‘Are the goats eating intently?!?’

On our way back from Ekwendeni, Katie decided that it was the perfect opportunity for me to have my first Malawian driving lesson. Before we left, Ryan (being the concerned husband that he is) gave Katie lots of advice about driving. “If you come across a group of goats,” he said, “check and see if they are eating intently. If they are, don’t worry, but if they aren’t, watch out.” Here in Malawi, there are goats everywhere! But, they weren’t the only new thing that I would have to watch out for. There are also people everywhere, walking or riding bikes. Not to mention the potholes, chickens, cows, construction, diversions and mini buses that you encounter on the extremely narrow roads. Plus, they drive on the left side of the road! With all this in mind I apprehensively agreed to try. So, Katie and I switched seats, and I pulled the driver’s seat as close to the steering wheel as it would go, so that my short legs could reach the pedals. Then, I shifted into first gear (it’s a little weird to do that with your left hand), and we started down the road. My biggest problem was that I had absolutely no idea where I was on the road. I kept thinking that I was too far to the right, but really I was about to drive off the side of the road. Also, every time a car came towards me on the other side of the road, I was convinced that I was going to die. Once, while we were going through a busy market place, a big truck came from the other direction. There were people and animals everywhere, and the road was very narrow. I slowed down and got way on the right side of the road, but there was a bicycle taxi right in front of me! The man must not have heard me behind him, because he wasn’t moving out of my way. Katie was shouting “HONK YOUR HORN!!” over and over, and I was panicking. I honked and the man got out of the way, but Katie and I both nearly died from the stress. Thankfully, we both made it home alive, and the little pick-up is still in one piece. If you are ever driving in Malawi, the most important thing to ask yourself is, “Are the goats eating intently?”

A New Friend

While we were at the Women’s Retreat, Katie and I made many friends. All of the women there were wonderful women who are excited about serving the Lord. I was able to begin a friendship with Esther Kadzuwa (‘kadzuwa’ means sunlight in Chichewa), the daughter of the Free Methodist pastor in Ekwendeni. Esther is 14, and she and her twin brother Steven are the oldest of four. She is in Form 1 (9th grade), so she knows English pretty well. She is hoping to one day become a nurse, but here in Malawi, you must work very hard to go to University. I am praying that she will continue to do well in her studies. Before I left Ekwendeni, we exchanged addresses, and promised to write. I just received a letter from her, and I wrote her back in Chichewa. It’s a really great way to help me learn more Chichewa and learn more about Malawian culture. I praise God for bringing me a new friend!

Women's Conference in the Ekwendeni

During the first weekend in November, Katie and I went to Ekwendeni (a town about 6 hours north of Lilongwe) for a Women’s Retreat for the Northern Conference. We spent 4 days with women from different places in from the northern conference. The women were wonderful. It is really neat to be around them, because they are just like women in the states. They love to just sit and talk together. It was amazing to spend time with the women and really start to get to know them. Katie and I both spoke at the conference- I did two sessions. It's really crazy to me that a group of adult women would want to listen to a little nineteen year old girl. God showed me so much while I was preparing to teach, and He is stretching me in so many ways.

Playing Games in the Village

While we were in the villages, we were always surrounded by tons of children! We could always hear them shouting ‘Azungu akubwela! Azungu!’ (White people are coming!) It was a bit overwhelming at times, especially when they watched everything we did. So, Anna, Lydia and I taught them a few games. First we tried tag, but they mostly just chased the azungu instead of each other. Then, we tried hide and seek, but that was even less successful. Finally, we taught them duck, duck, goose, except we said mkuku, mkuku, ng’ombe (chicken, chicken, cow). In the north, they don’t speak Chichewa, so it was hard to explain, but I got help from a girl who spoke very good English. They all loved the game, and it was fun to see Anna and Lydia playing with all of the Malawians.

