New Sisters in Christ!

Conference Week

The first bus (first of 2) arrived on Tuesday morning with the ladies dressed in their finest clothes. You could tell they had both excitement and apprehension, not quite knowing what to expect. The bus was surprisingly early (unheard of here), so we were scrambling along with the caterer to get the teatime snacks all set up. Our friend (who was also our Shona tutor when we first arrived in Zimbabwe, as well as a daughter of one of the Wednesday ladies), who acted as emcee during the conference, quickly took the lead and had all the ladies gather in a large circle outside (we had already put chairs out into small groups under trees). She took the opportunity to welcome the women and share some housekeeping announcements. That was all the time we needed to then welcome everyone indoors, which immediately resulted in ladies’ mouths wide open, gasping in amazement of the set-up room. Each woman who entered the doors, gazed from side to side, looking at every corner and scanning all the tables and the many details of decor that the Tuesday and Wednesday ladies had painstakingly been working on for the past 6 weeks. I could see the pride on the faces of each of the volunteers, beaming with pride that their hard work was being appreciated. Immediately, women started taking out their cell phones and taking photos of just about everything they saw.

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Every day, we welcomed the ladies in the main hall and started with teatime refreshments. As they found their seats, they’d be welcomed with a different gift - notebook, bracelet, bookmark, etc. They’d enjoy a warm drink and a baked good and spend some time fellowshipping at their tables. When the second bus of women arrived, they followed the same procedure.

Over the 3 days, we had 9 teaching sessions - my (Yolanda) friend Rumbi did the opening session, addressing animism (ancestral worship) and syncretism (mixing animism with Christianity). Rumbi also taught one other lesson on how being a Christian does not mean an easy life - this topic made great sense for her talk, especially as a counselor. She spoke in Shona during her sessions.

I (Yolanda) spent my longest teaching session sharing the Gospel message and 3 of my other teaching sessions explaining how to become a Christian and what it means to be a Christian (Christian living). I had a couple translators and women reading Scripture - this was a great way to involve the Tuesday and Wednesday ladies.

We were so happy to see everyone being very engaged during the teaching times. There was great interest on everything that was taught. The ladies made good use of their notebooks and pens, and it seemed everyone was taking notes, especially Bible references. 

After each main teaching session, everyone gathered into small groups. The Tuesday and Wednesday ladies were leaders for this. This stretched several of the ladies out of their comfort zones, but all of them did excellent jobs and we received lots of positive feedback concerning small group times. It’s when everyone got to open the Bible for themselves and read Scripture. They worked through a handout that referred back to the teaching session they had just heard. They were also given an opportunity to respond to the teaching. This was an opportunity to be asked questions they could answer or ponder for themselves.

Our time each day in the sanctuary was started with worship and prayer. This was such a sweet time of singing, dancing, clapping, and raising hands for Jesus. We experienced how the worship intensified from day to day as people’s biblical knowledge grew and their understanding of needing Jesus became more and more relevant to them.

Ednah was the emcee for the conference and ensured everything kept moving smoothly

Emily, along with some of the Tuesday/Wednesday ladies prayed at different times throughout the event

Every day, everyone enjoyed a delicious catered lunch. Of course we had to adjust our schedule daily to accommodate when lunch would actually be ready, but that was not unexpected. Everyone enjoyed the delicious meal! Lunchtimes were also once again an opportunity for ladies to fellowship at the tables and visit with one another.

Lunchtime and teatime were also opportunities for ladies to get individual photos taken of themselves. We created a photo wall where the photographer could use our instant camera to take an individual shot of each person. This was a gift given on the last day as a reminder of this conference and the fact that each person is created in the image of God. The ladies also enjoyed standing in front of the photo wall with their new-found friends and took some selfies with their own phones. It made for lots of laughter and good times.

The last day was unique and followed a different schedule than the previous 2 days. Yolanda spoke at all 3 main sessions. She opened with a Question and Answer time. The previous day during one of the small group times, everyone was given the opportunity to write down any questions they might have concerning any of the teaching topics. Yolanda spent the night working on all 68 questions. The questions regarded a wide range, including repentance, baptism, animism, witchcraft, family relationships (conflict), cults, Christian life, dietary restrictions, burial rituals, prayer, and speaking in tongues. With the variety of church backgrounds and beliefs, it was essential to give Scripture references whenever possible when answering the questions. 

