Holding our breath: One family’s account of daily life in Zimbabwe

By Council For World Mission

While working as a sub-editor and writer for the international charity, Council for World Mission in 2009, I telephoned Lucky, (who had been involved in CWM’s work through her own church in Zimbabwe); to get some firsthand information on how the political unrest was affecting people there.
The previous year had been particularly hard following the March 2008 elections when Robert Mugabe was controversially re-elected. Famine had gripped the nation and families were starving.
After our conversation, Lucky agreed that I could call her regularly to keep up to date with what was happening in Zimbabwe and how it was affecting her life and her church. The phone calls continued more or less every week for two years, enabling me with her permission, to record her accounts as blog entries on the CWM website.
During that time, I also began speaking to her husband, Zira, when she wasn’t there to answer the phone, and he gave me his own insights into daily family life in a country going through turmoil and collapse.
Their words give us an important and very personal account of life in Zimbabwe beyond the headlines; and their resilience and the strength of their faith – despite everything – is an inspiration.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Gilead Books Publishing
• Release date: Aug 10, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301677573

Council For World Mission

The Council for World Mission is a worldwide community of Christian churches. The 31 members are committed to sharing their resources of money, people, skills and insights globally to carry out God’s mission locally. CWM was created in 1977 and incorporates the London Missionary Society (1795), the Commonwealth Missionary Society (1836) and the (English) Presbyterian Board of Missions (1847).

Book preview

Holding our breath:

One family’s account of daily life in Zimbabwe

Though the Lord is on high,

Yet He regards the lowly;

(Psalm 138:6)

Published by Gilead Books Publishing at Smashwords

Copyright © CWM 2013

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.

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This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This book is available in print at Gilead Books Publishing

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Compiled and edited by Zoe Speariett

Photographs by Kenwyn Pierce and Zoe Speariett, © CWM

Contents

Editor’s note

Nobody hears us

Water, water everywhere!

Losing faith

Holding our breath

New Year, same old problems

Where is God?

A good idea

Out of the cold

Walk in love

Our reality

By the grace of God

Churches stick together

A slow start to 2011

Not ready to forgive

Fear of the unknown

Worship through the night

A house filled with noise

A piece of cake

A different kind of ministry

The last thing we need

Editor’s note:

While working as a sub-editor and writer for the international charity, Council for World Mission in 2009, I telephoned Lucky, (who had been involved in CWM’s work through her own church in Zimbabwe), to get some firsthand information on how the political unrest was affecting people there.

The previous year had been particularly hard following the March 2008 elections when Robert Mugabe was controversially re-elected. Famine had gripped the nation and families were starving.

After our conversation, Lucky agreed that I could call her regularly