You are the God of this city!!!!

This weekend saw many churches from around Bulawayo come together to worship Jesus in a service that was brand named 'Together for the City'. Small as our city is l think this event was huge for us. This was really a surprise event for me because l had been in Swaziland when it was being planned and by the time l came back to Bulawayo the event was already at its advanced stage of preparation. I don't think it would have impacted me the way it did if l had been part of the organizing team like l usually am. Don't get me wrong l am not saying organizing is a bad thing but l'm realizing that God deliberately left me out this time because he had a different plan in mind. l also think of the times that l always wanted to go and be with my parents in the UK but all the efforts l made turned out to be futile. Today l realize that God was not trying to traumatize me but He had a different plan in mind(and a much better one too!!). My fiance told me of a strange thing that occurred to her at some airport a while back before she met me and on the surface it looked like God had really been sloppy that time around but both me and her concur that He had a higher purpose.

Probably if God would have let me be a part of the organizing team l may have become too busy and end up missing out on what He wanted to say to me. Probably if God had given in to my wish to be in the UK l would have missed out on marrying the most beautiful woman in the world. Probably if God let humans have their way it would actually turn out a lot worse than we imagine....Settling for anything other than what He wants for you surely settling for something less than perfect.

Back to the combined service l was attending, as l sat in the pews and listened to the preacher speaking l learnt something.l already knew this truth but it came alive to me as l sat down and listened to a preacher called Michael Eaton say that the one unchangeable truth about someone who has accepted Jesus is that they are forgiven.....I am so redeemed that it is like l have never sinned before!I'm justified(just as if l have never sinned) and will continue to be the apple of his eye because He Loves Me. I think for me I sometimes treated salvation like its a parole......I behaved as if l'm saved on condition of good behavior and so when l have behaved badly and sinned again l need to go back to jail until my jailer is again satisfied with my behavior then l can be a redeemed son of God again. I realized that this is a wrong way of looking at Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. Jesus has forgiven me of my sins and He actually has forgotten them(l may still remember the wrong that l once did but He has forgotten and He continues to graciously forget my sins when l come to Him and confess my sins)

The reality of me being totally forgiven hit me as l sat there and realized that l am loved by Jesus with a crazy kind of love!!!!He loves me so much that many times l underestimate how he loves me. It reminds me of a song that my fiance made us listen to when we drove to Nelspruit in June. The song simply says 'HE LOVES ME OH HOW HE LOVES ME'. More than just singing those words l want to begin to live them out. I want to begin to have the security of a child who's loved unconditionally by their Father. I have to treat every person that l see as with love because that which l have been given l will also give to others. I have to stop giving myself a hard time by trying to buy God's love using my good behavior because HE ALREADY LOVES ME!!The same way He loves me has to be the same way l love Zinty and all the children that He will graciously give to us as a couple.

Zinty once told me that when you see children playing together you can easily tell the ones that are loved by their parents and the ones that are neglected or even abused. Love has that effect that causes us to be free and unafraid to express ourselves. Love is what we have been given by our father in heaven and it really is what many other people out there in the world are thirsting for.......

If you give someone love you have given them what they need!!!

Jesus has shown that example to us in the most awesome way and all we need is to 'DO LIKE WISE' as the scripture says!!

Happy birthday Zie!!!!

I remember meeting her for the first time.
I remember initially emailing her on Sundays.
I remember hearing her say she's visiting Zimbabwe.
I remember seeing her when she arrived...
She was shining and there was no doubt she was the most beautiful person in that room...
She is the most beautiful woman in the world ...
She has been breaking into my heart ever since I met her and its OK
I've given her the keys and l'm letting her break in...
I'm going to marry her in just over a month's time...
I ready to spend everyday with her...
22july is a special day not only to her but to me as well...
This is the day my wife came to be in this world...
She was a baby then but as grown to be the perfect partner for me in this journey of life...

It is with all these thoughts in mind and more that l say to Zinty "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU LOVE".......I wish you many more years that are filled God's love. I look forward to many more years of being best friends and doing this life together. Enjoy this day and every other day that's to come!!!Know that l love you dearly and will always be there for you as long as l live and nothing will ever change that!!!

SWAZILAND!!!!

