The Sunday Mail
Apostle Florence Kanyati
RIZPAH the Uncommon Women International Conference, a brainchild of Apostle Florence Kanyati, has been running for the past decade on Africa Day.
Taken from the Biblical and unknown character called Rizpah in 2 Samuel 21v7-10, the conference is meant to raise uncommon women.
While Africa comes together on Africa Day to discuss issues that propel the African nations, Apostle Kanyati said it is also a time for women from all walks of life to come and learn from other empowered women.
The author of 24 books said time had since moved from the period when men in the Jewish culture would wake up to pray and thank God for being neither a dog, a Gentile nor a woman.
“We are saying hey after Jesus has come women have found grace and in the month of May, Africa as a region we celebrate Africa Day. So we say on Africa Day let mothers from all walks of life, from all kinds of denominations, let them come together and give a praise to God, be in the presence of God, take a rest, learn from other women, get empowered and so forth,” Apostle Kanyati said.
Apostle Kanyati has seen women who have been raised through the conference to become pilots of industry and entrepreneurs.
“Our women have become decision makers in places of influence and they refer to this conference, they have become employers although there is room for more. One thing I see is morality because you know once a woman gets to know God personally and they mature in the things of God they cannot be counted among adulterers or those that cheat in their company. I have seen our women becoming hard workers.
“I have come across women who were not very polished academically and over the years I have encouraged them to go to school. I am excited to tell you that some of our ladies now have doctorates, now have masters, now have first degrees, now have second degrees, we see development,” noted Apostle Kanyati.
“There are women who came as girls, some of them where just a bunch of women who seemed to be going nowhere, we have taken them through the programme I run for young girls called Esthers in the palace. Every now and again four times a year I run a programme called One Night with the King. As it was in the Bible, I take in girls for three days and three nights for serious prayer and prepare them for marriage.
“I believe in every man created by God; rich or poor, black or white; there is a king so I prepare the girls to be able to discover and to mine out that king that is in the man,” Apostle Kanyati added.
Going hand in glove with the concept of raising people with a mindset to be employers, Apostle Kanyati said it was an offense for a woman to end a day without making a dollar.
“You know Proverbs 31 talks about the enterprising woman, first to arise, the last to go to bed. She handles with her hands, she puts strength in whatever she does. So we have a one dollar principle in our ministry. I say to them, ‘If you cannot own a conglomerate like a big awesome company at least have something even very small’.
The Bible says do not despise the days of small beginnings so I have seen our women starting small and growing big. And I also encourage our women when God empowers them financially not to look down on the men.
“We have girls as young as 21 buying their own cars, buy their own stands, they start to build a house, we encourage them to do these things. This is what the Bible says it talks about an enterprising woman.
“Our women must put a footprint on the earth that cannot be erased, women should be legacy builders that the world will look back and be grateful that a woman once lived. We aren’t trying to raise pity party women, complaining women forever looking for someone to wipe away their tears, we are saying let women be solution givers,” Apostle Kanyati emphasised.
While certain milestones in empowering women have been realised, Apostle Kanyati said women are still lagging behind in certain industries such as mining.
“Most women are going to China, Dubai, bringing goods. At this point in time we want our women to enter into manufacturing, being innovators as one idea can turn into thousands of dollars.
“Think of being skilled women. We are talking of plaiting, sewing, making cakes.
‘‘We want women to be skilled more, be employers more, there are many things that people forever say we wish the Government would do this for us. We are saying we wish women could do this, for women to build generational businesses.
“I encourage women to be pioneers of something. At least women should start something in their lifetime. Something must be attached to a woman’s name for a change and a woman is not a woman until her name is on a (title) deed,” Apostle Kanyati reiterated.
Women have remained central to problems brought by inheritance disputes, one area that Apostle Kanyati believes can be solved by women owning properties.
“Sometimes when the husband passes on, women are dragged from one court room to another, embarrassed, dignity removed, they are accused of having killed the husband in order for his relatives to possess the property.
“I am saying a woman too can buy her own house and not have to deal with these inheritance issues. And there are men too who refuse to walk the red carpet with a woman (wedding) as our culture used to say women want weddings because they want to take over the property. No, time has changed, we have Rizpah women in the house who can make a difference.
From the Rizpah character, Apostle Kanyati said they teach women to be resilient despite being battered by difficulties in life.
“The only solution against resistance is persistence until the enemy gives in. I am saying to women do not give up on yourself, don’t despise your past. In life you can lead without a title. At Rizpah I say to the woman your past is in your tomb, the future is in your womb. It comes a time in the Bible when the king heard what Rizpah had done.
‘‘If all you can do can be heard by ordinary people you end up with ordinary results.
“And when the king heard, she brought dignity. The man had messed up but it’s the woman who cleaned up. A woman might be soft but the deliverance in the woman is powerful.
“Sometimes if a woman is not properly taught they can get jealous and envious. But if a woman is equally empowered, there isn’t any need to feel jealous. One thorn can remove another.
“Women can rub shoulders and it can rub on. I can learn from you as much as you learn from me and we can be better women in our time.
“So I encourage women to come and have a ladies’ day out in God’s presence. The feeling is phenomenal, celebrating Africa Day in style.
‘‘We are proud to be African women, black as we are, bold, blessed and beautiful. We are rejoicing and celebrating that we are Africans,God made a right choice in making us Africans,” concluded Apostle Kanyati.
