Harare — SO it came to pass, in the year 1391 BC in the Land of the River Nile under the rule of the Pharaoh, that a child -- who had been tossed into the waters of the great river by his mother appeared in the distance.

When Jochebed gave birth to her little boy, Hebrews were slaves in Egypt and -- like all Hebrew boys born during that period -- he had to be drowned in the River Nile according to the orders of the Pharaoh.

Jochebed was reluctant to carry out those orders and she decided to hide her little boy by the side of the River Nile.

After about three months, when Jochebed could no longer hide the child, she put him in a basket and cast him onto the waters of the Nile, thus abandoning the little boy to God's protection.

The little boy was saved by Pharaoh's daughter Thermuthis, who was bathing in the River Nile at the time, and she took him, as her son, to grow up as an Egyptian Prince.

The rest, as they say, is powerful biblical history.

The little boy growing into a man, turning into a shepherd in Midian after fleeing Egypt, leading his flock to Mount Horeb, coming across a burning bush and hearing a voice that instructed him to return to Egypt to free the Hebrews from slavery.

All those meetings with Pharaoh, telling him of the wishes of God, the 10 plagues -- stretching over 10 days -- and, finally, his people being given their freedom after the deadly tenth plague that was causing the death of all first-born males of Egyptian families.

The rush from Egypt, before the Pharaoh changed his mind, the orders from the Pharaoh to his army to get the Hebrews back, the Red Sea turning into a dry path for the Hebrews to cross and then, suddenly, closing the same path to drown Pharaoh's army.

The traumatic journey that followed, how the leader was blamed by the Hebrews for all the challenges that they faced, and the miracles that he performed, including turning the bitter water, at Marah, into drinkable one.

The shortages of food that followed, how the Hebrews cursed their leader once again by claiming that they were better off as slaves in Egypt, and how the Mighty God provided manna from heaven for his people.

The leader who took his people into the Promised Land, who had grown from that little boy who had been tossed into the River Nile by his mother in an effort to try and save him from certain death, was Moses.

Another child is born

So it came to pass, in the year 2009 AD when the continental football bosses based in the land of the River Nile finally awarded extra Champions League slots to the land sandwiched between the Zambezi and Limpopo, that a child emerged on the horizon.

Born in the year that his country's football association first affiliated with the football bosses in the land of the Alps from the city of Zurich, and became a member of Fifa in 1965 AD, the child had always appeared different.

Maybe there was something special, too, about the year the child was born.

After all, it was the year that the English football saint called Sir Stanley Matthews played his final First Division game -- at the record age of 50 years and five days.

And there was a feeling he was passing the torch of football excellence to a special child born, around the same time of his retirement, somewhere in Harare.

A lot was happening, too, during that year when the child was born.

Malcolm X, the American civil rights leader, was slain in Manhattan, the civil rights movement grew in intensity in Alabama in the United States and the first American combat troops arrived in South Vietnam.

It was the 1000th anniversary of the end of the American civil war, Singapore became an independent state, the Beatles performed the first stadium concert, by a rock group, in New York's Shea Stadium and the Tom and Jerry cartoon strip made its premiere on the CBS network.

Ian Smith made his unilateral declaration of independence, Winston Churchill died, the voice of legendary American singer Nat King Cole was silenced by death and the world population passed the 3,3 billion mark.

A number of boys, who would become prominent sportsmen in the world, were also born in the same year that the child was born in Harare -- Lennox Lewis (boxing), Reggie Miller (basketball) and Steve and Mark Waugh (cricket).

The child had a special gift, which made him a genius with the round ball, and while his spiky hair gave the immediate impression that he was a rebel, his brilliance with the ball was enough to warm hearts and cheer spirits.

His father was part of a migrant family, which had come all the way from the land of Lake Malawi, hoping for greener pastures in the booming industries and deep mines of the land sandwiched between the Zambezi and the Limpopo.

He was unique.

For he had incredible skill, a great football brain, could easily assume the role of playmaker and do it with distinction and, when his teammates up-front failed to complement him and messed up his excellent service, usually took matters into his hands and did the goal-scoring duties.

He could unleash thunderbolts with either foot -- left or right -- could swing balls from the corner flags that turned sharply and dipped into the net without the touch of a teammate and, behold, he could even stand on the round ball.

He could do tricks with the ball that were, until then, considered impossible, could unleash booming free-kicks -- with either foot that travelled with power -- and had this unique vision that enabled him to pick out teammates even without having to check their positions.

When he controlled the ball, no matter how hard it arrived at his feet or chest, he somehow took both life and power out of it and, in that deft touch, made it obey his orders in a beautiful union of body and ball.

