad outside, but we
could turn the tide.
We could appreciate a personbecause they're a person.
Piet Van Waarde (07:45):
Was that a product of your faith journey?
I mean, like, was thatsomething that because you
talked about your dad being inthe church and having that
conversation, yes, so was thatpart of how your family
expressed faith?
Karin Kriel (07:56):
I think for sure it was a part of how they
expressed faith.
I'm not sure it was a part ofhow the church we were in would
express faith, but it was a partof how my family would.
Piet Van Waarde (08:07):
That's great.
Karin Kriel (08:07):
And I think there was tension and I think that
they probably faced someopposition that I was maybe not
aware of.
They never told me but, theysurely didn't ever do anything,
mean they set an example to methat I'm so thankful for to this
day.
Piet Van Waarde (08:28):
I love that.
Karin Kriel (08:28):
And so when I think back of those tensions and I
think back of the way I grew up,that's probably the biggest
thing I'm thankful for is I grewup in a time where there was so
much racial tension, but theyexemplified the contrary and I
love them for that to this day.
Piet Van Waarde (08:44):
And do you see that as a common thread?
Maybe in your life from thatpoint to this point, do you find
yourself kind of coming back tosome of those same themes?
Karin Kriel (08:53):
Oh, for sure, For sure.
I think they taught me so much,so many principles, so many
areas of my life where you'rethrown into a culture or you're
thrown into a popularity contestof media or just something of
(09:13):
just this massive thought.
And they taught me a lot oftimes to just ask the question.
You don't have to just becausebe different.
Just because be different, butask the question is this a good
idea?
Am I thinking about the peoplethat are being influenced by
this?
Am I considering the results ofthis?
And so I think yes.
(09:35):
There's for sure a theme ofthat thinking about the people
first and I actually got to meetPresident Nelson Mandela, can I
tell you that yes, please do soin this very church that I was
a part of.
He came to visit that churchand I think it was a good
political move.
Let me just say that so I wasn'toblivious to that, but I
actually got to meet him one day.
Tall man, he was a tall man andI remember being once like
(10:01):
firstly, I was impressed by hisstature, just his physical
stature.
He's a tall man and I rememberstanding in line for a very,
very long time before I couldmeet him and then shaking his
hand and meeting him was quitethe moment.
Piet Van Waarde (10:16):
I'll bet.
Do you remember what he said?
Karin Kriel (10:19):
He has a deep voice and I don't remember what he
said at this very moment, but Ido remember.
I made a note of it and when Ifind it I'll come tell you, I'll
come tell you what happened,but it was quite a moment and I
remember I journaled about itand it has a massive impact on
my life.
Piet Van Waarde (10:37):
How old were you at the time that?
Karin Kriel (10:38):
moment.
Well, I must have been betweenthe ages of 14 and 15, because
he became the president when Iwas 15, which was a pretty
dramatic time span in my life,I'll bet yeah.
Piet Van Waarde (10:53):
All, right now.
We had a conversation a coupleweeks ago.
I want to kind of build on thisfaith development line of
questions and we were in thelobby for about five minutes and
we got into a conversationabout your father and what a
pivotal figure he was in yourlife and then also a bit about
(11:14):
how that became an entry pointinto a deeper relationship with
God, and I'd love it if youwould just retell that story.
Karin Kriel (11:23):
Yeah, we were at Shoreline and I remember the
moment so vividly.
It was impactful for me too.
I think just knowing yourjourney and what you faced just
reminded me so vividly of thatstory.
And it was the same season, 15years old, when I met Nelson
Mandela actually the same seasonand my dad had been diagnosed
(11:46):
with cancer about a year beforeand he was quite suddenly
actually diagnosed.
He just had back pain for along time.
He was a hardworking man and inthe community he was really so
accomplished.
He had become a professor atthe University of Pretoria, the
(12:10):
capital city, and he wasteaching on the board of tourism
at the time as well.
And so really, just you knowsuch an acclaimed man.
I had so much respect for himworking very, very hard, and he
would come home early with justreally severe back pain and he
would go for physical therapyand he would go to the general
(12:32):
practitioner to try and figureout what was going on.
But they couldn't at the timefigure out what it was Until he
went for further tests and theydiscovered some cancer had
spread to his liver and hiskidneys, all over and so then
they discovered that it waslymphoma, and it got really bad
really quickly after that andso I remember, um, actually
(12:56):
being at a dance competition.
I was a dancer really active atthe time.
I was doing latin american andballroom dancing and also what
they called back then highenergy freestyle, which is like
it's just a choreographed kindof dance and I was at a
competition that at the time andhe was in hospice kind of
(13:18):
acutely sick and I would alwayscall him and tell him you know
how I was doing that day in thecompetitions and I remember that
this was a pretty importantcompetition.
I think it was in the run-up tothe South African finals, like
South African championships orit maybe was the South African
championships, so it was apretty important one, yeah, yeah
(13:38):
.
And so I remember calling him,and just as I called him, it
just felt more intense thanusual.
Piet Van Waarde (13:46):
You know when you feel the heaviness of a
phone call like that.
Karin Kriel (13:49):
And so I gave him a call and I remember him not
being able to speak and justtelling him I made it to the
final and saying I made it tothe final, remember hearing,
knowing this might be the lasttime, and I danced my heart out
(14:09):
that day and I won that day.
And I remember going home andwhen I got home my mom opened
the door for me and as I walkedin I knew I knew what the news
was, because she wouldn't havebeen home if he was still alive.
Fast forward to the day of hisfuneral, and I remember standing
(14:33):
at his grave and calculatingall of the success that he had
had.
He was a professor yeah, and hewas a professor.
Against all odds.
He actually was an orphan.
He had lost his mom and hisfather at a very young age and
rose to success against so muchcompetition and odds, really so
(14:57):
many people just disappointinghim all his life.
And yet he was so successful.
And I stood there and I thoughtis this, it Is this the end of
life?
He gave so much, he did sosuccessful.
And I stood there and I thoughtis this?
It Is this the end of life?
He gave so much, he did so well.
And here we are standing at hisgrave with hands full of soil,
of dust, and we're throwing iton.
Piet Van Waarde (15:21):
The casket, yeah, that's it.
Karin Kriel (15:23):
This is the end.
This is the end of all of thissuccess.
And at the time I was obviouslycrying out to God, I was angry,
I was Lord, is this it?
And I so vividly remember itmight have been the most intense
moment in my life of a momentof conversation with God that I
(15:48):
feel like the Lord spoke to mein that moment and I was like
God, is this it?
What am I going to do without afather?
And in that moment it was likethe movie of my dad's entire
life played in front of my eyes.
It was like a quick slideshowjust played in front of my eyes.
(16:09):
And the next moment the Lordsaid to me would you let me be
your father?
And I said yes, but I was angry.
So I said yes, if you show upfor me.
And he said let me show you.
And I remember the next morningto this day.
(16:32):
I remember that next morning.
I remember our rose gardenbeing more vividly bright in
colors than what I'd everremembered it being before.
I remember the sound of thebirds singing.
That morning the sound was morebeautiful than what I'd ever
(16:53):
heard it before.
The rays of the sun justshining on the curtains that
morning it was more vivid thanwhat I'd ever seen the sun
shining in to my room than everbefore.
There was something that hadshifted.
There was something that hadchanged.
It was that new life that hehad promised.
(17:13):
It was me that had surrenderedmy life to him and said yes, you
can be my father.
I am done with a life that I'mtrying to do by myself.
That's over.
I'm going to give you everything.
And from that day on, I trulydid call to God, as my dad and I
(17:36):
remember trusting him forprovision, like physical
provision, from that day on,asking him for help for very
practical things, from that dayon, Love it.
Thank you for sharing thatBeautiful.
Piet Van Waarde (17:50):
The beautiful story, and now you are fast
forward.
Now you are here in Austin.
Karin Kriel (17:57):
Yeah.
Piet Van Waarde (17:58):
You and your husband are pastoring at
Shoreline and we're going totalk a little bit about how you
got here.
But I just want to ask thequestion about your calling.
So did you, from that moment on, when you had this very
personal encounter with the Lordas your father, did you sense
(18:19):
that ministry was going to bepart of that journey?
Or did that come eventuallylater?
How does the ministry piece fitin all that?
Karin Kriel (18:29):
So, as I mentioned the dancing story, dancing was
really what I thought.
This is what I'm going to do,this is what I'd be.
I'd just be a dancer.
That competition that I wonthat day you actually would win,
like if I'd continue dancingyou would win sponsorships, or
like you would win a scholarshipto come to America and come
(18:51):
dance here.
