16th & 17th August 2026
Here was the plan: Mabasa would drop Josh and I off at the Harare airport early enough so that he could get home to Kadoma at a decent hour. Josh and I would get our bags checked in, clear security, find a nice cozy spot and some delicious coffee, and maybe take in a Greek class or two.
We’re currently both taking a course in Biblical Greek (for busy pastors…and some trainees). It’s been fascinating to begin to learn a little history of the language and also to learn the different pronunciation systems that exist based on research and theories of language development and use. In preparation for the class I’ve been practicing modern Greek using a phone app. There is some overlap and I’m hoping it will eventually pay off with regard to familiarity with the language and general pronunciation. The two main pronunciation systems that prevail within the biblical academic world , in brief, are: Reconstructed (an attempt to pronounce the worlds how they might have been pronounced 2,000 years ago) and Erasmian (basically a purely phonetic pronunciation of each letter, not historically accurate but simplistic and consistent).
We were up and ready at a good time. Not too early and not too late. We had one more cup of instant coffee, and zipped up our suitcases and made sure everything was packed before hitting the road. The cook/housekeeper who took such good care of us mentioned that the owner of Manshu wanted to talk to me so she put the lady on the phone. She was hoping for a positive online review with some photos of the place. I gladly obliged and took a few more photos of the beautiful garden. We said our goodbyes to the gardener and the housekeeper and pulled out through the narrow gate one more time.
I had one more chance to try to and navigate the Harare streets. I still need plenty of direction. We made it to the airport relatively quick since the traffic is generally lighter on Sunday mornings. We climbed out, grabbed our bags, bid farewell to Mabasa, and headed inside.
Mabasa has his work cut out for him as a pastor watching over a whole country with some unique challenges. Perhaps someday he will have more help on a regular basis. For now he has me and the visitors I bring, and the deacons and others within the congregations who all contribute to doing the work that God has given them to do. It’s very much worth mentioning that they all (as well as the rest of us) build on the efforts of those brethren who came before. I’m grateful for all involved.
Josh and I wheeled our bags inside. There are two sets of international check-in counters at the airport. One is the original set that I’ve used many times. The other is the newly built set that I have used only once or twice so far. The airport continues to improve. A man walked up to us to ask if we wanted our suitcases wrapped. We refused and asked for the Emirates Airlines check-in counters. He pointed us to the older counters. We headed there and found out we couldn’t actually check into our flight and drop our bags off until 3pm. We arrived at 10am. I’d encountered this problem once before with a less prestigious airline. I made an assumption that there would be plenty of flights in and out of Harare going to Dubai. Apparently I was wrong.
Backup plan: sit down at Cafe Espresso (which is right next to the check-in counters), have some tasty espresso drinks and scones, chat for a while, catch up on blog writing, and then take the rest of the morning from there. We never did manage to catch up on our Greek studies except for Josh occasionally quizzing me on the chart of articles he has memorized, and me trying to practice a few words and phrases on Duolingo. We decided not to sit at the cafe all day but instead walk around to see what we could see. There was an upstairs area on the arrivals side of the airport that had views of the runway, but there weren’t any planes taking off or landing when we went there.
So onto other places…like the benches…and another walk…and weighing a suitcase just in case. We eventually sat down at the Corner Cafe, a familiar name to me since I’ve visited one of the locations within the terminals several times over the years as I left Zimbabwe. They had good meat pies today. We decided to wait for more coffee until we were inside.
Eventually we were in a line/queue waiting to check in. Then off to get our boarding passes inspected and stamped. Then off to the newer check-in desks to have our passports and boarding passes inspection. Then a nice long line for security. Then an additional bag scan. Then passport control so we could get our exit stamps. And then we were finally inside just after 4pm.
