Phillip is here in Australia to promote the work of the Acts Initiative, a ministry of Eagles Wings (Zambia).
To date, the Acts Initiative has working relationships with churches in several African countries including: Zambia, Tanzania, Angola, Malawi, ambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The initiative's aim is to broaden the people's awareness of the social justice issues surrounding orphaned and vulnerable children, with the hopes of ultimately fostering the development of church based social justice ministries within local communities.
While speaking with Pastor Phillip Kazhingu, I got an idea of the challenges he is being faced with as coordinator of the initiative.
For the last few years, as coordinator, Philip has had to travel extensively throughout central and southern Africa, visiting different church groups, and forming relationships with congregations from varying cultural backgrounds.
Initial trips are to form relationships with church leaders and to grow the church's awareness of the social issues that impact on the vulnerable children within their area.
Once the needs in a church's local community are identified, Phillip's trips move quickly from discussion to a more pragmatic education with workshops and the development of outreaches.
With no additional funding to start this important ministry, churches are encouraged to use the resources they have at hand to support their respective outreaches, which can be as diverse as community education and feeding programs, to foster care and mobile clinics in remote areas.
Encouraging churches to act using whatever resources they have at their disposal is a key element of the Acts Initiative, as it stands firm in the conviction that churches should act now and rely on God's provision, rather than waiting for donations.
The depth of Philip's conviction is evident, not only when he speaks about child welfare, but also in the way he lives his life.
Philip is not a rich man, in fact, quite the opposite, and yet in addition to supporting three children of his own, he and his wife Esnart have, over the last few years, adopted another seven (yes seven) children, providing for them a loving home and a much brighter future.
Phillip has been in Australia for the last three weeks informing Australian supporters of the progress made by the churches in Africa, and he is also encouraging Australian's to explore the many ways that our churches can partner with the plethora of ministries blossoming from this initiative.
He describes Australia as paradise, however, after meeting and talking with other Christians, he has been surprised to find high levels of loneliness, and unhappiness even though we enjoy greater wealth and better living conditions, compared to the majority of Africans.
For him it has highlighted the fact that happiness has nothing to do with externals, or what a person has, but rather, happiness is more to do with what is going on inside a person.
Philip is returning to Zambia this week to continue his work with Eagle's Wings. To find out more about the Acts Initiative visit www.ewafrica.org and click on 'Our Programs'.
Ben Kitzelman has spent the last 4 years travelling between Australia and Zambia, serving for one as a missionary, and is now an IT professional in Melbourne.