He had a passion for James Bond movies and his favourite was the classic -- The Spy Who Loved Me -- but his first love was the round ball and, at any given time, he would be seen trying to perfect his skills.

Football ran in his blood and his elder brother, Kembo, was a good and forceful forward he would grow up to play for the biggest team, in the land sandwiched between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, and make a big name for himself.

But the real deal was the special boy who was born in the year that his country of birth, which he would later serve with distinction, formalised its relationship with the global football leadership from the land of the Alps otherwise known as Fifa.

He was given a special name, with his father hoping that his son will lead from the front in the deliverance of his country to the Promised Land in terms of its football dreams.

His name was Moses.

The Church Of Mbare

When he was still a teenager, his brother Kembo took him to the Church of Mbare, and there he met Father Sunday -- a young priest who had been given leadership roles at national level before a bad injury on a tour of duty in Kadoma forced him to concentrate full time on preaching.

So the child became a recruit of Father Sunday and his congregation at the Church of Mbare where he joined a host of others like the Computer of the Jere clan, the Muchongwe boys -- Eddie and Garnet -- the Ghettoboy called Gift and the Twinkletoes called Madhobha to name but a few.

Father Sunday knew there was something special with the child and he told a host of elders -- including Father Sarupinda - to keep an eye on the golden child.

One day they found him alone in the Church - praying after everyone had left - and Father Sunday was so impressed that he told everyone that this was the golden child his church had been waiting for.

He took him aside, that evening after his prayers, and as they discussed finer details about his life and his dreams, Father Sunday was left convinced that this was the Special One.

"Who is this child who opens our hearts and minds to the audacity of hope?" asked Father Sunday as he listened to his deep understanding of the finer details of zonal defence, diamond formations, 4-4-2, 3-5-2, the libero, the wingbacks etc.

Soon the child's star quality exploded and thousands of people flocked to see him showcase his talents in the Church of Mbare and, within a short space of time, he had become the bank in which they invested their faith.

So they were the least of the surprised lot when the child became the first one to go to Europe after independence where he was enrolled into the missionary school of E. Aalst in Belgium where his star quality again shined brightest.

The child learnt a lot during his time in Europe but attendance figures, back home at his old Church of Mbare, plummeted because a lot of the followers had been disillusioned by his move they decided to turn their back on the church.

Those who didn't believe in the Church Of Mbare, which also called itself Haina Ngozi, started calling it Haina Mhoze.

And it came to pass that the child was soon given the responsibility to lead his country -- as the leader of the Warriors -- and he accepted the responsibility and tried to take his country to the 1992 festival in Senegal.

The Warriors came short -- despite the best efforts of the child in the Battle against Congo where he got a lot of help from Saint Peter, but was let down by Brother John -- and the dream was destroyed.

Soon the child returned home, back to the Church of Mbare, and in 1995 AD was part of the congregation -- under Father Sunday once again -- that came within 90 minutes of a place in the semi-finals of the battle to conquer Africa.

Soon he took his teachings to the Church of Aces in Highfield, after being lured by Brother Ricardo Serafim, but he was then back at the Church of Mbare at the turn of the millennium, as a Bambo, and he tried a Kidznet Revolution that was long on vision but short on support from the elders and followers of the church.

The nomadic streak in him took him to a number of churches, from Hackney to Shabanie, from Arcadia to CAPS United and from the Happy People to the Wild Boys, until in the year 2008 AD -- exactly 10 years after the Church of Mbare came within 90 minutes of dominating Africa -- he settled at Gunners.

Critics of the child questioned whether he was the real deal, especially as a preacher, and they pointed out to the fact that he had not won the marathon that distinguished the best from the rest when it came to preaching.

But things started to look better and better by the year 2009 AD and -- having recruited a number of followers who were unwanted at the Church of Mbare -- the child and his Gunners grew in strength.

Ninety Minutes From Greatness

Word spread throughout the land that the child was performing miracles and people flocked, from all parts of the country, to see his great work.

In Gwanda they flocked to Pelandaba and saw his battle against the lions of Njube who were virtually unbeatable in their den.

But, behold, the child and his troops did not only win this battle but destroyed the lions of Njube 4-0 in a destruction act that shocked everyone.

For one of the followers, there was something ironic about the scoreline.

"It's 4-0," she shouted. "Why is it that it represents the number of people who survived that lion's den -- Daniel, Abednico, Shadreck and Misheck?"

It was like that biblical scene being replayed -- the lions of Njube becoming powerless -- and Daniel and his crew surviving in that den.

The women began to sing:

"Sa Daniel mugomba reshumba,"and the crowd responded, "Hallelujah!"

And the women continued:

"Akatanga kunamata

"Ngirozi dzichibva kudenga."