We had just enough time to have our last meal in Zimbabwe at Cafe Nush. I was pleasantly surprised that both cafes where we had coffee brewed Zimbabwean grow coffee beans. I ended up buying a bag of beans at a gift shop right before we headed to our gate to board. I took a couple of photos of the sunset in the background. We were at the airport for more 9 hours. Not exactly what we had in mind, or at least not in the manner we had in mind to sit and sip our mochas and cortados.
As we stood in line waiting for instructions, we met a man traveling home to London with his family. His relatives are Zimbabwean so he and his wife and kids (maybe some other relatives too from the looks of their group) travel there periodically for visits. Then for some reason they sent about half of the passengers downstairs to catch a bus to the plane.
We ended up meeting a German pastor who had come to Zim for the 50th anniversary celebration of the church he serves in. It was interesting hearing a little about his life and challenges. I find it somewhat fascinating to learn about how other churches operate. Not that I want to necessarily compare notes or anything.
One of the most fascinating things about hearing how people operate in different churches in different countries is you get to know more about how religious a place might be. I think about this with regard to NYC. People think of it as a very secular place. And there are no doubt millions who might not actually believe in God, but there are also millions who do believe in God (or some higher power in general) and are religious. The apostle Paul used this factor to relate to the people of Athens as he spoke to them in the Areopagus:
“Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you.”
(Acts 17:22-23)
It was a jumping off point for Paul as he began teaching those who would listen about the true God. He also went on the explain the fact that our purpose in existing truly is to become part of the family of God. We didn’t get quite that far with our new German friend, but hopefully we were able to encourage him and hear some of his struggles.
On the plane we were seated in our usual location next to the galley, facing a jump seat or two. This time instead of just two seats in our row we had a third. Our neighbor for the first 9 hour flight session (which included a stopover in Lusaka) was another Londoner with Zimbabwe roots. We chatted with Paul for quite a while off and on throughout the flight. He expressed his frustration with the way life is these days in the UK. Not just the usual political tensions and everything we might hear in the news. He also sees the lack of churchgoers there which only adds to the troubles people already face. He finds it refreshing to come to Zimbabwe, visit with his family, pick up more Shone and eat some sadza, and dream of the day he will retire to his farm there. His children, who are older teens and young adults, aren’t quite set on Zim as much as their father.
I enjoyed hearing Paul’s perspectives on things and he seemed to enjoy hearing about our beliefs which differ from his Catholic background. He mentioned that seeing some of the very real evidence of the very real spirit realm among some people in Zimbabwe made him begin turning more towards God personally, for protection from the spirit realm and for guidance and strength in his life. I shared the story of the farmer and the witch hunter with him and also told him of some of my brief and thankfully few experiences with the world of unclean spirits. We also talked about tv shows and movies, and about traveling the world. Unsurprisingly you do find that many people on long flights headed to far off destinations did enjoy travel.
There was only one single jump seat in front of us on this particular flight. The flight attendant was initially very busy running around attending to the needs of other passengers and taking photos of small children for little keepsakes. Eventually he sat down. We found out he is originally from Syria but is now based in Dubai (all Emirates flight attendants are based in Dubai). His wife is from France and I believe he said she is also a flight attendant. His favorite place to travel to in the world is Athens. He feels somewhat at home there since the foods are similar to where he grew up. Syria isn’t a rich country, and although he studied to be a mechanical engineer he can’t make a living at that in his own country. For now he and his wife are traveling the world and making some money. Maybe one day they will relocate out of the UAE. Maybe Athens. Who knows.
Before we knew it we were had already stopped in Zambia. Stretched a little as we watched a bunch of passengers disembark, the cleaning crew come in and restock and clean, and new passengers boarded the plane. Soon enough we were back in the air headed for Dubai. Our flight was late taking off from Harare because the plane had arrived late.
The pilot made up some time and we managed to get into Dubai close to the original arrival time, about 6:30am local time. Just enough time for us to disembark, find our bearings and head in the right direction, go through a security checkpoint, make a dash through one terminal to find the exit to get to the terminal we needed, another security checkpoint (I think?) before climbing on a crowded bus headed for the terminal that seemed to be on the other side of the city (not really but DXB airport is rather large). And then finally a passport and boarding pass check. Then downstairs for a bag check and pat down before finally boarding our final plane. What an experience!
