Y-Malawi Blog - Part 3

Y-Malawi’s Top 10 List!

on October 11, 2011

We here at Y-Malawi want nothing more than for you to go to Malawi and experience the life transforming power of God in heeding his Great Commission! When you are there, you encounter the richness and fullness of the Spirit in the lives of our Malawian partners. You get the opportunity to humble yourself and serve those in severe poverty. You gain a global perspective and recognize how it fits into the purpose of the Christian life. We encourage you to join us next summer and see why our 500+ alumni speak so highly of their experience in Malawi.

However…if we haven’t convinced you yet, maybe you’ll respond to a “Late Night with David Letterman” Top 1o list. I mean, if you are not convinced after reading these…I don’t know what will. Enjoy!

Reasons to Go on a trip with Y-Malawi:

10. You think you can sing and dance? …You just wait.

9. Try an organic, free-range, Malawian Sausage! It’s packed with protein…discard the tail.

8. Sky Miles…lots of sky miles.

7. You haven’t lived until you have gone to the bathroom in a hole in the ground.

6. If you give blood in Malawi, you can get out of doing it in the U.S. for a whole year!

5. Guys, nothing impresses a girl more than a picture of you with your sponsored child.

4. Looking for a pigs head? Head on over to the Nkhoma Market–they have the guaranteed lowest prices around!

3. Witness a myriad of mysterious, white dots in the night sky!

2. More sky miles…seriously.

1. Maui or Malawi, what’s really the difference?

-Compiled by Jeff Jordan

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A Glimpse of the Kingdom

on October 7, 2011

There are those rare moments in our lives, and every Christian has them, when God gives us a glimpse of something that nobody else sees. The thin veil of this world is pulled back and for a moment, we see the Kingdom of God on earth, the heartache of this world and His heart for people in need. To be honest, if we learn to look for these moments, they aren’t so few and far between, but none the less, it was only my second day in Malawi when I had such a moment.

We were driving down to the Lilwonde National Park in southern Malawi to go on our Safari. This was our first really good look at the lives of the villagers, and as we drove through the country, I was mesmerized. It seemed like something out of National Geographic.

Once we turned down the little dirt road that would lead to the park, we passed by numerous villages, each with children out front playing or doing chores. Every time our bus passed by them all the children would run towards the bus cheering and waving at us. After a couple of villages we noticed they kept saying the same thing over and over, “bottle-o, bottle-o, bottle-o,” and we realized they were asking for our empty water bottles. They fill them with water to take to school with them.

As we drove by one small village several children came running out, laughing and waving as usual. I was looking past them at the hut, and that is when I saw her. A little girl, probably eight or nine, hobbling on makeshift wooden crutches and trying to catch up with the other kids near the bus. As I looked closer I realized she was missing her right foot and at that moment, my heart broke.

Here she was, limping along, while having absolutely no chance of catching up to the other kids and no chance of fighting to the front of the crowd to get a bottle if we had any to hand out. However, she was still laughing, smiling and waving, excited to see us none the less.

If this had been America, she may have never even lost her foot, and if she did, she would have a prosthetic by now and a relatively normal life. However, this wasn’t America. It was Malawi, and this served as a stark reminder of where we were.

I wanted to reach out to her. I wanted to pick her up, put her in our bus, take her back to America and get her a prosthetic foot to make her life easier. I wanted to help her, but of course I couldn’t, and in a blink she was gone. I asked around and nobody else had even seen her. In the five seconds it took to drive by her, God used that brief instant to show me the nature of His Kingdom and the realities of this world. On the way back through I looked for her. We had some water bottles, and I had hoped to give her one. Unfortunately, I did not see her, and while I know I will never see her again, I will never forget her…how could I?

-Written by Jeff, Y-Malawi Trip Alumni

*Jeff Jordan is a free lance writer, you can follow him @czarjefferson

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Journal Entry: June 4, 2005

on September 28, 2011

“The Malawian people are unlike any people I have talked with before. There is something about them that I am trying to find more andmore about, but it makes them very welcoming and lovable. I believe it is a contentment that they have with the Lord and their position. It’s incredible.

Stopping several times along the road, we were able to meet with the people and I’m not lying, their smiles strike my soul. We met with a group of kids and some adult craftsmen and I was surprised when they greeted me with an English “How are you?” That was pretty much the extent of their English, however. They were chewing on sugar cane and asking me if I knew 50 Cent–who was on their shirt. That was hilarious. That’s when I got my camera out and began taking pictures, but it was quickly obvious that showing them the pictures was way more fun than actually taking them. I took a picture of one of the young male workers and he freaked out because he was so excited! (In the picture above)

It’s easy to get a sense of the needs in this country. These bone-thin people were asking for money and for clothes. It breaks my heart and gives me such a desire to serve and give when I see this. Without a doubt, God is already preparing my heart for something big.

-2005 Malawi Trip Alumni

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Margaret

on September 23, 2011

This is Margaret. We encountered Margaret and her mother sitting outside their tiny brick home while hiking down from praying onNkhoma mountain back in April. Their smiles and giggles were absolutely contagious as we began to sit and talk with them! They were breaking off and shucking maize from the fresh harvest. It was beautiful to be sitting with them amongst their environment and their lifestyle, talking, laughing and just being in fellowship. Then, emotionally unprepared, the next question we asked struck us with a bitter truth. “Who is this baby you’re holding?”

The baby with Margaret in this picture is her own. Margaret is 13 years old. She was taken advantage of by a young man who promised her financial security and then left her pregnant and all alone to care for the baby.

