A closer look at the apprentice fields.....

What’s happening at ground level at Ebenezer?

Walking around the apprentice plots is amazing. It’s a beautiful green belt from the girls’ plots to the boy’s plots. We see the growth of tomatoes and cabbages, mulched fields, straight lines and this gives the apprentices a hope of great harvests and a feel for what the future holds.

On my rounds in the apprentice fields, I stopped at a few fields and asked the apprentices what they hoped for as they looked at their crops. The answers I received were as follows:

Kingdom Moyo – 18 years – 2nd year apprentice
I think of my future and what I can achieve when I leave Ebenezer. I’d like my crops to be like this present crop and glorify God.

Kingdom's field

Mqondisi Moyo – 19 years – 2nd year apprentice
My crops look so promising. I’m really expecting a bumper harvest. They look much better than the last crop.
Mqondisi's cabbage crop

Brilliant Khoza – 18 years – 2nd Year apprentice
I think I’ll get a good harvest but my concern is frost during the winter months. I also have 5 rabbits which I’m hoping to breed soon.

Brilliant's rabbits

By Molly Manhanga

One on One with Proud Moyo

Proud Moyo

M.M: Tell me about your background?
P.M: I was born in Victoria Falls. We are 5 in my family. I have 2 brothers and 2 sisters. I am the last born and I am 21 years old. I live in Mapane with my sister. Both my parents are dead.

M.M: How did you hear about Ebenezer?
P.M: My grandmother told me about Ebenezer. I filled in forms for the Selection Camp and attended the camp. I enjoyed it very much especially the way the team approached us and I enjoyed the canoeing.

M.M: What has been your greatest challenge at Ebenezer?
P.M I haven’t faced any challenges yet since coming to Ebenezer.

M.M: What has been your greatest joy at Ebenezer?
P.M: I now have hope for my future. I have made new friends and I enjoy the spiritual lessons the most.

M.M: Fantastic Proud. You have planted your first tomato crop. How are the crops doing and do you think you’ll get a good harvest?
P.M: I will harvest a crop but at the moment I am struggling with boll worm. I am spraying my crop and hoping the boll worm will die out. Generally, my tomatoes are looking healthy. My next crop is cabbages which I’ll plant on the 29th April so I’m busy preparing my field.

Proud’s tomatoes

M.M: You sure are a hard worker. Who is your role model?
P.M: My friend Thabani Sibanda is my role model.He directs me and teaches me to farm God’s way. I find it easy to share my farming problems with Thabani and he always has a solution.

M.M: Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?
P.M: In 5 years time I’ll be back in my community implementing what I’ve learnt at Ebenezer. I also want to help my family and community.

Thank you Proud. May you be blessed as you continue to impact your community.

By Molly Manhanga

One on One with Honest Matabire

Honest Matabire

M.M: Tell me about your background?
H.M: I come from Natisa Business Centre. I am 18 years old and I am the last born in my family. I have 1 brother and 1 sister. I live with my grandparents. Both my parents have died.

M.M: How did you hear about Ebenezer?
H.M: My uncle told me about Ebenezer. Although I filled in the Selection Camp forms, I was unable t attend the camp. I was then interviewed by the Ebenezer team and accepted at the Centre.

M.M: What has been your greatest challenge at Ebenezer?
H.M: I haven’t faced any challenges yet since coming to Ebenezer.

M.M: What has been your greatest joy at Ebenezer?
H.M: I enjoy getting information to improve myself. I also enjoy the lessons especially the spiritual lessons with Stephen Manhanga. I enjoy the Bible very much.

M.M: You have planted your first tomato crop. How are the crops doing?
H.M: Generally, all is going very well and I’m expecting a bumper harvest. I’m in friendly competition with my friend and neighbour Proud Moyo.

Honests field of tomatoes

M.M: Well done Honest. Your field certainly looks good! Who is your role model?
H.M: My role model is Brilliant Khoza. He is a good apprentice. Everything he does is successful including rearing rabbits and I want to be like him.

M.M: Wonderful. Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?
H.M: In 5 years time I’ll be a master farmer. I’ll be back in my community feeding my family and improving my community.