Four days after arriving in Zimbabwe from an awesome trip in Swaziland, I'm still being asked by my friends and family about how my trip went and my answer is still the same.......'it was AWESOME!!!!!'. I cannot explain comprehensively with words what I experienced while away in Swaziland. It was a trip that I had anticipated since Zinty left Zimbabwe in January. My heart has been longing for more time of getting to know my fiance ...

I arrived on a Friday night, three days before our planned arrival which meant that I was going to be in Swaziland for my birthday!!!The night of our arrival was a long night. I only went to bed at about 2am in the morning. The whole day had been filled with a strong sense of the presence of God and I felt Him confirm a lot of things to me throughout that day... This was so timely because I had the opportunity to share everything in person to my Zinty who was totally in sync with what I was feeling. Its an awesome feeling when you see just how much God, our Heavenly Father, pursues us, as His children. He is longing to give our lives purpose and fill our hearts with His love. For me that Friday was a day when I felt His touch in a fresh way, I felt my Heavenly Father giving me an assurance that there was a higher purpose for my life. I felt peace as I realized that He is in control, as I thought about the life that I get to live because of His sacrifice and His love- A FULL LIFE!!! A life filled with His provision, protection and purpose. I want more of the life that He gives and I'm OK with letting go of everything so that l can receive that life.

Saturday turned out to be a really good day and little did I know that Zinty had something cooking for me the next day(which was my birthday). I woke up the next day and tried to look as smart as possible and it was worth it because when I got to church Pastor Ben called me to the front of the church and had the whole church sing the birthday song for me which was really sweet. Then after church came the other surprises with Zinty taking me for a surprise outing and then taking me to hers and Sarah's place where there was a surprise party in store for me. That for me was the most amazing birthday I've ever had and it made me feel really special and welcomed in Swaziland!!!

Every other day that I spent on that trip was special. Zinty was awesome.!!!!! She went out of her way to make this trip a memorable one for me and for us. I came back more assured of her love for me and her commitment to us!!! l learned so much about her and got to live life together with her for three awesome weeks!!!!!!! There's so much more l can say but I'll just summarize it by saying 'Everything about that trip was special and it left me looking forward to living together with Zinty in Zimbabwe for the rest of my life'!! l grew a lot, learned a lot, lived life the way my fiance has lived it for a long time and it was good......

l am ready to be together with Zinty and share my life with her. Countdowns don't make sense until your loved one is 1000kms away from you and you cannot go to her until a certain date..........l'm counting down the days Zinty!!!!!!!

My greatest need...my deepest desire!!!

I have had a hectic start to the week as I prepared to move into my new place and also got ready for the Mawabeni crusades. I haven't had it easy lately but things are certainly better than they have been in the past weeks. I particularly have been struggling with relationships. Somehow this has been the time when I thought i should be having it all easy but it seems to get harder and more challenging everyday. I wonder how Jesus would react to some of the stuff I go through(its definitely nowhere near the cross of Calvary but it is quite challenging for me). It seems like I'm going to have to find a new strategy to make things work because the current one is not giving me the desired results.....love as I have known it is going to have to be more sacrificial, life as I have known it is going to have to be lived with much more wisdom, trust as I have known it is going to have to be reserved for the trustworthy, faith is going to have to be much deeper and Jesus is surely going to have to be much closer for me to remain in Him through this phase.

Sometimes it all seems like God's plot for a higher purpose and that gives me hope..... but I wish He would tell me about it then I wouldn't be moved at all. I could just be still and know that He is God......maybe He has said it but I wasn't listening or have forgotten but all these are just possibilities because at the end of the day nothing can replace the great need that l have for Jesus at this very moment and for the rest of eternity to come. I'm glad l realize that because His Word clearly tells us about the goodness of waiting upon the Lord....how His mercy never fails and His love endures forever,how the greatest need we have is Him pouring out His fullness in us through Christ Jesus!....how His plans are for good and not for evil!!! When you really begin to think about it He is such an amazing God and He remains amazing even when we do a lousy job of trusting Him.