And so the idea of you know,coming to America and being a
dancer here was something that Iwould entertain, something that
I would think about, you know.
So that would be an idea that Iwould think about back then.
But my salvation moment was sodramatic in my life that I
started thinking and questioningall the dreams that I had
(19:11):
before at that age.
So I started thinking how can Ihelp more people experience
this moment?
How can I?
So I was thinking, maybe Icould be a lawyer, maybe I could
get involved in charity orthings like that.
So I vividly remember speakingto my mom about that, and my mom
mentioned that she'd alwayswanted to be a missionary, but
in her day and time that wasjust weird, for a woman to want
(19:34):
to do.
That was just frowned upon, andso she started encouraging me
and saying, well, why don't youdo something like that?
And so we actually went on acouple of missions trips to
Zimbabwe and Zambia together,and I think that's really where
I started feeling like I coulddo this Tell people about Jesus
(19:57):
and share the gospel, and Istarted caring less and less
about the privileged life I wasliving and more and more about
telling people about Jesus, andseeing that transformation that
I'd experienced in their livesbecame more important to me than
anything else, there's nothinglike it there is nothing like it
, and then going from a veryconservative denomination, the
(20:22):
Dutch Reformed- Church to a verycharismatic church, because I
started exploring hearing God'svoice, which was frowned upon in
that Reformed Church, and so Istarted exploring churches that
that was okay to raise yourhands in worship or to what are
(20:47):
the gifts of the Spirit, and sothose kind of things started
happening.
And so I think that's when Istarted feeling hold on, there
might be more for me to explorein a call, and so I started
going on youth camps.
I became part of the ChristianStudent Council of our school,
which is allowed in South Africa, and so there is where my
(21:08):
leadership journey in Christianministry really started was in
school, probably about a yearafter I got saved.
Wow.
Piet Van Waarde (21:18):
I remember something very similar.
There was a pretty radicalconversion for my story as well,
and people will say, well, whendid you feel the call to go
into ministry?
And for me they were almost onein the same.
It was like if the lord coulddo this in my life, yeah, and
totally reorient the way Ithought about life, yeah, my
(21:39):
perception of myself in theworld, yeah, why would I want to
do anything less than letpeople know what's possible?
And so, yeah, I can very muchidentify with that sense of okay
, I got to be about this.
So then you and your husbandpastored a church right in South
(22:00):
Africa.
Or did that happen when you cameover.
Karin Kriel (22:04):
Tell me the timetable, okay.
So Yuri and I met when we werein school as well.
So we met on a Christianstudent camp and knew that we
were both called to ministry,and so we went to Bible school
directly after school, which wasalso a big stretch, I think.
Piet Van Waarde (22:22):
Were you already romantically involved at
all?
Karin Kriel (22:25):
We were.
Do you want to hear the story?
Piet Van Waarde (22:27):
Yes, do you have time for the story?
It's a pretty cool story I lovegood stories.
Karin Kriel (22:32):
Yuri and I were 17 at the time.
I was actually not supposed togo on this specific summer camp
but it's not really insummertime, but it's a summer
camp kind of thing, just to putit in American terms for
everyone to understand.
And so I was not supposed to go, but one of the leaders
couldn't go and so I went.
(22:52):
And so to tell the story really, really short is, I went on
this camp and I remember walkingto go see in what room I was
going to go stay, and so Iwalked past this table where
this guy was sitting on thetable and something in my heart
(23:12):
just felt like who is this guy?
And it wasn't the normalattraction or something like it
was just who is this guy.
And I remember walking past himand going to check my room and
walking past and as we walkedback, my best friend said to me
did you notice that guy?
I said yes, I wonder who he is.
(23:32):
Went on, went to find our roomand that night the preacher that
was there preached about a PaulBarnabas destiny relationship,
kind of trying to get all theteenagers to focus, to not just
flirt with people and, you know,doing the good Christian leader
thing like guys, girls, come on, focus on Jesus, you know he
was trying which was good, verygood, and I was in total
agreement because at the time,having that dance history and
flirting with guys, and I wasdone with that in my life.
(23:54):
I was done with the guys thingand playing around in clubs with
the dance history I had and Iwas really not interested in
guys.
And I remember in my journal atthe time writing a letter to God
and saying God, if I could bealone with just you in a dark
room the rest of my life andhave nothing to do with any guy
(24:14):
forever, I would be so happy.
So I was not interested in guysat all.
And so this Paul Barnabasdestiny relationship thing had
me thinking I was going okay,well, Lord, if it's a destiny
relationship, I would consider afriendship with a guy.
And so, long story short, thedots kind of connected and I
(24:38):
walked past this guy again thenext day and I thought I feel
like maybe this guy is a PaulBarnabas destiny relationship,
but I so feel like I don't havetime for guys that if this guy
doesn't walk up to me and tellsme we have a Paul Barnabas
destiny relationship, I'm noteven going to give him the light
(24:59):
of day and then can you trustthat so I go back to my room.
That night.
Piet Van Waarde (25:04):
How many guys have said that?
Karin Kriel (25:05):
And we have group nights we have like this group
chat right, and we're talkingabout how the message was and
we're praying, and you know, andthis one girl says there's this
guy, karin, I really feel likeyou should meet him.
His name's Yuri.
He's on the student council atour school and I just think that
you guys would get along sowell.
I go no, I have no idea whothis guy is.
(25:26):
And she goes I'm gonnaintroduce you to him.
So you know little, do I know?
And the next girl.
And the next girl goes have youmet Yuri?
Have you met Yuri?
The next day I'm walking to thebeach and this guy comes from
behind.
He goes hi, I'm Yuri.
I'm like, oh, hello.
And he goes yeah, where are youfrom?
And we just kind of startchatting and we start talking
(25:46):
about calling and what we feelcalled to and all the things,
and I feel like, oh, this is theguy.
Right, the Lord reminds me,years ago I had had a dream
about meeting my husband on abeach and he tells me and he
speaks to me about my destinyand I vividly remember his face,
(26:07):
and it's Yuri's face.
Piet Van Waarde (26:09):
Oh, my goodness .
Karin Kriel (26:10):
And I know I'm going to keep quiet about this
because you know you kisseddating goodbye At the time.
That was the thing.
And so then I'm just prayingabout this and I'm going God, he
hasn't said anything about PaulBarnabas destiny relationship.
My best friend is walking withme to the beach the next day and
I'm just kind of processing allof this and she goes Karin, how
(26:33):
are you feeling about this?
And I'm going well, if hedoesn't walk up to me and say
the words we have a PaulBarnabas destiny relationship, I
am not going to give him thelight of day.
That's what I said.
Yuri comes running from behind,he taps me on the shoulder.
He says Karin, I want to tellyou I feel like we have a Paul
Barnabas destiny relationship.
(26:55):
Get out and this best friend ofmine looks at him looks at me
and she just is stunned.
She just stands there silent,she just can't get her word out
and I go.
Well then we have a lot to talkabout and we start talking and
we start planning all the thingsthat we want to do for God
(27:16):
together.
And that was really a massivemoment for us because we started
planning our ministry together.
We started planning about howwe're excited to minister to
young people and we want totrain young people like us to be
passionate about God and sharethe gospel.
And that's really where itstarted.
Where we started talking aboutstarting a Bible school was the
(27:36):
first dream we had, and so wemoved to Cape Town.
Not long after that, wefinished school, moved to Cape
Town, became part of a Bibleschool, got qualified and then
started our own Bible school andstarted traveling with dance
and drama productions and alsotrained them then to become
pastors and so they're all inSouth Africa, and then once we
(28:00):
were about I think it was aboutthree or four, five years into
that we were actually.
Then we became elders of thatchurch, and so that was our
story of church leadership there.
Piet Van Waarde (28:13):
And then, how did you get over here?
Karin Kriel (28:15):
So then seven years later we were a part of a
church in Pretoria, south Africa, called Doxa Deo.
We pastored there for aboutseven years.
God really blessed.
That ministry expandedincredibly From there.
We were then kind of reallyclimbed the ladder in leadership
.
In a way it sounds so bad to sayclimb the ladder because it's
(28:36):
really servant leadership justGod's favor, but God just
blessed that church in a massiveway, and so, in the end, we
were over multiple campusesthere, and that's when God
started speaking to us aboutAmerica again.
What's interesting about howYuri and I met, though, and as
part of our conversation on thebeach, was me telling him I have
(28:57):
this thing in my heart aboutGod sending me to America one
day, and I don't know how he'sgoing to do it and I don't know
when, but I feel like God wantsto send me there one day, and
Yuri said I feel exactly thesame.
One day, maybe God will do it.
