***NEWS RELEASE***
Giving Hope to Zimbabwe in the Midst of Strife
The Tide® Global Gospel Ministry Has Provided the Hope of Christ Through ‘Amagugu Evangeli’ Radio Program for the Past 35 Years
CHAMBERSBURG, Pa.—The African nation of Zimbabwe is experiencing very hard times, and its people desperately need the hope of Jesus Christ, says The Tide® (www.thetide.org) global radio ministry.
According to a news story in Business Report, South Africa’s leading business-focused publication, the Republic of Zimbabwe is one of seven countries that could go bankrupt in 2018. Zimbabwe was in disarray last year following the resignation of former President Robert Mugabe. Even though his resignation made Zimbabweans jubilant, an estimated 95 percent of the workforce has been left unemployed, the outlet reports.
“The people of Zimbabwe are in the midst of a great deal of strife,” said The Tide Director Don Shenk, who was born in then-Rhodesia. “Prices for food and health care are skyrocketing out of control, infrastructure is crumbling, and there are widespread shortages of cash and medicine. While people were celebrating the resignation of President Mugabe, their lives have not improved much, with uncertainty and unrest still prevalent.”
Although small changes in Zimbabwe will eventually make a difference for its people, the damage is extensive and may take years to undo. Many of the country’s woes are rooted in Mugabe’s support for the seizure of white-owned farms, which slashed agricultural production, export earnings and tax revenue, Business Report shared. Shenk’s missionary parents and brother still reside in Zimbabwe.
To reach the people of Zimbabwe with the hope of Jesus, The Tide ministry broadcasts the Gospel over the radio airwaves in cooperation with partner ministries and local pastors. In 1983, The Tide ministry began working with a church group in Zimbabwe to produce and air an Ndebele language radio program called “Amagugu Evangeli.” Since then, the ministry has also assisted in the production of Christian radio programs in the English and Shona languages. In 2016, The Tide ministry also began building a new, larger and upgraded recording studio so this local radio ministry can continue to grow and impact more lives for Christ.
In 2017, The Tide ministry began offering programming in its 25th heart language—Isaan, spoken by 19 million people in Thailand. This initiative allows Thailand to join multiple regions of Albania, Bhutan, India, Kosovo, Nepal, Nigeria and Zimbabwe, where The Tide ministry is already active in broadcasting Gospel radio programming—in the languages people were born to speak.
For more information about The Tide broadcast projects, history, radio programs around the world, the new “Every Knee, Every Tongue” campaign, the weekly Global Update radio features or other news, visit its web site at www.thetide.org or its Facebook page. Read more about The Tide ministry and Don Shenk here.
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