Blessing and curse: paradox of a preacher’s child

Mosoetsi’s journey to preaching and moulding a charitable hand

’MATHAPELO TAKISI

It didn’t take long for Mosoetsi Mokaeane, the daughter of a famed preacher, to realise that growing up as a preacher’s child could be both a blessing and a burden. With no reliable source of income at home, growing up for this preacher’s child was very hard, especially when she ended up having to pay for her own tuition along with all her educational expenses. Mosoetsi has always been at the mercy of people of goodwill to attain most, if not all, of her life’s desires growing up. She says she was always helped by different people to get to where she is and it is from them that she learned to give and help others.

She built a custom of helping others because she is truly convinced if it wasn’t because of the help of many Good Samaritans, she would not be where she is today in life. The 22-year-old Mosoetsi was born and raised in Maputsoe, Leribe, but currently resides in Botha-Bothe and, because of her life experiences, she has grown into a very selfless human being. She is a certified Nursing Assistant and is currently employed by one local non-profit organisation in Lesotho.

Her unending thirst to talk to and reach out to the masses pushed her over the edge until she ventured into what she calls her side hustle – motivational speaking and an events MC. Mosoetsi says her earliest experience of God’s work in her life goes way back, pointing out that God has been blessing the people around her with everything they prayed for together; blessing them so that they are able to help her. And she realised and acknowledged the presence of God and who God really is in people’s lives.

“When God blesses somebody close to me, I am blessed already,” she says, and this is what she shares with those who care to listen because, she adds, God has been doing wonders in her life. Mosoetsi is a preacher too. She explains that the urge to stand on the podium to share the Word of God began in 2017 even though it was not a very deep calling at that time. She loved how a certain girl from her church would preach the Word and pray.

She then decided to force some friendship to learn a few tricks which, fortunately, worked for her. She first approached the girl and asked how she managed something which seemed difficult so effortlessly. The girl told her it was possible,God willing, and especially once one got used to it. From that day, Mosoetsi made a decision to hang around her. She took a leap of faith when she accepted the girl’s invitations to go to night prayers together, also frequenting some local radio stations to preach.

She says being a preacher’s child, her greatest preaching inspiration is her father. “My greatest inspiration is my father,” she continues with a warm broad smile. She adds that she has a very strong bond with her father, admitting also that as a preacher’s daughter there are so many challenges that come with the title. Some of them, she continues, are people having high expectations for a preacher’s child. “They expect one to lead a perfect life without mistakes,” a feat which, according to her, is impossible.

Again when people make choices that suit them best there are those who want and expect them to live up to their expectations, failing which they choose to humiliate them. But she says she is now used to this, she listens and just moves on because that is what life is about. “To some people being a preacher’s kid looks like someone is wearing an ‘I am perfect’ sticker!” Mosoetsi began her primary school studies at Letlotlo English Medium from 2004 to 2008, then moved to St Luke Primary School where she completed her remaining two years in 2009 to 2010. She then went to St Boniface High School from 2011 to 2015 where she completed her high school studies.

Two years later, she went to Scott College of Nursing, in Morija, and obtained a Certificate in Nursing Assistant, studying from 2018 to 2019. She laughs so hard before answering a question about who her role model is, explaining that she has a lot of role models, people she looks up to and those who help her aspire to do more.

But she eventually mentions only one, the famed Ntate Tebatso Molapo. “I look up to him as a father, a preacher and a counsellor.” Mosoetsi says she had been attending the same church with Reverend Molapo, but as years went by she met him on Facebook where she followed his shows every Sunday morning on radio. Their first meeting was so good that it was as if they had had a relationship before. He then told her that he had a slot for her to preach the following Sunday on one radio station.

Her extreme thirst to preach the Word of God does not allow her to stop only at church and youth rallies, she says her biggest goal is to own a company which will focus on the mental wel-lbeing of people as well as preaching the gospel. Speaking about her greatest achievement she says it was her being able to realize her purpose, calling and acting accordingly. She says she believes that she is called to serve and the course she chose to study justifies this as it is all about serving people either medically, spiritually or emotionally.

She explains that she acted accordingly by studying nursing and using every chance she gets to preach on Facebook and that seemed not to be enough hence she started the MC and motivational speaking campaign which turned out to be very unique. Mosoetsi adds that her goal is to do whatever she has put her mind to with God being the foundation of her presentation or show. Answering a question about when she realized that she can be an events’ MC, she laughs slightly and shakes her head like she is thinking “this began as a joke.” She says the idea came to mind in April this year and though she did not even want to think much about it she still made a decision to do it.

This was after a few people had approached her and complemented her voice, expressing how they loved the way she speaks, her confidence, etc. And being able to read between the lines she took that as a wake-up call. Mosoetsi says she used to attend some small events in Mafeteng where she would be working only as a motivational speaker until the day she was booked for a night as an MC. She says this was her biggest challenge since she had never been on the stage as an MC but she put on her big girl panties and came head to head with the challenge and did her best.

That one night cleared the way for many more bookings as she received several bookings, until she was booked to be an MC at Teboho Moloi’s CD launch in Lesotho on July 29. “One can’t wait to be at Teboho’s event, not only as a part of the audience but as an MC! Any gospel lover would be thrilled, I was ecstatic. The event was one of my biggest ever, and I was even doubtful I will make the best out of it.”

However, she used her everyday tool. She prayed about it, did some research to prepare herself and went on to make the best out of the show. She says she did not want to disappoint the Jam Session Sounds Company that chose her to be the MC on the day and, indeed, she did her best. “God showed up,” she adds, in an expression she makes after every presentation or event she leads. She believes there is no way God can appoint her for a big event like that one and let go of her. “That was a big event that has opened more doors for me.”

Being an MC has been very good to her so far yet there she points to challenges along the way, some of which let her down as an individual while others have also lifted her up. However, she says she always overcome her challenges by talking to her father who is very much of her best friend, her mentor or some close friends. “I believe and, therefore, everything is possible with God”, this is her favourite quote that she invokes in life’s every bad situation.

Her greatest joy in preaching is seeing that she has changed at least one person’s life after posting every live video she makes preaching on her social media platforms. “These are one of my proudest moments in life,” she becomes a bit emotional saying this. She adds that this is the story of her life capture briefly: “I am a girl who survived depression and anxiety and overcame suicidal thoughts. All of the experience of this journey made me serve the one who has given me life, made me to be there for those who are battling with depression and anxiety hence I am on about preaching and being there for people who need a stranger to talk to.”

A question that she always gets from people is what is she going to do about her calling, and her answer is always simple. Her being able to go live on Facebook preaching is how she is answering to her calling. She laughs and says, a lot of people feel like she is not doing enough. She says if one of her family members were to talk about her to someone who does not know her, her uncle who she is very close to would just say “Soetsi is a blessing in our family”. Apparently he likes saying this when he notices something she has done for someone, being either a stranger or family member.