A Chat With Pastor G...

We caught up with Stanley Ngoni Gwanzura, eh popularly known as Pastor G, on his e-mail sgwanzura@yahoo.com and the cool Pastor was online. The conversation went as follows:

…Hi Pastor G, I hope all is well with you and your family….

My family is cool.

...Your music inspires many. Tell us what inspires you?

I am inspired by the love of God for peoples of all nations and his desire for us know Him the living truth and to make him known. I am inspired by the likes of Kirk Franklin, Pastor Benjamin Dube, Fred Hammond and Brian Sibalo who have take gospel music into the world. I am inspired by artisits like Bono of U2 and others who take poverty in Africa seriously.

...You are a family man, does the family have to cope with your workload, and how do you make it easy for them. And with the music industry being tough and busy, how do you cope?

Its not easy balancing my life as minister of music and family life but by the grace of God I manage.

...Run us through your typical day.

My typical day is spent doing several things. In the morning I spend time in the word and prayer and then breakfast. About 11-1pm, I check mail and afternoons often in meetings or studio sessions. I am currently on the postproduction of my live CD/DVD and also trying to finish a studio CD called Inspiration. I rehearse three times a week in the evening 5 to7.

...A lot of people perceive a spiritual vacuum in Zimbabwe today. Do you agree and what do you feel God may be saying to the churches at this time?

I think Zimbabwe is spiritually ripe for a great move of God. Wherever there is great pain and challenge, Gods grace abounds more. We are seeing a great move of God in Zimbabwe as people become hungrier for God.

...Give us 10 things you are grateful for today.

Ten things am grateful for are: Salvation, My wife and sons, Gods abundant provision, My band, My pastor, My parents, My siblings, My purpose, My friends, Zimbabwe, Music etc.

...There are many great and wonderful characters in the Bible, David, Job, and Naaman etc. Who do identify with most and why?

Definitely David coz he was a psalmist and a worshipper. Joshua coz he obeyed and conquered for God. Jesus is not just a character he is my Lord and God. He is my ultimate inspiration.

...You are in a position of great influence through your music ministry, tell us how do you keep humble?

I keep humble coz it is about God not about me. Fame is easy come easy go.

...Are you in the will of God and how does one discern this?

I know I am in Gods will because of what he is doing through me and around me. Am living in my purpose.

...Everyone has setbacks and hard times, do you have any regrets and why?

Setbacks are not having a full rig of equipment I have bits and pieces, and not having my own studio and PA system. I need over US3500 for a good rig.

...For those up and coming gospel artists what is your advice?

Be sure of your calling is what I can say to upcoming artists. Aim to have character above all else.

...You have a few things up your sleeve ...anything exciting on the horizon regarding your music?

A live DVD and CD called Mhoroi-live and Inspiration a studio project. I plan to do more ministries in Church conferences both locally and internationally. I am planning a tour of Tanzania, Kenya, Australia, Zambia and UK .

...Any exhortations or last words to the people within and without Christ, in and out of Zimbabwe?

Zimbabwe, keep your head for your time is nigh, Salvation cometh not from man but from the Lord of heaven and Earth.

…
Bookings people can call 0026311614366, 00263912300029, and 0026771968289 or email sgwanzura@yahoo.com

Listen to Pastor G:_________________________

"I WORSHIP YOU - DIARY OF A STREET PASTOR" CD

• Zvichanaka
• I Worship You

"MY HOME" CD

• My Home
• Thank You

Tyre Sense

The disadvantages of driving an un-roadworthy vehicle include paying a hefty fine if caught (or a bribe: corruption is rife these days), your insurance refusing to pay if you’re involved in an accident and if someone dies in the accident courts will unlikely take your side.

Cash strapped or not, this is what all motorists need to consider before taking that un-roadworthy vehicle out for a spin. And tyres are the most important part that can turn a car into a high-speed man-made monster.

Usually this is the dilemma: You need to keep your car going, but the tyres are worn out and your pay-advice is embarrassing (it’s not the fake one you show the girls). What then?

Well, quite honestly, if money is the issue then second hand tyres is the way to go. But before you do buy, like any responsible driver you need to have safety in your mind. This means knowing the standard specification of tyres for your car. Not only is this playing safe, but using correct tyres can also save you fuel and in Zimbabwe where fuel is a luxury, fuel economy must be important to you.

Buying a second-hand tyre, like buying any other second had item, is not easy. Many questions come to your mind. Will it last? Why was it let go by the owner? How old is it? Of course one question that many people do not ask themselves is what environment was it designed for?

