Meet Masauso from Zimbabwe

By Masauso Siakuba

Simply “attending” is not enough.

My family attended church, but we did not know Jesus as Savior and Lord. I was the first one to become a Christian, with my siblings following later. They cited my actions as motivation for them to follow Jesus. Eventually, in 2018, my mother and father became Christians.

My name is Masauso, but friends call me Mass. I was born and raised in the Midlands Province of rural Zimbabwe. My family went to church, but we did not have a personal relationship with Jesus. I saw church mostly as a source of entertainment. My main interest in church activities stemmed from watching the youth group perform Christian short dramas, which I found amusing.

It took a long time for me to accept Jesus as my Savior. My perspective began to change after a resident pastor in our community explained what it truly means to be a child of God. The pastor read from John 1:12 and, as he elaborated, I came to realize my need for relationship with Jesus Christ.

I am married to Sekai Shiri, an agricultural professional who teaches that subject in secondary schools. Together, as parents of five, we have served rural communities in education and farming. While Sekia worked as a teacher, I worked as a game ranger with the Parks and Wildlife Management Authority. However, sensing God’s call to the ministry, I left my job in 1997 to dedicate my life to Gospel ministry.

In the early 1990s, I began attending church regularly after visiting for five years. My areas of interest and involvement were music, evangelism, and church planting. When asked to preach, I often sang instead, and the audience frequently requested that I continue with singing, expressing a preference for my musical contributions. This feedback led me to focus more on music within the church context. I soon discovered that my music could inspire others toward faith, leading me to head the Missions, Evangelism, and Church Planting Department for five years, during which we started churches.

I studied theology in 2001, and then in 2004 I founded Cornerstone Baptist Church, under the Baptist Conference of Zimbabwe. Through that church I focused my ministry efforts on serving impoverished and marginalized communities, particularly in the Zambezi Valley, where many churches are reluctant to minister.

This is a photo of pastors from the Domboshava region who are going through Step-by-Step Discipleship Training Process in-person.

In October 2023, a pastor/friend of mine from Kenya introduced me to Disciplers International, and the training they offer to equip Disciples of Christ to become Disciplers for Christ. Although it was challenging at first, I gradually understood DI’s objectives and found it transformative for my faith and ministry. With gratitude I continue to thank my friend, Patrick, for connecting me with a supportive team of fellow Disciplers from DI. And with the training I have received, I am now training people in communities across Zimbabwe and beyond – Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini – via WhatsApp groups and in-person.

We have launched pre-schools in churches, raising resources with Sekai to provide Bibles and food to Missionary Educators and children. These educators teach both formal education and the Gospel to local kids every Saturday, bridging the church and community. Thus far, we have trained Missionary Educators in 21 churches with 18 more awaiting training by 2025. My wife and I support these efforts through small-scale farming, utilizing her expertise as an agricultural technician. The pre-schools are free and evangelistic, with educators volunteering their services.

Investing in young children ensures the future of the Church. We also plan to start Vocational Training Centers for youth, and recently took on unfinished school projects in two communities after being inspired by our pre-school programs. Photos show me and my wife working with churches and pre-school children, whom I’m affectionately known as “Uncle Mass.” This initiative has deeply impacted us and helped expand the Gospel throughout Zimbabwe. In one photo, I'm dancing with Missionary Educators in tracksuits. I record music to minister through singing, not for profit.