Here I Am: Tears of an African Immigrant: Book 1: Family Values

By Lisa Rufaro

Lets be honest. We all have scars and dysfunctions and have been through something. You struggled through a life challenge. Your closest friend may not know it, but God does. What trials have happened or are still happening to you? Are you willing to show your scars? It takes faith to believe that the emotional and spiritual wounds of the trial are healed, even though there are still evident scars.

God led my family and me through a testing trial to create high-level faith in our hearts. Sometimes God allows you to walk through your journey and lets you wander, question, and challenge your belief.

As an episodic memoir, this book depicts childhood experiences in Zimbabwe and an expedited family relocation to the United States. Although settling in America came with its natural challenges, nobody in my family anticipated my older brother facing a spiritual condition that would inhibit him from even attending school for several years.

Family strife from my fathers side of the family has played a huge role for the woman I have become today. I am thankful for them. It would all make more sense later as an adult when I learned of the biblical story of Joseph. There are clear parallel experiences. After experiencing such betrayal by close relatives, what would all the midnight tears accumulate to? Today, I have learned to say, Here I am, Lord. Have your way.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Aug 7, 2017
• ISBN: 9781512797015

Lisa Rufaro

Lisa Rufaro is an insightful leader who combines family values, business acumen, and a zeal for accomplishing her specific assignments from God into one dynamic calling. In the midst of balancing career, ministry and family, she was led to write a book that would call to action those questioning God from a current or previous life challenge to have a “Here I am” moment. Lisa shares her episodic structured memoir on her childhood, family values, and unforeseen trials prevailed only by prayer and her faith in God.

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Copyright © 2017 Lisa Rufaro .

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

WestBow Press

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ISBN: 978-1-5127-9700-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-9701-5 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017911555

WestBow Press rev. date: 08/03/2017

Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1 I Always Knew God Was Real

Chapter 2 Family Values

Chapter 3 Grandparents

Chapter 4 Brotherly Love

Chapter 5 Simukai (Rise Up)

Chapter 6 Who Can Help Us?

Chapter 7 We Left The Stove On!

Chapter 8 Hoping

Chapter 9 Pharaoh's Pursuit

Chapter 10 Dinner-Table Attack

Chapter 11 The Offense

Chapter 12 Tj's Broken Arm

Chapter 13 Justification

Chapter 14 The Phone Call

Afterword

PREFACE

This book is an episodic memoir. All the chapters highlight true stories as well as individual themes. I incorporated others’ memories to provide further details about events that took place primarily in my childhood.

The purpose of this book is to provide my perspective on how past events occurred to my family, how I reacted to them, and how they contributed to my faith as a born-again believer in Jesus Christ. I want my story to prompt others to practice self-reflection and authenticity before God through life’s challenges.

We all desperately need God and can make it through unimaginable trials only with His strength when we are weak.

This book will challenge readers to persevere in prayer during difficult times, know there is a purpose for every tribulation they experience, and glorify God with their testimony. Family Values is the first book in the series, Here I Am: Tears of an African Immigrant.

To present clear and concise chapters, some timelines were abridged. Nicknames and Shona terms from Zimbabwe are italicized with English translation with some names modified.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I have gone through an invigorating and challenging season in my life that stretched my faith in God to new heights. This note of thanks comes with much joy. I have learned so much about myself by discovering abilities that were in me from before I was born and seeing a new side of God. So often, we do not know what we are capable of, and I give all honor and glory to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

I reflect here on the people who have supported and helped me so much throughout this period.

A sincere thank you to my parents and my mother in particular. Thank you for instilling the fear of God in me and always encouraging me. Thank you to my older brother; your life has impacted me in more ways than you understand and will continue to touch many people for God’s glory.

I also thank the family of God I have had the privilege to serve alongside.

Thank you with agape love!

CHAPTER 1

I Always Knew God Was Real

A lot happened in 1998. At the time, I did not fully comprehend the dynamics of what my parents were sacrificing for our family to relocate to the United States. I was seven when the plans began to materialize. Zimbabwe’s economic condition in general and discord in my paternal family in particular had pledged allegiance to each other, and this was the reason for our migration. But more than anything else, paternal family conflicts seemed to be the leader of the coalition. All my life, I knew there were various tensions in the paternal clan, but it was still difficult to pinpoint what they were. They must have stemmed from jealousy, envy, and insecurities. Despite the source, I have always been thankful to God for my life and for my resilient parents.

I do not think I ever told my parents that even when I was just four, I always told myself in a light, soft voice that I felt God told me everything would be all right. I would close my eyes, knowing God was watching me in a comforting manner, and I would repeat, Everything is going to be all right.

As a child, I was exposed to many things children typically do not fully comprehend until adulthood if ever. I always knew God was real; nobody had to convince me of that. If anything, my parents instilled the fear of God in me, but it was as if I had already recognized the Holy Spirit’s comforting presence.

My parents have