INTRODUCTION
Some time ago we wrote, “The training of preachers is a critical component in the growth of the church. A lot of diligence goes into it. Soldiers going into real combat are never trained in a day. Such is the case for a soldier of Christ. Ours is a spiritual battle. The task of winning souls to Christ is ever present in our minds.” This is exemplified by the activities that took place in the month of July. The school continued to put one block on top of another in its effort of providing the church with highly skilled and competent manpower. Both teachers, students, the board and various converge in this endeavor. The view is to produce a well-trained soldier for Christ through various activities. The following are some of the few things that we can report on.
CURRICULUM PROGRESS
The 2022 -2024 intake covered a lot of ground its first term of learning at BVBIZ. The following subjects were done and completed successfully; Godhead, Life of Christ, Public Speaking, How We Got the Bible, Personal Work I, New Testament Church, Scheme of Redemption, English Writing Skills and Horticulture I & II.
PROJECTS
BVBIZ continue to lay the foundation in its drive towards having some viable projects on ground. Broilers have been doing well though less were raised during the winter season.The free-range chickens (road runners) are also doing well. The goat project is also doing well. The goats now stand at 17. The tuck shop project, though very small has faced challenges of price fluctuations and lack of a proper room to run the project.
HORTICULTURE
The school’s horticulture project which had started at a low pace accelerated towards the end of the month. The first crop to be sold is lettuce. Sales are expected to rise as in the next few months. Capacitating the project has been a challenge but God answers prayers in many ways. For some time the school had been wishing to advance its horticulture program. The focus of this development has always been to advance life survival skills in students and also provide some income to the school.
GRADUATION AND PREACHER’S RETREAT
This year’s graduation shall take place on the 29th of October. This ceremony will be preceded by a 2 day preachers retreat (26-28 October). On the 28th, there shall be a graduation lecture code named the Isaiah Suwari memorial lecture.
WBS WORKSHOP
On the 27th of July, BVBIZ hosted a WBS workshop which was attended by preachers from in and around Gweru. Students benefited as well. The guest facilitators were Brothers Phil Parmer (the WBS envoy for East and Southern Africa) and his wife, Machona Monyamane (a WBS board member) and Terrence Muza from the WBS office in Harare. BVBIZ greatly appreciates this team and the attendees who made the day a success.
CONCLUSION
Several activities took place as highlighted in the above report. We remain grateful to God for making this possible. To our various partners locally and abroad, may God continue to bless you abundantly? It is through your efforts and sacrifices that BVBIZ has gotten this far. To God be the glory!