Dear Supporters,
I am truly sorry for how long it’s been since I last provided an update. Thankfully, we have not dealt with a catastrophe every month since then… At least of the natural kind. People say that the Race is like a pressure cooker, stuffing 5 years of life and lessons into 11 months. Comparing this year to the 5-year season since I graduated from college, I’d say that’s pretty accurate. Every day I feel a battle waging for my time; it’s a battle between living life, building into relationships, and writing about it. For the most part, I’ve chosen the former two, though I am forming a plan for when I get home to focus more on writing, as it is my primary method of processing. I’m not sure yet whether that will be personal writing or if I will flood your inbox with blogs, but either way, I’m excited about it…
In 6 weeks the Race will be over, but I’m excited for what comes next. I will not be going back to the same life. Life will, in fact, change a lot, in large part because I have no idea what I am going to do! I took a leap of faith by going on the Race, and I am taking another by stepping into the unknown at home. Out here, I am used to taking risks, expecting every day to be an adventure (which it is), and living FAR outside of my comfort zone. At home, everything will be the same as it was before, familiar (and for that I am grateful!). But I’m not use to stepping out so much at home. Out here, I’m given $5 a day for food, so I don’t need to have a great income. At home, the pressures to be “successful,” even just financially stable, in order to afford food and rent in Northern Virginia are already pressing in on me. But I’ve learned a new definition for success this year: Staying close to God. As for what others will think, I will have to put on humility and courage and remind myself, “It’s OK if other people don’t think I’m successful, or even think I’m stupid. I will follow YOU, God, wherever you call me. YOU are my comfort. In YOU are all riches and treasures abounding!”
I don’t want to look to home just yet, though, because I am loving Africa TOO MUCH!! I want to tell you all about this beautiful country of Malawi. Malawi is, depending on the economics calculations you are using, anywhere between the 5th and 1st poorest country in the world. The only other countries that rival it have been wrecked by war or political upheaval (thanks for doing the research, Dan 
). After 9 straight months in developing countries, including notoriously poor countries like India and Cambodia, I thought I’d seen it all. Each month we arrived somewhere new, and the slums looked “same same but different” as they say in Asia. Here, the slums still look the same, but it’s when you look inside that you see the marked differences. Here, 84% of the population lives in villages, and up to 1/3 of the population has no access to safe water. Village people don’t have jobs or an income. They only farm enough to sustain themselves with food. If they have any extra food at harvest, they sell it to buy clothes and household necessities.
We got to visit one of these villages on Sunday. The pastor with whom we live (named Blessings 
) planted the village’s first church. Their water source is a river, about a 15-minute walk away, barely flowing downstream from Lilongwe, the capital city where we are located. Here in town, the people use that river for bathing and laundry, not to mention the city’s sewage dumping ground. Every child came up to us after the (6 hours of) church service, asking us to pray for their ailments. As I placed my hands on their rock-hard bellies, I prayed that the Lord would heal them from their stomach pains and headaches of which they all complained. I prayed that the Lord would provide them food and water. But I pray that it would not come without the Bread of Life and Living Water, which Jesus reminds us that we truly live on. To build a well, it would cost ~$7,000 USD, a small price to pay for the most basic human need. But none of them will ever see $7,000 in their lives. The average Malawian makes just $.70 cents a day. To put that in perspective, 1 GB of Internet here, which I will use to upload this blog and make a few calls, costs $10. More importantly, a bible in the local language (Chechewa) costs $8… Nearly half a month’s salary. With a family full of starving children served nothing but a corn flour and water mixture every day, there is no such thing as saving for a bible, even though it offers life infinitely longer than any food served here.
In town, the only people doing anything for the orphans, who are obviously helpless, and widows, which to be one is essentially a death sentence, is the church. The government is extremely corrupt, and the culture seems unforgiving. For example, when a woman’s husband dies, his family has the rights to everything and usually sells their home and belongings, in spite of the widow being left with several children (which is nearly always the case since no one has money for contraception). Against this “property snatching” there are no laws, nor protection from the community. Pastor Blessing’s church here in town has a widow’s club for women to have bible study and learn trades like baking and sewing. Though locals are unable to purchase any goods, we were honored with the opportunity to support their endeavors.
Common problems in the church in Africa are witchcraft, false teachings, and immorality. In the broader communities, the word “rape” is so common, people don’t even wince when they say it. It is especially a problem for the young girls rather than the women. Young girls who have bad homes are practically forced to prostitute themselves at 10 or 12 years old. The HIV rate is 10%. As I’ve mentioned, most believers can’t afford bibles. Even when they are provided, many cannot read them, especially women, who make up most of the church (a problem throughout the world).
There is much redemption here, too, though. People love the Lord. The church is doing amazing things to transform the communities. We get to see a new ministry that they are working with every day, which I love! We’ve done sports ministry, visited a reformation center for street kids, fed orphans, supported widows, cared for abandoned babies, visited a village, taught hundreds of children from the Word of God, evangelized door-to-door, and of course, we continue to bring “The Word” everywhere we go!
This coming week we get to help hand out shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child (eek!), and go to a crusade!
Please keep us in your prayers (as I know and so appreciate you having done all year in spite of my lack of updates) as we seek to bring light and truth to the dark places here in Malawi. This country reminds me of a song by All Sons and Daughters, called “All the Poor and Powerless,” because it seems that they are utterly powerless to overcome their poverty. But praise God that with Him, nothing is impossible. So please, pray alongside us that the God of all power and might would intervene in this country and among this people to provide for them, bring them to Himself, and multiply the fruit of their labors.
I miss you all and am excited to see you soon!
Thank you!!!
Brynne
PS I will try to post some photos soon because the children here are ADORABLE!