We were 19 when we reminded oneanother of it.
We met when we were 17, and wewere 27 when God spoke to us
(29:21):
again and said it's time.
Piet Van Waarde (29:23):
Now the time, yeah, wow.
So then what?
I think I know something of thestory, but I want clarification
.
So you felt a calling to theStates, but also in Austin
particularly.
Karin Kriel (29:38):
Correct.
So Yuri was on a Skype callwith Pastor Tim Hawks At the
time.
We were doing a massive kind ofa unity movement in South
Africa and Pretoria, withmultiple churches preaching the
same series of sermons, but wewouldn't say which pastor was
preaching at which church,because oftentimes in churches,
(30:00):
you know, it's all about mypastor, my church right.
And so we were starting to seesome of that happen in South
Africa and in that city and wethought, okay, hold on, it
really is about God's church,it's about the big C church, and
the pastors were such goodfriends in the city at the time
that they were saying how aboutwe do this?
We swap pulpits and we don'ttell anyone who's going to be in
(30:21):
what pulpit when over Easter,and so for the weeks running up
to Easter they would all swappulpits and no one would know
which pastor is going to be atwhich church.
Piet Van Waarde (30:35):
And were they different denominations?
Karin Kriel (30:37):
It was yes, so similar denominations, similar
denominations, but multiplechurches I'm talking 10, 12
different, massive, like all themega churches would be swapping
, so you wouldn't know who'swhere.
And it was during that timethat we called Pastor Tim Hawkes
for advice because he wasleading or still is leading
Christ Together Network here inAustin.
(30:58):
And so we made friends with himand he said to Yuri well, why
don't you come visit in Austinand why don't you just come
preach here one Sunday?
And, you know, just come seeAustin.
And Yuri was actually on hisway to New York to go, you know,
there for some ministry.
And so he said sure, and PastorTim Hawke said to him, he said
(31:20):
Austin's just around the cornerfrom New York.
Piet Van Waarde (31:24):
We had no idea coming from South Africa.
Karin Kriel (31:27):
So he booked the flights and I remember Yuri
sending me a text message afterhe had preached in Austin and
all he said was this is it?
Wow?
At the time I had been prayingfor a while and God had been
shifting for a while and we hadactually already been handing
over leadership.
(31:47):
A couple of people had thoughtyou know, is there something
wrong?
One of the elders actually tookGary out for lunch and he asked
him.
He said is there sin in yourlife?
Like why are you handing overleadership with no reason?
Like you're not telling uswhat's going on?
Like is there something wrong?
And Yuri said no, I just feelGod is sending us, but we don't
know where yet.
(32:07):
Until we came to visit Austinand so we didn't have a job
offer here, we didn't have aconcrete plan of what God wanted
to do.
But when Yuri came to preachhere, he knew it was Austin.
At the time I remember theSkype call that Yuri had with
Pastor Tim Hawks over thatEaster planning time.
I was sitting at the dinnertable that night and I heard
(32:31):
Pastor Tim Hawks' voice overSkype.
Back then we used Skype.
Hawks' voice over Skype.
Back then we used Skype and asI was sitting at the table it
was as if Holy Spirit leapt inmy heart and told me it's Austin
.
But I knew I was to keep quietand just pray.
And I remember the two boyscame to sit at the table and I
(32:53):
almost felt a little sad forthem because I knew that they
would be uprooted.
And in that moment the Lordspoke so clearly to me about the
fact that this move will be fortheir benefit and it gave me
faith just instantly and I knewthat it won't be us following
our calling.
It would be us following ourcalling but for their benefit,
(33:20):
and so I kept quiet and I prayed.
Yuri didn't know then, yet theboys didn't know, and so when he
came to visit, he wrote and hesaid this is it?
And he called me and he saidCara, and it's massive, like it
feels.
I said I know I can show you myjournal entry and he, he said
you've known for so long.
I said yes, isn't it wonderfulBecause now we have that
(33:43):
confirmation of weeks ago theLord spoke to me and we have
this beautiful confirmation thatGod knew, I knew and we have
that evidence.
And so we have that beautifulstory of God telling us that.
And so then fast forwardtelling you very quickly we sold
everything, we gave lots awayand we really felt like God sent
(34:05):
us here.
And then Pastor Tim Hawkescalled us one night and he said
so we had a meeting with thechurch board and we would want
to offer you guys something, butit might take you long to
consider, so we'll give you lotsof grace to think about this,
but we'd love for you guys tocome and plant a church downtown
Austin.
(34:25):
And Yuri said oh yes, we'reready and he goes.
You don't want to pray, he goes.
We've been praying for a while,We've been selling stuff, we're
ready to come.
And so we just sold everything,we finalized everything and we
were ready to come.
And then we planted the churchcalled 512 City Church in
(34:46):
downtown Austin.
Piet Van Waarde (34:47):
Wow, After two years.
When was that?
What year was that?
It was 2017.
Okay, that was 2017.
Karin Kriel (34:55):
And so just a beautiful, beautiful season of
starting from scratch.
Really loved the church, lovedthe people.
Piet Van Waarde (35:03):
So did you have a little congregation that was
helping you get started, or didyou like, literally you came in?
Karin Kriel (35:10):
We came in to Hill Country Bible Church with Pastor
Tim Hawks.
They obviously did all thepaperwork for us, helped us get
in.
Couldn't have come in withouttheir help.
Just absolute honor andappreciation for them with that
whole process.
And Yuri then came on boardthere for the first year as a
pastor for preaching while westarted getting everything ready
(35:31):
for 512 City Church.
Piet Van Waarde (35:33):
Got it.
Karin Kriel (35:33):
And so we had our first meetings at Hill Country
Bible Church, had our first kindof asking people do you want to
do this with us From there?
And so it kind of started allfrom there.
So Yuri kept on saying we'rebuilding the plane as we fly,
because we were moving into themotions already.
Piet Van Waarde (35:51):
I think that's a common ministry phrase.
Karin Kriel (35:54):
I've borrowed that one before too.
Yeah, yeah.
Piet Van Waarde (35:57):
And so you started a church.
Karin Kriel (36:01):
You did that for two years.
Did you say Correct yeah?
Piet Van Waarde (36:02):
And then was COVID kind of the yes.
Karin Kriel (36:06):
Well, covid wasn't the reason, I think for us, the
relationship with Pastor Rob andLaura was kind of woven through
all of this too, which is alsopretty significant.
I was really good friends with,or still am really good friends
with, pastor Lucinda Dooleyfrom Heelsong, and she had
introduced me to Pastor CherylLuke.
Piet Van Waarde (36:27):
Oh yeah, sure.
Karin Kriel (36:28):
Who introduced me to Pastor Laura Koch, who I had
remembered from years ago,hearing about the Cokes in South
Africa from I think it wasRaymutt Church, and then from
Pastor I also heard about theChampions in Austin, so I was
aware of them years ago alreadyand so, being introduced to them
(36:52):
, had such just respect andappreciation for their ministry
for so long.
And then, when we moved here, Imet Pastor Laura at a pastor's
wives gathering, via Facebook,lucinda Dooley, via Cheryl Luke
been invited to this gatheringand met Pastor Laura for the
first time at that brunch and wejust connected.
(37:16):
That was it.
It was just hello, you are myfriend, love it.
And I remember asking her canwe have lunch with our husbands
together?
And we did, and it's like therest is history.
We were just quick friends andwe then had a lunch together
(37:37):
almost every month since thatfirst time we met wow and so
through covid, I rememberwhenever we could make kind of
make that once a month lunchwork with pastor robin laura,
you and I would still meet withthem and so that friendship
really carried us through for along time.
They would ask us advice aboutwhat we're doing through covid,
(38:00):
and you know we would ask themadvice and just learn so much
from them through it all andjust prayerfully help one
another through some challenges.
And so that friendship reallygrew and after a while it became
really significant becausewe've been consulting other
churches for years now.
And so I remember one morninggetting ready for another lunch
(38:22):
with them and Yuri saying Ireally feel like God's going to
shift us into doing somethingwith Pastor Rob and Laura, and I
feel God saying we should sayyes.
And I said, but we don't evenknow what they're going to say.
He said I know.
That's why I feel like I wantto tell you God says God says we
should say yes.
(38:43):
And so it was really, reallybeautiful when Pastor Rob then
said would you guys come andconsult at Shoreline for a
Tuesday?
And so we said yes, and so it'sjust once again one of those
God moments that just happened.
And that's really where ourrelationship with 512 and
Shoreline started, and so therelationship just grew and it
(39:06):
really felt like we becamefamily.
Yeah, I love it, and that'swhere the two churches just
became one.