A Long Way from Lilongwe

On October 12, the Bartletts and I left to go on an eleven day trip to Northern Malawi. We took windy roads up mountains and through busy trading centers to the Free Methodist churches in the northern most part of Malawi. We visited four pastors and their churches in Chitipa and the surrounding area. We were so close to the top of Malawi that we could see Zambia and Mozambique in the distance. During our trip, we met many church members and Ryan and Katie were able to do special training with women and lay leaders. During church services, I was able to do a short children’s program. We were also able to see some of our students from Great Commission School and meet their families. Anna, Lydia, and Ella enjoyed playing with all of the children and making new friends. I was blessed to have the opportunity to spend time with our brothers and sisters in the north, and I look forward to the next time I can be with them again. We drove nearly 1200 miles total (300 on dirt), and we were a LONG way from Lilongwe.

Baptisms

On the last Sunday of the module, we got to witness a baptism here on campus. Chiwoko (the church on campus) held a special service before the students all left for their homes. During the service, we took communion with raspberry juice and a loaf of bread; it was my first communion since I got to Malawi. After that, the whole congregation got up and started dancing and singing as we walked down to the baptismal. Abusa Magwaza (abusa means pastor) baptized them as we all stood around the baptismal singing and clapping. It was a very special service, and I was blessed to be a part of it.

September Module

Here at Great Commission School, we have a modular schedule. The students come for a month at a time every four months. After they have completed 15 modules, they graduate. We have teachers come from the US to teach English and three Bible classes. Our September module was great! This past module, we were blessed with three amazing teachers. They were passionate about serving the Lord, and they were excited about what is happening in Malawi. It was great to get to know them and to learn from them.

During the module, the students have chapel every morning, so the girls and I went to chapel instead of having house church. It was a lot of fun to worship, pray and learn alongside the future pastors of the FM church here in Malawi. I was also very excited because many of the students at the school were our translators when I came for my short term trip in 2004. It was amazing to reconnect with them, and I look forward to building strong relationships with them and all of the other students over the next year.

A Great and Refreshing Weekend

This past weekend, the Bartletts and I got to go camping at Lake Malawi. We spent Friday and Saturday night sleeping on the beach. It was absolutly beautiful on the lake. All night we could hear the waves like we were at the ocean. We stayed a little ways down the beach from a hotel, so we walked there in the evenings to eat dinner. The food was pretty good, but there are resteraunts here in Lilongwe that are much better. On Saturday we went on a little boat to a small island a little off shore. We hiked to the top of the island, on top of boulders and through low trees covered with spider webs (this was difficult because I was wearing flip flops and Ryan and Katie were holding Ella). It was an amazing veiw once we got to the top. When we got back down, we went swimming a little in the lake (don't worry I don't have any parasites- we were very careful). There were beautiful little blue fish swimming around us. It was amazing. On Sunday, we went to a great church. The worship was amazing (this was the first church I have been to so far that used percussion) and the people were passionate about Jesus. They had two incredable youth choirs (I got goosebumps listening to one). It was amazing to worship and learn alongside our brothers and sisters in Malawi!

Teaching Anna and Lydia

Today I completed my second week of teaching Anna and Lydia. We have our own classroom on the bible school campus. I have it set up just like 'real' school. We start out each day with house church in the Bartlett's living room. We sing two or three worship songs, read a passage of scripture, and work on memorizing a verse (right now we are learning Psalm 24). Then we go to the classroom. I teach them History and Science together, and then I teach Anna 2nd grade math and english and Lydia kindergarten math and english. I am really enjoying 'relearning' all of the things that I learned in elementary school from a Christian perspective. I love teaching so much, and I am excited to continue to work with these two amazing students!

A New Baby Boy!

One of my best friends, Megan, was expecting a baby boy on August 13th. I was leaving for Malawi on Wednesday, August 8th. For weeks I had been hoping that the baby would come early. That Monday evening I got a call, and learned that Megan was being taken to the hospital because she was in labor. Jamie and I went to the hospital and spent the night in the waiting room waiting for the arrival of the new baby. The next day, Tuesday, August 7th, at 12:35pm Joseph was born! He arrived just in time for me to see him before I left for Africa!