By the grace of God, her family has not abandoned her. Nor does He abandon her. Though, this will bring both trouble and isolation for both her and her family. Her father, already struggling, will have to face the fact that there is another mouth to feed. She will have to drop out of school and this baby will be threatened by malnutrition. Our hearts broke.

Whereas we want to relish in the joys, fun, and warm people of Malawi, (something very important to Y-Malawi), we certainly can’t ignore the fact that much of Malawi is broken and in pain. Poverty is real, disease runs rampant, water sources are unreliable, and little girls are becoming mothers far too soon. Daily, let us count our blessings and passionately pray for our brothers and sisters in the warm heart of Africa.

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There Is No One Like Jesus

on September 12, 2011

During our two week journey through Malawi, there was rarely a bus ride where we weren’t singing. Members of the Nkhoma Youth Department taught us a few songs, but this one, “There is No One Like Jesus” was definitely our favorite. On their last day with us, as Ethell and I were singing on the bus together I told her how I wished my parents and everyone at home could hear us singing together. She looked at me with the most genuine smile and said that would make her very happy. So later that day we recorded a few songs at the guest house where we had been staying while in the Nkhoma area, and we had a blast! I feel so blessed to have been given the opportunity to sing with her, in her language, for our God.
-Written by Dana (translation below)

There’s no one, there’s no one like Jesus

There’s no one, there’s no one like Him

I walk, I walk here, there.

I turn around here, there.

I’m searching, searching here, there.

There’s no one, there’s no like him.

There’s no one, there’s no one like Jesus

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A Dad’s Experience with his Family

on September 2, 2011

Anthony Kim was one of the three fathers from Newsong Church to join his children on their adventure to Malawi. Anthony has two daughters, Lauren (14) and Camryn (12) and is married to Sandee—all of whom came to Malawi together in July. Anthony expressed that “God touched each one of them in an individual way”, but being there as a family made the experience especially rich and unique.

“As a father, I was watching them and was constantly wondering if they were getting anything out of this.” Anthony has strived to raise his family with Christ and at the forefront and any Christian parent knows that having your kids encounter God and experience His love and power is what you hope for. Listening to his wife and kids reflect on how they felt God moved in their life each day only amplified the feelings of joy and excitement in connection with his own experiences. As proud father, tremendously excited about the outcome of this trip, he tells people that “God spoke to [his kids] in a very distinct way, and they are crazy for God right now…the fact they didn’t want to leave speaks volumes about the trip.”

Watching families come to Malawi together is an incredible privilege. We hope and pray that more families will come together and that we can have a lot more “crazies” for God.

“Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.” Prov. 22:6

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A Godly Response to Unrest in Malawi

on August 26, 2011

With all the work that Y-Malawi has put into helping the Nkhoma and Chilenje regions become stable, it’s hard to watch the country become more unstable. Politically and socially, Malawi is under a lot of duress. The heavy decline of foreign currency and thus devaluing of the Malawian Kwacha, together with economic misappropriation in government, has led to a massive economic downturn. Malawi has seen shortages of many resources, most notably fuel. The people have lost confidence in their government and have been engaging in countrywide protests since mid-July, demanding the overturn of government and the resignation of President Bingu Wa Mutharika. The pinnacle of the unrest came about on July 20 when 19 Malawians were killed in Blantyre by police. Most recent news on the situation confirms that Mutharika has dissolved of the entire 40 members of his cabinet this past Saturday, yet remains stringent on his declaration that he, himself, will not resign.

So, what does that mean for Y-Malawi? In regards to structure, partnership, vision and trips, it means nothing…we will press forward in those areas. However, in regards to cultural understanding, attitude and perspective, it calls for a strong appeal to the Holy Spirit for wisdom. It beckons us even deeper into a realm of prayer and fasting. The cold grievances of political unrest is beginning to swarm in the warm heart of Africa, a country famous for their peaceful, non-confrontational, loving people. Not to mention, much of Malawi put a lot of hope into Mutharika when he was elected and now that hope is fading into frustration. Join us in praying for the country of Malawi and our dear friends there.

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This is Church

on August 18, 2011

What would the world look like if Church was truly what Christ hoped it would be? May we as followers of Jesus Christ take his Great Commission and own it, apply it, and obey it unto the Glory of God and His Kingdom.

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Senior Chief of Chilenje Valley says “Come!”

on August 12, 2011

Members of the US Team were greatly surprised and enthused when on July 8th at the Y-Malawi demonstration in the Chilenje Valley, the Senior Chief of the Chilenje Region was in attendance! Better known as the Traditional Authority (T.A.), Senior Chief Masingala is comparable to a senator here in the states–overseeing all the local chiefs in the region and representing the region in governmental affairs. Though, it was not her title that really got the team pumped up, it was what she said! With great sincerity, she announced, in front of the entire crowd gathered in that Malawian football field, how extremely grateful she was to the US teams coming to Chilenje, how helpful the work has been, and that she urges MORE to come! Whether the response was a smile or a solemn understanding, all the team members caught an incredible glimmer of the impact that Y-Malawi churches are having on this beautiful community.

The call is out there…how will we respond? Perhaps it is your turn to GO! The game is completely different when the “Coach” puts you in. Is He calling your number? “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask to the Lord of the harvest to send out more workers. Go! I am sending you…” (Luke 10:2-3)

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An Unexpected Family Gathering

on August 3, 2011

The Generations Team to Malawi was made up of several churches, various age groups and came from around the country. Yet these families and individuals from the United States found common ground with the Malawian people in their love for Christ and it impacted the lives of everyone present on this incredible journey. Watch this video on the experiences of the Generations Family uniting with their brothers and sisters in Malawi.

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