Hello from Malawi, Africa!
January has been an epic month! At the beginning of the month, God gave me the word “courageous” through a dream (which is a really neat way the Lord has been speaking to me a lot lately). He then confirmed the word with a letter my youth pastor sent with me. The Lord has been using me in all kinds of areas in His kingdom this month, teaching me to be courageous! My team and I have been writing, giving sermons (i have a whole new appreciation for what pastors do. writing hour long sermons is hard work) , and sharing testimonies daily! Our ministry has stretched & challenged me in many ways!
Here’s some insight on what I’ve been doing this first month in Africa!
Mondays :
We partner with an organization called Children of the Nations. Due to the supporters, they are able to feed around 300 kids 2 meals, daily through their feeding program. These are the only meals a good share of these kids receive. It’s been so awesome to partner with such generosity. We are able to help out with the program, share Bible stories, sing songs, and love on the kids. It’s been so neat to partner with such generosity!
Tuesdays:
We met a woman named Faith. She has a hair salon in the city and once a week, she closes her shop an hour early for a Bible study. She invites any other employees from shops in the City Center. On Tuesday’s, my team shares a sermon and testimonies with them.
Wednesdays:
This is my favorite day of the week. My team visits the widows. These are strong, beautiful, joyous women of the Lord. When they dance for the Lord, you can’t help but join! In Malawi, the tradition is..the man works and the woman stays home doing the house work. Generally women in Malawi don’t receive very much of an education, so when the husband leaves or passes away, the woman isn’t left with many skills to earn money. A woman named Grace went through this and started a program for widows in her village. They come and learn skills on the sewing machine or jewelry crafting, & other ways to make a living for themselves and their children. They make jewelry, bags, aprons, etc. and sell them until they each raise the money to purchase their own sewing machine to make a living off of.
my team does a Bible study and shares testimonies with them. They share glimpses into their lives with us and love us well. It’s been lovely getting to know these precious women!
Thursdays:
fútbol day!! There’s a rough part of a village around where thieves and thugs come from. So on Thursdays, we gather some of the teenage boys from the area and play a soccer game with them. We hang out and do a teaching from the Bible for them. It’s a lot of fun, even though the white people may not be all that great at the game.
Fridays:
My team visits a crisis nursery. Here they house babies who have been abandoned or given up by a mother who couldn’t manage. We literally sit in rocking chairs, holding and feeding the babies for a few hours. It’s such a sweet time!
Sundays:
Sundays are of course church days. In Malawi, service is three hours or longer. My team preaches a sermon & gives testimonies to the congregation. Our host, Blessings gives a powerful sermon every week that I wish everyone could hear!
So.. life in Africa has been legit! It’s monsoon season so it rains a lot and isn’t very hot unless the sun is out.. then the heat is intense. Our host and his family are literal blessings, and my God is really rad!
also, 4 months down. 5 to go!
Thank you for your prayers!!
Lyric Housman
