Panono, Panono
In Bemba, the main language spoken in our part of Zambia,
“panono, panono” means “slowly, slowly” or “bit by bit.”
Our family traveled thousands of kilometers across Zambia, and many of those roads were rough — riddled with potholes, washed out by heavy rains, and uneven from years of wear. The Mufulira Road is particularly bad in Ndola, and both the Northern and Luapula Provinces boast doozies of note! During our first years there, we didn’t have our rugged Land Cruiser. We had a Toyota Regius family van with very low clearance. We smashed the exhaust, tore up the undercarriage, and, though we didn’t get fully stuck as much as you’d imagine, every drive required care.
One evening, while driving a group of kids home from our house to their neighborhood in Chifubu, a wild, hilarious girl, named Jane who spoke less English than the others and often got teased for it by her peers, was seated directly behind me as I drove. As we bumped along in the Regius, Jane leaned forward from the back seat, tapped my shoulder, and said quietly: “Slowly car, ba Chris… there are mountains in future.”
The van erupted with laughter, but Jane wasn’t joking. Just ahead was a massive pothole in the road that could have ripped off a wheel and directly behind it lay, of all things a speed bump (called speed humps in Zambia)! Jane had memorized every hazard in her neighborhood. She saw that I was moving too fast and wanted to help. I slowed down, eased around the pothole, and announced to the van: “Jane is my navigator now. She’s on the lookout keeping us all safe.”
The laughter stopped and they all became more aware — wishing they would have received this appointment!
I still think about Jane often as I drive that stretch. “There are mountains in future.” Sometimes, slowing down, is the wise thing to do,
no matter how counter-intuitive it feels.
I’ve often heard US Navy SEALs say, “Don’t run to your death.” In combat, panic and rushing are often more dangerous than the enemy. Moving too fast, without awareness, gets people killed. Success comes from measured, deliberate steps…calculated forward motion.
Jane’s warning carried the same wisdom. If we charge ahead in life — in ministry, in relationships, in faith — without slowing down to discern what’s ahead, we can hit obstacles that knock us out of the game. Slowness isn’t weakness. It’s how we last for the long haul. Another Navy SEAL-ism is fitting here: Slow is smooth, smooth is fast. Moving with control and efficiency.
Jesus Himself lived this way. He never seemed to rush. Crowds pressed around Him constantly, but He moved with patience and purpose. When Jairus begged Him to come heal his dying daughter (Mark 5:21–43), the need was urgent. Yet on the way, Jesus stopped to gently converse with and heal a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years.
If I had been there, I would have shouted: “Jesus, hurry — the girl is dying!” But Jesus was all about panono, panono. Moving slowly and deliberately, with His eyes fixed on what mattered most. And in the end, both the woman and the girl received their miracles.
Potholes, Jane, Navy SEALs, and Jesus all speak the same message to us today: Don’t rush.
Go slow enough to notice people.
Go slow enough to hear and heed God’s whispers.
Go slow enough to avoid the pitfalls that could destroy you.
Today’s world is super fast-paced. Everyone’s rushing everywhere. Myself included, on many days. But panono, panono is an effective tool for being present with others and being aware of obstacles so that you can stay in the game and on the roads without catastrophic breakdowns. Let’s live a little more slowly, this week, lions. Taking ground and moving forever forward, bit by bit.