mgpcpastor's blog

Part 1 here.
Fell for the old ‘It’s time to get up, we want to leave in ten minutes’ scam again.
Forty minutes later we’re heading off to inspect bricks.
We drive to Wyatt seems to be the back of nowhere, but there are indeed piles of bricks at the end of the track.
The process is simple: clay is manually dug and formed into bricks, which are then stacked in a kiln-like formation with an extra number of bricks around the outside. Fires are the set and kept burning until the bricks are fired and hardened. Then they are left, the outer layer providing protection for the usable bricks within.
These are the bricks which are available to construct the planned church and manse at Siakobvo.
Next we go to the offices of the local governing officials. Conversations indicate their uncertainty about whether the church is making progress in the development of two stands of land; the intended church and manse blocks. Deposits have been made, but neither is fully purchased, nor have they been cleared.
While we wait we examine their offices. These are decorated with the heads of various animals. It’s true: they use antlers in all of their decorating.
On the trip back from the brick kilns one of my fellow passengers reaches forward and brushes an insect away from the window. ‘Tsetse fly’ he observes matter of factly. I barely remember these insects from childhood jungle movies, but they are real and carry sleeping sickness. The area is plagued by them.
We go to examine two blocks of land. The first is four thousand square meters, the second eight hundred square meters. Both seem well suited to their intended usages for church and manse respectively.
For the church plant to flourish, the stability which these two structures would offer is needed.
Breakfast is eaten outdoors, overlooking open countryside that had seemed dense and impenetrable in the darkness when we ate at the same table last night.
Taking time to present evangelist Dhonga with 20 Shona language Bibles, our party begins the eight hour drive home. Even without a three-four hour detour for repairs it is an arduous trip, but this time the road conditions continue to improve the closer we get to home.
The various sites make it an interesting trip for passengers, I’m sure our drivers (who have done all the driving these past two days) are exhausted.
As we near home Isaac diverges form our route: he has a Presbytery meeting to attend.

After a brief rest after our arrival home we walk to one of the small group meetings being held on Wednesday evening. This is the group our friends the Chiodzes belonged to before coming too Australia.
The power is out again (a frequent occurrence) and in the dim light of the small home at least twenty people of all ages sing raucously, hear a Bible exhortation, pray for one another and even engage in a little dancing.

Our trip to Siakobvo has given us good insight into the practical issues and challenges involved in planting and nurturing churches in the Zimbabwean countryside.
Tomorrow will be a quieter day.