VBS Offering Blesses Orphans

What does a small Vacation Bible School in northeast Texas, some Zimbabwean Baptist Women, and some Zimbabwean Baptist Men all have in common? They have all contributed toward the preparations for the opening of the Baptist Orphan Care Hostel in Southern Zimbabwe.

Ever since missionaries Gregg and Donna Fort began working with orphans, Leesville Baptist Church (the church Gregg pastored before being appointed as a missionary) has given their VBS offering to help provide with the orphan ministry. In the past, the money has primarily been used to help purchase school supplies and other needed items for orphans. This year was a little different.

In an earlier blog we shared with you how huts were being prepared by Baptist Men in Mberengwa so that a few orphans will have a place to stay near a primary and secondary school. Their meals will be provided, and they will have “parents” to take care of them and see that their physical, mental, and spiritual needs are met. It is hoped that eventually the orphan care center can hold as many as 60 children, but we are starting small this year with only 9.

One of the needs was for curtains in each of the huts in which the children will be living. With the VBS money Donna purchased fabric for curtains and cut them the right size.



Then the Baptist Women of Mkoba Baptist Church in Gweru, spent an afternoon working together to get the curtains made.



Different groups were assigned different tasks.



With the remaining money Donna was able to purchase basic school supplies for the 9 orphans who will be living in the boarding facility this year. Also purchased were a globe, a flag, dictionaries and other resource books as well as Bibles and hymnbooks which will be used by the children.



Thank you Leesville Baptist Church for helping these orphans get off to a great new start.

FBC Murray, KY Construction Team at Sanyati

In a previous blog we shared some of the things the ministry team from FBC Murray were involved in. Now we want to share some of the work the makeover team was involved in at the hospital. Alan Haley, Danny Woods, Eddie Jones, David Lampkins, Steven Cobb, Bradley Cobb, Warren Edminster, and possibly others (forgive me if I left anyone out) participated in the work at the hospital. One group was assigned to paint walls.



Another group was given the assignment to divide a room in half by bricking it up.
One of the small rooms will be used to house the batteries for the new solar powered system that will be installed to help provide power when the electricity is off, which right now is most of the time!



The team had to mix their own cement.



They were joined by a man from Sanyati, Thomason Job who knew how to lay the bricks and was happy to help out. He told the team that Dr. Giles Fort, the missionary doctor who established Sanyati Baptist Hospital, was the doctor who delivered him into the world. He wanted to help fix up the hospital so it would continue to help many others in the years to come.



While some were laying bricks, others were knocking a hole in the wall to put a door to enable hallway access to the new room.



Even though they faced some interesting problems and challenges, the team managed to finish the brickwork and the door before their time was up! YEAH TEAM!

Sanyati Makeover and Ministry Team

While most folks in the U.S. are bundled up and enjoying family time over the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, volunteers from FBC Murray, Kentucky came to Zimbabwe to spend their holidays working overtime at Sanyati along with 20 Baptist Zimbabwean college students who also came to work.



After a tour of the hospital, (Friday 30th Dec.), the team divided up. The construction workers got started on renovating the room where the batteries for the solar power system will go.

The ministry team headed to Arda, a very very small little town that is near Sanyati to do door to door visitation. They wanted to invite all the children to come to the Vacation Bible School they planned to start that afternoon. The visiting teams also led several people to LORD.



On New Year’s Eve the day began with a breakfast of bread, butternut squash and tomato relish along with hot sweet tea.



Pastor Willie Green was kind enough to show some of the construction workers how to be “cool” in Zimbabwe. We hope they don’t forget!



Then all of the Murray team along with the Zimbabwe college students participated in a joint Bible Study and prayer time before heading out to their respective ministries.
A large crowd of children came for VBS in afternoon and had a wonderful time playing games and learning about Jesus. Each child made a “wordless” and “pictureless” book with the different colours which represent the plan of salvation. The children were taught how to use the books to witness to others.



