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A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Rachel Redeemed

Good morning.

I love animals and I love waterfalls. My husband and I had dragged ourselves away from an incredible safari experience in South Africa to visit all 1.7 kilometres of Victoria Falls. As we bounced onto the tarmac in Zimbabwe, I had no idea that the achingly beautiful waterfalls that I got to walk along (and bungee jump by) would steal my heart. However, what I am still thinking most about is a person. A lady called Flatter, who regularly welcomes guests like us into her home for gatherings for holiday-makers seeking a more authentic experience of the culture. Flatter grows her own vegetables, works six days a week, keeps her own home and is hugely generous with what she has and how she speaks - I was amazed at her faithful productivity and gentle wisdom.

Flatter prepared some food for us one evening and as we tucked into the grubs and pap, we talked about religion, politics and money… all the topics traditionally off the table at a British dinner party.

One thing she mentioned was the news of a recent discovery of lithium. Flatter could see great potential for the young people of Zimbabwe, struggling against high unemployment rates. She explained her fear of other countries exploiting Zimbabwe for this resource - but also the hope that outside investors could genuinely partner with her people to build battery factories and provide good jobs for the local people, rather than merely extracting the raw materials.

She was able to speak about this with kindness, thoughtfulness and wisdom that facilitated a fascinating conversation, and I’m determined to have more like it: talking constructively and graciously about traditionally dangerous topics. It might be a bumpy road but I’m convinced it’s worth it.

God of goodness, I thank you for the people like Flatter that you have given to us in our communities. Please help us have generous attitudes, grateful hearts, and determination to seek the good of others with our words.

Amen.