What It’s Like to Grow Up in Zimbabwe

Being in the Church has taught me lessons about faith, family and finding where I truly belong. Here’s my story and what I learned growing up in Zimbabwe.

God’s people are all over the world, and as much as we may travel, we can never get to meet all His people. 

My name is Ngqabutho Msilisi Carl Demadema (quite a mouthful, I know). Some of you may know me as Carl. I was born in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. 

I want to use this blog post to offer you an insight into what it was like to grow up in the Church of God in Zimbabwe.

The early years

I didn’t grow up knowing only the Church of God. Both of my grandfathers were ministers—but of very different churches. My grandfather on my father’s side, Melusi Demadema, was a local pastor in the Anglican Church. Even though I never met him, I heard a lot of good things about him. My mother’s father you may know as Church of God pastor Stephen Tshabalala. (I know my grandfather as Khulu.)

Due to this family dynamic, I grew up attending church on both Saturdays and Sundays.

I grew up in a middle-class home. My dad is an accountant, and my mom is a French teacher and secretary. The first Feast memory I can recall is a blur. I just remember lining up for food in a sea of smiling faces.

My teen years

My teen years are lucid. I didn’t attend the Feast, but every Saturday, I went to Sabbath services with my mother at my grandparents’ house. There was no church hall, so we had to meet at their house. 

I remember getting together with my cousins and hanging out before and after services, listening to DVD sermons from notable speakers like Clyde Kilough, Jim Franks, Arnold Hampton and David Johnson. 

After services, my grandmother would prepare lunch for everyone. I felt a sense of warmth and a strong sense of community. Even though I didn’t understand the holy days, the Sabbath and the food laws, I understood that there was substance to what was happening, especially from reading the Church’s magazines and booklets. 

I attended my first Feast of Tabernacles when I was 15, after we moved to South Africa. Thankfully, I had already built something of a foundation prior to attending my first Feast.

What is Zimbabwe?

On April 18, 1980, Zimbabwe gained independence from the British. Before that, it was known as Rhodesia, named after a prominent figure in the colonization of Southern Africa, Cecil John Rhodes. 

Even after gaining independence, Zimbabwe was known as the breadbasket of Africa. Then after a few years, the government was led by a man named Robert Mugabe and many things changed. Just as has happened in many nations around the world, greed set in, leading to a dictatorship under Mugabe. 

Zimbabwe is still recovering from years of corruption and an economy that has left many people struggling to make a living. There are still some individuals, from middle class to wealthy, who can live a comfortable life, but that has become harder and harder with inflation and the shutdown of industry.

But beyond all of that, Zimbabwe is a country filled with gems and beauty. We have several great tourist attractions, including Victoria Falls (locally known as Mosi-oa-Tunya), Kariba, Nyanga, Chinhoyi, Chimanimani and the Great Zimbabwe Ruins. There are beautiful game reserves with a multitude of wild animals, including the Big Five (elephant, rhino, lion, leopard and buffalo).

Lessons learned

I learned many valuable lessons growing up in Zimbabwe. Here are three main lessons I learned from my experience and how they shaped my faith:

1. We cannot have one foot in and one foot out.

Christ taught us, “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24).

Growing up in two religions made me realize that I had to pick a lane. Growing up, I wasn’t fully an Anglican or a part of the Church of God. I ate pork, didn’t observe the Feast, and even though I believed in God, prayed and tried to follow the 10 Commandments, I never really took any of it seriously until I decided what made more sense to me.

2. We gradually grow in substance and understanding.

In 1 Corinthians Paul highlights the importance of growing and developing spiritually: “And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able” (1 Corinthians 3:1-2).

I attended Sunday school growing up and learned the Bible’s basic stories, including those of Abraham, Noah and others. However, I recall a time when I was at my grandparents’ house and Gogo (my grandmother) made us take notes. It was then that I began learning deeper lessons that would ultimately have a lasting impact on my faith. That’s when I began building my spiritual foundation.

3. Our Church family matters.

I grew up being bullied in school for a multitude of reasons, and even though I had friends, I always felt like an outcast. I never knew a single person by name in the Anglican Church. Most people just came and left. 

But every Saturday, I built up my relationships with my cousins and some of the other children we met occasionally. When I moved to South Africa, I met and made lifelong friends with whom I always felt safe, and for the most part, that has been my experience with everyone I have met in the Church from every nation.

Developing relationships in the Church has helped me recognize the importance of Paul’s words in Romans 12:10: “Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another.”

In the end, I loved growing up in Zimbabwe, and I would never trade it for anything. Our cultures, traditions and experiences bring something new to the table, and what truly brings me comfort and joy is knowing that we are all headed in the same direction. 

If you have the chance, consider visiting Zimbabwe and experiencing its beauty. We have family all over the world, and if you have the chance, consider traveling, meeting new people and strengthening those bonds.