Ministry Overview

Choose to Wait - Vision:

To bring about an AIDS-free world through the restoration of the Biblical foundation of sexuality and marriage that will lead to strong marriages, happy families and successful work.

Choose to Wait - Mission:

To instruct and instill the Biblical foundation that sex was made for marriage, and marriage was made for love, by training of teachers and by being positive role models to children, youth and parents in schools, clubs and churches.

 

Biblical mandate:

Genesis 2: 24-25
For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.

Malachi 2:15

Has not the LORD made them one? In flesh and spirit they are His. And why one? Because He was seeking godly offspring. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.

Emphasis:

The emphasis of Choose to Wait is on abstinence before marriage and faithfulness in marriage. It gives youth a strong moral foundation on which to base their choices.
Choose to Wait (CtW) teaches a positive view of the equal value that both male and female have as human beings and provides skills to maintain a lifestyle of sexual fidelity in all relationships.

Our Staff

Sylvia Holtzhausen, Choose to Wait Author and Director

Born November 29, 1957 in Johannesburg, South Africa, Sylvia was raised in Port Elizabeth. She made a commitment to Christ at age 9 during a Vacation Bible School at a local Baptist church near her home. She was discipled and grew in her faith at this church through the youth group.

She received her degree in Biblical studies at University of Port Elizabeth and Higher Education Diploma from University of Pretoria. Sylvia taught high school for 8 years. She was involved with Youth For Christ Pretoria where her husband Jos served as Director.

Sylvia met her husband in high school at a Youth For Christ group. They have been in ministry together for 30+ years. Jos and Sylvia have two adult children: Jessica and Ann-Marie.

They started Christ's Hope International to focus on the AIDS pandemic in Africa with a tri-fold mission: teach prevention using the Choose to Wait curriculum; care for orphans and vulnerable children; provide care and compassion with those dying of or affected by HIV and AIDS.

 

Helen Crown, Choose to Wait - USA Country Coordinator

Helen Crown comes to the Choose to Wait USA ministry with a strong background in Christian service and ministry.  She teaches graduate level classes in Parenting, Marriage and Human Sexuality at Spring Arbor University, Dearborn.  She is co-founder and former Board President of the Michigan Association for Sexual Health, a group dedicated to unifying and empowering individuals and organizations which promote sexual health and the prevention of risky behaviors in youth. Until recently she served as Board President with the Alternative Answers to Abortion Pregnancy Resource Center in Livonia, Michigan.  She is a State of Michigan certified Sexuality and HIV and AIDS Educator.

Over the last eight years Helen has worked in several concurrent positions as a presenter and teacher, educating both youth and adults on issues involving God's plan for marriage, sexuality and gender. Believing that parents must be the primary educators and influencers over their children's worldview of sexuality, she seeks to equip parents in educating their children on issues pertaining to sexuality, gender roles and healthy relationships. She has written and developed church curriculum on a number of subjects, from Scripture understanding to leadership development.  Her curent focus is on developing materials that teach God's design for marriage, sexuality and gender for the specific audiences of pregnancy centers, Christian Schools, schools of higher education, small group Bible study and youth groups.

Helen is a former United States Army Officer and holds a Master of Christian Education from Michigan Theological seminary. She makes her home in Plymouth Michigan with her husband and two teenage children.

Contact Helen at helen@Christshopeusa.org or 734.718.2877.

The Response

The response to Choose to Wait since its debut has been robust. Literally thousands of children and teens have been taught in Africa and in the West. The curriculum continues to be rounded out and increased by Sylvia Holtzhausen, content creator and primary instructor. Using a combination of Biblical study, her own personal experiences and her teaching gifts, Mrs. Holtzhausen has crafted a program that is clearly struck a responsive chord in Africa. As this young man testifies:

"For a long time I have been struggling to find a strong Biblical foundation for abstinence. You have given me such confidence in Scripture that abstinence is God's will for my life. I have learned how to base everything in my life using the word of God as a standard. I learnt that abstinence is not merely to escape HIV and AIDS but rather as a Biblical principle of purity. I am going to be a cycle breaker. I will not repeat the mistakes of my parents. I'm going to be a good husband and father (protector) and a self disciplined guy."

Choose to Wait is taught in the African countries of Namibia, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Tanzania, South Africa and Zimbabwe. It is also taught in China and Thailand, Holland and the United States.

From the United States:

After completing the Teacher Accreditation course one teacher commented,

"Choose to Wait undergirds everything I've been teaching my students for the past three years! It has given me the words to clearly encapsulate God's Truth about sex and marriage for my students. It confirms everything I've known in my heart to be true about sex and puts it in plain, easy to understand, terms and illustrations."

Another teacher,

"Powerful material! The Choose to Wait foundations have become part of my everyday language."

And from a pregnancy resource center Executive Director:

"This is it! This is what we've been looking for to help our clients experience true life change. We're planning on implementing the Choose to Wait material into the Earn While You Learn program as soon as possible!"