Zimbabwe has been in the news a lot this year. The government are not treating the people equally, some people are being left to starve without food.
In recent years there has been a great deal of trouble and fighting in Zimbabwe. Much of this has been encouraged by the government and directed at white settlers whose families moved there from Britain over 100 years ago.
Droughts, poor government and the rise of AIDS has left a very large number of people unemployed and the country very close to famine.
The church in Zimbabwe has grown and is strong. The number of Churches doubled from 10,000 in 1992 to 20,000 in 2000.
The great freedom since independence to preach the gospel in public, on the media, in schools and prisons despite the problems in the country.
Target 2000, a vision for church planting, set the goal of doubling the number of churches from 10,000 in 1992 to 20,000 in 2000 — the goal was reached!
Strong church growth in the 1980s accelerated in the ‘90s with the number of Evangelicals rising from 1.3 million to 3 million. This growth has been across the evangelical and Protestant denominations but especially marked in the Zimbabwe Assemblies of God Africa (ZOAGA) and a number of younger ministries such as Faith Ministries, Glad Tidings Fellowship and the Alliance Church.
Zimbabwe needs a government that will serve the nation rather than those who govern. Pray for early, non-violent change and for this land to be brought back from the brink of chaos. Famine, threat of food shortages and unemployment are growing rapidly and the country is becoming a time bomb.
The Church has grown, but so have the challenges. Pray for:
A prophetic voice for the Church. Politics has been left to the politicians. Christians are divided on how to cope with the political crisis, and often remain silent when a clear moral stand is needed.