Rev. Christopher Maphosa, the national coordinator for Nhasi Zve Mangwana (Today For Tomorrow) children's ministry in Zimbabwe, is one of the people that receives my children's ministries newsletter, and we’ve been in contact on several occasions. I appreciate his thoughts and insights in his ministry so I’ve asked him to write some lines about the topic of doing children’s ministry in partnership between missionaries and people from the host culture:

... as much as I appreciate all efforts done by missionaries in this field, I am of the opinion and idea that when missionaries work in a particular country, they have to try by all means to identify a willing [person] with children at heart so that they somehow enhance his or her skills and desire that they work alongside. There are two resources which need to merge here. Missionaries are financially capable while a national willing person may be financially deficit. Therefore, there is a need to complement each other. Under normal circumstance, missionaries shall some time leave the present mission field to attend another God’s call then what will happen to good work already started? But national person will ever be present. I suppose.

All I am trying to put across is that, we need a long lasting children’s ministry other than ending the ministry when the missionaries leave the country of the present mission field. I am therefore, kindly asking our brothers and sisters in the Lord working as missionaries to consider the above suggestions seriously. There is a lot more merits in developing a national person for children’s ministry. For example continuity, language, culture, acceptance, and so on. Nevertheless, missionaries are crucial members in the body of Christ. Africa desperately needs them so much.

My ministry was handed over to me by the visionary missionaries from South Africa that is Graham, Jess, Emily, and Lucy Haddad. I volunteered to work with them right at the inception of their ministry because I have got a heart and a passion for the children.

I pray that the Lord guide us all in his service in Jesus’ name, amen.