I got to share some very exciting news in recent weeks about the expansion of our Liberty Church family.
Over the past few years we’ve developed an incredible partnership with Children’s Cup and Celebration Church in Zimbabwe. What began as a one off project became a series of projects, that led to a partnership as well as a series of missions trips. Much of that partnership became focused on the Sauerstown community in Bulawayo where we felt God’s calling to really invest ourselves (here’s a video about that story)
So I got to share three incredible announcements with our church…
1. We’ve broken ground in Sauerstown…
Working together with leadership on the ground we were able to help shape their dreams for their five acres of land into a master plan that architects have submitted to the city for approval. The plan is to build in several stages that will include community centers, a leadership academy, playgrounds, micro enterprise programs, community gardens and more! The site will also allow the local church there to have Sunday services on the land even as they serve the needy in their community. In the last two weeks the team have broken ground on part of the stage one facility which begins with an amenities block so the land can be used for community events.
2. We’ve sponsored two new staff to join their team…
Lungile & Zinty Ncube are passionate about Sauerstown. “Lue” is Zimbabwean and Zinty is Zambian, and they met through their involvement in the ministries of Celebration Church and Children’s Cup. This month they’ll be relocating from nearby Swaziland to Sauerstown where our sponsorship has enabled them to join the pastoral leadership team there full-time. A huge thanks to Healing Place Church and Children’s Cup for sending two of your best! We have no doubt they are going to play a central role in the unfolding story of God’s goodness in that community.
What began as a project, that turned into a partnership, has become full blown family. The church in Sauerstown was planted by Ps Dixon Changara and the incredible team at Celebration Church, under the leadership of Pastors Stovall & Kerri Weems in Jacksonville, Florida. Week in and week out the team in Sauerstown have served the community in partnership with Children’s Cup and impacted literally thousands of lives in a few short years. It’s a thriving, vibrant church known for the breathtaking way in which they “love thy neighbor” and make tangible the good news of Jesus to a hurting community.
After many months of prayer and discussions with the leadership both in Zimbabwe and here in NYC, we’ve been offered the incredible opportunity to adopt the church there into the Liberty Church family… and so over the months ahead we’ll be transitioning towards the Sauerstown campus becoming Liberty Church Zimbabwe!
Liberty Church Zimbabwe will continue to be built on partnership with Celebration Church, Celebration Network, Children’s Cup, and Childcare Ministries. We’ll still be very much be part of the extended Celebration family and drawing on Ps Dixon’s leadership and decades of trusted ministry. The transition will be a process that we’ll walk out together but where we’re going is exciting
Being adopted into family together is what the story of Jesus is all about. We’re completely committed to what’s happening there, to the people there, so much so that we’re ready to covenant together…and become family… a GLOBAL FAMILY. In New York City, in London, and now in Zimbabwe
So let’s pray together that God would use Liberty Church Zimbabwe to impact generations and sweep countless people into God’s kingdom.
Great days are ahead!
#globalfamily
