We have just returned from visiting members and other interested people in Gokwe, about 310 kilometers or 190 miles north of the city of Bulawayo. This turned out to be one of the most difficult trips I have undertaken. My wife, Vetina, and I departed from Bulawayo on April 4. The bus was scheduled to leave at 6 a.m., but ultimately left over seven hours late. The roads were in shocking condition. Our first mishap occurred about 150 kilometers from Bulawayo when the prop shaft broke. The driver and a passenger devised ingenious methods to keep the bus moving for a while, but eventually it was beyond repair. We were considering our options, when in the distance we noticed another bus approaching. The driver kindly allowed us to climb aboard, and once again, off we went. However the driver turned out to be reckless and drove too fast. Three times he knocked down signposts, and at one point was prevented by a concrete slab from tumbling over the side of a bridge. We kept praying as we journeyed on, and finally arrived at the home of our two members, Mr. and Mrs. Gorondo. Instead of arriving at 6 p.m., we arrived at 2 p.m. the following day. The Gorondos are well and send greetings to other members. Upon our arrival, there were 33 people gathered at their home in anticipation of a Bible study. I covered the subjects of repentance and baptism, based on notes from the leadership seminar conducted by Richard Pinelli and Lyle Welty in South Africa last November. After the Bible study, we enjoyed lunch, then had another study about discernment, again from the seminar notes. A number of those present requested counseling, and this continued until well into the night. These people arrived with their own food and blankets and were willing to wait until we arrived. They all patiently waited for their turn. For two nights they slept outside in the open to make sure that they would hear the Word of God preached to them. We were humbled by a woman, Gertrude Gorondo, whose husband died some time ago. She is blind, has five children and completed her high school career at the School for the Blind. She surprised me with her knowledge of the truth, and her interest in the Church. She correctly answered questions about the truths we teach, including repentance and baptism. A total of 15 people were counseled. On the return journey we hired an ox-drawn cart in order to reach the departure point for the bus. After traveling about 30 kilometers the cart hit a deep ditch in the road and overturned. I landed on my right shoulder, and felt a sharp pain down my arm and into my neck. My wife was fortunate as she landed on bags of maize that were being transported in the cart. My arm was aching; and as we journeyed on, we continued to pray fervently that our Father would protect us. [Afterward he had his shoulder X-rayed. Fortunately there was only one fractured bone, and he is making good progress.] By the way, a hailstorm destroyed most of the maize crop, but they will reap good crops of groundnuts and sweet potatoes. These people face many problems, especially as Zimbabwe finds itself in the grips of a severe economic depression, with inflation the highest in the world. Please pray that God will protect us during this time of crisis. Please also pray that God will open the understanding of the Gokwe people, and show them more fully the way to everlasting life in the Kingdom of God. UN