Following God’s Golden Thread

Fifty years ago in obedience to God, Steve’s father Peter Griffiths left home & family in Wales to serve among the Shona people in northeastern Rhodesia, a country then divided along racial lines.  An exchange of vehicles at a rendezvous in the mountains led to an unusual romance & then to marriage with Brenda, a co-worker.  As part of a hardworking & dedicated team of national & expatriate staff they were involved in building up a multi-faceted work including a hospital, a secondary boarding school, primary schools & clinics & established a network of churches in the area.

But the war of independence where Rhodesia became Zimbabwe gathered pace.  Declaring their neutrality, the missionaries worked on as a tiny enclave of peace, enfolded in increasingly intense violence.  The work of the missionaries came to an abrupt end in a welter of blood, a mass killing taking place while Steve’s family were away on furlough.  Steve is working on a book telling their stories of love & loss, of suffering & new life, of lies & truth-telling, of failure & grace, of hatred & forgiveness, of following God's golden thread through the dark labyrinth that life can be.

Steve’s Mum has been able to access previously secret, confidential British Foreign & Commonwealth files of thirty years ago recently made available under the Freedom of Information act.  A most moving statement was the assessment by the Head of the Rhodesia Desk in the FCO, Patrick Laver who, following a meeting with Steve’s Dad wrote, “Peter Griffiths struck me as a .... man of complete integrity”.   All those years ago the “Rhodesia question” was one of the knottiest & painful issues that the British government was dealing with.  Seeing what is in the files has shed new light on the political impact of the intense suffering that Steve’s parents & their missionary colleagues endured. 

Of course, the writing has involved the reliving of old memories.  This has healing potential, but it is sometimes so sad to look back.  Steve has found it very engaging, often exhausting & deeply draining.  Anna has nobly continued cheerfully to run the household, coping at times both with a distracted & unpredictable husband & two busy, sleep-deprived teenagers.  Please pray for the glory of God to be demonstrated in what is written.