On another note, Shepherd( my close friend that I have been doing music with for a really long time) and I sang a beautiful song in the service this past Sunday.We definitely have come to a new stage in this singing ministry where its totally about Jesus......and its exciting. We desire more that the people would connect with God than with us and our very limited skill. Sunday is a day when l saw us coming closer to that place. Even at this place when we don't fully understand where this music thing will end up its still so much fun to do it as unto the Lord allow ourselves to learn what Jesus desires of us and let Him help us 'improve our serve'. I think there is is truly nothing like Jesus' love!!!!!

had lunch with the best pastor in the whole world a few days ago.the food was so good and the waiters were very friendly but more importantly l enjoyed juss being out with a man that l have grown to respect so much together with my good friend shepherd.we talked about quite a few things including how l should learn to take myself out once in a while as l prepare to be a husband and how shepherd needed to find a girlfriend pretty soon because of the three of us on the table he was the only one without a woman in his life.

pastor dixon told us how much he appreciated our service in Celebration Church Zimbabwe and he encouraged us to keep up the good work. we also had sometime to reflect on the FIT concert and how it impacted young people's lives and we all agreed to the fact that we wanted to see this initiative happen sometime again. l enjoy serving God. And every challenge l face seems to be a stepping stone into the new things that God is calling me to serve Him in. As we sat there and talked l remembered Shepherd's words when we where still preparing and plnning the concert.He said "let's have a concert Lungile, that will not just be about singing but one that will leave people having encountered Jesus. Let's avail ourselves to be used by God to reach out to His children." Today, two weeks after the concert, l see that vision coming to pass.l see God giving us opportunity to do that everyday and it is always a wonder how such a big God would choose to use simple individualslike you and me to do His purposes on the face of this earth.

there is no higher calling than to be a servant of the most high God.l love this Jesus!!!!

concert!!!

enjoying some rest this easter weekend and l must say that l really appreciate not having to wake up at the usual time. this weekend was unique in that we had a concert at church called the Fit concert. it was good to see people coming and enjoying themelves as they sang and danced.lt was lots of work to try and bring these things together and l'm glad that at the end of it all we saw the fruit of the preparation that we had put into this.

there is lot that happened fom the time we decided we where going to have a concert to the time we where on stage doing the actual concert. if l had known we would have faced some of the stuff that we faced l probably would have decided we dont start the planning at all but l'm glad l didnt know because l got to enjoy one of the most meaningful events in my life and l am ready for more!!!! there is a lot as well that could have stood out as the outstanding experience for us as we planned and put together this concert....it could have been the struggles we had choosing a date a nd having to move it becoz another event was taking pplace at the same time....it could have been trying to get a catchy way of advertising the concert so many people would come......it could be the practise times that we had as a band that got more taxing as we drew towards the day.....it could be the recording that we did two days be4 the concert(which was really hard for me to go to becoz l needed to be chatting with my darling at the same time)....it could be many things for the many guys who where part of making this happen but for me it was the time when l opened my eyes as we where on stage and l saw many hands lifted up and people were praising and worshiping God as we sang the song 'hossana to the king who came and died and rose again'

l'm thankful to God for allowing me the opportunity to serve Him in this way and l look forwrd to doing even more things for this Jesus as we are used by Him as his search and rescue team to find His lost sheep....hossana to the King!!!!

praise

l am yet to meet someone who doesnt respond well to praise. Everytime somebody praises me l feel special, l feel that someone has understood me and appreciates my effort, l feel like doing what l've done over again because it feels right for me to do something and people show their approval by praising me. l know many people identify with this and we all know that the easiest way to get someone to stop what they're doin is to criticise them(not everyone though coz some people are juss a different breed/more like a mutant species)....

lt is with this understanding that you can begin to appreciate the many many times that you see the phrase 'praise the Lord' in the book of psalms and in the rest of the bible as well. My first encounter with the book of psalms left me wondering why a book with so much repetition would be so popular amoung most Christians,....why didnt the psalmist juss write 'praise the Lord' once, ...why did he have to repeat it again and again and again?

l'm sure he had realised juss how much God had done(or maybe he had realised that God had done so much that he could not count it all ).Hence he would juss say 'praise the Lord' at every interval because he knew God had done so much it was beyond what he could think or imagine or even count.l have realised that God has done so much. l cannot afford not to give Him praise. How l feel is not the yardstick that l use to measure how much praise is due to Him. He juss deserves praise and nothing will ever change that. The one song that has become a chorus in our church says "will above all else my purpose remain, the art of loosing myself in bringing you praise"

And so l have to remind myself to praise Him during those days when its easier not to praise Him. l guess the only qualification for God not to expect praise from you is when there is no breath in you as the bible clearly put it LET EVRYTHING THAT HAS BREATH PRAISE THE LORD!!!