Some countries have snow and ice with tyres specially designed for that environment. It’s nothing to worry about if everyone was honest, but dealers have a tendency of looking for a quick dollar by not following recommendations. Using such tyres on Zimbabwean roads would be unsuitable. Mostly, such tyres are brought into the country for retreading. But because on some the tread will be acceptable the importer then sells it as it is.

Retreads are another popular option to brand new tyres because of the significant price difference. Retreads have an appeal because they look new but generally they don’t last in comparison to brand new ones. This can be a problem with the tyres or other issues like wheel alignment and road quality (our roads have really been hard hit by a pothole outbreak).

It is advisable to buy retreads from reputable dealers. Most car-owners might be unaware but tyre can only be retreaded once. Some dealers will simply ignore this and will put new tread on an old casing more than once. Manufactures of tyres recommend a tyre lifespan of seven to eight yrs.

The tread is an important part of the tyre. It affects speed and handling. The casing holds everything together into a tyre just like a skeleton gives structure to some living creatures. Another important function of the tread is to remove water from between the tyre rubber and the road in wet conditions. Without it the tyre would be bald and there would be layer of water between the tyre and the road making driving dangerously difficult.

Market trends expected to continue in 2008...

It’s business as usual after successful squeezing into the New Year. As the holiday festivities fade away, reality sets in. It’s going to be another tough year for business. Inflation is still spiraling freely upward, and interest rates are still prohibitively low. And the coming harmonized march elections seem not to offer any good prospects for business.

This means treasury departments have to be technically competent in identifying investment vehicles with returns that closely match inflation patterns.

Commentators believe that the stock market faired relatively well in 2007 ahead of other investment vehicles given that it was nearer the inflation rate. This trend is expected to continue this year as the patterns of the major market determinants; inflation and investment interest rate remain unchanged. Of course the performance of the stock market might be affected by the Monetary Policy to be announced. The Monetary policy will have an impact on the interest rate and exchange rate policy.

Given that the government faces fiscal obligations of financing the productive sector of the economy, importing fuel, reducing the ballooning budget deficit and other commitments, it is unlikely that interest rates will go up. An increase in interest rates will make borrowing expensive and the government would not want that given that it is the major borrower in the local money market. This scenario makes the money market an unfavorable investment vehicle.

The property market is another form of investment that investors can go into. Compared to other investments, the property market seemed to have benefited from the price blitz of June 2007. Property prices continued to go up inline with inflation regardless of the government directed price freeze. Caution is necessary when putting money in the property market however. Given that property is very expensive it might not be possible for an investor to take their profits at shorter notices. In addition to the problem of liquidity, property sometimes cannot be divided and sold in smaller units.

The foreign currency is a tempting market but is very unattractive as it carries high risk. Dealing in foreign currency is mostly illegal.

Commentators say that 2008 will not be unusual compared to 2007, as the trend that saw the widening gap between inflation and interest rates is likely to continue. This same trend that saw the stock market perform well is bound to have that performance repeated this year, and give you good reason to invest in the stock market, on selected counters of course.

Unfaithful Wife

An elderly couple are sitting around one evening and the man says to wife "Marsha, we are about to celebrate our 60th wedding anniversary. We've had a wonderful life together, full of contentment and blessings. But there's something I've always wondered about: Tell the truth. Have you ever been unfaithful to me? " She hesitates a moment, then says Yes, 3 times, Sidney.""Three times?" How could that happen?" Sidney asks. The wife begins recalling slowly "Well, do you remember right after we were married and we were so broke, and the bank was going to foreclose on our little house?" "Yes, that was really a terrible time" replies the man. Marsha continued, "And remember when I went to see the banker one night and the next day the bank extended our loan?" "That's hard to take" the man says "but I guess it really was for us,so I can forgive you.""What was the second time?" "Well," she continued "do you remember years later when you almost died from the heart problem because we couldn't afford the operation?" "Yes of course" the man replies. " Then you will remember that night after I went to see the doctor, he did your operation at nocost?" she explained. "That's true" Sidney nodded. "That shocks me, Marsha, but I do understand that you did it out of love for me, and I forgive you. "So, what was the third time?" Marsha lowers her head and says "Sidney, do you remember when you ran for Country Club President and you needed 62 more votes?" The man fainted....