We just more and more felt likethis was God's design, this was
His intent.
Piet Van Waarde (39:20):
I mean, I've been a part of some other
transitions that were similar tothat, in other environments
where two churches start talkingto each other about like hey,
what would it look like tocollaborate to actually join
together?
Similar to that in otherenvironments where two churches
start talking to each otherabout like hey, what would it
look like to collaborate toactually join together?
And they can be supercomplicated, oh yeah, Because
there's all kinds of details youdon't really think about until
(39:40):
you're actually in theconversation.
Yeah, but you guys really didfrom outside looking in.
You guys really did that sowell.
There's a number of people whohave become friends of mine that
were part of 512 yeah and uh,and they seem to love shoreline.
Karin Kriel (39:58):
They do still love working with you and working
alongside you, yeah yeah so youdid that beautifully praise the
lord, he was all over it, he wasall over over it.
I think it really is just thatkind of Yuri says always, he
says success is obedience.
Piet Van Waarde (40:17):
Yeah.
Karin Kriel (40:18):
So if you're in step with him, you're going to
be okay.
Yeah, and I think that's it isonce we felt that unction, that
nudge of this is the next step.
For you it felt unorthodox,just like you said.
It felt scary because it'susually complex.
Piet Van Waarde (40:34):
Yeah.
Karin Kriel (40:35):
And most of the time the track records of
churches doing that is not great.
Piet Van Waarde (40:38):
Not right.
Karin Kriel (40:40):
But now that we look back, the word we got was
that 512 would be sowing intothe soil of the city of Austin.
So we would be sowing ourselvesinto the soil of the city of
Austin, and Shoreline would bethe vehicle that God would use
to bring the fruit forth.
Piet Van Waarde (41:01):
Isn't that gorgeous?
Yeah, love it.
Karin Kriel (41:03):
And so what we're seeing right now at Shoreline,
with people, just you know,coming to Christ, the stories
and the testimonies of lifechange like Sunday after Sunday.
I cannot wait to tell more andmore of the stories that we're
hearing right now and for us, as512 that has sown ourselves
into the soil of Shoreline,there's a part of that that I'm
(41:23):
just going.
Piet Van Waarde (41:24):
thank you, Lord that we get to be here we get
to be a part of this.
Karin Kriel (41:28):
He would have done it regardless of 512 joining
Shoreline.
He would have done it, but nowwe get to be a part of it and I
just love that.
Piet Van Waarde (41:36):
I just love that.
So I mean, this is almostyou've been leading me to this
question already, but what makesyou hopeful about the future?
I mean, obviously you're seeingsuch a great trajectory doing
what you've been doing, and nowthe stories that are coming out
of the experience at Shoreline.
What makes you excited aboutwhat is yet to come?
Karin Kriel (42:00):
Well, I can't help but think about the next
generation.
When you asked me that question, we're quite involved in the
next generation.
When you asked me that question, we're quite involved in the
next generation globally.
I had the privilege of being ontwo calls Zoom calls, no longer
(42:20):
Skype, zoom calls this weekwith just multiple leaders that
lead movements of youngerleaders globally.
I'm talking India.
Just seeing in India what'shappening with the younger
leaders is just glorious.
Asia, just all over the world,africa, oh my goodness, just
(42:43):
beautiful to see the youngerleaders, the passion they have
for really boots on the ground,feeding the people that are
hungry, caring for themarginalized, the poor, the
rejected.
For me, what makes me hopeful?
The next generation?
How brave they are, how boldthey are, how they share the
(43:04):
gospel, how they just don't letup.
What makes me hopeful?
The passion they have when yousee them worship, how they can
worship through midnight withsweat dripping from their heads,
just with absolute adoration orwith absolute surrender on
(43:24):
their knees before the Lord.
I am so excited to be a witnessto what God is going to do
through them and I hope thatthose of us who are a little bit
older only slightly will get inline and make sure that we give
them everything they need tocheer them on to push them
(43:46):
forward, to cheer them on, topush them forward to equip them
well so that they can carry thechurch well into this bright,
bright future that I see for us.
If the church can rise to theoccasion, it'll be the brightest
age that we have yet seen, andit could be either we could be
(44:09):
on the cusp of the darkest ageyet, but I truly believe that
it's not.
It is the contrary, because ofthe young people, because they
are so passionate Once they meetJesus.
They are so passionate and theyare so brave.
And so what makes me hopeful iswhen I look at my boys and not
(44:29):
just my boys, but because I seewhat they're like what their
friends are like.
It makes me hopeful.
Piet Van Waarde (44:37):
That's awesome.
Yeah, this has been such adelight.
Karin, thank you so much forbeing my guest today, and I'd
like to just pray for the workthat you're doing before we
close out.
So, lord Jesus, I thank you forYuri and Karin.
I thank you for the workthey're doing, not only in
Shoreline but around the globe,to invest in and raise up
(44:57):
leaders for your cause and foryour kingdom.
So may they know your blessingin all of it, and may the good
news that we hold so preciouslydear in our own life would be
communicated powerfully andbeautifully through their lives
(45:18):
and the lives of the people theytouch, and we ask this in the
powerful name of Jesus, amen.
Karin Kriel (45:23):
Amen Thank you.
Piet Van Waarde (45:25):
All right, amen .
Thank you for being here andthank you for joining us.
We'd love to see you next timeagain on Sidewalk Conversations.
She was still playing doubles tennis.
Piet Van Waarde (00:03):
She was still playing doubles tennis at 103.
That's impressive.
Karin Kriel (00:08):
She played the violin and she would go to the
neighborhood store and she wouldplay violin and she would raise
money for them to redo thedecor of her side of the
retirement village that she wasliving in.
That was her aim.
And I asked her this question.
I said what keeps you goinglike this?
(00:33):
Because, I mean, this is apretty big feat for a lady of
her age, right?
And she would say I get upevery morning for a reason that
is beyond something for myself.
I get up for an aim that willnot be serving my own goals or
myself.
I get up for someone else.
I get up for something that'llmean something to someone else
and I was just like yes.
(00:54):
Yeah, yes, yeah, that'll workand so it just resonated with me
so much, this lady inspired meso much, that I was like, okay,
I want to be like this lady oneday that lives beyond 100 years
old and is active and fun andspunky and she lives for the
(01:16):
pleasure and the joy of thosearound her, not for herself.
And so Sounds like Jesus alittle bit Right, and I think he
was fun and spunky.
Piet Van Waarde (01:26):
I wouldn't play tennis at 100 and whatever well
, thank you for joining us foranother sidewalkwalk
Conversation and I am delightedto bring a ferner in on this
(01:48):
chat, but before I introduce youto our guests, I want to say a
special thank you to our sponsortoday.
I have been sponsored this yearby Shoreline Church, and so
Shoreline is going to bereferenced, I'm sure, through
this conversation as well.
So I thought I would mentionthe fact that they support the
Van Ward Foundation, and thatfoundation supplies a lot of the
(02:12):
resources that we are able toprovide, both through this
podcast, newsletters, other filmprojects, and so I'm grateful
for the contribution thatShoreline Church makes.
So thank you to Shoreline.
My guest today is from SouthAfrica.
Karin Kriel (02:30):
Yes, well done.
Piet Van Waarde (02:31):
Which, back in the day, was a Dutch colony.
So would you please welcomeKarin.
Thank you for joining me today.
Karin Kriel (02:37):
Thank you so much for inviting me to come and for
being able to say where I comefrom so well.
Piet Van Waarde (02:43):
Yes.
Well, people are going torecognize right off the bat that
you come from a place notnecessarily Texas.
Karin Kriel (02:50):
Yes, absolutely.
I'm sure they will recognizethat, and we've lived here now
for seven years and my accentremains South African, and so
I'm glad it has, because I thinkit's best to just stay true to
who you are.
Piet Van Waarde (03:04):
Well, it makes you so.
It like adds a cool factor ofone or two.
Thank you for saying that.
I'm not sure everyone feelsthat way.
Karin Kriel (03:12):
Oh, I love it.
Piet Van Waarde (03:13):
I think it's great.
I think it's great.
We should actually try and talka little South Afrikaans.
Karin Kriel (03:17):
Oh easy, I could do that all day long yeah.
Piet Van Waarde (03:21):
Was that your first language?
Karin Kriel (03:22):
Oh yes, we still only speak Afrikaans at home.
Piet Van Waarde (03:26):
No kidding.
Karin Kriel (03:27):
Yes, the boys, we only speak Afrikaans, we speak
Afrikaans.
Josh is studying in Dallas, nowmy oldest, and when we phone
him we only speak Afrikaans.