August 8

So, I just got done with training in Spring Arbor, MI. I learned a ton! In fact, I was totally overwhelmed by the amount of information I got. I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to learn from people who had been on the mission feild for so long. I also got to meet all the people at VISA (a branch of Free Methodist World Missions that specializes in short term missions) who have been helping me so much with organizing my trip. I was so happy to finally meet them face to face after emailing them so much. I was also quite thrilled to meet Henry and Bonnie Church who were the area directors in Africa for many years and Amai Chimimba and Abusa Banda who are the two delegates from Malawi. It was amazing to talk to people who had spent so much time in Malawi.

Before I went to Michigan, I spent four days camping in Havasupi (it's near the Grand Canyon) with six of my dearest friends. We hiked 12 miles down into a canyon with everything we needed for four days on our backs. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life. At the end of the hike we came to three gorgeous waterfalls. The trip reminded me of God's awesome imagination that we can see through His glorious creation. I am so in awe of God so often. It also reminded me of my need for other people. I can be extremely stubborn sometimes and insist on doing things by myself, but the Houtzes showed me that sometimes I need to just let people help me. Thank you guys for saving my life so many times.

Right now I am in Muskegon, MI with a friend from youth group. Olivia is amazing and it has been so much fun spending time with her at Lake Michigan. I will be flying back home on Thursday, July 19.

I bought plane tickets to Malawi last week. I found out that I will be leaving on August 8. I will arrive in Malawi on the 10th. I can't believe it is so soon!! I can't wait to finally be in Malawi serving God with the Bartletts.

It's nearly time, and there's so much left to do!

I have been preparing for this trip for about a year now. I started talking about it with the Bartletts at the end of June. After all this time, I still can't believe I'm actually going to be in Malawi in about two months.

Things are pretty busy at home. I finished up the spring semester at Yavapai College on May 18. I was taking some elementary education classes to help prepare me for teaching Anna and Lydia. After taking the classes, I fell in love with education, and I think that I will continue studying it when I return. As much as I loved the classes though, I am so glad the semester is over! I have been working for a company in Prescott called Creative Networks since last July. Creative provides caregivers for the elderly and disabled. I currently have two clients, Katie (15) and Charisma (10). I love them both a ton! I work with Katie in the mornings to help her grandparents get her ready for school. Katie is blind and deaf and is wheelchair bound due to cerebral palsy in her legs. Glenn and Sally (her grandparents) are both really strong Christians, and they have been a huge blessing since I began working with them. Charisma and her family attend my church (Prescott Free Methodist) and are amazing. Charisma has cerebral palsy as well, but she is able to walk (with a little help) and is otherwise a normal ten year old girl. I love the time I spend with her.

I took a few weeks off of work so that I could go to Oregon. My dad got married on June 2nd, so Amanda (my sister) and I came for a few weeks. The ceremony was really cool, Dad and Shannon (my stepmom) included Amanda, Lindsey (my stepsister), and I a lot. We had our own vows and rings, helped light the unity candle, and sang a song. I'm so glad that our families are finally united. I also got to spend a week with my grandparents, aunt and uncle, and my five cousins from Georgia. It was great that everyone came up for the wedding; I got to spend time with all of my family before I leave for Malawi.

Next month, I will go to Michigan for three days of training at Spring Arbor University. I look forward to learning more about the specific things I will need to know as a missionary. I am nearly there financially. At this point, I have raised about $12,000. Thank you to everyone who has supported me financially, there is no way I could do it without you. Unfortunately, I still need about $4,000. I also really need all of your prayers.

This trip is one of the most exciting things I could do, but it will also be one of the most challenging. I will need tons of prayer support as I leave my family and friends to serve in Malawi. Thank you all so much for everything you have already done.