Zimbabwe: the prophetic vision of 40/40
A vision from God, mysterious at first, leads a Christian leader in Zimbabwe to call his people to spread the good news of Jesus in an exciting way.
A mystical vision from God in Zimbabwe has led to 40 days of dedicated evangelism.
Early in 2012, Jabulani Mudenda, had a vision. The vision he received was of two numbers: 40/40. It was a vision that, at first, he did not understand. Jabulani is the President of the National Baptist Convention of Zimbabwe (NBCZ), a trusted BMS partner in a country still suffering under the rule of Robert Mugabe.
After much prayer for discernment, God revealed the meaning of the vision to Jabulani: 40 days of focused, Spirit-led evangelism, involving every one of the 5,500 members of NBCZ reaching up to 40 people with the good news of Jesus Christ.
It’s a big vision, particularly in a country still racked by injustice and extreme poverty, but Christians in Zimbabwe are perhaps more aware than most that obedience to and reliance on God are crucial if our lives are to be used by him. When God speaks, they listen.
Jabulani and the NBCZ are setting the period from 18 April to 27 May aside for evangelism. Every church in the convention will be involved, and in every one of those churches, every Christian. All church activities apart from regular Sunday services have been suspended and replaced with training, encouraging and getting all church members involved in reaching out.
Over the 40 days of evangelism, ordinary Zimbabwean Christians will set themselves a target of how many people they would like to share the good news of Jesus with: Four? Ten? Or 40? They will go out into the streets, they will talk to strangers in the interminably long queues in government buildings. They will speak out proudly in minibus taxis and at the markets where they buy their daily food.
And at the end of the 40 days, on Sunday 27 May, there will be baptisms. Baptisms in baptisteries, bathtubs and big old oil-drums ‒ anything these small churches can lay their hands on. Jabulani and his fellow pastors have faith that through their obedience there will be a harvest.
*That they would have courage to speak to friends, neighbours and strangers about the love of Jesus, even in the trying circumstances faced by many in their country.
*That God would bring justice, provision and safety for all.
18-04-2012
Photo credits: Steffan Dobbert
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