And his friends laugh and enjoyit so much, and so he always
puts us on speakerphone and wehave to say things, and so only
Afrikaans, yes, and so he alwaysputs us on speakerphone and we
have to say things, and so onlyAfrikaans.
Piet Van Waarde (03:45):
Yes, All right.
Well, let's get started there.
So you grew up there.
Tell me a little bit about yourgrowing up years Like, what was
it like?
I mean, it's very obviously aWestern culture, but maybe some
differences.
How was your growing up?
Karin Kriel (03:59):
years.
Yeah, so, growing up in SouthAfrica, I was born in 1980.
I have no problem saying that.
And so interesting part ofhistory in South Africa is I was
born in 1980 and a bigturnaround in South Africa was
in 1995.
What's interesting about thatis in 1995, the Springboks, the
(04:21):
rugby team, actually won theWorld Cup the Rugby World Cup
right, and so it was reallymassive in our country.
So by that time I was 15 yearsold.
Now rewind I was born in 1980.
And so growing up in the 80s Idon't have to really explain
that vibe much, but in ourcountry in those years there was
still a lot of what we know asapartheid right.
(04:44):
So a lot of Americans would befamiliar with that term.
So there was a lot ofseparation, segregation between
white people and black people.
I think there's someassociation of that and in the
history of America there's some,I would say, a resonance where
people could say, oh, I knowwhat that feels like.
I know what that feels like, Iknow what discrimination feels
(05:06):
like.
I grew up as a white Afrikaansgirl in a city called Pretoria,
which is the capital city, whichis where the government is
right.
So there was a lot of thattension in our city, the city
that I grew up in, and there itwas a lot to do with the church,
right.
So my dad was on the churchboard and you would feel that
(05:29):
tension in the house.
you know kind of the politicaldiscussions and the church
discussions were all the same,and so I grew up in a city where
that was kind of, you know,front and center for me growing
up as a white, afrikaans girl.
Piet Van Waarde (05:42):
Yeah, I bet.
Karin Kriel (05:43):
And then being, you know, a teenager, I was also
aware just of racism, but alsoclassism.
So being a privileged whitegirl then was something that I
had to deal with growing up andknowing that.
Well, now, as 1995 isapproaching and the World Cup is
(06:04):
being played and PresidentNelson Mandela is now part of
this big move where he is nowfreed from jail and he is now
the president of our country,and he is now really making a
massive move, not justnationally for us, but globally
in the world.
And just as a girl, navigatingthat as a teenager was massive.
(06:36):
I grew up with my mom, and herparents had a farm in the free
state in the middle of thecountry, and they had farm
workers, black people, and soyou would think that that
segregation was bad there, butit wasn't.
I grew up with a beautifulexample of appreciation.
They valued the people.
They would paint their homes inexactly the ways that they
would want it to be.
I grew up playing with themlike the same way that I would
(06:58):
play with my friends at school.
There was no difference for mein the way that I appreciated a
black person to a white person,the way that I appreciated a
black person to a white person,the way that my family raised me
, and so when President NelsonMandela became the president, we
were happy as a family, we werecelebrating it, and so my
upbringing really was somethingthat I am so thankful for to
(07:22):
this day.
The way that I grew up in acountry where racism and that
racial tension was bad.
It was ugly.
It was not bad and ugly in myworld, In my personal world.
It was something that I wastaught was bad outside, but we
could turn the tide.
We could appreciate a personbecause they're a person.
Piet Van Waarde (07:45):
Was that a product of your faith journey?
I mean, like, was thatsomething that because you
talked about your dad being inthe church and having that
conversation, yes, so was thatpart of how your family
expressed faith?
Karin Kriel (07:56):
I think for sure it was a part of how they
expressed faith.
I'm not sure it was a part ofhow the church we were in would
express faith, but it was a partof how my family would.
Piet Van Waarde (08:07):
That's great.
Karin Kriel (08:07):
And I think there was tension and I think that
they probably faced someopposition that I was maybe not
aware of.
They never told me but, theysurely didn't ever do anything,
mean they set an example to methat I'm so thankful for to this
day.
Piet Van Waarde (08:28):
I love that.
Karin Kriel (08:28):
And so when I think back of those tensions and I
think back of the way I grew up,that's probably the biggest
thing I'm thankful for is I grewup in a time where there was so
much racial tension, but theyexemplified the contrary and I
love them for that to this day.
Piet Van Waarde (08:44):
And do you see that as a common thread?
Maybe in your life from thatpoint to this point, do you find
yourself kind of coming back tosome of those same themes?
Karin Kriel (08:53):
Oh, for sure, For sure.
I think they taught me so much,so many principles, so many
areas of my life where you'rethrown into a culture or you're
thrown into a popularity contestof media or just something of
(09:13):
just this massive thought.
And they taught me a lot oftimes to just ask the question.
You don't have to just becausebe different.
Just because be different, butask the question is this a good
idea?
Am I thinking about the peoplethat are being influenced by
this?
Am I considering the results ofthis?
And so I think yes.
(09:35):
There's for sure a theme ofthat thinking about the people
first and I actually got to meetPresident Nelson Mandela, can I
tell you that yes, please do soin this very church that I was
a part of.
He came to visit that churchand I think it was a good
political move.
Let me just say that so I wasn'toblivious to that, but I
actually got to meet him one day.
Tall man, he was a tall man andI remember being once like
(10:01):
firstly, I was impressed by hisstature, just his physical
stature.
He's a tall man and I rememberstanding in line for a very,
very long time before I couldmeet him and then shaking his
hand and meeting him was quitethe moment.
Piet Van Waarde (10:16):
I'll bet.
Do you remember what he said?
Karin Kriel (10:19):
He has a deep voice and I don't remember what he
said at this very moment, but Ido remember.
I made a note of it and when Ifind it I'll come tell you, I'll
come tell you what happened,but it was quite a moment and I
remember I journaled about itand it has a massive impact on
my life.
Piet Van Waarde (10:37):
How old were you at the time that?
Karin Kriel (10:38):
moment.
Well, I must have been betweenthe ages of 14 and 15, because
he became the president when Iwas 15, which was a pretty
dramatic time span in my life,I'll bet yeah.
Piet Van Waarde (10:53):
All, right now.
We had a conversation a coupleweeks ago.
I want to kind of build on thisfaith development line of
questions and we were in thelobby for about five minutes and
we got into a conversationabout your father and what a
pivotal figure he was in yourlife and then also a bit about
(11:14):
how that became an entry pointinto a deeper relationship with
God, and I'd love it if youwould just retell that story.
Karin Kriel (11:23):
Yeah, we were at Shoreline and I remember the
moment so vividly.
It was impactful for me too.
I think just knowing yourjourney and what you faced just
reminded me so vividly of thatstory.
And it was the same season, 15years old, when I met Nelson
Mandela actually the same seasonand my dad had been diagnosed
(11:46):
with cancer about a year beforeand he was quite suddenly
actually diagnosed.
He just had back pain for along time.
He was a hardworking man and inthe community he was really so
accomplished.
He had become a professor atthe University of Pretoria, the
(12:10):
capital city, and he wasteaching on the board of tourism
at the time as well.
And so really, just you knowsuch an acclaimed man.
I had so much respect for himworking very, very hard, and he
would come home early with justreally severe back pain and he
would go for physical therapyand he would go to the general
(12:32):
practitioner to try and figureout what was going on.
But they couldn't at the timefigure out what it was Until he
went for further tests and theydiscovered some cancer had
spread to his liver and hiskidneys, all over and so then
they discovered that it waslymphoma, and it got really bad
really quickly after that andso I remember, um, actually
(12:56):
being at a dance competition.
I was a dancer really active atthe time.
I was doing latin american andballroom dancing and also what
they called back then highenergy freestyle, which is like
it's just a choreographed kindof dance and I was at a
competition that at the time andhe was in hospice kind of
(13:18):
acutely sick and I would alwayscall him and tell him you know
how I was doing that day in thecompetitions and I remember that
this was a pretty importantcompetition.
I think it was in the run-up tothe South African finals, like
South African championships orit maybe was the South African
championships, so it was apretty important one, yeah, yeah
(13:38):
.
And so I remember calling him,and just as I called him, it
just felt more intense thanusual.
Piet Van Waarde (13:46):
You know when you feel the heaviness of a
phone call like that.
Karin Kriel (13:49):
And so I gave him a call and I remember him not
being able to speak and justtelling him I made it to the
final and saying I made it tothe final, remember hearing,
knowing this might be the lasttime, and I danced my heart out
(14:09):
that day and I won that day.
