It’s been too long since I’ve written about the crisis in Zimbabwe. The situation becomes ever more painful to think about and difficult to write about, so I keep putting it off. It seems unreal that just five hours to the north of us, people are being beaten, tortured, and murdered for their political vote, and just five hours to the south of us (in South Africa), some of their countrymen are being beaten, tortured, and murdered for seeking refuge from what’s happening at home.
A few days ago I bought a Zimbabwean newspaper. Inside was a very graphic photo of the backside of a woman who had been beaten for 30 minutes by Mugabe supporters, while her children screamed “Mamma! Mamma! Mamma!” The picture shows that the wounds on her backside are deep and open and terrible. After the beating she was ordered to sit for two hours on her wounds and told that if she moved a muscle, she would be beaten again.
Today we had Lanny, Simon, and Moses, all Zimbabweans, and Sam, a refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo, over for lunch after church. We were talking about the life of Zimbabweans, both in Zimbabwe and here in Gaborone, but at that point the conversation was still lighthearted with some joking.
Then Mark told about the photo in the paper and asked the guys if they wanted to see it. I said, “No, Mark, don’t bring it out. Please don’t show it to them!” But they wanted to see it, so Mark got the paper and brought it back to the table. The change in the atmosphere was instant and palpable. I looked at the guys and started crying. Every single one of them was staring at his plate with a look so full of grief that I can’t describe it. I said, “Mark, as hard as it is for us to look at that picture, just imagine what it’s like for someone who lives with the fear of it happening to him or his family.”
How does one cope with grief and terror like this? Yesterday I was listening to one of Kg’s CD’s of Bible verses put to music. I caught myself singing along, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” That is my answer. One copes by overcoming evil with good.
I know that technically this verse is instructing us to return good for evil, to do good to those who are doing evil to us. Let me tell you, though, that it helps these guys cope to know that they are doing good to their families in Zimbabwe who are suffering so much. We are so thankful for the gifts from friends and family in America that are allowing our Zimbabwean friends here to help their families at home. So far we have been able to send Marty and Chance back to Zimbabwe with much help for their families, we’ve been able to provide shoes, a jacket, and a blanket for Simon, we’ve been able to fund a residence permit for another Zimbabwean, and we’ve funded a business registration for Lanny, which is a step toward getting him a work/residence permit.
We still have plenty of funds available. We’ve been careful about spending, knowing that if the situation in Zimbabwe continues to deteriorate, we will have a flood of refugees pouring into Gaborone in the dead of winter without warm clothes, blankets, food, or shelter. However, tomorrow I’m going to do some spending. I am doing a big shopping trip for basic necessities to send home to the families of Lanny, Moses, and Simon. When I asked for their shopping lists, the mood around our table changed once again. Grief was gone and hope was restored. Evil was overcome by good.
Please continue to pray for the people of Zimbabwe.
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