The Sunday Mail
ZIMBABWE international footballer Edward Sadomba says fasting and prayer are the key components that have guided his every professional move.
Sadomba recently secured a landmark ruling after he sued his former club, Al Ahli Tripoli of Libya, for US$450 000 at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Al Ahli Tripoli claimed they made a cash payment of US$450 000 to Sadomba but failed to substantiate that.
The ex-Dynamos striker’s appeal had been rejected by Fifa’s Dispute Resolution Chamber for lack of evidence that he had not been paid.
The 33-year-old says he fasted and prayed for the CAS to uphold justice.
“This case was my wilderness experience. Like the Israelites we entered with stubbornness and demands. But by the time God was done with us we knew who God was and what it is He expected from us.
“It was something we realised with my wife Sherlynn right from the beginning that God would not remove that thorn easily until he was done teaching us. We encouraged each other in prayer and fasting like we had never done before.
“I am grateful and proud to say no prayer or fast goes unnoticed. Even our children knew the devil had come to steal and they too were part of the weekly fast. Every morning as we have taught them to command their morning, they would always speak restoration and victory into the spiritual realm.
“The thing is if you cannot fight hunger in your time to fast then there is no way you are able to fight the devil stealing and destroying you,” Sadomba said.
He found assistance through Desmond Maringwa of the Footballers Union of Zimbabwe and lawyer Kudakwashe Chisekereni in conjunction with FifPro.
In an interview with The Sunday Mail Society, Sadomba spoke about how prayer and fasting have for long taken centre stage when he faced a major life decision.
“Over time in my walk with Christ I realised that there is comfort and confidence when you make God the alpha of your every move. So much that when you face glitches along the way you know God has got you.
“So yes before every club move I fast and pray. I normally have an insight of the team before I am offered a job. This is because whatever we ask, God gives. And we ask for revelation, He gives to those that diligently seek Him.
“In football different people believe in different things and I would never play a match without committing it to God. And whatever result, I give all the glory to God.”
He said God had raised him “from the gutters to where I am”
“I have learnt to trust in Him. He strategically placed me where I have been ridiculed because of my faith and I always turn to God and ask Him to show off and He always does.”
For him, growing up in the poor suburb of Mbare and then going to win the Caf Champions League twice was evidence of God working in his life.
Sadomba said he was raised in a family with a Catholic background but “going to church was optional with no consequences”.
“In 2005 I had a serious injury while playing for Maritzburg United and ended up not playing for six months. It was a very difficult time in my life in which I realised there were some issues humans would not be able to help,” Sadomba said in reference to the 2004-2006 season.
“I began to have a desire in me to know if God would be my way out. I took a sudden interest in going to church. And when it’s your destined time to give your life to God, He places people in your way that bring the gospel to you.
“A friend invited me to a Christ Embassy Church and I felt I belonged there. For the first time in my life I felt like I really understood who this God was,” he said, quoting Matthew 6:33.
He was to play for Dynamos between 2006 and 2008, and then across the border in Mozambique for Liga Desportiva de Maputo.
In 2009, a new chapter was to open as Sadomba moved to Sudanese giants Al Hilal, where he was to stay until 2012 when he joined Al Ittihad Kalba in the United Arab Emirates.
His talent would take him to Libyan sides Al Ahly Benghazi and Al Ahli Tripoli before he made a return to Al Hilal in 2016.
He uses the Edward Sadomba Foundation as his pulpit to evangelise to aspiring footballers.