And I remember going home andwhen I got home my mom opened
the door for me and as I walkedin I knew I knew what the news
was, because she wouldn't havebeen home if he was still alive.
Fast forward to the day of hisfuneral, and I remember standing
(14:33):
at his grave and calculatingall of the success that he had
had.
He was a professor yeah, and hewas a professor.
Against all odds.
He actually was an orphan.
He had lost his mom and hisfather at a very young age and
rose to success against so muchcompetition and odds, really so
(14:57):
many people just disappointinghim all his life.
And yet he was so successful.
And I stood there and I thoughtis this, it Is this the end of
life?
He gave so much, he did sosuccessful.
And I stood there and I thoughtis this?
It Is this the end of life?
He gave so much, he did so well.
And here we are standing at hisgrave with hands full of soil,
of dust, and we're throwing iton.
Piet Van Waarde (15:21):
The casket, yeah, that's it.
Karin Kriel (15:23):
This is the end.
This is the end of all of thissuccess.
And at the time I was obviouslycrying out to God, I was angry,
I was Lord, is this it?
And I so vividly remember itmight have been the most intense
moment in my life of a momentof conversation with God that I
(15:48):
feel like the Lord spoke to mein that moment and I was like
God, is this it?
What am I going to do without afather?
And in that moment it was likethe movie of my dad's entire
life played in front of my eyes.
It was like a quick slideshowjust played in front of my eyes.
(16:09):
And the next moment the Lordsaid to me would you let me be
your father?
And I said yes, but I was angry.
So I said yes, if you show upfor me.
And he said let me show you.
And I remember the next morningto this day.
(16:32):
I remember that next morning.
I remember our rose gardenbeing more vividly bright in
colors than what I'd everremembered it being before.
I remember the sound of thebirds singing.
That morning the sound was morebeautiful than what I'd ever
(16:53):
heard it before.
The rays of the sun justshining on the curtains that
morning it was more vivid thanwhat I'd ever seen the sun
shining in to my room than everbefore.
There was something that hadshifted.
There was something that hadchanged.
It was that new life that hehad promised.
(17:13):
It was me that had surrenderedmy life to him and said yes, you
can be my father.
I am done with a life that I'mtrying to do by myself.
That's over.
I'm going to give you everything.
And from that day on, I trulydid call to God, as my dad and I
(17:36):
remember trusting him forprovision, like physical
provision, from that day on,asking him for help for very
practical things, from that dayon, Love it.
Thank you for sharing thatBeautiful.
Piet Van Waarde (17:50):
The beautiful story, and now you are fast
forward.
Now you are here in Austin.
Karin Kriel (17:57):
Yeah.
Piet Van Waarde (17:58):
You and your husband are pastoring at
Shoreline and we're going totalk a little bit about how you
got here.
But I just want to ask thequestion about your calling.
So did you, from that moment on, when you had this very
personal encounter with the Lordas your father, did you sense
(18:19):
that ministry was going to bepart of that journey?
Or did that come eventuallylater?
How does the ministry piece fitin all that?
Karin Kriel (18:29):
So, as I mentioned the dancing story, dancing was
really what I thought.
This is what I'm going to do,this is what I'd be.
I'd just be a dancer.
That competition that I wonthat day you actually would win,
like if I'd continue dancingyou would win sponsorships, or
like you would win a scholarshipto come to America and come
(18:51):
dance here.
And so the idea of you know,coming to America and being a
dancer here was something that Iwould entertain, something that
I would think about, you know.
So that would be an idea that Iwould think about back then.
But my salvation moment was sodramatic in my life that I
started thinking and questioningall the dreams that I had
(19:11):
before at that age.
So I started thinking how can Ihelp more people experience
this moment?
How can I?
So I was thinking, maybe Icould be a lawyer, maybe I could
get involved in charity orthings like that.
So I vividly remember speakingto my mom about that, and my mom
mentioned that she'd alwayswanted to be a missionary, but
in her day and time that wasjust weird, for a woman to want
(19:34):
to do.
That was just frowned upon, andso she started encouraging me
and saying, well, why don't youdo something like that?
And so we actually went on acouple of missions trips to
Zimbabwe and Zambia together,and I think that's really where
I started feeling like I coulddo this Tell people about Jesus
(19:57):
and share the gospel, and Istarted caring less and less
about the privileged life I wasliving and more and more about
telling people about Jesus, andseeing that transformation that
I'd experienced in their livesbecame more important to me than
anything else, there's nothinglike it there is nothing like it
, and then going from a veryconservative denomination, the
(20:22):
Dutch Reformed- Church to a verycharismatic church, because I
started exploring hearing God'svoice, which was frowned upon in
that Reformed Church, and so Istarted exploring churches that
that was okay to raise yourhands in worship or to what are
(20:47):
the gifts of the Spirit, and sothose kind of things started
happening.
And so I think that's when Istarted feeling hold on, there
might be more for me to explorein a call, and so I started
going on youth camps.
I became part of the ChristianStudent Council of our school,
which is allowed in South Africa, and so there is where my
(21:08):
leadership journey in Christianministry really started was in
school, probably about a yearafter I got saved.
Wow.
Piet Van Waarde (21:18):
I remember something very similar.
There was a pretty radicalconversion for my story as well,
and people will say, well, whendid you feel the call to go
into ministry?
And for me they were almost onein the same.
It was like if the lord coulddo this in my life, yeah, and
totally reorient the way Ithought about life, yeah, my
(21:39):
perception of myself in theworld, yeah, why would I want to
do anything less than letpeople know what's possible?
And so, yeah, I can very muchidentify with that sense of okay
, I got to be about this.
So then you and your husbandpastored a church right in South
(22:00):
Africa.
Or did that happen when you cameover.
Karin Kriel (22:04):
Tell me the timetable, okay.
So Yuri and I met when we werein school as well.
So we met on a Christianstudent camp and knew that we
were both called to ministry,and so we went to Bible school
directly after school, which wasalso a big stretch, I think.
Piet Van Waarde (22:22):
Were you already romantically involved at
all?
Karin Kriel (22:25):
We were.
Do you want to hear the story?
Piet Van Waarde (22:27):
Yes, do you have time for the story?
It's a pretty cool story I lovegood stories.
Karin Kriel (22:32):
Yuri and I were 17 at the time.
I was actually not supposed togo on this specific summer camp
but it's not really insummertime, but it's a summer
camp kind of thing, just to putit in American terms for
everyone to understand.
And so I was not supposed to go, but one of the leaders
couldn't go and so I went.
(22:52):
And so to tell the story really, really short is, I went on
this camp and I remember walkingto go see in what room I was
going to go stay, and so Iwalked past this table where
this guy was sitting on thetable and something in my heart
(23:12):
just felt like who is this guy?
And it wasn't the normalattraction or something like it
was just who is this guy.
And I remember walking past himand going to check my room and
walking past and as we walkedback, my best friend said to me
did you notice that guy?
I said yes, I wonder who he is.
(23:32):
Went on, went to find our roomand that night the preacher that
was there preached about a PaulBarnabas destiny relationship,
kind of trying to get all theteenagers to focus, to not just
flirt with people and, you know,doing the good Christian leader
thing like guys, girls, come on, focus on Jesus, you know he
was trying which was good, verygood, and I was in total
agreement because at the time,having that dance history and
flirting with guys, and I wasdone with that in my life.
(23:54):
I was done with the guys thingand playing around in clubs with
the dance history I had and Iwas really not interested in
guys.
And I remember in my journal atthe time writing a letter to God
and saying God, if I could bealone with just you in a dark
room the rest of my life andhave nothing to do with any guy
(24:14):
forever, I would be so happy.
So I was not interested in guysat all.
And so this Paul Barnabasdestiny relationship thing had
me thinking I was going okay,well, Lord, if it's a destiny
relationship, I would consider afriendship with a guy.
And so, long story short, thedots kind of connected and I
(24:38):
walked past this guy again thenext day and I thought I feel
like maybe this guy is a PaulBarnabas destiny relationship,
but I so feel like I don't havetime for guys that if this guy
doesn't walk up to me and tellsme we have a Paul Barnabas
destiny relationship, I'm noteven going to give him the light
(24:59):
of day and then can you trustthat so I go back to my room.
That night.
Piet Van Waarde (25:04):
How many guys have said that?
Karin Kriel (25:05):
And we have group nights we have like this group
chat right, and we're talkingabout how the message was and
we're praying, and you know, andthis one girl says there's this
guy, karin, I really feel likeyou should meet him.
His name's Yuri.
He's on the student council atour school and I just think that
you guys would get along sowell.
I go no, I have no idea whothis guy is.
(25:26):
And she goes I'm gonnaintroduce you to him.
