A "mission" testimony of God's Protection and Provision

by Pastor Brendan Munro

Some of the leaders from the Zambezi region (from l to r) Mike Mpofu, Gweru, Zimbabwe, (new General Secretary); Hosea Kapofu, Gweru; Richard Samalama, Lusaka, Zambia; Godfrey Mpofu, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe; Emmanuel Nkomo, Hwange, Zimbabwe.
Pastor Cyril Ogden has now stepped down as General Overseer of the region after 35 years, to be replaced by Pastor Peter Jenkins.

I travelled to Zimbabwe and Zambia in January this year to speak at our Zambezi region annual pastors' conference. It promised to be a most significant event as leadership of the church in the region was moving away from "missionary dependency" and towards local men whom God has been raising up.
I joined Pastors Peter Jenkins, Doug Darby and Deon Du Preez in Gweru, Zimbabwe, and together we began the long drive to Kizito Mission in the heart of Zambia, where the conference was due to take place.
We decided to stop overnight at Kariba, where we had been offered use of a chalet on the banks of the Lake. At over 230 kms long and up to 40 kms wide in places, Lake Kariba is one of the greatest man-made lakes, providing vital hydroelectric power to the region. The magnificent dam itself provides one of the border crossing points between Zambia and Zimbabwe. I shared one bedroom with Peter Jenkins and the other two guys shared the second. I slipped into peaceful sleep that night to the sound of barking hippos in the near-by pools and formations of mosquitoes attempting to airlift me to their secret storehouse where they could stash me for future feasts. I was sure I heard them humming "fee - fie - foe - fum" as they peeled off and dived towards me.
I set my alarm for 5.30 the next morning, hoping to catch a beautiful sunrise before setting off for Zambia. But the next morning brought an unwelcome shock for us all - we had been robbed during the night.
Peter, Doug and Deon ran frantically through the chalet hoping to discover that it was only a dream, or perhaps a memory lapse, and that at any moment they would remember where they had left their possessions. But no, we had been well and truly robbed. Everything had been taken - their suitcases, clothes, briefcases, money, passports, foreign exchange, ID documents - everything. Doug and Deon were left in only the boxer shorts they had slept in.
As they turned and asked if I too had lost everything - I could hardly bring myself to check. The thought of being stuck in the middle of Africa without any form of ID, passport, money, clothes etc - was terrifying. But to my utter amazement, not a single thing belonging to me had been taken. Not a single thing! My suitcase was where I had left it and my holdall, which contained my money, passport, camera, pda, mobile phone etc, was untouched. Even my watch was still on the bedside table between the two beds. Peter's watch, which had lain next to mine, had been taken, but mine was left. It was almost as if everything belonging to me had been invisible! I was caught between conflicting emotions of relief that I had lost nothing, but grief that my friends had lost all.
I felt very strongly that God wanted me to continue on to the conference, but I had no means of doing so. At about that time, another pastor by the name of Mike Roberts was also on his way to the conference in Zambia, but was intending to go through the Churundi border post well to the north of Kariba. He was unaware of what had happened to us, but at the last moment, felt prompted to change course and come through Kariba instead. As we met at the border and Mike said he had room in his vehicle, I knew God had provided the means for me to continue.
The conference itself was wonderful. The "missionary leadership" might have been unavoidably detained, but God wasn't! There was an awesome sense of His presence as new leaders rose up in confidence and stature to take the church forward. One sensed that history was being made, that the church had crossed into a new era, and I was privileged enough to be there to witness it.
Why was I so wonderfully spared in the robbery while my friends lost all? I don't know the answer to that - Jesus sometimes works in mysterious ways. But I do know this - very many people were praying for me. It might have been a routine trip for the others, but for me, coming out from England, it was definitely not routine and I was somewhat apprehensive. Many from The Gospel Centre, the Harvest Community Network and readers of the website prayer page were all lifting me up in prayer. I even discovered upon returning that a church completely unknown to us had "coincidentally" and anonymously adopted The Gospel Centre and myself in particular as a prayer focus for that very week! It made me wonder what things in my everyday life here in London I might be taking for granted and not praying about. We should pray without ceasing! And while we're at it, maybe we could pray for Peter, Doug and Deon, that God would help them in replacing stolen documents (getting new passports and ID's in Africa can be quite difficult). Perhaps we could also pray for God's protection and guidance for some of our leaders in the Zambezi region (see photo).