Thank you Honest. May you be blessed as you continue to impact your community.

By Molly Manhanga

The Fry's

The Fry’s

Andy and Alison Fry

Andy and Alison Fry spent 2 weeks with us serving at Ebenezer and Crossroads Community Church. It was awesome catching up with this outstanding couple and this is what they had to say:

M.M: Tell us something of your background?
A.F: We both grew up in the U.K and both came to a faith in Jesus in our teenage years. The church we are part of is known as K.C 21 (Kings Church) and Andy has been part of the ministry team for the past 20 years. We have 3 grown up children.

M.M: You’ve been to Zimbabwe before. What are your general impressions of the country now?
A.F: We are always thrilled to meet the people of Zimbabwe who have such a strong hope and positive outlook, even in all the struggles and difficulties they have faced. It is good to see that supplies are beginning to come back into the shops and we pray that some stability is now coming to the country.

M.M: Walking into Ebenezer again, what were your impressions?
A.F: What an expanse of fields! Great to see that excellence is still being strived for in all that is done. Wonderful to be greeted by the apprentices we knew from our last trip and great to meet the new staff.

M.M: Your sessions with the staff were so motivational and inspiring. How did you feel giving such valuable input?
A.F: Always a privilege to be able to touch people’s lives.

M.M: How would you best describe your sessions with the apprentices?
A.F: Always a challenge to start with – learning what pace and style works best to communicate, but very quickly felt we got to know some of the apprentices, which made discussions and reflections easier.

M.M: Any last thoughts…..Pearls of Wisdom…..
A.F: A great team of people living very sacrificially. We pray that God will continue to equip and mature the team that Christ will continue to be reflected in the work of Ebenezer and the communities around.

M.M: Thank you so much Andy and Alison and thank you for serving us so well and so humbly. May God bless you as you return home to the U.K and may His light continue to shine through you.

Gerald Mangena with Andy Fry at Crossroads Community Church

Interviewed by Molly Manhanga

From the eyes of the Mlilo's

Farming God’s Way Champions Conference

George and Siphilisiwe Mlilo

M.M: What are your first impressions of River of Life Christian church Westgate?
G.M: On the whole a beautiful place, well built and refreshing particularly for us from out here; an opportunity to meet new people is always welcome.

M.M: What did you gain from the conference?
G.M: The chance of meeting Brian Oldreive in person was amazing. To hear him speak, sharing his life with us was beyond description, thus that experience and being taken through demonstrations: composting, mulching, planting, thinning, soil structure and so on.

M.M: If you had one word or phrase to describe Brian Oldreive, the Founder and Pioneer of farming God’s Way, what would it be?
G.M: His strength is his humble character.

M.M: What did you think of the crops grown at River of Life Westgate Christian Church?
G.M: Of note was the wagon wheel. The cropping there brings out the four principles of Farming God’s way which are on time (those crops were all planted following a strict planting schedule), to standard (all the work is of exceptional standard), without wastage (everything is of use, stocks from the previous crop were used as mulch) and with joy (The family at River of Life Westgate seemed motivated and happy).

M.M: Closer to home: how best would you implement Farming God’s Way at Ebenezer?
G.M: The best way to implement Farming God’s Way at Ebenezer would be to be strict with standards since the preaching is always being done. If the apprentices see that we know and believe in what we teach, they will obviously find it easy to catch the vision.

M.M: What values would you teach the apprentices form your experience at the Farming God’s Way Champions Conference?
G.M: One value that I think would be critical to teach is being “faithful with little.” Our apprentices need to understand that it is not about making the staff happy but it is about being faithful to God to sees the intentions on the heart. Other values worth noting are obviously AID or TRADE, what do we need in Africa? Etc.

M.M: Brilliant George. Do you have any last comments?
G.M: The Champs conference is a very informative forum such that I recommend all Ebenezer staff members to attend. If it was at all possible, have individual facilitators coming to Ebenezer to reinforce conference content.

Thanks so much Goerge and I’m thrilled that you were blessed at the Farming God’s Way Champions Conference. Be encouraged as you instill Biblical foundations into the apprentices.

By Molly Manhanga