Bethel Gwarimbo

Early life and education

Born in Bulawayo Mpilo Hospital in Zimbabwe. Bethel was brought up in a Christian family in Gwabalanda Luveve in Bulawayo. That's where he did his primary and secondary education. As young Bethel was growing up he would only get a pair of shoes and perhaps a pair of new clothes once a year at Christmas whereas the other children in the home would get spoilt at any point during the year as well as Christmas. The shoes were always the infamous "weather intolerant" Plastic Sandak that would freeze the feet in winter and bake them in the summer.

The name Bethel, which means "House of God" did not change the fact that his childhood would be lonely as the air of rejection from family remained a reality that persisted through his boyhood. He had a tough life as a young child owing to illness. He had outbreaks of sceptic sores all over his body and was tormented by evil spirits. He had incoherent spells in the night time and often had hallucinations of conversations with unknown persons after which he would have the urge to leave the house and run away to go to the tombs. His elder brother constantly had to restrain him to keep him from doing that. His father tried many remedies including traditional ones but to no avail.

Divine encounter

One day at the age of 9 during the severity of his illness, a man of God laid hands on Bethel in ministration and that was to be the turning point in his life. Later that night as they slept with the rest of his siblings with whom he shared the room, he awoke to the calling of his voice. The voice that called was altogether different from the many voices he had previously heard which he had been able to identify as being of deceased people he knew. This voice sounded as though it proceeded from many waters. Upon awaking he saw the room full of men with silver hair combed back, all apparelled in white raiment. At the kitchen door stood one of them who appeared larger than the rest, who beckoned for Bethel with an outstretched arm. Bethel crawled towards him and that is his last recollection of that episode. Upon rising up in the morning his mother inquired of him concerning what he had seen. She testified that she heard him calling out in the night, "there is Jesus" several times over. He was healed of all the ailments that had troubled him from that time going forward.

This angelic visitation was indeed the receipt of his calling from God. It transformed his life completely at that tender age. He began to seek God, often retreating to the bush to pray, in emulation of the prophet who had named him, whom he knew to do the same often. Bethel was worshiping at Forward in Faith Ministries Luveve District. After school he worked for a company that distributed chemicals, as a sales person. He later left that company and started his own venture, a carpet cleaning operation. Meanwhile, he was active in the house of the Lord and rose to the position of Youth Ministry chairperson. His business pursuit did not last long as he then felt the leading of God to go to bible school. He duly responded and enrolled at Africa Multination for Christ College in Bulawayo and commenced his pastoral training. He later went to the Harare campus but returned to complete his training at Bulawayo where he had begun.

Call to ministry

In 1999 Bethel sensed the call of God upon his life which led him to leave his job and business to attend bible college for pastoral training at Africa Multi-nation For Christ College from year 2000 and went to full-time ministry as a Pastor of Z.A.O.G.A Forward in Faith Ministries International in end of 2001. Together with his wife Catherine they served as full-time Pastors of Z.A.O.G.A Forward in Faith Ministries International till 8 September 2014.

Thereafter, he and his wife Catherine resigned from Z.A.O.G.A and on the 14th of September 2014 Bethel with the support of his wife founded his ministry called Prophetic World Revival Ministries, which grow very fast such that in 9 months it has reached 7 nations including South Africa. His church is based in Centurion, Pretoria and other Provinces in South Africa, with other branches in Canada, Dubai, Lesotho, Botswana, United kingdom and Zimbabwe.

Prophet Bethel acknowledges as father and mentor, the Founder and President of ZAOGA Forward in Faith Ministries International, Apostle Ezekiel. H. Guti.

Personal life

In 2002 26 October he married Catherine Chanise Chauke Gwarimbo.[1] They have two children, Haniel Nyasha and Ezekiel Gwarimbo.