January 3rd, 2023
The rainy season is ongoing in parts of Southern Africa right now. It’s also the middle of Summer in the Southern Hemisphere. I’ve only ever had the chance to visit Zimbabwe during the drier parts of the year when the dust kicks up in a breeze and the sun beats down, touching everything everywhere. It will be a change to experience the rain and to see how it changes the landscapes.
In the past several years there have been two separate Feast of Tabernacles sites set up for our members there. In 2019 I was able to visit the current location at Lake Chivero near Harare, and then in 2022 I visited the village of Chemba where our members live and regularly meet for Sabbath services. In 2022 during my visit the chief and his brothers agreed to give the congregation a piece of land that they could develop. The plan is to begin the development process soon so the congregation has a place to meet regularly. We’re praying that everything goes smoothly and that the land will be a benefit to the brethren in many ways, and also to the others in the village.
Over the past few years as prices have increased, as other groups have vied for the same site, and as the administrators have changed, it seemed wise to begin searching for a plot of land to house the brethren during the Feast of Tabernacles near Harare as well. One of the most central locations in the country is the city of Kadoma, where pastor Mabasa Chichaya and his family live. The city sits along the main road between Harare and Bulawayo, and has a long history of mining and agriculture. There is land for sale in the area which is waiting to be bought up and developed. Just this week the initial paperwork has been completed and a plot of land in Kadoma is ours! This is a hopeful and exciting development for the brethren in Zimbabwe.
Here are a few photos of the property in Kadoma courtesy of Mabasa.
I’m planning a trip this month to visit Kadoma and the Chichaya family, to see the congregation in Harare, and to see the land where, God willing, they will hold the Feast of Tabernacles this coming year. It will be a blessing to see the place in the rain, to see the potential for the gathering of God’s people there year after year.
– Lewis VanAusdle
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