Following the Q & A time, the next session gave everyone an opportunity to make a commitment to follow Jesus and accept Him as their Lord and Savior. This was a sweet time of contemplation, personal reflection, and moving of the Holy Spirit. These decisions were not merely emotionally based, which are so often true for revival gatherings and altar calls in Africa, but rather decisions that were informed and based off of learned biblical information, addressed over the past days at conference. Our prayer is that these decision are like the parable of the sower when the seeds fell on fertile ground - we believe these decisions were built on strong foundations. In total, 16 women accepted Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior (those are the ones who came up front, but we made it clear they could be sitting in their seats and still accept Jesus - who knows what the Holy Spirit was doing in the hearts of those listening or may continue to do in the coming days/weeks/months).

We then immediately offered the opportunity to be baptized to anyone who made the decision to follow Jesus. We also received additional women coming up for that opportunity - some who had been following Jesus, maybe for years, but finally realized this is a step they have not yet done and should. The response was amazing! A few decided to wait to be baptized in their own churches, surrounded by their families, which we fully supported. In total, 18 women were baptized (this included 7 women who did not come up front originally and 3 women from the Wednesday group, our MC for the event, and also Emily, who taught Bible Studies for Yolanda when she was recovering from surgery, back in January-February).

What followed the conclusion of the baptisms was the most beautiful reaction from the crowd. As Yolanda finished changing into dry clothes after the baptisms, the crowd gathered around those who made decisions and/or were baptized, and hugged them, congratulated them, and then everyone broke out in spontaneous worship, which we dared not interrupt. The pure joy and happiness that filled the room was palpable. The energy was contagious and the Spirit was very present in the room with us all that day!

After a short small group to gather names and phone numbers of those who made decision, along with those who would like to sign up for accountability groups, we finished up the final main session of the day. We started by finally telling them that the Shona Bibles they had been using over the 3-day conference would be their final gift to keep - uproar, complete chaos, and so much joy ensued! (Before the conference, we had also bought 5 Ndebele Bibles. Ndebele is a minority tribe and language in Zimbabwe, and most people who speak Ndebele live in a different region of the country from Chinhoyi. But we are glad we had them, because there was 1 lady who requested a Ndebele Bible instead of Shona, so we are thankful we had that as an option for her.)

Over the 3 days, Yolanda provided 3 different methods on how to share the Gospel message. One method was spread out over multiple teaching sessions - sharing the discussed steps of salvation. Another method was explained during the first Gospel message in session 2, which was the 3 circle method (this entails making a small drawing, for visual learners). And the last method was briefly touched on during the handing out of bracelet gifts - the salvation bracelet method. Therefore, she used this final session to discuss the Great Commission found at the end of Matthew 28. She explained how as believers, once we have received salvation, it is now a requirement to tell others about the free gift of salvation. She reiterated each of the 3 Gospel sharing methods, ensuring some interaction from the audience. This was a wonderful opportunity to share some real life situations. Like referring to the red bead on your salvation bracelet when speaking to a woman at the market, selling beautifully red ripe tomatoes. Or discussing step 5, when standing in a long line, waiting for water and discussing its significance. Or the 3 circle method, when seated between 2 people on a kombi (taxi van) ride (for brevity reasons for the blog I’m not discussing all the details here, but much more descriptive explanations were given during the session). The women were in awe with every real life situation. Agreeing with “amens” and nodding heads in understanding, and laughing as they related with each scenario personally.

Our time was running short towards the end, but clearly all that needed to be said, was said. We closed in prayer and sent everyone off with one final blessing. We closed the conference by getting a large group picture of everyone. And as the first bus left (75 women), we handed out certificates to all who got baptized.

Post-Conference

We immediately met up with the Tuesday and Wednesday ladies the very following week after conference. We wanted to hear all that they had to share and stories they had heard, as well as to hear about their own experiences. We also went through all the surveys we had handed out on the last day to the attendees of the conference. We discussed what was successful and what we could adjust for a possible future conference.

Several of the ladies shared that in the time since the conference took place, they had already bumped into ladies who attended and they were so excited to see them, to greet them, to briefly visit, and to share how transformative the conference had been for them personally. One response was, “Thank you for preaching about salvation, something we never hear about. Our churches mostly preach about prosperity and how sad your life will be if you’re not constantly giving the pastor money.” One of the ladies said she bumped into one lady who was selling tomatoes and another one was roasting corn on an open fire, in the marketplace. Both ladies shared passionately about their experience at the conference and one said, “I have been revived and feel like a brand new person!”

