Church Schedule
We will be traveling this week to Minneapolis, to visit Albion Evangelical Free Church. We are excited to visit with everyone there and share an update from the last 2 years! We have many of our other church visits nailed down also.
Our schedule is as follows:
Our schedule is as follows:
- May 2 - Albion Evangelical Free Church (MN)
- May 23 - Lander Free Church (WY)
- TBA - Weiser Christian Church (ID)
- June 13 - Willows Christian Church (CA)
- June 27 - Barrington Community Church (NY)
Situation in Zim
The lockdown in Zimbabwe was finally lifted, for the most part, at the end of March! During the lockdown, which lasted much of 2020 and all of 2021 through March, no one was allowed to leave their homes unless they were getting food/water, going to the pharmacy, or going to the hospital. Traveling between cities was not allowed. The PoIice took this very seriously and thousands of arrests were made for people who were out and about and/or in groups.
We are thankful that we've been able to be in the US during this time, because we've been able to get much more accomplished than had we been in Zimbabwe. We would obviously not have been able to meet with the women or host any other events, such as VBS. We are thankful for technology that has enabled us to stay in touch with the women and know what's going on (in the same way as if we had been in country) and help them substantially through food, toiletries, medical issues, school fees (which were required to be paid, even though schools have only opened this month after being closed for the majority of a year) and of course through prayer. Although they have not been able to meet together in person during the lockdown, we have been able to maintain a sense of community within the groups through WhatsApp, sharing prayer requests, encouraging words, and how God has been working! What a blessing that through such a tough and trying year for everyone that the Lord has continued to use JM2Z in a real way in the hearts and lives of these families!
Because the lockdown has been lifted and the airports are open (though the land borders remain closed) and we will have visited all our supporting churches, we will plan to return to Zimbabwe the first week of August! We will be excited to be reunited physically with the women at that point, assuming the g0vernment doesn't change their minds again. No matter what the Covid situation is, Zimbabwe is desperate for tourism dollars (as are many countries), so we're guessing they won't shut things down again, in hopes of re-attracting international travelers.
They have also been distributing the Sinopharm and Sinovac Covid vaccines, some doses of which were "donated" by China (in exchange for who knows what down the line) and other doses that Zimbabwe purchased. Only a small percentage of people have been vaccinated so far.
We are thankful that we've been able to be in the US during this time, because we've been able to get much more accomplished than had we been in Zimbabwe. We would obviously not have been able to meet with the women or host any other events, such as VBS. We are thankful for technology that has enabled us to stay in touch with the women and know what's going on (in the same way as if we had been in country) and help them substantially through food, toiletries, medical issues, school fees (which were required to be paid, even though schools have only opened this month after being closed for the majority of a year) and of course through prayer. Although they have not been able to meet together in person during the lockdown, we have been able to maintain a sense of community within the groups through WhatsApp, sharing prayer requests, encouraging words, and how God has been working! What a blessing that through such a tough and trying year for everyone that the Lord has continued to use JM2Z in a real way in the hearts and lives of these families!
Because the lockdown has been lifted and the airports are open (though the land borders remain closed) and we will have visited all our supporting churches, we will plan to return to Zimbabwe the first week of August! We will be excited to be reunited physically with the women at that point, assuming the g0vernment doesn't change their minds again. No matter what the Covid situation is, Zimbabwe is desperate for tourism dollars (as are many countries), so we're guessing they won't shut things down again, in hopes of re-attracting international travelers.
They have also been distributing the Sinopharm and Sinovac Covid vaccines, some doses of which were "donated" by China (in exchange for who knows what down the line) and other doses that Zimbabwe purchased. Only a small percentage of people have been vaccinated so far.
Birthday Party
Something we got to do earlier this month on a personal note, was to celebrate my grandpa's 99th birthday! The retirement place where he lives opened up to visitors for the first time since last year, so we made the 3 hour drive to Michigan for the opportunity to celebrate with him and mark this milestone. They only allowed us to stay for a couple hours, but it was well worth the 6 hours of driving to have a brief 99th birthday party together!
Please continue to be in prayer for the women and their families in Zimbabwe, as well as for us with our upcoming traveling for in-person updates. We are excited to see so many of you in the coming weeks and are looking forward to each visit!
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