BIG SUNDAY

Last Sunday was our Associational "BIG" Sunday where all the 

churches in the Gweru area come together to worship.  We met 

in Mkoba Baptist Church.  There was a lot of great singing and 

dancing and wonderful fellowship as we worshiped together. 

Everyone was all dressed up, even the little ones!  

Pastor Chigumbu preached about the Two Spiritual Kingdoms.  He reminded us that if we are serious about reaching the lost there are some changes we need to make in the way we as believers act toward one another.  The world won't take us seriously unless they see and experience the love of God in us.  We also have a problem of lack of unity and don't show the joy that Christians should experience if they are truly walking with God.  And above all we have a serious problem with jealousy that is keeping us from doing the work God has called us to do.  Instead of building one another up we do all we can to discredit one another with gossip and slander.   We must distance ourselves from the evil one and not allow him to create divisions among us. Let us overcome the tactics of the evil one so we can concentrate on being witnesses for Him in Zimbabwe. God's blessings are upon unified believers.  He will guide us and give us the power we need to fulfill the task He has given us.   Please pray for our churches to overcome the issues that the pastor talked about in this sermon.  

Some of the Baptist Men in their uniform.

Some of the WMU ladies wearing their fancy uniforms.

I can see to read my Bible again!

Recently, Steve Beaty and his team drove out to the Matopos area (outside Bulawayo) to do a rural eye camp. The Lord blessed, he managed to see 135 folks, and the tennis team got to experience the joy of seeing folks receiving eyeglasses and remarking ....now I can read my bible again!   Steve did an amazing job - it isn't easy to see patients all day when you are jet lagged!! 

The tennis team, made up of four high school boys from the U.S. had a great time playing soccer with the school children late in the afternoon and sharing Jesus with them.

While they were here, the tennis team held tennis workshops in various schools in the Bulawayo area.  They even taught one day on two courts without fencing!  That was a challenge.  Overall, 250 students from various schools participated in the tennis program. These guys did a wonderful job of sharing their testimonies and they brought a lot of encouragement to many students.  

Steve and Jane Beaty would appreciate prayers as they go into a couple of new areas for non-surgical and surgical eye camps.  Pray that as they minister to physical needs, that the spiritual eyes of their patients would be opened to Christ and that they would welcome Him into their lives.

Forcing Their Way into the Kingdom of God

The volunteer church planting team, led by Patrick Chandler from Longview Heights Baptist Church in MS, had a very fruitful experience.  One of the highlights of their trips was being able to see some of the people who had trusted Christ last year when they came and to see the church that was started then.

This year they ministered at the Shumagange Primary School and the surrounding area. (Located in the Mberengwa Resettlement Area of South Central Zimbabwe.)  About 140 people trusted Christ and 20 came for discipleship. How exciting it was to see a church started in this area. 

Chandler commented, " We had about 55 people not counting our ministry team come to worship with us on Sunday morning. One day as we were preparing to head out to go hut to hut, one of the people we had shared the gospel with previously shared with their neighbor and they came to our camp for us to tell them about Jesus. Apparently as word spread about us being at Shumagange Primary, people were coming to see us before we could go see them."

How amazing it is to be in a place where people are hungry and thirsty for God.  ". . . the Good News of the Kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it."  Luke 16:16   We pray that more and more people will continue to press forward to enter the Kingdom of God in Zimbabwe!

  

Life with the Moore Family

Nick and Kyndra Moore arrived in Zimbabwe just after Christmas,2015

with their 7 children.  Their first few months have gone really well.  Now that six months have passed, the “newness”, “excitement” and “sense of adventure” is wearing off, especially as they face

the reality of living in a third world country.  Missing home and familiar things is hard.  Lack of understanding culture and cultural clues in conversations is frustrating and leads to misunderstandings.  Pray for them as they work through these issues faced by all new missionaries.  

Nick has been learning the ropes at the seminary and getting to know the faculty there.  He is teaching part time while he and Kyndra do their language and culture acquisition. He hopes to help decentralize our seminary education to make leadership training accessible to more people where they live.  Please pray for him and others as they seek to make this a reality.

 Kyndra has a mother’s heart for children everywhere and has great compassion for the orphans and street kids in Gweru.   She has found the church where they are fed each day and is going periodically to tell them a Bible story before they eat.   She got to share the gospel with them a week ago and 6 of the kids prayed to receive Christ.   Pray for these street kids that their hearts and lives will truly be changed as a result.  Pray that God will pave the way for a better future and give them the desire to become more than beggars who are dependent on sniffing glue.

Their older children are attending Midlands Christian School.   The boys are learning how to play rugby for the first time and enjoying this rough and rugged game.  

The younger children are enjoying getting to know their caretaker, exploring their world and are also learning how to speak Shona! 

Obedience Based Discipleship Training (T4T)

Last week (6-10 July) Gregg and Donna Fort trained 19 men in Obedience Based Discipleship. 

  This is a process whereby from evangelism to discipleship to church formation to leadership training one moves seamlessly through with a plan of action for disciples every time they are willing to say yes to the next step.   It is a process commonly known as Training for Trainers (T4T) that is revolutionizing and multiplying the efforts of those involved in church planting both in the U.S. and around the world.  We are thankful to have received the training and now have the ability to train others.  

Please pray that these men who have been trained and are excited about what they have learned will put it into practice where they live and that they will find obedient, God-prepared people who will help multiply the work of the Kingdom of God on earth.  

Pray also that from these men we will be able to develop a training team that can train other faithful men and women throughout Zimbabwe in this proven process.