Day 1: My new team and I arrive in Salima, Malawi weary from 36 hours of travel.
Day 2: We move into our 3 bedroom house in Nanjoka Village (aka – land of the snakes). Set up tents, unpack, discover that we have running water (an amazing shower room), and electricity. We’re in the bush (with the best amenities) and we love it!
Day 3: We eat peanut butter and banana sandwiches for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Day 4: We walk 8 miles on our first day of ministry, and eat peanut butter and banana sandwiches for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Day 5: Our first day off. There’s no electricity (because that’s the way of life in Malawi), and we go to Salima “tourist town” for grocery shopping. 4 stores and a market later, we’ve purchased all our necessities, and now we can make fried eggs and toast for dinner.
Day 6: We attend the Nazarene village church service, and I share the main message, while the team leads Sunday school. Also, we hire a local woman named Judith to cook and help us with laundry.
Day 7: Hilary shares a morning devotional with the Kindle staff that encourages us to seek God’s wisdom and understanding. Then, we begin a full day of ministry at the Katawa Health Clinic, where the workers and regular patients begin to recognize us. We enjoy a delicious homemade African meal of rice, fried eggs, and a tomatoey-garlicy-oniony-peppery-saucy topping. We thank God for Judith.
Day 8: On our 4 mile walk home from the clinic, we discover the corner store with cold orange Fanta and Coke. Enough said.
Day 9: We realize that the farmland behind us belongs to an American/Canadian couple whose son founded the organization we’re working with this month. They invite us over for cold drinks and a tour of their property (which includes an in ground pool that we’re welcome to visit anytime we want!)
Day 10: Like every morning in the bush, we wake up at 5:30am. We meet George at 8am, and instead of walking to ministry, he arranges bicycle taxis for the team.
Day 11: Our ministry contact George, smiles ear to ear, as I greet him good morning in perfect Chechwa.
- Kate: “Madzuka Bandji”
- George: “Tadzuka Bueno, Kieyuno”
- Kate: “Tadzuka Bueno, Zikomo.”
Day 12: Pastor Berrigo’s son gets married, and invites the team to the reception! A Malawian wedding is like attending a free concert in which the entire town is invited with money splashing and dancing for hours and hours and hours. We loved sharing in the joy and celebration of the bride and groom’s big day.
Day 13: I discover that my sarong serves many purposes, and today it’s my air conditioner! Step 1: dampen with cool water. Step 2: place on legs or shoulders … “Voila!” I’m instantly cool!
Day 14: Hilary, Jason, and I visit Kindle’s students at a secondary school in town. We get to know the students; learn about their struggles, hopes, and dreams; and we learn about some of the young girls’ struggles in finding safe lodging. It is not unusual for men to come to their dormitories trying to prostitute them. It breaks my heart to hear about it. We encourage them with scripture and prayer.
Day 15: We ride for 45 minutes on bumpy, bumpy, bumpy, bumpy bicycle taxis to speak to the Sadzu Village Women’s Ministry. Hilary originally planned to share on receiving wisdom from God, but on the bike ride there, she heard from the Lord that she needed to share from John 15. We are His sheep. This lead into a conversation about hearing God’s voice and to me talking about the accident publicly for the first time. A little nervous, I opened up to this small group of women, and as I spoke God reminded me of His protection, love, care, and peace during one of the scariest times in my life.
Day 16: I count pills in the clinic pharmacy and visit with my new friend Linley.
Day 17: It’s Mother’s Day in Malawi. SURPRISE! We get the day off! The girls and I trek up the hill to check out the pool. WOW, it’s awesome and better than we hoped or dreamed! Really, there’s an in-ground pool in the middle of the African bush?!?! We are THANKFUL.
Day 18: African feet are not a myth. Dirty, cracked, dusty, blistered, and ten shades darker. It’s true.
Day 19: African time is also not a myth. We planned to visit the Kuti Wildlife reserve at 2pm. However, our driver got caught up in a meeting and arrived at our house at 4:30pm, as the sun is setting. You can’t see animals in the dark, so we drive to town and eat ice cream instead.
Day 20: We visit the Evangelical and Anglican churches in the morning, where Hilary and Anne preach. In the afternoon, we relax beside our private African bush pool.
Day 21: We befriend 3 young missionary ladies from Germany, and they invite us to their beautiful missionary house up on the rock for dinner. What a sweet night, cooking, laughing and telling stories. I am up WAY past my bedtime, and don’t go to sleep until 9pm!
Day 22: Every morning, Katawa clinic begins with a devotional for all of the patients seeking care. God asks me to speak this morning, and share with the patients my experience in the accident. Even more, God asked me to share how He protected me, provided for me, and gave me joy even in the midst of trials.
Day 23: George, our main ministry host for the month invites us to dinner. What a man. He leads our team with so much Grandfatherly love and care. I love hearing George pray and sing and share God’s Word. What an example for our team.
Day 24: It’s the team’s final day of ministry in the villages. We begin our first round of goodbyes.
Day 25: Our goodbyes continue with our friends at the clinic, and then George and the Kindle leadership team. Our afternoon ends with words of encouragement, prayer, worship, hugs, and even a few tears.
Day 26: We load our packs into the back of a truck, give George a BIG hug, and wave goodbye to our home, our Nanjoka.
This year, God taught me about beginnings, middles, and endings. Each month, each country, each ministry, I arrived a stranger where everything was unknown and unfamiliar. At times, I felt like the wind grabbed the loose ends of my sails and tossed them in the air flapping out of control. In those beginnings, I ached to gain control and tie down the loose ends that dangled before me. Even though I tried to do it on my own, I always knew that anchoring my sails wasn’t my responsibility.
I’m amazed at how much changes in a matter of 4 weeks. In 26 days, God worked miracles in my heart and in the lives of the people I met. The unfamiliar became familiar. The unknown, known. In a matter of 4 weeks, I felt at home and found myself tearfully waving goodbye to my new friends and family.
Oh, I am thankful for every beginning, every middle, every ending. But especially thankful for what happened in the middle.
In the middle, God revealed Himself. In the middle I laughed, I learned, I let God transform me. In the middle, I gave God my flapping sails, and in the middle I lived.
Love Love Love
Kate