Both the Tuesday and Wednesday groups mentioned how several of the ladies they invited, had made a home visit to them, to personally and profusely, thank them for inviting them. Their invitees reiterated what a blessing the conference was to them and how honored they felt that they had been invited. One can only imagine what this does for their relationships and friendships, some who had just been acquaintances beforehand. 

The ladies also said they met many other women in their communities and neighborhoods who said they had heard about the conference (but had not attended). They asked if they could possibly receive an invite the next time, as they had heard so many excellent things about it. 

Since that week, we have 8 accountability groups. These 8 groups signify 72 women, along with their leaders, who will be reading through the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) together. In addition to 7 groups who will be reading the Scriptures, one group will be our first Listening Group. One of our ladies has always struggled with reading and we have provided her with a Proclaimer - a device that has the Shona audio Bible preloaded and ready to listen to (These handheld devices cost $60 each, are preloaded with audio translations of the Shona and Ndebele Bibles, and have a built-in solar charger. When we bought the Ndebele Bibles, and the guy heard what we were doing, he gave us 2 of these devices for free!). I spent time this past week showing and explaining to the leader of the Listening Group how to operate the device and she is so excited to host the few women who attended conference who also cannot read, but are interested in an Accountability Group. They will be meeting weekly in homes or outdoor areas. The leaders will facilitate to hear how the group members are doing with the past weeks, 5 chapters of Scripture reading. They will discuss anything they found interesting or any questions they might have. They will also open in prayer and close in prayer for one another. The leaders will take note of any questions there are and together with the other leaders and myself we will provide some answers. This is VERY exciting news! By the end of December, 72 women would have gone through the Gospels together - most, if not all, for the very first time! At this point, we don’t know what the future holds beyond the end of the year as that’s the commitment we’ve asked of them. No matter what, if all the women stay committed to weekly gatherings and consistent Bible reading, we expect some transformative work to take place in the lives of these women. Please pray with us for these women. Pray they will continue to grow in their knowledge and love of Jesus. Pray that their biblical literacy will increase significantly through these groups. Pray also for the leaders who are committed to serving, ministering, and giving of themselves in this way.

We also met with the leaders of the accountability groups to ensure they were prepared. To help to hold them accountable with what day they had decided to meet, ensure they have contact information and names of all their group members, and to answer any other questions they may have.

One of the accountability groups

Some direct quotes from the anonymous survey we gave on the last day of conference. The question was asking what was their favorite part of conference:

• “I was very happy with the teachings from our presenters. It opened my mind to know more. I have learned many things I never knew before, especially what it means to be a Christian and how to live like one.”
• “The explanation on baptism was so very clear. I learned how to forgive others and that God gives us the Holy Spirit freely when we become Christ-followers.”
• “I was so impressed by Yolanda. She is like a normal person. She is not like other white people. She really cares about us. She wants to know us and speak to us. She loves us.” 

• “I understand the Good News for the first time. It is so clear.”
• “My husband is a pastor but not even he has a Bible. Wait until I show him that I have my own Bible.”
• “The Word and the food.” (This points to the very real physical need that so many experience - hunger. This response was such a juxtaposition between the spiritual and the physical.)
• “To meet with all women and to do small groups. To read the Bible for ourselves. Everyone was so friendly. There was so much unity. It is like we were one big family.” (As leaders we were amazed once we realized the variety of church backgrounds, different denominations, unchurched, animistic beliefs and multiple cults and sects - this, out of anything, differentiates our conference to all other conferences held here in Zimbabwe.)
• “First time I ever owned a Bible. I am so excited to read it for myself.” 

• “I thought I was saved, but then I learned so much more at this conference about what God’s Word says and what it means to be a changed person. I feel so uplifted now.” 
• “I gained so much knowledge about the Word of God and who Jesus is.”
• “Rumbi’s teaching was so helpful. Yolanda was so loving. Thank you Mr. Andrew.” (It was wonderful to have someone notice Andrew’s hard work since everything he did was behind the scenes, but of course he was very noticeable up front at the computer, projector, speakers, and switchboard.)
• “I learned how to communicate the Gospel to others.”
• “I am so happy because I have received Jesus!”

Video

It’s only fitting to end with a very short highlight reel of the 3 days of conference. Thank you to the many of you who gave financially, who prayed intentionally, and continue to support regularly - YOU are making an impact in the hearts and lives of women here in Zimbabwe for eternity!

We give God all the glory for this event and for the hearts and lives changed! We thank the Lord for moving in the hearts of the women who have given their lives to Him and also for those who individually may and whose family members may choose to do so in the future, whether we know about it or not. Seeds have been planted. Praise God!