Zion's Melody - Yeye Ndiye Mfalme!

Dear all,

Here's Zion's Melody's first album entitled, "Yeye Ndiye Mfalme!" (He is the King!). It's been a real blessing for these young people working in unity to put together songs that they have been, for the past one year, singing in both public and private place - from hospitals, to churches, to student conventions, to homes of the those seeking comfort and healing. Now, you too can enjoy these blessings with only a donation of at least Tsh. 8,000 or USD 6.50. The group has plans to extend the ministry further and therefore, your contribution will be greatly appreciated.

Call any one of the following numbers to make your order:

+255717019246
+255755995775
+255764504284
Email: zions.melody@gmail.com

Stay blessed!

Hardened hearts!

Human beings have the power of choice. Unlike birds, fish and the beasts of the field, we have the intellect and will power. But the extent to which we can make our choices comes into question when we hear about a Pharaoh whose heart was hardened by God Himself, thus refusing to let the children of Israel go.

A lot of strange things happened before the Egyptian Pharaoh could let the children of Israel leave Egypt. We're talking of almost 3000 years BC. The story is known as "the ten plagues" (mapigo kumi), simply because the LORD had to "spank" Pharaoh and his people 10 times - yes, 10 times - before he could come to his senses and release the Israelites at Moses' request.

It's true that God can either "show mercy" or "harden" whomever He desires (see Rom 9:18). But God "desires" to show mercy to those who show mercy (James 2:13). Pharaoh, who had already slaughtered thousands of innocent Hebrew baby boys, showed nothing close to mercy. Let's also remember that historically, Egyptians had many gods. And they also yielded to these great rulers (Pharaohs) as gods. In fact, they believed that if the Pharaohs were not served well, the Nile would not rise and they would, therefore, have a terrible farming season. It is because of such a belief that God had to "make Moses as a god" and his brother, Aaron, a prophet (see Ex 7:1). In order to get Pharaoh's attention, Moses had to be empowered to that "status" which Pharaoh could deem considerably important enough for him to give ear. It's like acquiring a diplomatic escort before visiting the white house. Otherwise, Pharaoh would've just thrown Moses and his buddy straight out with no regard and no respect. No doubt, the Pharaohs were proud. A friend of mine believes that God deliberately hardened Pharaoh's heart so that he could add more plagues till Pharaoh goes down to his knees (Aliufanya moyo wake uwe mgumu jamaa awe mbishi ili ambamize zaidi na mapigo mengine!)

The Crazy Cycle

This week's SS lesson (see http://www.ssnet.org/qrtrly/eng/09c/less08nkjv.html) focuses on our horizontal relationships (i.e Loving Brothers and Sisters). The quarterly just reminded me of a discussion I once had with a colleague at work about the so-called "crazy cycle" in relationships. It's nothing "new under the Sun" as king Solomon puts it in Ecclesiastes because we've all witnessed it or even experienced it at some point in our lives.

It all begins with a broken-relationship. You have just gotten over a couple of weeks, months or even years of mourning for your ex. Now you’re ready to start off afresh. Lonely, anxious and perhaps, bitter too. You say to yourself that it’s either you give it up or wait for a miracle to happen. Days, weeks, months and years pass and God hasn’t sent you your dream man or woman who is to wipe you off your feet and cause you to forget that you’ve ever been hurt or even ever been in any relationship before. But he or she is not showing up – yet.

Then, finally, just when you were at the edge of giving up - boom! He or she comes your way. Perhaps, he or she shares a similar background to yours or their simply totally emotionally untainted. But at this stage it doesn’t really matter. You’re both head over heels! They call it love, but we call it infatuation. The first few months of this new relationship are the most exciting ones ever. You both believe you’ve met your dream… you know who! It’s the one time you will ever believe what you have found is rare gold. You adore each other… But relationships make people glow with time. The more loved you feel, the brighter you appear and the more attractive you become to even those who would have never considered you in the first place. At the same time, while your countenance is shining, your “dream man or woman” is showing their true colors. Oohps, the romantic phase is about to end! They call it the “stability phase of the relationship”, but we call it REALITY!

As reality kicks in, you’re beginning to see the flaws in your partner. You then realize that after all, he or she is not an angel. He or she is not “the best” thing that has ever happened to you in the world. But then here’s the freaky part of the story – while you begin to doubt your partner, everyone else out there is making a move on you. You’re glowing. You’ve been increasingly glowing during the now-ending romantic phase. Then here comes that old ugly wise saying that “the grass always looks greener on the other side”. You start telling yourself that you are capable of moving to greener pastures – after all, every other guy or girl is eyeing you. At this stage, you start taking each other for granted. While you couldn’t breathe any second that passed that he or she didn’t call you during the romantic phase, you’re now comfortable with not staying in touch for days, weeks and it could become months. You don’t care anymore because even if he or she leaves you, there are greener pastures out there staring right at your face.