During a quiet moment Pastor Willie Green was able to show off his new “ride” to some of the college students. It definitely needs pimping – it doesn’t even have an engine!
(Just kidding – it’s only the shell of a vehicle that has been sitting there a very long time.)



That evening, the team members and university students participated in the New Year’s Eve Service At Sanyati Baptist Church. Just before midnight, Pastor Dhlula invited each person to write on a piece of paper the mistakes they made and regretted during 2011.
Then each person was given the opportunity to burn their mistakes in the fire and put them behind. Then the pastor prayed a blessing over each person as they began the New Year!

On Sunday (New Year’s Day) the team divided into five groups and went to five different Baptist Churches to minister in various ways.

Pray for the other Sanyati Makeover and Ministry teams that are schedule to come in 2012 that they will be as productive in the construction work and as effective in ministering to the spiritual needs of the Sanyati area as this team has been.

Ramona Beam visits Moyo Family at Shauro

Recently I had the privilege of visiting for a weekend in the home of an Ndebele pastor’s family in a village in the area around Mberengwa, Zimbabwe.



This was such a wonderful time of learning for me, of both language and culture of the Ndebele people. The purpose of my visit was “language immersion”, in other words, to be in a place where the Ndebele language is spoken, and to learn about the culture of the Ndebele. Living in town as I do where most people speak English, it is sometimes a bit of a challenge to find language helpers willing to help me with practising my language skills.

My arrival coincided with the arrival of a volunteer team from the US, who were providing seed maize for the church members. The rains would begin soon signaling the start of the planting season, so this gift was greatly anticipated and appreciated. All the members of Shauro Baptist Church came to greet us, with singing, rejoicing, and prayers of thanksgiving.



After everyone had spoken to express their thanks, and had received their seeds, we all loaded up in our vehicles to go to the home of the Moyo family, where I would spend the weekend. After formal greetings and welcome, the volunteers left to go to their place of ministry, while I remained behind with the Moyo family. Baba Moyo is the lay leader of Shauro Baptist Church, and an elder in the church. He and his wife have three children, Ayanda, who is the oldest son, Busane (second son), Ntokozo (daughter), and Nkosi Khona, the baby and youngest son.



I was immediately shown to the room I was to be given for the weekend. I was amazed and very humbled to realize that I was being given Baba and Mama Moyo’s very own room, and I was to have the only bed the family owns. The entire family would sleep on the floor so that I could have their bed! When Mama Moyo tentatively asked if I would be willing to let their daughter sleep with me, of course I could do nothing but agree.

Our first task was to go and fetch water from the village borehole (well). Carrying enough water for the family (plus me as their guest) was no small task. Ayanda loaded up their water barrels onto the wheelbarrow, and Mama Moyo and I each carried additional buckets. The walk to the borehole was about a kilometer. Not too bad going there with our empty buckets, but quite another story on the return trip, carrying the water. I made an amazing discovery, however. It really is much easier to carry a bucket of water on one’s head than it is to carry it down by your side. I also learned why most African women I have met have such good posture and stand and walk so regally. It’s because, when you have a 20kg (44 lb.) bucket of water on your head, you must stand and walk very straight or risk an unexpected shower right then and there! I actually made it back to the kraal (homestead) without spilling. That is amazing in itself!

The next task was cooking supper. Since the weather was very, very hot, we decided to use the outdoor kitchen to cook the meal of isitshwala (or sadza, a paste made from mealie meal, or corn meal, about the consistency of mashed potatos—a staple in the diet here), chicken, and a vegetable sauce or gravy. When I say the outdoor kitchen, I’m not talking about a gas grill…first we had to build the fire, then kill the chicken and pluck the feathers before we could start cooking!

