Mulibwangi! Hello! I’m no longer in Malawi, the warm heart of Africa, but I haven’t yet updated y’all on my first month in Africa. My ministry was atypical this month, as half of it was dedicated to Squad Leader Training! During our 60+ hour travel ‘day’, my new teammates, Alyx and Jessica (pictured at left!), and I were asked if we would step up into this position. Our Race will now look a little different, since we’ll be doing regular Race ministry in addition to ministering to our squadmates. I cannot wait to tell you more about how the Lord uses me in this part of my journey, but for now, here’s a big picture view of Malawi!
WHO:
During the first and last weeks here, Team TBD (what we’ve decided to call ourselves) worked with our leadership team to develop our leadership skills and go through some intensive discipleship training. For about ten days in the middle, we spread out with the Alumni SQLs to two teams and their ministry hosts: pastors who have been growing church plants through a variety of ministries.
WHAT:
As an SQL, my ministry is serving and caring for my squadmates. That looks different from person to person, but practically, this is what it typically looks like: one-on-one time with other Racers, getting to know them and learning about where they’re at in their faith journey; supporting Team Leaders by connecting with them weekly; keeping our leaders in the states updated through weekly calls; coordinating debriefs alongside leadership and logistics; placing teams in their ministries for the next month; and of course, good old conflict mediation and policy management. As a Racer, my ministry this month included preaching, sports ministry, meeting with a widow group, and holding babies at a crisis nursery – all in 10 days!
WHEN:
We arrived in Malawi on December 8th, and had our month four debrief until the 13th, when we all dispersed to our respective ministry sites. We had leadership training through the 18th, and then joined our teams for the month. After 10 days with our teams, we met up again with the Alumni Leaders for some more training and debrief.
WHERE:
Lilongwe, Malawi, Africa. Our entire month was spent in the same city, even as most of the other teams. Lilongwe is massive, and split into multiple areas. When Jessica, Katie, and I went to Team boi R.D., we stayed in Area 25 and did ministry in Area 48.
WHY:
At the heart of SQL ministry is empowerment, encouragement, and exhortation – walking alongside our squadmates as they (and we) take further steps into who God created us all to be. It’s a humbling position to be in, because we get to take part in the growth that the Lord is doing in K-Squad by giving feedback, creating space for squadmates to use their gifts, and a lot of prayer. More practically, we are needed to keep the leadership team updated in the states and aid in some of the logistical parts of the Race, like ministry placements, team assignments, debriefs, and keeping our leaders stateside in the know. But the most incredible part of squad leading is that we’re asked to lead like Jesus did – as humble servants and loving friends.
FUN NUGS:
Some fun things that happened this month:
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a super heckin’ long travel day that took us from Honduras to Panama to Canada to Ethiopia and FINALLY Malawi
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snorkeling in Lake Malawi during debrief
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using a legitimate squatty-potty for the first time
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experiencing a Malawian food market (overwhelming is the understatement of the Race)
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living with Pastor Blessings, his wife Grace, and their daughters Chisomo and Faith
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getting to see a child adopted on our last day of ministry
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celebrating Christmas and New Year’s in Africa
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trying new foods, like nsima, samosas, goat intestines, and passionfruit Fanta!
I hope this gives you a better understanding of what my December looked like! Thank you always for your support through prayer, and through blog comments and emails. It (literally) means the world to me. 🙂
