Malawian Families: Blanket Fundraiser
Seventeen of us C- Squad World Racers sat on three bamboo mats and listened to a Jarvis Msonda, our Malawian host, translate the words of an elderly widow. The first home out of six we were scheduled to visit that day in Month 8 of the World Race.
"How's your relationship with God?" We asked her, after introducing ourselves.
She explained, her love for God and her current struggle with providing for her three orphaned grand children. Her own children had died months ago from illness and she was the only one left to raise the grand children.
In her old age, caring for three young kids is difficult, and with barely enough food to feed the children once a day she has become a laughing stock of the Malawian village. The village looks down on her because of the fact that she is poor and can barely take care of herself let alone three grand kids. A strange thing to make fun of someone for, yet, from what I have learned from our host Jarvis is that this can be a common occurrence in the poorer villages. After listening to her explain her struggles, she expressed that her biggest concern was watching her three orphaned grand children shiver to sleep at night. The bamboo mats we sat on to talk with her were the same mats the kids and her slept on at night. I looked down at the bamboo mats we sat on realizing this revelation. Our dirty shoes on her bamboo mats that she lays her head to sleep on at night. She pulled them out of the house so that we didn't have to sit in the dirt. Talk about being selfless, I thought, as I took my shoes off and placed them in the dirt. She continued to talk through a translator that she has been praying for blankets for them to sleep under and then sleep on top of when the summer hits.
Blankets? That was her biggest prayer? I thought about how important warmth is in the cold nights and what a blessing it is that we don't have to worry about it. On the race my home is usually my 2 person tent and my bed consists of a blow up sleeping pad, sleeping bag liner and my 30 degree sleeping bag. And even then I dream of my queen size bed at home and my down goose feather comforter. Perhaps, these things we forget to be thankful for because we have had them at our finger tips our whole lives. Humm…how often I forget to be thankful.
We prayed for her and encouraged her that God is her provider and He hears her prayers. Yet, I thought about what more we could do to fill her with hope.
Why don't you buy the blankets Wendy? (a random thought in my head repeated).
– Well, is that a sufficient need? I asked myself. Would giving to her cause a problem if I don't give to others struggling with the same thing?
I realized that my concerns and questions were preventing me from seeing the "action" aspect of our faith. We could spiritually speak truth to help restore people. We could emotionally bring hope and encouragement to remind them God has never left their side. Yet, physically we often do have the means to provide, so why don't we? Is it that I would rather buy my $5 Starbucks white mocha instead? or perhaps, it is more that I just forget or don't know how to go about giving. Guilt can't drive to help but taking the action aspect of faith can with discernment.
In knowing that God would provide and does provide and that sometimes it is through people serving people that He does provide, I realized I needed to stop making excuses and take a step of action with discernment and knowledge of who God is.
Laura one of my team Mates had similar thoughts. "We should buy her blankets!" she said to me to after we said our goodbyes. I smiled, realizing other racers in the group were thinking the same thing.
….
Half the squad didn't make it into Mozambique and I happened to be in that group. For a week and half we packed up preparing each day to leave Malawi and head into Mozambique. This "limbo" state made it difficult to transition into the realization that God wanted us here in Malawi another month. Imagine being told we made it into Mozambique and then told later they were having another meeting to decide to let us in. Yet, through it all I started to realize that God had us here in Malawi to stay in this new city to bless the ministry that selflessly decided to take us in last minute. And that ministry was Moyo preschool, an orphanage, JV center, nursing home, community outreach and the missionaries there who work endlessly hard for the kingdom. So after Pastor Jarvis explained how we were an answered pray for him and his missionary programs and then realized for the first time it wasn't about what we had planned or wanted to do it was about what God had planned. I prayed and ask God what more we could do to bless these people. "Get creative" he said. I thought more about the blankets and realized that we could not only buy them for the elderly woman we met, but also other families with orphans in the poor village too.
So I decided to stop making excuses and take action. Let's get creative and dream big! "Alrighty, 30 blankets will be our goal of purchasing for these families," I told the teams. "Ask your friends and families if they would like to help. Five bucks per blanket. Lets do this together!"
The last day of ministry, we set out to a blanket shop and were able to not only buy our goal of 30 blankets, but a total of 68 from the tons of families and friends on facebook who responded and then took action to donate! We stuffed the blankets in the van and headed to the church to meet up with some of the families we had visited that month who were eagerly waiting to find out why they needed to show up that afternoon. That same elderly woman sat in the corner and I walked up to her and smiled, shaking her hand. She smiled back and I wondered if she knew that God was going to bless her and answer her prayer.
"Are you ready to speak to the group about the blankets Wendy? "
Jarvis asked me. "Awww, sure.." I responded.
Shoot, what was I going to say. Alright, Lord what would you tell them?
I stood next to Jarvis in front of the group and spoke about God as our provider. I went on to explain the different ways He answers our prayers and to never lose hope when it seems like He doesn't care. I explained that these blankets were not from us, but from God wanting to bless these families and provide for their needs.
We clapped hands and began to give out blankets to the families. Videos and pictures taken, joy filled their faces. After we handed them out, us racers held their blankets for them and split up to walk with them to their homes in the villages. I gave a 30 min time to be back for lunch and set out with some squad mates. We all split up and brought the blankets to the families home for them and then sat and shared scripture and prayed with them.
This was my favorite day of ministry on the whole race. One that wasn't scheduled, but God had already planned if we were willing to take action and let him lead. <3 Thank you to those who read this blog have supported me on this race and providing for this fundraiser! You helped aid in making prayers come true for others!
God is good!