So you know little, do I know?
And the next girl.
And the next girl goes have youmet Yuri?
Have you met Yuri?
The next day I'm walking to thebeach and this guy comes from
behind.
He goes hi, I'm Yuri.
I'm like, oh, hello.
And he goes yeah, where are youfrom?
And we just kind of startchatting and we start talking
(25:46):
about calling and what we feelcalled to and all the things,
and I feel like, oh, this is theguy.
Right, the Lord reminds me,years ago I had had a dream
about meeting my husband on abeach and he tells me and he
speaks to me about my destinyand I vividly remember his face,
(26:07):
and it's Yuri's face.
Piet Van Waarde (26:09):
Oh, my goodness .
Karin Kriel (26:10):
And I know I'm going to keep quiet about this
because you know you kisseddating goodbye At the time.
That was the thing.
And so then I'm just prayingabout this and I'm going God, he
hasn't said anything about PaulBarnabas destiny relationship.
My best friend is walking withme to the beach the next day and
I'm just kind of processing allof this and she goes Karin, how
(26:33):
are you feeling about this?
And I'm going well, if hedoesn't walk up to me and say
the words we have a PaulBarnabas destiny relationship, I
am not going to give him thelight of day.
That's what I said.
Yuri comes running from behind,he taps me on the shoulder.
He says Karin, I want to tellyou I feel like we have a Paul
Barnabas destiny relationship.
(26:55):
Get out and this best friend ofmine looks at him looks at me
and she just is stunned.
She just stands there silent,she just can't get her word out
and I go.
Well then we have a lot to talkabout and we start talking and
we start planning all the thingsthat we want to do for God
(27:16):
together.
And that was really a massivemoment for us because we started
planning our ministry together.
We started planning about howwe're excited to minister to
young people and we want totrain young people like us to be
passionate about God and sharethe gospel.
And that's really where itstarted.
Where we started talking aboutstarting a Bible school was the
(27:36):
first dream we had, and so wemoved to Cape Town.
Not long after that, wefinished school, moved to Cape
Town, became part of a Bibleschool, got qualified and then
started our own Bible school andstarted traveling with dance
and drama productions and alsotrained them then to become
pastors and so they're all inSouth Africa, and then once we
(28:00):
were about I think it was aboutthree or four, five years into
that we were actually.
Then we became elders of thatchurch, and so that was our
story of church leadership there.
Piet Van Waarde (28:13):
And then, how did you get over here?
Karin Kriel (28:15):
So then seven years later we were a part of a
church in Pretoria, south Africa, called Doxa Deo.
We pastored there for aboutseven years.
God really blessed.
That ministry expandedincredibly From there.
We were then kind of reallyclimbed the ladder in leadership
.
In a way it sounds so bad to sayclimb the ladder because it's
(28:36):
really servant leadership justGod's favor, but God just
blessed that church in a massiveway, and so, in the end, we
were over multiple campusesthere, and that's when God
started speaking to us aboutAmerica again.
What's interesting about howYuri and I met, though, and as
part of our conversation on thebeach, was me telling him I have
(28:57):
this thing in my heart aboutGod sending me to America one
day, and I don't know how he'sgoing to do it and I don't know
when, but I feel like God wantsto send me there one day, and
Yuri said I feel exactly thesame.
One day, maybe God will do it.
We were 19 when we reminded oneanother of it.
We met when we were 17, and wewere 27 when God spoke to us
(29:21):
again and said it's time.
Piet Van Waarde (29:23):
Now the time, yeah, wow.
So then what?
I think I know something of thestory, but I want clarification
.
So you felt a calling to theStates, but also in Austin
particularly.
Karin Kriel (29:38):
Correct.
So Yuri was on a Skype callwith Pastor Tim Hawks At the
time.
We were doing a massive kind ofa unity movement in South
Africa and Pretoria, withmultiple churches preaching the
same series of sermons, but wewouldn't say which pastor was
preaching at which church,because oftentimes in churches,
(30:00):
you know, it's all about mypastor, my church right.
And so we were starting to seesome of that happen in South
Africa and in that city and wethought, okay, hold on, it
really is about God's church,it's about the big C church, and
the pastors were such goodfriends in the city at the time
that they were saying how aboutwe do this?
We swap pulpits and we don'ttell anyone who's going to be in
(30:21):
what pulpit when over Easter,and so for the weeks running up
to Easter they would all swappulpits and no one would know
which pastor is going to be atwhich church.
Piet Van Waarde (30:35):
And were they different denominations?
Karin Kriel (30:37):
It was yes, so similar denominations, similar
denominations, but multiplechurches I'm talking 10, 12
different, massive, like all themega churches would be swapping
, so you wouldn't know who'swhere.
And it was during that timethat we called Pastor Tim Hawkes
for advice because he wasleading or still is leading
Christ Together Network here inAustin.
(30:58):
And so we made friends with himand he said to Yuri well, why
don't you come visit in Austinand why don't you just come
preach here one Sunday?
And, you know, just come seeAustin.
And Yuri was actually on hisway to New York to go, you know,
there for some ministry.
And so he said sure, and PastorTim Hawke said to him, he said
(31:20):
Austin's just around the cornerfrom New York.
Piet Van Waarde (31:24):
We had no idea coming from South Africa.
Karin Kriel (31:27):
So he booked the flights and I remember Yuri
sending me a text message afterhe had preached in Austin and
all he said was this is it?
Wow?
At the time I had been prayingfor a while and God had been
shifting for a while and we hadactually already been handing
over leadership.
(31:47):
A couple of people had thoughtyou know, is there something
wrong?
One of the elders actually tookGary out for lunch and he asked
him.
He said is there sin in yourlife?
Like why are you handing overleadership with no reason?
Like you're not telling uswhat's going on?
Like is there something wrong?
And Yuri said no, I just feelGod is sending us, but we don't
know where yet.
(32:07):
Until we came to visit Austinand so we didn't have a job
offer here, we didn't have aconcrete plan of what God wanted
to do.
But when Yuri came to preachhere, he knew it was Austin.
At the time I remember theSkype call that Yuri had with
Pastor Tim Hawks over thatEaster planning time.
I was sitting at the dinnertable that night and I heard
(32:31):
Pastor Tim Hawks' voice overSkype.
Back then we used Skype.
Hawks' voice over Skype.
Back then we used Skype and asI was sitting at the table it
was as if Holy Spirit leapt inmy heart and told me it's Austin
.
But I knew I was to keep quietand just pray.
And I remember the two boyscame to sit at the table and I
(32:53):
almost felt a little sad forthem because I knew that they
would be uprooted.
And in that moment the Lordspoke so clearly to me about the
fact that this move will be fortheir benefit and it gave me
faith just instantly and I knewthat it won't be us following
our calling.
It would be us following ourcalling but for their benefit,
(33:20):
and so I kept quiet and I prayed.
Yuri didn't know then, yet theboys didn't know, and so when he
came to visit, he wrote and hesaid this is it?
And he called me and he saidCara, and it's massive, like it
feels.
I said I know I can show you myjournal entry and he, he said
you've known for so long.
I said yes, isn't it wonderfulBecause now we have that
(33:43):
confirmation of weeks ago theLord spoke to me and we have
this beautiful confirmation thatGod knew, I knew and we have
that evidence.
And so we have that beautifulstory of God telling us that.
And so then fast forwardtelling you very quickly we sold
everything, we gave lots awayand we really felt like God sent
(34:05):
us here.
And then Pastor Tim Hawkescalled us one night and he said
so we had a meeting with thechurch board and we would want
to offer you guys something, butit might take you long to
consider, so we'll give you lotsof grace to think about this,
but we'd love for you guys tocome and plant a church downtown
Austin.
(34:25):
And Yuri said oh yes, we'reready and he goes.
You don't want to pray, he goes.
We've been praying for a while,We've been selling stuff, we're
ready to come.
And so we just sold everything,we finalized everything and we
were ready to come.
And then we planted the churchcalled 512 City Church in
(34:46):
downtown Austin.
Piet Van Waarde (34:47):
Wow, After two years.
When was that?
What year was that?
It was 2017.
Okay, that was 2017.
Karin Kriel (34:55):
And so just a beautiful, beautiful season of
starting from scratch.
Really loved the church, lovedthe people.
Piet Van Waarde (35:03):
So did you have a little congregation that was
helping you get started, or didyou like, literally you came in?
Karin Kriel (35:10):
We came in to Hill Country Bible Church with Pastor
Tim Hawks.
They obviously did all thepaperwork for us, helped us get
in.
Couldn't have come in withouttheir help.