Then the rains came down and everyone started to celebrate, believing in the future, and that the child was about to finally come of age.

But there was still a barrier to be cleared and it came in the Church of Mbare and tomorrow, in the theatre of his dreams, the child will take on the forces of the house, where he built his name, hoping to complete his journey to greatness.

The followers have been preaching the word, speaking about strange and great things that have been happening, with careers being revived and Brother Maroto, rejected as a spent force, being given a new life.

Brother Ramson's career has also been revived and that is also true about Brother Mtisi, Brother Togara, Brother Tafadzwa, Brother Rediyon, Brother Mangezi and Brother Sadiki.

Even Brother Quarter Chicken has gone back to the child hoping for a revival of his career -- trusting in the priest that he first met during their time in Shabanie.

Everything appears to be returning to normal in the world again and the worst of the economic crunch storm appears to be over.

There is hope, around the world, and if Brother Michael Owen can join the Church of the Red Devils, being the true Red that he was, then anything is possible.

Even the brothers of the Church of Mazembe are back as the champions of Africa -- 41 years after they last achieved a similar feat -- and they needed a little bit of help, from teams from the land sandwiched between the Limpopo and Zambezi, to return to greatness.

The brothers from Algeria are back at the World Cup, for the first time since 1986, and the child remembers that was the year he was supposed to be honoured, as Soccer Star of the Year, but was disqualified in controversial circumstances.

It has been a long journey for the child, and just like his biblical namesake he has been tested to the limit, but he could finally take his place among the great priests of his nation tomorrow should he clear the final hurdle.

He knows it won't be easy, because the Church of Mbare doesn't just surrender like that, and he needs just to look at how it rose to the occasion -- when faced with the challenge of the Pharaohs of Zamalek from the Land of the River Nile last year -- to realise the tough task ahead.

On that day the empire of the Church of Mbare was tested to the limit and, with just two minutes left in regulation time of their battle against the Pharaohs of Zamalek, it somehow found inspiration in the form of a brother aptly named David.

With one swing of his deadly left foot, from a dead ball situation, little David released a cannonball that whistled past the Pharaohs' defence and helped bring down might Goliath leaving the followers of the Church of Mbare in delirium.

It was like that rocket that was launched by the child at the National Sports Stadium in 1987, in a showdown against the forces of the Indomitable Lions of Canon Yaounde, when all that the Church of Mbare needed was a win to move a step closer to greatness.

Having lost a close battle in Yaounde 1-2, all that the forces of the Church of Mbare needed was a 1-0 win and, before a capacity crowd at the giant stadium that day, they had their date with destiny.

But the Indomitable Lions of Canon struck again and by the time the forces of the Church of Mbare were given a free-kick, hope was ebbing out of the veins of their followers in their backyard.

Cometh the hour, cometh the man.

The child was given the responsibility, when they earned a free-kick, and his rocket flew home to give them renewed hope once again but Brother Charles Chirwa missed a sitter, which would have tied the contest, and the forces of the Church of Mbare were defeated.

All that is now history but the child knows that the foundations of the church of Mbare, which he helped built, are not weak and he is bracing for a battle royale tomorrow if he is to clear the final hurdle to greatness.

Father Chitima, who leads the Church of the Gunners, was at Allan Wilson School, in the capital of the land sandwiched between the Limpopo and the Zambezi, on Wednesday and said he believed this was their moment.

He was not in the mood to talk to the waiting vultures from the media, as the pressure continued to build but, as he opened his car, he said a powerful phrase: "Oh! Yes, We Can!"

Just as confidently as Brother Obama said the same phrase in Chicago, in the Church of Brother Jeremiah, when he decided that he wanted to change history and become the first black man to be the President of the United States of America.

Just as confidently as the way little David swung his deadly left foot on that unforgettable day at Rufaro last year, in that battle against the Goliath of Zamalek from the Land of the Pharaohs and the River Nile, and changed the fate of the Church of Mbare.

Just as confidently as the way that the father of the child believed, when he named his son Moses, that he would deliver his chosen people to the Promised Land one good day in the future.

Still some didn't believe and, in the background, Pastor Charles Charamba's voice could be heard in the music coming from the car radio:

"Moses, Moses, Moses iwe!

"Moses, Moses, Moses iwe!

"Moses, Moses, Moses iwe!

"Tidzorere Egypt kwatakakurira

"Mumwe ne mumwe, akatanga kuchema

"Handizvo Moses, zvawanga wavimbisa izvi

"Inga zvaive nani, kudai watirega

"Tichifira muuranda iwe Moses."

Will Moses deliver?

Maybe tomorrow. Or maybe next year. Or maybe the year after. Who knows?