Chikomba

At a doctor's surgery one morning a patient arrives complaining of serious backache. The doctor examines him and asks him, "What the hell did you do to your back? "The patient replies, "You know that I am a bouncer at a local night club? Well, yesterday morning I got home to my flat quite early and heard a noise in my bedroom. On entering I knew someone had been sleeping with my wife as my wife was lying naked in bed and the balcony door was open. I rushed out the balcony door and did not find anyone. As I looked down from the balcony I saw a man running out of the building and he was dressing himself. I grabbed the fridge and threw it at him. That's how I strained my back ". The 2nd patient arrives looking as if he has been in a car wreck. The doctor says, "My previous patient looked bad, but you look terrible. What the hell happened to you? "The 2nd patient replies, "You know I have been unemployed for a while now Doctor? Well yesterday morning was my first day at my new job. I forgot to set my alarm and was running late. I was running out of the building, getting dressed at the same time, and you won't believe it but Iwas hit by a fridge. The 3rd patient arrives; he looks even worse than the other two patients did. The doctor was shocked. Again he asks, "What the hell happened to you?" "Well I was sitting in a fridge ............ !"

Getting into 2008..

The New Year’s Eve ended quietly with little commercial activity in town, save for long queues at the banks and empty grocery shops. Against this sad background, many young people were at home saving their energies for what was to come later.

To the young the New Year’s Eve is a much-anticipated grand finale, which climaxes at the stroke of midnight. There is no experience like being there at the birth of a new year. Memorable. Very. Of course some people simply sleep the night away. To them it’s just like any other night. Some wait for it quietly, telling stories of all sorts while seeping something till the countdown, after which it’s good night see you tomorrow (eh later today). Others believe in celebrating the New Year by doing all sorts of crazy things. They wait in hiding to ambush civilized society’s infrastructure. At the stroke of midnight they leap out, and like the possessed do all sorts of damage. After a few moments of madness and being satisfied with the havoc they retire.

But, to date, nothing has been more popular than entering a new year as light and as high as a cloud. To those who feel young, boys and girls, men, woman, married, single, whoever, going out on the 31^st of December is a must, otherwise the rest of the year is filled with regret as you are told of how the club was happening on the 31^st.

No doubt as the hour approached 10 o’clock, the streets of Bulawayo filled with various night creatures. Rats, dogs, cats, clubbers. Everything and everyone was feeling the mood of the moment. And it seemed everyone was trying to position him or herself for the countdown by choosing the coolest spot.

10^th Avenue btwn J.Tongogara and R.Mugabe has the highest concentration of entertainment spots. Khami Bar with Emthunzini Gardens (the former notorious Silver Fox), Safari Bar, Club Alabama, Rainbow Hotel and a very popular bottle store where people seem to drink any hour of the day (here you can also get your car re-fueled, don’t look for a service station though, and washed while you’re negotiating a forex deal). Rainbow was toping the charts here. Besides the bar filled with execs and bowlers, there was a party in the presidential room with tha shawty looking so fine. The bombi-stombi was also happening. The problem here as expected is that there is no M.C, the beat is freeloaded usually from a volunteer and if it ain’t loud enough nigga get you own system to pimp.

There were days when Fife Street was the most popular street in town for nightlife. 31^st was not one of those days. Along this street there is Crash Sports Bar (former Paparazzi) and Hustlers after Haefilis. It was easy to notice the nonexistence of these joints. Save for a couple of taxis parked outside and a couple of unaccompanied ladies, there was nothing at these joints for someone wanting something to talk about to his peers for the next year.

On the way to where it really happened there was Visions. A giant human kraal had been erected for a so-called street bash. Luckily no humans had been trapped by the late hour. Or it’s just that people did not like the idea of dancing outside wasting their expensive perfumes in the night air and their expensive skunas in the rough pot-holed road carpeting the enclosure. Or it was that most of the patrons at this club were kiddies. Well they wouldn’t want to be spotted by their uncle happening to be chilling at Ebunandini just adjacent would they? Not to worry about daddy or mummy, she is working a new year’s shift in the Diaspora to pay for the January’s installment of Doc’s Mec.

Leaving Visions and other ancient relics of clubbing history behind, and driving completely out of town it seemed like the nomadic night crawlers had found their final resting place for the night. Tents, eh cars were all over the place. There was no doubt in your mind when you arrived that this was the spot! Its Bras baby and you’re just in time too. Knock your self out and boy did you see it come or you were already in it. There is nothing to talk about after all, but then that’s the excitement the New Year causes. Happy New Year.