Just absolute honor andappreciation for them with that
whole process.
And Yuri then came on boardthere for the first year as a
pastor for preaching while westarted getting everything ready
(35:31):
for 512 City Church.
Piet Van Waarde (35:33):
Got it.
Karin Kriel (35:33):
And so we had our first meetings at Hill Country
Bible Church, had our first kindof asking people do you want to
do this with us From there?
And so it kind of started allfrom there.
So Yuri kept on saying we'rebuilding the plane as we fly,
because we were moving into themotions already.
Piet Van Waarde (35:51):
I think that's a common ministry phrase.
Karin Kriel (35:54):
I've borrowed that one before too.
Yeah, yeah.
Piet Van Waarde (35:57):
And so you started a church.
Karin Kriel (36:01):
You did that for two years.
Did you say Correct yeah?
Piet Van Waarde (36:02):
And then was COVID kind of the yes.
Karin Kriel (36:06):
Well, covid wasn't the reason, I think for us, the
relationship with Pastor Rob andLaura was kind of woven through
all of this too, which is alsopretty significant.
I was really good friends with,or still am really good friends
with, pastor Lucinda Dooleyfrom Heelsong, and she had
introduced me to Pastor CherylLuke.
Piet Van Waarde (36:27):
Oh yeah, sure.
Karin Kriel (36:28):
Who introduced me to Pastor Laura Koch, who I had
remembered from years ago,hearing about the Cokes in South
Africa from I think it wasRaymutt Church, and then from
Pastor I also heard about theChampions in Austin, so I was
aware of them years ago alreadyand so, being introduced to them
(36:52):
, had such just respect andappreciation for their ministry
for so long.
And then, when we moved here, Imet Pastor Laura at a pastor's
wives gathering, via Facebook,lucinda Dooley, via Cheryl Luke
been invited to this gatheringand met Pastor Laura for the
first time at that brunch and wejust connected.
(37:16):
That was it.
It was just hello, you are myfriend, love it.
And I remember asking her canwe have lunch with our husbands
together?
And we did, and it's like therest is history.
We were just quick friends andwe then had a lunch together
(37:37):
almost every month since thatfirst time we met wow and so
through covid, I rememberwhenever we could make kind of
make that once a month lunchwork with pastor robin laura,
you and I would still meet withthem and so that friendship
really carried us through for along time.
They would ask us advice aboutwhat we're doing through covid,
(38:00):
and you know we would ask themadvice and just learn so much
from them through it all andjust prayerfully help one
another through some challenges.
And so that friendship reallygrew and after a while it became
really significant becausewe've been consulting other
churches for years now.
And so I remember one morninggetting ready for another lunch
(38:22):
with them and Yuri saying Ireally feel like God's going to
shift us into doing somethingwith Pastor Rob and Laura, and I
feel God saying we should sayyes.
And I said, but we don't evenknow what they're going to say.
He said I know.
That's why I feel like I wantto tell you God says God says we
should say yes.
(38:43):
And so it was really, reallybeautiful when Pastor Rob then
said would you guys come andconsult at Shoreline for a
Tuesday?
And so we said yes, and so it'sjust once again one of those
God moments that just happened.
And that's really where ourrelationship with 512 and
Shoreline started, and so therelationship just grew and it
(39:06):
really felt like we becamefamily.
Yeah, I love it, and that'swhere the two churches just
became one.
We just more and more felt likethis was God's design, this was
His intent.
Piet Van Waarde (39:20):
I mean, I've been a part of some other
transitions that were similar tothat, in other environments
where two churches start talkingto each other about like hey,
what would it look like tocollaborate to actually join
together?
Similar to that in otherenvironments where two churches
start talking to each otherabout like hey, what would it
look like to collaborate toactually join together?
And they can be supercomplicated, oh yeah, Because
there's all kinds of details youdon't really think about until
(39:40):
you're actually in theconversation.
Yeah, but you guys really didfrom outside looking in.
You guys really did that sowell.
There's a number of people whohave become friends of mine that
were part of 512 yeah and uh,and they seem to love shoreline.
Karin Kriel (39:58):
They do still love working with you and working
alongside you, yeah yeah so youdid that beautifully praise the
lord, he was all over it, he wasall over over it.
I think it really is just thatkind of Yuri says always, he
says success is obedience.
Piet Van Waarde (40:17):
Yeah.
Karin Kriel (40:18):
So if you're in step with him, you're going to
be okay.
Yeah, and I think that's it isonce we felt that unction, that
nudge of this is the next step.
For you it felt unorthodox,just like you said.
It felt scary because it'susually complex.
Piet Van Waarde (40:34):
Yeah.
Karin Kriel (40:35):
And most of the time the track records of
churches doing that is not great.
Piet Van Waarde (40:38):
Not right.
Karin Kriel (40:40):
But now that we look back, the word we got was
that 512 would be sowing intothe soil of the city of Austin.
So we would be sowing ourselvesinto the soil of the city of
Austin, and Shoreline would bethe vehicle that God would use
to bring the fruit forth.
Piet Van Waarde (41:01):
Isn't that gorgeous?
Yeah, love it.
Karin Kriel (41:03):
And so what we're seeing right now at Shoreline,
with people, just you know,coming to Christ, the stories
and the testimonies of lifechange like Sunday after Sunday.
I cannot wait to tell more andmore of the stories that we're
hearing right now and for us, as512 that has sown ourselves
into the soil of Shoreline,there's a part of that that I'm
(41:23):
just going.
Piet Van Waarde (41:24):
thank you, Lord that we get to be here we get
to be a part of this.
Karin Kriel (41:28):
He would have done it regardless of 512 joining
Shoreline.
He would have done it, but nowwe get to be a part of it and I
just love that.
Piet Van Waarde (41:36):
I just love that.
So I mean, this is almostyou've been leading me to this
question already, but what makesyou hopeful about the future?
I mean, obviously you're seeingsuch a great trajectory doing
what you've been doing, and nowthe stories that are coming out
of the experience at Shoreline.
What makes you excited aboutwhat is yet to come?
Karin Kriel (42:00):
Well, I can't help but think about the next
generation.
When you asked me that question, we're quite involved in the
next generation.
When you asked me that question, we're quite involved in the
next generation globally.
I had the privilege of being ontwo calls Zoom calls, no longer
(42:20):
Skype, zoom calls this weekwith just multiple leaders that
lead movements of youngerleaders globally.
I'm talking India.
Just seeing in India what'shappening with the younger
leaders is just glorious.
Asia, just all over the world,africa, oh my goodness, just
(42:43):
beautiful to see the youngerleaders, the passion they have
for really boots on the ground,feeding the people that are
hungry, caring for themarginalized, the poor, the
rejected.
For me, what makes me hopeful?
The next generation?
How brave they are, how boldthey are, how they share the
(43:04):
gospel, how they just don't letup.
What makes me hopeful?
The passion they have when yousee them worship, how they can
worship through midnight withsweat dripping from their heads,
just with absolute adoration orwith absolute surrender on
(43:24):
their knees before the Lord.
I am so excited to be a witnessto what God is going to do
through them and I hope thatthose of us who are a little bit
older only slightly will get inline and make sure that we give
them everything they need tocheer them on to push them
(43:46):
forward, to cheer them on, topush them forward to equip them
well so that they can carry thechurch well into this bright,
bright future that I see for us.
If the church can rise to theoccasion, it'll be the brightest
age that we have yet seen, andit could be either we could be
(44:09):
on the cusp of the darkest ageyet, but I truly believe that
it's not.
It is the contrary, because ofthe young people, because they
are so passionate Once they meetJesus.
They are so passionate and theyare so brave.
And so what makes me hopeful iswhen I look at my boys and not
(44:29):
just my boys, but because I seewhat they're like what their
friends are like.
It makes me hopeful.
Piet Van Waarde (44:37):
That's awesome.
Yeah, this has been such adelight.
Karin, thank you so much forbeing my guest today, and I'd
like to just pray for the workthat you're doing before we
close out.
So, lord Jesus, I thank you forYuri and Karin.
I thank you for the workthey're doing, not only in
Shoreline but around the globe,to invest in and raise up
(44:57):
leaders for your cause and foryour kingdom.
So may they know your blessingin all of it, and may the good
news that we hold so preciouslydear in our own life would be
communicated powerfully andbeautifully through their lives
(45:18):
and the lives of the people theytouch, and we ask this in the
powerful name of Jesus, amen.
Karin Kriel (45:23):
Amen Thank you.
Piet Van Waarde (45:25):
All right, amen .
Thank you for being here andthank you for joining us.
We'd love to see you next timeagain on Sidewalk Conversations.
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