We saw Paul at various points going through the same process, and even on the same bus. His flight to London was scheduled to takeoff about 15 minutes before our bus arrived at the final terminal. I hope he made it. Otherwise he’s going to be late for work later today.
What happened next was one of those little things that makes you feel like God cares about even the small details in your life. He does by the way. God knows the hairs on our head, the thoughts and intents of our heart, the hopes and ambitions we have even if they might be somewhat frivolous.
Josh and I were seated in a row of three again and at first there was a young lady seated next to us. Then another young lady came and took her place (some kind of ticket mixup). Just to the left of us was a completely empty row of seats. Immediately Josh asked the flight attendant if anyone was seated there. We’d have to wait and see. More passengers climbed onboard. Two of the four seats were taken. Then a young lady took a third. But she wasn’t supposed to sit there…and we did ask first. I was able to switch seats which would mean on this 14+ hour flight we would have some elbow room, an empty seat next to us, and a better chance of getting some sleep in there somewhere.
Although I didn’t get a chance to chat with the flight attendants seated in the jump seats this time, I was seated next to a young man from Pakistan who is traveling to the US for the very first time. He’s going to attend college in PA and is nervous and excited. I’m not sure exactly what life is like for most people in Pakistan but I get the sense that his family is successful and have been able to provide him a comfortable life there. He’s traveled to at least a few places in the world already but this is his first solo adventure. I gave him some recommendations for places in various states to visit during his free time.
In the midst of conversation I mentioned I enjoy drinking coffee. It turns out so does he. But more than that his father owns a very successful coffee roastery in Pakistan. He’s worked with his father for a while and knows the different coffees and roasting processes. He also knows what good coffee really is. He packed his own beans for the first part of his stent in PA. He’ll probably have to go buy some kind of machine to brew it though.
The rest of the trip mostly consisted of the usual flight routine: sleeping and waking, stretching our legs, meals and snacks, trying to stay hydrated, counting down the hours. Eventually Josh looked over at me and said, “We’re half way there!” And then periodically he would look back and update me on the hours left. I remember four, having thought the flight would never end. Having adventures is always exciting but there’s no place like home. There have been many places I’ve called home but in the second half of my life it’s always been wherever my wife Lena is. I love adventuring but I love adventuring with her most of all. I’m sure Josh has similar feelings about being back home with his wife and baby.
Soon enough…actually after after about 36 hours of airports and airplanes…Josh and I walked out the door at JFK to catch our rides home. Lena arrived shortly to pick me up. The only thing I could think of to mention to Josh was the expectation of his next blog entry. I know everyone is waiting to hear his first impressions of Africa, in particular of Zimbabwe. It’s a unique place to visit, and a unique place to live. There are unique challenges when it comes to striving to be one of God’s called out people. At the same time the challenges we face as God’s people are the same no matter where we are from since we face the same human nature and the same spiritual adversary.
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.” (1 Peter 5:8-9)
Lena and I arrived home in about half an hour after she picked me up. We live very close to the JFK airport. Josh and Ariana, on the other hand, had to drive another 3 or 4 hours which means traffic wasn’t the most pleasant. At the same time it meant Josh had to stay up a little longer to hopefully get back on a regular sleep schedule.
Now it’s back to our usual routines of Greek class, sermon preparations, checking in with family and brethren, planning for the Feast of Tabernacles, and all the rest of life. And as always I’m already planning my next trip to see my brethren in Africa. maybe Josh will be able to join me again on another trip. Thank you all for reading about our adventure to Zimbabwe and thanks for the prayers for a successful trip and a successful return! Stay tuned for a blog post from Josh Vazquez!
-Lewis VanAusdle
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