First off, what an ordeal to get here. Honduras to Malawi. 4 flights. 2 buses. Some 36 hours sitting in a seat, and 20 sitting in airports. Needless to say, getting off the bus at our lodge in Cape Maclear for our second debrief (squad retreat) was a relief. We had a few days to recover from sleep-deprivation, jet-lag, and to prepare for the new chapter ahead of us.
This isn’t only a time of being on a new continent, but also new teams and a different flavor of ministry. For many of our teams this month, they have been in in the thick of evangelism, heading out for hours each day to share the Word and to invite people to church. My team has seen a bit more variety, though we will see what coming months hold.
Ministry this Month: As I said, lots of variety. Some afternoons with a widow’s group, some mornings at a crisis nursery. We have provided plenty of messages, testimonies, and content for Bible studies and church services alike. I also had the chance to show off some of my soccer skills playing with local kids (and gave a message afterwards). Ministry has been sporadic, then factor in the time lost to travel, debrief, and holidays… It’s been difficult to get “stuck in”.
A New Culture: By the end of Central America, it was reasonable to feel more “at home” after a week or so. Ministry was more predictable, more consistent. I could understand a good 80% of what was going on around me, I could communicate with locals. That’s simply not the case here. While English is present (everything in the store is labeled in English), it isn’t spoken commonly. Certainly not among the people we have been ministering to.
There are also a lot of small things to account for in your daily interactions. While Central America is much more “American” in their expectations and interactions, Africa is a totally different flavor. Conversations are much more repetitive and drawn out. Rejecting any kind of invitation is considered quite insulting. Setting out plans and expectations ahead of time is vitally important, yet details fall through the cracks regularly.
This is also a culture where I stand out strongly as a minority. Though I didn’t exactly “blend in” in Central America, there was a degree of assimilation which could be attained because of the cultural similarities, and my understanding of Spanish. In this part of Africa, we are greeting with calls of “azungu” which literally means “travelers”, but colloquially means “white people.” In a way the attention is flattering–shortly after landing in a village you amass a horde of children, vying for your attention, daring one another to touch you, communing together before the bravest steps forward with a “what’s your name?”–but it is difficult to communicate anything more than superficial with such crowds.
Takeaway: It’s only the first month here. Hopefully next month will be more personal and relational, this is the kind of ministry I hold the most passion for. Who knows what my reception will be like in Zambia or Zimbabwe? Malawi has been personally transformative, if transitional in ministry and culture. We haven’t had as much opportunity to invest in these communities because many of the groups we met didn’t meet again over the holidays. It happens. Yet we still got to see a young boy adopted from the crisis nursery, supported the widows by buying from their budding tailoring ministry, and had the opportunities to share our testimonies, studies, and messages across hundreds of people this month. As “unsettled” as I might feel, there has also been a lot of good that has come out of this month. God’s work is greater than my own discomfort.
Transition or no, unsettled or stable, it’s been an incredible month. I’m still leaning in, pushing for discomfort and growth. It’s been more personal (see last post). Yet good is still being done. I look forward to what the rest of Africa has to offer, next month again with my new team, Zimbabwe will be “manistry month” where all of the guys of K Squad (8 of us) will come together to minister together. Stay tuned, WiFi should be better next month.
Prayer Requests: Continuing grace in my thoughts and actions, patience in long and drawn out conversations, authentic connections this coming month, and continued focus on my goals for the coming year. Best of luck with all of yours!
P.S. I’m now 100% funded! Thank you to all of your support, especially those donors who helped me close this final gap.
