Vuyisile Petrus Ndhlebende was born as one of 11 children on a small farm near Bloemfontein in 1962. After initially working with his father as a seasonal worker on the farm, he started working on the mines in Secunda in Mpumalanga at the age of 17. It was here that he started preaching and, in the process, reconciled black Africans and took on the apartheid system. This cost Ndhlebende his job, however, and he had to move back to the farm. He continued preaching and took up Biblical studies until he obtained his Doctorate in Philosophy and Theology through the International Theological Centre in 2001. After being expelled from the church he was then in, Ndhlebende started a church in his father’s house. By 1990, he had grown his church and started evangelising in tents. It was such a big congregation that he later established one in Khutsong. His church was so well-known that many provincial and national celebrities and leaders attended his services when they were in the area. He is survived by his wife, Nokuzola Mavis Ndhlebende, his daughter Nontsikelelo Grace and sons Bonakele Joshua and Themba David Ndhlebende. 
