TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness…”
(Romans 8:26, NLT)

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Do you ever get focused on what you consider to be a disadvantage or weakness in your life? Maybe there’s something about yourself that you don’t like physically. You may have even been through an unfair situation: a divorce, a bad business deal, or a bad break.

We all have things that can feel like disadvantages, things that make it harder on us. But just because you have a “disadvantage,” just because you’ve been through a tough time doesn’t mean you’re supposed to sit back and settle where you are. No, God still has something great for you to do! He wants to show Himself strong in and through you. The Holy Spirit wants to help you during those times when you feel weak. If you will stay in faith and not get negative toward yourself or your future, then God can take what you think is a liability and turn it into an asset. What you think is a disadvantage God will turn around to be an advantage so you can move forward into the abundant life He has for you!

A PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father in heaven, today I give You all that I am. I invite You into the weak places in my life so that You can turn them into strengths. Thank You for working in my life and filling me with faith and expectancy. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Forum for Leadership Search (FLS) Executive Director Edwin Lifwekelo says a hand shake was not obligatory and a must for Chief Justice Ernest Sakala to have shaken hands with PF leader Michael Sata.

Commenting on the alleged refusal by Chief Justice Ernest Sakala to have shaken hands with the PF leader, Mr. Lifwekelo said every person by virtue of being a human had rights and Mr Justice Sakala had personal rights whether to shake hands with people or not because it was not compulsory.

In an interview with ZANIS in Lusaka today, Mr Lifwekelo said Mr Sata should know that Mr Justice Sakala was obliged to accept his personal choice and his refusal to shake hands with him was a personal decision that should not be politicised.

In the same vein, Mr Lifwekelo advised LAZ to critically look into the conduct of lawyers before the law fraternity was taken into ridicule from right thinking members of the public.

And Committee of Citizens Executive director Gregory Chifire in a separate interview condemned Judge Kabaso Chanda for remarks he issued against Justice Sakala over his refusal to shake hands with Mr Sata.

Mr Cifire urged Judge Chanda to demonstrate respect on public matters instead of being used by selfish politicians. And Evangelical Youth Alliance President Moses Lungu said Mr Sata should know that Mr Justice Sakala was a respectable person in the country because of his high integrity and he should desist from dragging him into cheap politics.

Reverend Lungu said Mr Justice Sakala refusal to greet Mr. Sata was not an issue and had no direct link with the work and Office of the Chief Justice.
During the church funeral procession of the late retired Judge Peter Chitengi, Chief Justice Ernest Sakala is alleged to have snubbed greeting the opposition leader.

ZANIS

President Rupiah Banda has urged Zambian students studying in Namibia not to engage in illicit behaviour but to concentrate on their studies in order to develop their country. Addressing the Zambia community living in Namibia at Safari Hotel in Windhoek on Thursday night, President Banda expressed disappointment to learn that some Zambia students in Namibia were misbehaving.

Mr. Banda said Zambia and Namibia have had friendly and warm relations since the latter’s struggle for independence, hence the need for the Zambian students in Namibia to help maintain the existing cordial relations between the two sister countries. He also told the students that their parents would be disappointed if they do not complete their education on account of bad behaviour, even after sacrificing their little income to ensure that (their children) they have a better future.

President said it was important for young people to acquire high standards of education because they have a huge task to develop their country and make Zambia better now and for the future generations. The President, however, was impressed to note that Zambians in the diaspora have started to invest back in their country and therefore, urged them to continue.

He said the Zambians in the Diaspora should be patriotic and proud of their country. Mr Banda also urged them to be good ambassadors wherever they are in spite of their political affiliation and ethnicity. “Don’t be intolerant of one another just because of different political affiliation and ethnicity. At the end of the day, we are one people with one country called Zambia ,” he said.

Speaking at the same function, Zambia ’s High Commissioner to Namibia Mavis Muyunda said Zambia was privileged to have a President who is an international diplomat, lobbyist and a strategist. Mrs. Muyunda said President Banda played a noble role when he worked as Zambia ’s United Nations Permanent Representative , Foreign Affairs Minister in the First Republic and in other portfolios where he worked tirelessly to ensure the wellbeing of humanity.

She also told President Banda that the Zambian Community in Namibia was very united and was hosted by a friendly and hospital country, Namibia , which greatly appreciates Zambia ’s contribution to its freedom.

Mrs. Muyunda assured the President that the Zambian Embassy in Windhoek and Zambians living in Namibia will always strive to project Zambia ’s image as a good investment destination not only in Africa but the world as a whole. Meanwhile, Chairperson for the Association of Zambians in Namibia (AZANA), Mr Moses Muyunda informed President Banda that his association is lending a helping hand to all Zambians in Namibia , regardless of their ethnicity or political affiliations.

Mr Muyunda, however, said while Zambians in Namibia were willing to contribute to Zambia ’s social and economic activities, it was quite difficult to obtain land in Zambia on which to settle down once they left their jobs in Namibia . He, however, expressed happiness to note that President Banda recently made a positive move by instructing the Ministry of Lands to hasten the process, though Zambians in Namibia were not alerted of the development.
Mr Muyunda has since requested the President to revisit the issue so that they could also be afforded an opportunity to obtain land in Zambia .
He also thanked President Banda for allowing those working outside Zambia to bring in the country ( Zambia ) one vehicle duty free after a two–year tour of duty, though he appealed for the number to be increased to two.