Then, what happens next is the break-up. You’re both sick and tired of this now boring relationship or maybe one of you just decides to cheat. In any case, you just decide to call it off. Strangely, you go through so much pain. You regret. You fret. You wish you hadn’t… It’s weird! Days, weeks and months pass and you’re mourning. But then you’re over it. However, you feel lonely, anxious and perhaps, bitter too and you say to yourself that it’s either you give it up or wait for a miracle to happen. Then, here comes another relationship… SOUNDS FAMILIAR? It’s one of the craziest cycle we have ever witnessed, yet we see it happening everyday.

We see people roller-coast through such emotional madness day after day because we forget one basic truth: Love is not a feeling, it’s a Principle! Love is a discipline, a commitment. One has to know that from the very start of any relationship that one day their partners may end up looking worse than Charlie Chaplain or even Shrek. But if we purpose in our hearts from the very start to stick – faithfully – to our spouses or partners or lovers, no matter what, we won’t really have to get entangled by the crazy cycle. Before you start thinking whether or not the grass looks greener outside, remind yourself of exactly where you were when you first met this guy or this girl. Remember the things in him or her that drew your attention. Trust me, the grass outside is just an illusion. The hard truth is that if you leave your partner, hoping to run off with someone else, you will never be entirely happy. In fact, there are more chances than not that after you break up your glowing face will turn dull and you may sadly end up looking like a shrimp in distress.

Our relationships with our brothers and sisters, friends and relatives must be viewed in the same light. On the Thursday part of the quarterly, the author speaks of "Love in Practice". We're reminded to show our love to our brethren at the very time when they need us, no matter how adequate we feel. Loving is a principle that we build up... To love anyone unconditionally, requests for pre-determination!

I also would like to invite you to join the eWeek of prayer at http://www.facebook.com/l/;sidmedia.org/index.php/newmedia/eprayer.

A wonderful Sabbath in a foreign land

The 25th Apr 2009 was one of my greatest Sabbath's ever. I'd already been in Munich for a week attending a workshop at Nokia Siemens Networks. Throughout the week I had tried to find a church online but I couldn't succeed because all the websites were in German. I couldn't understand a word on the websites. On Fri, I decided to ask my colleagues at work to help me locate a church near my hotel - the Holiday Inn at the city centre. After googling (thanks to Google earth), we found a church about 30min walk from my hotel in town...

On Sabbath 9.20am, I started walking in the Erhardstr direction (westward) to church. Around tenish, I got to the street where the church was but I couldn't find it. The reason was that the pointer on the google earth map was not accurate to the last metre. It was pointing on the right street but on the other side. There was a street number on the map but I didn't understand how the houses are numbered....

In no time, a certain man appeared with his family, heading towards a play park. I stopped him to ask him if he knew of any Seventh-day Adventist church. Unfortunately, he couldn't speak English so we just didn't understand each other. But as I was conversing with him, an old man on a bicycle overheard us and stopped to ask me if I needed help. He was so kind. He told me he knows there's a church somewhere along the street and he told me that the odd numbrs are on the left while the even numbers are on the right. The church was at Istarltat 40...

So, immediately I started walking towards the direction the old man had pointed at. And in no time, I found the church. Somehow, I have a feeling that old man was an angel. He'd found me when I was almost giving up on looking for the church, seeing that I'd already spent 20 min walking up and down that same street without success...

When I found the block where the church was located, I rang the bell outside. There were two buttons - one in German and the other one in Portuguese. I pressed both but no-one came out for me. I tried calling the pastor's number displayed on the notice board but I didn't have sufficient credit on my phone. I stood outside there for another 15 min waiting and praying that someone comes. In no time, an African gentleman appeared heading towards my direction. He said something to me in Portuguese, but I responded in English and told him that I'm looking for an SDA church. He told me there are no English churches in the entire country but he said I could still attend the German or Portuguese service if I didn't mind. I asked him if he was Adventist and he replied to me that he is and he's originally from Mozambique but has been staying in Germany for 25 yrs. In fact, when he saw me standing outside, he thought I'm also from Mozambique or Angola, which is why he spoke to me in Portuguese...

So, I introduced myself to this gentleman (Emmanuel) and asked him if I could join his group - the Portuguese service. He gladly invited me and we started walking down the basement of the old block where the only Adventist churches in Munich can be found. The German service takes place in a small chapel inside the block - upstairs- while the Portuguese service takes place downstairs, on the basement...

We passed some beautifully dressed kidz playing by the entrance and when we got in, they had just finished the SS lesson discussion. Emmanuel introduced me to his wife, Rosa, and the church elder and pastor and invited me to sit next to him. His English is poor but he intended to translate for me the entire service from the Portuguese language. We sang a couple of songs and then his wife, Rosa, who was leading the song service, asked if there was someone who speaks fluent English or French well who can translate to me because she saw her husband struggling. The members started discussing then I think someone asked where I was from and Rosa shouted, "Tanzanie!". A tall, beautiful, shyful lady from the back shouted back to me in Swahili, "unaongea Swahili?" I was caught by surprise. I never expected there to be anyone in this congregation who understood my language. I immediately replied to her and she offered to translate the service to me from Portuguese to Kiswahili! Her name is Consulate and she's Congolese. So, I moved to the back, to sit next to my new interpreter and guess what? The service was awesome! The pastor preached about faith, endurance and the resurrection in the second Advent referring to the story of Lazarus in John 11...

