There are so many stories in the Bible that we read and think we understand. But if we are honest with ourselves, we realize that we live thousands of years after those stories in the Bible took place and there's a whole lot that we can't truly understand because we were born into a different time. This doesn't mean we can't draw a message from them or apply the things it teaches to our lives, but we can draw different meanings when we can understand and can relate in a more literal sense.
This last month in Malawi, our team got to experience many of the things that the Bible talks about, literally. This month we spent in the majority Islamic community of Senga Bay, Malawi living in tents on a hill overlooking Lake Malawi. It easily took the award for the most beautiful place we have gotten to live.
Our contacts (Zehandi Missions) were a South African family that have chosen to live their lives completely submitted to the leading of the Holy Spirit. They live by example, choosing to share the love of Jesus more by action than words. Our role with this ministry looked different every single day, depending on what the Spirit was wanting to do.
One of our responsibilities while living on the property was hauling 20 liters of water multiple times a day from a well about a half mile away. Prior to this, I was aware of wells and well projects and the need for more clean water in Africa, yet I was still so far removed from the process of drawing water from a well. Much of the African women's lives revolves around the well. You never really realize how much water you use until you have to pump it and haul it yourself. The roles of these women – cooking, cleaning, washing – require multiple trips to the well every day. It truly is a source of life both physically and emotionally. The trips to the well provide the women with a break from their work at home, but also a chance to socialize with the other women in the community. Many times as we sat there waiting for our turn to pump our water, we heard the chatter and the laughter of the women – pretty much the Malawian equivalent of American watercooler conversations. But just as the well provides life physically and emotionally, it makes sense that Jesus would talk about life in the spiritual while sitting at a well. The Samaritan woman could understand the value of the living water that Jesus was offering her. The kind of water that meant she would never be thirsty again or have to make multiple trips to the well in order to sustain herself and her family. This story makes a lot more sense to me now. The value of the water that Jesus offers holds exceedingly more worth to me than it did before because now I understand the value it held for that Samaritan woman at the well.
One of the other jobs we were given was to pull weeds in order to clear a new pathway on the border of the property. Normally this would have been an easy task, I mean this wasn't the first time we had cleared land. The only problem is the Malawian sun was the most intense sun most of us had ever experienced. It only took a short period of time being exposed to the sun to burn your skin and create new tan lines, let alone drench you in sweat. But there was one saving grace: shade. The difference between the sun and the shade had to be at least 30 degrees, literally like night and day. We had to take breaks more often, not because we were tired from the work but because we needed a break from the sun. The experience reminded me of the story of Jonah as he was watching to see what happened to the city of Nineveh. The Lord provided Jonah with a plant to create shade, which the Bible says, "…eased his discomfort, and Jonah was very grateful for the plant. But God also arranged for a worm! The next morning at dawn the worm ate through the stem of the plant so that it withered away. And as the sun grew hot, God arranged for a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah. The sun beat down on his head until he grew faint and wished to die. 'Death certainly is better than living like this!' he exclaimed. (4:6-8)" Before this month, I would have said that Jonah was being dramatic. But in America it's not often that we need to escape the sun. Instead we seek out the sun, going to the beach for the purpose of finding the best angle of sunlight we can get. But after experiencing the Malawian sun and the few and coveted pockets of shade during the days, I can understand Jonah's gratefulness for the shade of the plant and his despair when it withered away. But I can also understand that the Lord knew that teaching Jonah a lesson using the sun and the shade would be successful.
One of the words we would use to describe this month would be dirty. Dirty meaning that there is always dirt and sand and dust covering you from head to toe, especially on your feet. You couldn't walk the five feet from the shower to the bathroom without looking down and finding your newly washed feet with a fresh layer of black dust caked on. As frustrating as this became, the washing of feet that the Bible talks about several times took on a brand new meaning. It makes sense that it was such an act of service. The symbolism of Jesus removing the dirt from his disciples feet and taking it upon himself bears more significance to me now that I know what it feels like to constantly desire clean feet.
All these stories hold so much metaphorical meaning. In the Bible, God used so many physical experiences to demonstrate spiritual principles. And really, the spiritual principles are the important part. But now that I can layer my literal understanding upon my metaphorical understanding, the Bible has more meaning to me then it ever did before. And even though I won't miss the "roughing-it" part of this last month, I am thankful for the understanding it gave me.