By the time we finished preparations and ate our meal, people from the village had begun to gather at the Moyo’s home. Before long, it seems the entire village was there, talking, visiting, and laughing together. Then, the singing started. There were songs and dances performed by the youth, children, and some of the adults. Rarely have I had the opportunity to be a part of such joyful celebration. It lasted well into the night, but eventually folks started drifting away to their homes, and everyone settled down to rest.

Early the next morning (the sun is up by 5am here during the summer months), everyone was up and dressed, and the day started. Work must be done early in the day during these months, because in the middle of the day it is too hot to do much outside in the sun. Mama Moyo seemed tireless in her energy, making sure all the children were bathed and dressed, making everyone’s breakfast (when I asked to help, she just directed me to sit; I could help after morning tea), and washing up the dishes from the night before. During the day, a seemingly endless stream of visitors came, mostly ladies coming to greet the white visitor. Some even brought gifts, some eggs, a bit of sugar or tea, and one lady even presented me with a staw mat she had made. Everyone helped me with language, teaching me new words and phrases, and how to use them properly.



After a day of visiting with these precious ladies and helping with household chores, once again the village gathered for singing and celebration. I asked Mama Moyo if they do this all the time, to which she replied, “No, it is because you are here.” This night, I was so humbled when there was a “Thanksgiving Ceremony”, during which many of the villagers made speeches and offered prayers, thanking God for my coming. What an honor and a blessing!

All too soon, Sunday morning came, time for my departure. I will always cherish the friendships I made during this special weekend, and hope to return for many more visits.

However, the weekend was not over. From Shauro, I rejoined the volunteers and we went on to Nyezi, another nearby village area, for a baptism service held by a new church that has been started in that area. Thirty were baptized in the river that morning. What an amazing time!

Mahatshula Baptist Church

The weekend of November 26-27, 2011 was a very special time in the life of Mahatshula Baptist Church. The celebration began on Saturday, the 26th, with a baptism service during which five young people were baptized. The ages of the candidates ranged from 11 up to 24.
When I arrived at the church before the service, a makeshift baptismal pool had been set up beside the church shelter, consisting of a circle of chicken wire with a large tarpaulin draped over it. Church members were still carrying water to fill the pool, so there was a bit of a delay until they had enough water to immerse the candidates. Then, things moved very quickly, since a small hole was discovered in the tarp, and all the baptisms had to be done before the water leaked out.



One of those being baptized was the oldest daughter of the pastor of the church. At the age of almost 12 years, P. made the commitment to follow Christ in baptism after her confession of faith earlier this year. How wonderful for Pastor to be able to baptize his own daughter, and as well as his nephew during this service.



Another young man, T., (pictured above) was baptized at the age of 22. Even though he was born into a Christian family, he found it difficult to find Christ. Submitting to peer pressure, he occasionally drank, watched ungodly videos, and fell into other temptations that he knew were wrong. When he became a Christian four years ago he says his biggest challenges were, “growing in his relationship with God, changing his mindset, forgiving those who have wronged him, and letting go of some of the stuff he knows God wants him to get rid of.” Pray for T. and other Christian young adults in Zimbabwe as they seek to overcome peer pressure and grow daily in their walk with God.

One other young man, and a teenage girl rounded out the candidates for baptism that day. The Sunday morning service the next day was a time of thanksgiving and celebration for the entire church. We heard reports from the various ministries of the church, from the ladies’ Bible study group to the youth, worshiped with songs and prayers of thanksgiving, celebrating the Lord’s Supper, and hearing a message from the Word from a guest preacher.

After the service, the ladies of the church laid out a feast to end all feasts to bring to a climax our weekend of celebration. Wonderful food and fellowship was enjoyed by all. And oh, so much food! Out of their meager stores, these ladies went all out to share with the church the very best of what they had.

Please pray for Mahatshula Baptist Church as they reach out to the community around them. Pray especially for these new believers who were baptized during this weekend of thanksgiving and celebration. Pray that they will be a light shining in the darkness in their community, and that they will share boldly the Savior that they have accepted as Lord of their lives.