At the end of the service, they didn't let me go. I was invited for lunch. It was one of the best Sabbath lunches ever. We had some Brazilian, Portuguese and Angolan dishes, desert, a birthday cake for the monthly birthdays and we socialized a lot. When I told the missionary youth pastor, Domingos, that I play piano and guitar, he immediately invited me upstairs to the piano room. As I started playing and as we were singing, slowly but surely more and more people joined us in the room. Therefore, Domingos decided to give me 30 min the following Sabbath to run a music program before the divine service. He also brought the guitar and there was some serious jamming! They love singing but unfortunately, don't have a musician at church. Domingos had just come from Croatia where he attended a church with six pianos and mega-singing.

What a wonderful Sabbath it was!

NB: On the left it's Domingos (the youth missionary) Phil and Consulate.

post-easter return of Phil

Hi friends,

It's been a long time since we last had a chat. I've been silent for the entire first quarter of this year. As much as I have missed writing on this blog, I'd like you to know that my absence has been due to a number of heaven-bound commitments.

Even though I was caught up at work on two major projects with Vodacom TZ, I've also been involved heavily in the music ministry. During the past two months, our singing group known as Zion's Melody has recorded an album, which is to be released soon. In addition to that, our church choir, of which I'm a member, has also recorded an album. But I've also been busy dishing out and receiving family life sermons, some of which I will share with you in the next few weeks.

It's no doubt that we've all suddenly become extremely busy this year. The majority blame the economic crisis. I took the same stance until I met Elder Errol this past weekend, who persuasively reminded us that "God's prevision activates His provision". God allows for such situations to occur, but immediately He opens up a door through which we can escape from the perilous consuming fires.

Christian regards,

Phil

Black or White? - by Bisanda, MP

Gray areas often evolve in the choices that we make.
Should I stay or should I go? Should I give or should I take?

Should I forgive and forget, that you raped and killed the women in my home?
Or should I revenge and regret, but see justice carried on?

Should I suffer long your abusive hand, put a smile and pretend you’re my caring dad?
Or should I rebel and take my stand, and cause you some pain for driving me mad?

Should I quit or should I stay? I’m overworked like a mule!
But I need this pay, for my kids are still in primary school!

Pro-life or pro-choice? I know I made this mistake.
But my education is no choice, yet a life I cannot take.

Single and satisfied? Yet, no one to have and to hold!
Or married and terrified? But there are exceptions, I am told.

How can I kneel and say thanks, when I just lost my best friend?
And the financial crisis confusing our banks - Must they withhold or must they lend?

Should I deny this offer, an incentive to ease my financial pain?
Or be bribed by these scoffers, and lavish on evil gain?

Should I do what is right, and watch my sister die?
Or bribe the doctors tonight, but save her life while the poor cry?

Black or white? Sometimes it’s not so clear!
The deceptive sight – falsehood and truth so near!

From filthy rags to a golden crown (2)

Ultimately, we're all looking for happiness and peace. Yes, some may spend their entire lives chasing after money but the truth is that eventually, it is happiness and peace that we're all after. Education, money, possessions etc are all perceived means to an end. But as we previously learned, happiness and peace can only be found in God - for "in the presence of God, there is fullness of joy and pleasures evermore". But how can fallen man be restored to the presence of God?

"Come unto me all ye who are weak and heavy laden..." (Matt 11:28). "Many are called, but few are chosen" (Matt 20:16). God's master plan to restore men to Himself is extended to all. But only a few - yes, a handful - have been nominated or provided with access to His awesome presence. I'm sure by now you're thinking, "tough luck for me!" Well, salvation is more simple than most of us actually think. If our salvation was anything like applying for a business permit, we would need to bribe so many people along the chain. In this world we live in it's about "who you know" and "what do you have to offer". I remember applying for a tender to install and optimize a computer network for a certain organization in town. The guy who was "hooking us" up with the deal kept reminding us of his cut (10%). Sadly, we came to a halt after every other person involved in the process started asking for a lil' something. Eventually, we gave up and left the deal. Thank God there is no bribing angels to get into His presence. We have only one access card, Jesus, and the password is "faith". "Without faith it is impossible to please God" (Heb 11:6).

I was about to type-off and take a vacation after revealing the password to God until someone asked, "What is Faith" and "Faith in what?" Now, that's another 5 extra paragraphs... let me leave it for next time we chat again about our journey from "filthy rags to a golden crown". As for today, pray for FAITH in your life and for a revelation of an understanding on what it really means.