Psalm 146.9
The Lord watches over the sojourner;
He upholds the widow and the fatherless.
Then there are the widows. Now that i think about it, my grandmother was a widow for many years, but i dont think i once heard anyone refer to her in that way. And like i said in my sojourner blog, most of my friends were just like me…mom, dad…golden retriever. It hasn’t been since i have grown older and thought of having a family of my own that i have really understood how much a wife and a husband rely on each other. To remove one is like taking away that stake that helps to firmly hold one to the ground.
This month we have been working with an incredible organization, Children of the Nations. In a country where HIV/AIDS is rampant, being a father doesn’t have the same meaning as it does to us westerners, and when your husband dies- his family comes to your home and takes anything and everything they want because the woman certainly doesn’t have a right to it……it again makes you see why there are verses like this one.
In 2006, an intern from COTN came to Malawi and realized the need for a ministry strictly focused on the widows of the villages. With the skills that she had in sewing, knitting and crocheting, she had the idea of teaching these women, of all ages, a skill that would provide an income and new way of life. Around 75 women came to that first meeting!! For three years now, the widows of the village have come to learn these trades and they now have not only an incredible money making business, but they also have a group of women to talk with and share life with. Yet COTN didn’t let it end there. They made the fellowship gathering into somewhat of a graduation program. The women now hone their skills for two years with the promise of support once they leave the program. For those women who graduate and who have the skills and motivation to turn their skills into a business…COTN opens a bank account for each woman. The other day, one of the women held up her credit card with pride to the group and told her testimony. The confidence and pride that radiated from her was tangible!
The first time we visited the widows we were greeted with singing and dancing. Immediatly we were drug into the circle and expected to participate…this is not a spectator sport. But with their huge smiles and warm welcome, we were happy to join into a facet of their culture that few outsiders get to witness. Nothing about these women seemed sad or in dispair. When it was time to pull out the projects; hats, scarves, and blankets came out of no where and everyone got to work. With this too, they were more than happy to share their learned skills with us. Having never crocheted before, the widow that sat so close to me i could have been on her lap, patiently showed me over and over the patern of weaving the needle in and out of the yarn. I’m pretty sure she thought it was a riot that i just could not figure it out…but in her laughter, there wasn’t frustration, but rather an enjoyment of my company and even a pride that she has something to teach me. I was happy to laugh along with her! 
The widows program has touched my heart more than anything else this month. Their lives are still difficult. They still have children to feed and chores to be done. The program doesn’t take the stresses of life away…but it does offer Jesus- in the form foreigners taking interest in their well being, in the form of fellowship with other women who understand the loss of a loved one, and in the form of the Word being taught and preached in such a way that God doesn’t seem so big and elusive, but rather personal and caring and in their midst.
“He upholds the widows…”
