By Jonathan Mbiriyamveka
For Zimbabwean gospel sensation Everton Mlalazi, the hymn “Ndinomira paJordani” (I Stand on Jordan) has always been an anthem of hope.
But its meaning was forever deepened by a miracle that emerged from the shadows of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The song, a traditional Shona hymn, speaks of a weary soul casting “a wishful eye” towards Canaan, a biblical symbol for heaven, where earthly struggles are but a memory.
Mlalazi recently included it in the prestigious Spirit of Praise collaboration, hoping its powerful message would encourage a wider audience.
“It is a song that generally gives hope,” Mlalazi explains. “Everybody has an experience with this song… at their grandfather’s funeral, when a brother passed away, or when they got baptized.”
But one testimony, he shares, stands out vividly.
“I suddenly have a testimony,” he begins, his tone softening. “A friend of mine, during Covid, got sick. He spent a number of days in a coma. The future really didn’t look bright. It was as if we were going to lose him.”
By a miracle, his friend survived. But the battle wasn’t over. He had to relearn how to walk and talk through intense physiotherapy. The road to recovery was long and arduous.
Then, a breakthrough emerged in a melody.
“The first song that he sang,” Mlalazi reveals, a note of awe in his voice, “was ‘Ndinomira PaJodani’.”
In those first, fragile recordings of his friend singing, you could still hear the stammering, the physical toll of the illness. But the words came out.
The declaration of faith, forged in the fire of his own near-death experience, was unmistakable.
“It became a very, very emotional song,” Mlalazi shares, “because it made us remember the promise that we have: that there is a heavenly kingdom that we look forward to. All the sicknesses that we face today, all the gloomy situations, will be a thing of the past.”
This personal connection infuses Mlalazi’s performance with a profound authenticity. The song is no longer just a beloved church anthem; it is a testament to resilience, a musical lifeline that helped pull a friend from the brink.
“Whenever I sing the song, it just reminds me that I am a sojourner. I’m not here in this world to stay,” he reflects. “I look forward to heaven.”
For Everton Mlalazi, “Ndinomira paJordani” is a bridge—between life and the promise of what lies beyond, between a hospital bed and a hymn of recovery, and between a singer in Zimbabwe and a global audience finding common ground in a message of enduring hope.
It’s the sound of a wishful eye turned toward heaven, and the strength found in standing firm on the banks of your own Jordan.
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