The AZANA chairperson further applauded the Zambian Government for improving the agriculture sector in the country and the bumper harvest of maize and other crops during the last agricultural season.He, however, said there is need to put logistics in place in the collection, storage and marketing to reduce wastage and also to ensure that farmers are not only paid on time but they are given the correct prices as a way of motivating them.

FASTING is regarded as a faith-enhancing act in the life of a Christian, but the residents of Katete District in Eastern Province are now beginning to question the true value of the practice after one of their own renowned evangelists died after fasting for 40 days and 40 nights.

Canaan Mwanza, 38, a well-known evangelist with the Charismatic Movement in Katete, agonisingly gave up his breath just days after completing his period of fasting.

His mother, Avaida Mwanza, was at pains to narrate the ordeal to this writer after the counsel of several friends, relatives and the general public – most of whom convinced her that she should not talk about the incident, saying it was an act of God.

But after much persuasion, and with the help of her husband, Godrick Mwanza, she was able to open up. And Canaan’s tale of his prayer and fasting-based life unfolds like this:

Some time in 2007, Canaan, a teacher in Mfuwe District, did what Christians call light fasting – abstaining from food and water from morning till 18:30 hours for 40 days as a way of strengthening his faith, much to the amusement of fellow believers and friends.

A known family prayer warrior, Canaan followed this act a year later with a total fasting for 28 days in some hills of Mfuwe area where, according to his mother, he encountered dangerous beasts which, however, did not harm him in any way.

The mother puts his safety during the Mfuwe fasting down to divine protection!
“He was there for 28 days, without eating and bathing. He met animals such as leopards and lions, which just stared at him, without harming him … As you may be aware, that area (Mfuwe) is a game reserve area,” she says.

Upon his return and subsequent recovery from the 28-day fast, he was said to have gone flat out praying for people with different ailments and those who were demon-possessed.

With that somewhat strengthened and renewed faith, Canaan decided to take yet another challenging step of faith in his quest for an enhanced spiritual life.

He decided to embark on a programme to travel by road to Nigeria, with intention to go and have a face-to-face meeting with global renowned tele-evangelist, Prophet TB Joshua, who is also said to have fasted for 40 days and 40 nights before establishing his ministry – the Synagogue Church of All Nations and Emmanuel TV station.

Though it took him a lot of time to reach Nigeria, Canaan never got the chance to meet the Man of God for he (TB Joshua) always had a long-winding queue of people from all over the world with appointments to meet him.

And Canaan was surely not among the thousands who had applied from around the world.

“We became worried as a family such that we resorted to prayer because we did not hear from him for over the three weeks while he had travelled to Nigeria,” the mother recalls.

Later, the Mwanzas got to hear from Canaan who assured them of his safety, and informed them that his mission to meet the Prophet of God had failed.

Canaan headed back home, but is said to have never regretted the fact that he never got to meet TB Joshua.

Instead, people who were close to him say he believed strongly that God had a purpose for not enabling him to meet the prophet.

On April 22, 2010, Canaan decided to go for yet another total fasting for 40 days and nights on Mphangwe Hills in Katete.

Initially, fellow believers accompanied him on his last prayer and fasting mission that would later lead to his death.

But confronted with the “cares of this life”, just after the first two days, his fellow believers backed-off, leaving the spiritual man to continue with the fast alone.

Canaan was determined to spend 40 days and 40 nights on the hills. During the period, he ate nothing, drank nothing, not even water, and never took a bath.

The only thing he would ask from those who would visit him was for them to go and re-charge his mobile phone, which he was using to communicate with family and friends.

“What a strong faith!” many people admired him.

Like Jesus Christ, the pillar of the Christian faith, who fasted for 40 days and 40 nights before embarking on his earthly ministry, Canaan also finished his fasting, though with varied results from those of Christ.

While Jesus Christ went on to establish a ministry whose faith still saves and gives life to those who call on His name even today – over 2,000 years after his death – Canaan never got to establish any ministry.

Two days before he finished his fast, the people who went to visit him (the sister and brother-in-law) reported to have found him too weak to do anything. But defiantly, he refused to break his fast, determined to finish the 40 days.

He told them that although his body was weak, his spirit was stronger than ever. And so, they left him to finish despite their worry.

Afterwards, the father accompanied by his fellow charismatic friends, went to get him down from the hills, as he was too weak to come down on his own.

When they reached home, Canaan’s mother put him on a light diet of porridge to help him regain his strength gradually.

But five days later, the man started hallucinating. Suggestions that he be taken to the hospital were shot down by some of his fellow believers who said the hallucinations were a sign that he was seeing God and having conversation with the Creator.

Convinced, the family left Canaan to recuperate from home, away from the healthcare workers who are trained to preserve lives!

But one Friday afternoon, which Ms Mwanza reckons she will live to remember, her son died right before her eyes.

