Church Visits, Crocheting, and a Snake

With the pastor and his wife at Barrington Community Church

We hope you all had a wonderful Easter celebration yesterday with your families and friends.

We have been in a whirlwind the last few weeks. Our watches have already had to be changed several times because of how often we have been changing time zones. Janeece arrived safely in Zim on March 1 and we helped her get reacquainted with Chinhoyi and our house. Two days later we flew to visit Yolanda's mother. It turned out that the Sunday we were there was Mothers' Day in the U.K. So it was perfect timing for us to be there and we had a wonderful visit with her and Yolanda's brother.

We arrived in the U.S. (Chicago) on March 9, with a day to regroup before leaving for Shreveport, LA. We were warmly welcomed by friends from one of our supporting churches, Westview Christian Church. We were in town for several days, including formally updating the church on Sunday, March 13. It was great to be able to visit with everybody there and we appreciated their hospitality.

We were also able to meet with leaders from a nearby church plant in Shreveport, where we learned that this church (Refuge Church) has chosen to partner with JM2Z on a consistent basis. This was very exciting news. The good news continued the following week when we traveled directly from Shreveport to Syracuse, NY. We were so glad to be able to visit everybody at Barrington Community Church on March 20. At the conclusion of the service, we learned that the church has decided to partner with JM2Z on a monthly basis. What exciting news for the second week in a row and we are so very thankful for all of the individuals we were able to catch up with! We treasure all of our friends from each of these locations and feel blessed for the time that we were able to spend with them.

​From Syracuse, we traveled to Wheaton to be able to spend Easter with family. Then, we will leave tomorrow to visit Albion Evangelical Free Church, outside of Minneapolis.

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Work Continuing in Zim

Two weeks before we left Zim, during Yolanda's sewing group with the ladies, she introduced them to crocheting. Just as sewing had been, crocheting was brand new to them and they were very eager to learn. They were only able to do two sessions before we left, but Yolanda taught them how to crochet squares (as can be seen below, to the left). Each lady received a ball of yarn after the first week and were asked to go home and each crochet two squares before the next week for homework. Well, everyone liked it so much, that they returned with a pile of squares, each finishing their balls of yarn! The women got together on their own time, crocheted the squares together, and completed the blanket that you see below! We are sharing more about this during our visits to all of you, so we'll wait to share more details about it.

They completed this blanket, even adding a lace trim, which they hadn't even been taught how to do! They were so very proud of their accomplishment, and rightfully so. As you can see from the picture, the blanket isn't perfect. There are flaws. The squares aren't all straight. It was made by ladies who had just learned to crochet for the first time two weeks before! They did amazing work for having just a few days practice. Yolanda likes to say that it is perfectly imperfect ;-) There is more to come in the next blog about what will be happening with this blanket.

​Just before flying, we left them with materials and tutorials. They are currently working on crocheting ear warmers, wristers (gloves without fingers), and boot cuffs. We have received messages telling us that they are continuing to meet each week at the regular time in order to work on these projects. The goal is to be able to eventually sell these items locally and stateside. Below are pictures of some of their work, since we have been gone.

Chinhoyi Happenings

A couple weeks ago, Janeece sent us an e-mail and pictures of some excitement that took place at our house. Western was outside and heard some kids in the street yell, "It's going under their gate. It's going under their gate," in Shona of course. He looked down the driveway to see a snake coming toward the house. It stopped near the kitchen door and Western pelted it with stones and rocks. After a few minutes of the snake staying still, Janeece hit its head several times with a stick to make sure that it was dead. They examined it and realized that it was a 3.5 foot cobra. A cobra is a deadly snake, so it was definitely a blessing that they were able to kill it. As you can see in the pictures, Janeece was not shy at all to hold the snake, whereas Elizabeth looks very content to have Western between her and the dead snake :-) 

We would appreciate continued prayer for our travels, as we get to visit our partners in ministry and update them in person with how God is working through JM2Z. Please also pray for our safety while we are traveling. We are covering many miles in just a matter of weeks. Please don't forget to pray for Janeece while she is watching over everything while we are away. Your prayers are very much appreciated!

​P.S. We would also like to say a big thank you to several individuals who have been sending items our way for VBS, sewing and crochet groups and other necessary tangible supplies that we are in need of back in Zimbabwe. We appreciate your generosity and partnership in ministry. God bless!