Back in the States

It’s been a little over a week now and our family is now pretty much adjusted to being back from Malawi. Although when Jana Kay says her prayers she is still praying to “have a beautiful day in Malawi”. As we have settled back in to our routine here, our thoughts and are hearts continue to be in Malawi. We have been continuing to evaluate and re-evaluate our approach to ministry. As I walked through the village this year, even though our orphans and widows are doing well, I felt oppression in a way that I had never sensed it before. Maybe it’s always been there, but this year I was keenly aware of it in a way that I had not been before. Given that we have focused our efforts on caring for the orphans and widows within the community, even though our programs benefit the entire community in a variety of ways (i.e. the repaired hand pumps, pit latrines, donations of maize to families in dire need, etc.) jealousy and envy is evident amongst the families whose children are not in our programs. The reality is that even though both parents are living they are generally not employed, so we are finding that the children of those families are just as bad off as the orphans when we first started working in Makalani village. Those feelings and observations of dissension in the village really spurned me on to pray even more fervently for the people in the village and for the way we approach ministry. I would like to share with you these prayer requests:

1. Please pray that the “works of the flesh” (Galatians 5:19-21) jealousies and envy in particular along with adultery, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, and contentions would be bound.
2. Pray that the people would walk in the Spirit and that the fruit of the Spirit would overcome the dissension in the village.
3. Pray for Lawrence who has to walk and work on a daily basis amongst the people in the village – pray for endurance and joy.
4. Pray for Nick and I as we seek to find new ways to minister that would bring about increased unity and further point toward Christ.


On a personal note, we got word last week that Nick’s naturalization interview will be either at the end of March or the beginning of April. Over the past three years we have been waiting for Nick to obtain his citizenship so that we can to work in Malawi on more of a full-time basis. As the time is nearing to begin itinerating, please pray with us that God will begin to work in the hearts of church families and individuals who will partner with us as our prayer covering and as vessels offering financial support for us.

This week I want to tell you about Nacy Mwase. In years past she has been so standoffish, always painfully quiet, and almost hardened from the responsibility of handling the younger sisters like she was their mother. Her sisters are Tiyamike and Tamandani, and her older brother is Jorry. This year, for the first time, she played volleyball, and not only did she play she could serve better than most of the boys. I was so proud of her, and I loved being on her team! As our time at camp progressed, I got to see a new side of Nacy, she offered a gentleness with her friend, Zione, that I had never seen before while being determined and spunky, she was a great deal more open, and she would always catch my eye and smile. I must say I developed a new adoration of her, knowing the weight of her responsibilities at home, her struggles at school, I was thrilled to see a glimmer of gentleness, joy, and drive that previously had been tightly locked up somewhere within her. As we left camp, she came up and gave me the biggest, tightest hug that I have ever received from any of our kids. I was and am again in tears as I recall it.

Following our time at camp, Nick and I had time to sit down with the headmaster at Sankhani Primary School to pretty much do parent teacher conferences for all of our kids that attend there – let’s just say it was a long 3 hours! Anyway, as we worked our way through each one, when we came to Nacy, we noted that she is at the point where she is quite a bit older than the kids in her class as she was had to repeat some grades along the way, and we could tell from the headmaster’s comments that she is at a pretty high risk for dropping out. After spending the time that I had with her at the lake, this weighed heavy on my heart and I just sat there and prayed as I wanted so much to figure out something that would give her increased hope. I began to ask the headmaster if he had observed any other gifts or abilities in Nacy, since it was becoming evident that her aptitude for continuing her education at her age was not great. He said that he had recognized her ability to braid and fix the other girls hair – he said she was really good at it. This really got my wheels to turning. I then wondered if it would be possible to have her apprentice with a local hairdresser in Lilongwe, he said that was a good option. This idea of vocational training at the primary school level for the more non-traditional students really lifted the spirits of the headmaster and mine as well. After Nacy, we talked of others students who could apprentice with local tradesmen – I will share their stories as the program continues . . .

At this point Lawrence is following up with the headmaster as they work to find a salon in Lilongwe where Nacy can apprentice.