“When I went to his room to give him some food, I just saw him stretch up and that was it. I thought he was sleeping but when I called his name three times and without response, I touched him and realised that he had died,” she sobbed.

The death of Canaan has been received with mixed feelings in Katete with many people blaming the family for not taking him to the hospital.

But on the other side, Canaan’s family is convinced that his death came at an appointed time, which was foretold.

“We found a piece of cloth in his room written ‘Friday’ (the day he died) and we don’t know where it came from … It is all from God and must be treated as such,” the family believes.

A large, framed and captioned portrait of the smiling Canaan Mwanza still hangs just above the door in the Mwanzas’ house as a remembrance to their hero of faith, whose death is now causing some to begin questioning the true value of prayer and fasting.
[Times of Zambia]

LUAPULA Member of Parliament (PF) Peter Machungwa has said people criticising president Rupiah Banda’s trips abroad are malicious and want to mislead the public.

Dr Machungwa said in an interview yesterday that the presidential State visits had brought benefits to the country because a lot of investors were attracted to Zambia.

Commenting on President Banda’s recent trip to Namibia, Dr Machungwa said yesterday the head of State was a number one public relations manager of the country and should be allowed to visit other countries.

He said even heads of State from developed countries also visited other nations to strengthen bilateral relations as well as create networks for economic development.

Dr Machungwa said it was sad that some opposition political leaders were in the forefront criticising the president when they understood how the Government system operates.

Dr Machungwa said Zambia needed to benefit from the goodwill of other countries for her to develop and reduce poverty.

Commenting on the aid freeze, Dr Machungwa said it was a pity that the opposition political leaders wanted donors to withdraw funding as a way of discrediting the Government.

Dr Machungwa told Zambians to be wary of political statements that are meant to gain political mileage such as expelling the Chinese investors when the world had accepted the Asian country because it was the biggest investor in the world.

The Ba Ushi Cultural Traditional and Development Association on the Copperbelt which echoed similar sentiments however appealed to President Banda to use his diplomatic experience to facilitate twinning of some towns in Zambia with the French and Chinese.

Association president Stephen Chitwa said in a statement yesterday that doing so would enhance development .

[Times of Zambia]

MMD chairperson for Communications and Transport Peter Daka has said it was not obligatory and a must for Chief Justice Ernest Sakala to have shaken hands with Patriotic Front leader Michael Sata.

Mr Daka who is also Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister said every person by virtue of being a human had rights and Mr Justice Sakala had personal rights whether to shake hands with people or not because it was not compulsory.

In an interview yesterday, Mr Daka said Mr Sata should know that Mr Justice Sakala was obliged to accept his personal choice and his refusal to shake hands with him was a personal decision that should not be politicised.

“Chief Justice Sakala has personal rights whether he should greet people or not because it depends on what he wants based on his individual capacity and why should Mr Sata politicise the whole issue.

“He should stop making politics whenever he goes for funerals and should have respect for everybody,” Mr Daka said.

Mr Sata should know that Mr Justice Sakala was a respectable person in the country because of his high integrity and he should desist from dragging him into cheap politics.

He said it was time Mr Sata thought of retiring from active politics instead of attacking high ranked officials for no apparent reasons and always wanting to gain political mileage whenever he went for a funeral.

And former Patriotic Front (PF) secretary general Edward Mumbi has accused the PF/UPND Pact of conspiring with The Post to instill fear in judges and neutralise the independence of the Judiciary.

Mr Mumbi said in a statement yesterday that it was immoral to attack people who could not defend themselves.

He was also commenting on the story that the chief justice refused to shake hands with Mr Sata.

He said objective people could read through a conspiracy by the pact and The Post to discredit the chief justice because his refusal to greet anyone was not newsworthy.

“People will soon see discredited people who will be used to discredit the judiciary. These criticisms are merely serving selfish political ends for leaders in the PF/UPND Pact,” he said.

He said the PF/UPND Pact was planning to disturb the Judiciary as Zambia approaches elections because there was a plan to defame people and engage in violence, which would attract litigation.

President Banda said to justify the conspiracy, The Post had even gone to an extent of publishing a picture of former president Frederick Chiluba shaking hands with Mr Justice Sakala, which had nothing to do with the case at hand.

He said when former Kasama MP Saviour Chishimba petitioned Mr Sata’s presidential candidature, Mr Justice Sakala was still the chief justice and the courts allowed him to contest.

The PF leader recently won another case in the courts and he praised the courts for their independence but because of his inconsistency he had now changed.

And a Lusaka lawyer Christopher Mundia said the encounter between Mr Justice Sakala and Mr Sata did not warrant political insinuations because the two were traditional cousins.

“I have known the current chief justice for many years having worked with him closely in the national group and do not believe that he intended to offend Mr Sata but purely a light moment between the two cousins as Bembas and Ngonis have always joked at many funerals,” he said.

Mr Mundia said to use the encounter to embarrass the chief justice was unfortunate because political hatred brewing in the country could later explode to unimaginable magnitude.

Although the incident happened at a funeral, the Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) should do everything possible to defend the Judiciary.

He said the chief justice did not mean to offend Mr Sata but it was just a light moment between the two traditional cousins.