this could be quite a
task, but recently a handful of small cell phone towers had been
installed along the main tourist route from South Africa to Victoria Falls, and
one happened to be within reach of Gwayi River.
On July 4, 2001 the Harvest Crusade came to Gwayi River, Zimbabwe ...via the Internet.
During July 2001 the ROCK of Africa Mission welcomed mission outreaches from ROCKharbor Church in Costa Mesa,
California and El Shadai Christian Center in Cape Town, South Africa. Our
California visitors wanted to share a hometown California
evangelistic event, the Harvest Crusade, with the people of Gwayi River by
trying to access the live broadcast using
the Internet. In rural Zimbabwe this could be quite a
task, but recently a handful of small cell phone towers had been
installed along the main tourist route from South Africa to Victoria Falls, and
one happened to be within reach of Gwayi River.
The Anaheim California Harvest Crusade was being held at Edison International Field, home of the Anaheim Angels major league baseball team. The event was scheduled for 7pm local time (California) -- which was 4am on July 5 in Zimbabwe.
At 7pm on the evening of July 4, the village of Gwayi River met for a prayer meeting and was invited to return at 4am to "attend" the evangelistic event in California using a laptop computer connected by cell phone to the Internet. We had no idea how the village would respond, but everyone went home for a few hours of sleep.
Gwayi River Zimbabwe is a tiny rural village of small huts, mostly mud and
thatch construction. Because July is the winter in Zimbabwe, the nights
and early mornings are quite chilly. Without heat or electricity,
and in spite of 40 o F temperatures, the village of Gwayi River responded
in a big way.
By 4 am fifty people had assembled outside Gwayi River Church. Three
wood fires were blazing and a large kettle of tea (approx 5 gallons) was steaming away
on one of the open fires. Some young people had arrived as early as
3am! We handed out blue sweaters donated by a manufacturing company in South Africa to
all who attended. After discussing the event, we showed 
a video about the
Harvest Crusade on the laptop computer.
There was much excitement and the spirit of the Lord was clearly evident throughout the crowd. Worship and praise broke out in the bright moonlight. We were "one in Jesus" with the crowd filling a stadium half a world away.
We had no electricity,
no television and no telephone, but using a cell phone and our
laptop
computer we attempted to access the Harvest Crusade through an Internet
connection, first in Zimbabwe, then South Africa. Because of our very
remote location we had difficulty with
the connection, eventually using the text of the event to deliver the entire
message. The batteries went dead prematurely ...but it
really did not matter.
The Lord moved in that tiny little village in the heart of Zimbabwe on that cold African winter morning and it had a powerful impact on all attending.
Greg Laurie's July 4 message "Hope for America" could not
have been more
appropriate. Zimbabwe is a country with enormous difficulty. With
over one-quarter of the adult population infected, the AIDS virus is threatening
to exterminate an entire generation. The hope for America is truly the
hope for Zimbabwe. The clear message that there really is HOPE IN JESUS is
exactly what the struggling nation of Zimbabwe needs right now.
We are grateful to all who help us share the vital message of
hope. We are very grateful to
Greg Laurie and Harvest Ministries for
providing worldwide live broadcasts of the Harvest Crusade using the Internet. We are grateful for God's gift
of Internet technology to the church.
The people of Gwayi River will likely never step a foot on US soil, but they shared in what God was doing halfway around the world. They understand they are a part of a moving of God that is much bigger than the village of Gwayi River, Zimbabwe. It is a clear example how God uses extraordinary technology to do extraordinary things. The ROCK of Africa Mission and the village of Gwayi River will never forget "the Harvest Crusade of our lives."
Request information on missions opportunities for your church.
For more information on the Harvest Crusade visit www.harvest.org
