HISTORY BACKGROUND: MBAULA EMMANUEL ASSEMBLY

Mbaula Emmanuel Assembly (Located: Mbaula Village, under Mopani District) is a church organisation founded in 1970 by Mr S.Z Ngobeni to reach an unreached people group; to reach the de-churched in an ecclesiastically stale area; and to join God in a  movement specific to a pre-church community that was emerging.

Mbaula Emmanuel, the second Christian church gathering after AFM in Mbaula Village was founded as Mbaula Assembly with less than twenty members only ten years after the formation of the Village(Mbaula), Sunday services were held at Mr Ngobeni’s household in a rondavel, because of the few number of fellowship the church was registered as a branch of Makhuba Assembly on district, so everything the church had to do was supposed to first report and get permission from Makhuba Assembly.

In 1980 after ten years of fellowship the church moved to a primary school located in the south-western side of the village called Nyiko Primary, and still it was under Makhuba Assembly and by then the number of members was still growing until the year 1987 when the fellowship was given a piece of land to build their own church and then moved to the new location in the very same year.

Some of the church members in the new location(early 1990s)

A shelter measured five by nine mitres with the height of 2.5 mitres was built, the church stayed for another twelve years still under Makhuba Assembly until 1999 when the church registered on district with the name Mbaula Emmanuel Assembly, it was then independed and could do anything without Makhuba Assembly’s permission or it knowing. The newly built shelter could handle the sun and provide a good shelter but couldn’t handle the rain and winds; it was too open for those.

Sunday school and Youth number was rapidly rising which has forced the committee to take a very legitimate action of building a bigger church to accommodate a higher number of people and also to avoid rains and winds.

In the year 2000 a huge structure of ten by fifty mitres was built, the structure was very strong but sadly hit by thunder and lightning in 2004 and it all collaped to the ground, which was a great loss financially to the church and also time was squandered, having to go back to scratch was a very serious challenge to the committee.

The fall of the structure took the committee back to scratch, in 2006 each and every piece of the fallen structure was straightened back to its normal way and went back to do its job, the structure was re-built. In the year 2007 the first built small shelter collapsed, then the Sunday service was forced to move to the new church which was still under contraction. 2011 the church was completely built but have not had an official opening.



The newly built church (Interior)



The church is running by a committee (church board) that changes yearly, all voted by baptised members of the church that know all rules and regulations of the church. Also the Youth has its own committee that organises everything about Youth but can’t take actions without letting the church board know if it’s a serious matter. The Sunday School also has its own leaders, teachers that help them pave their way to knowing the relationship within the Holy Trinity and make sure they are being taken care of, and they don’t disturb services.

Writer       : Mr Thyne T Mathebula
Editor        : Mr Thapelo M Mahlabane
Sub-Edior  : Miss Dzuni Delia Ngobeni
Publisher    : Mr Thyne T Mathebula

Assistance in compiling photographs
Mr Xivono J Mathebula

Sources
Mr S.Z Ngobeni
Mr Moses Marima
Miss Dzuni D Ngobeni
Mr G.M Mathebula