Thursday, June 19, 2008

Muzzle the Ox

Zimbabwe is about to have a 'run off' election June 27. I don't think anyone credibly believes this vote will be remotely close to free and fair. Mugabe has stepped up his violence against MDC and anyone associated to it. The Mayor elect for Harare city, has experienced brutality just this week, with his wife being abducted at the hands of zanu PF military junta. She turned up burnt and dead! Story after story can be recited at the atrocities befalling people in Zimbabwe who have the right to democratic free and fair elections and yet, as the world watches from afar the evil perpetuates...

So then, the question is raised "will anyone actually step in and bring resolve to Zimbabwe?". I would have to be among those who believe the answer is emphatically no! What does Zimbabwe have to offer? Nothing. If you call innocent children, starving and being deprived of a normal lease on life, nothing. Maybe the women, and seniors who have lost their husbands and children to AIDS/HIV, nothing. Resources such as gold, platinum and tobacco -nothing. Quite sad really, when you pause and think about it all.

Sometimes I try and distance myself from the events, but while the spotlight shines brightly, this is becoming a difficult task to perform. We have family still living there. Are they safe? Are they eating sufficiently? Are they able to work? What is the state of their health? Are they being subjected to the intimidation? Will they safely navigate through the circumstances they encounter daily? So, simply turning the radar off from afar doesn't help.

I know that the Lord is ultimately in control. He knows the beginning and the end. He knows each one by name. He will recompense when the accounts are tallied. If no nation is willing to step in, then it must be that the Lord has a plan. Wouldn't it be easier if we knew the answer to that question? I think this is what being sifted is like to a large extent. Knowing you believe in One who is more than able at the blink of an eye to change destiny, and yet year after year, that change doesn't come. Could it be that we ask a miss? Maybe an answer is already on the way, but the spiritual warfare being waged is hampering the delivery of the answer. Yes that is scriptural! I believe nations have powers and principalities that enslave territories under them. I also believe these can be broken once identified, and removed from their domain in the name of Jesus Christ.

The church in Zimbabwe is united on every front. Many who didn't associate with certain denominations now find that the common ground they share is crying out to the Lord in this time of despair and need. Those who took a silent approach are now voicing boldly their opinions, and the church is garnering support and gaining momentum. Incredibly and rightly so, brothers and sisters are coming together like never before, and if there was an appropriate stage being set for revival Zimbabwe cannot be discounted. For the church this is an exciting time, because the Lord is active and evident even in the midst of hopelessness. People are being stretched. Resources are being pooled.

It's hard being optimistic and positive but what other option do we have? I am convinced the Lord is working even though the situation looks blatantly pathetic. There is a scripture in the book of Romans 5:5 that says "...and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us." So we continue to hope, against all odds, and the One who said it will not disappoint! Ultimately this whole fiasco will pass, Mugabe will not live forever, and he like the rest of humanity will stand before the throne and give an account. No riches, wealth, body guard, armored vehicle or secret tunnel will be able to spare any from that day which is rapidly advancing.

Crazy sometimes, what my mind thinks of. For the most part all recent posts to the Journal have been laced with politics. Rightly so, I come from there, am a Zimbabwean by birth and thrice over through ancestry going as far back as the late 1800's, why wouldn't it concern me? But then I have this tug of war in my heart and want to see the situation resolved instantly. Life doesn't work that way, and that is where I see my lack, and absolute need for the Lord to be the One who leads and guides me. If it were not for Him, who knows...but one thing is for certain, nothing lasts forever in this life, and equally comforting is the truth that nothing catches Christ by surprise in as much as it pertains to our lives -if we live for HIM.

Hopefully as June 27 comes and goes, attention will shift, and my ramblings will encompass a wider range of current and interesting muses. But then again, this is my online journal, and I am hopeless at using the pen, prefer the keyboard and will tap away here at what catches my attention.

Thanks for giving up a few minutes to read this. Hopefully more and more people are reading between the lines and noting the call to prayer for Zimbabwe...may the Lord richly bless you!

Much as I try, the Zimbabwean Ox needs to be heard, it cannot be muzzled...

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