The past week has been very eventful as usual. Though for lack of time and space on this blog, I will only write some highlights. I had the opportunity to ride a mini-bus here in Africa for the first time. This is an experience that everyone here told us that we must have. We rode to Blantyre, a city about an hour from here. We were able to meet up with some leaders that are in Younglife here. (If you are unfamiliar with Younglife, it is a Christian organization that I help with back in Edmond. We form relationships with students and love on them so that they will come to know that there is Someone out there that can love much more than us.) Anyways, just as they have Younglife in the States, they also have a Younglife here in Malawi. We attended their once-a-month leadership meeting and it was so refreshing. It was amazing how encouraging it was meeting these people for the first time. It was a great visual of the family and body of Christ. Though we had never met before, we have a common goal: bringing glory to God and telling those around us about Him. And because of this common goal, this common Spirit, we are family.
Yesterday marked the first day of May. It also was the day of our Jesus Retreat. We had originally planned for it to be two days long, but due to other plans of the majority of our friends we shortened it to one day. We began the day early that morning at around 8:30, we had time set aside for them to decorate notebooks provided for them and to eat some muffins and bananas for breakfast. Next, I taught the first session. I told them the theme for the day which was Colossians 2:6-7 and explained about just how trees must have deep roots to prevent them from just being blown over, we must also have a deep-rooted faith. We talked about spiritual disciplines and the importance of them and also about living intentionally everyday. Whether we are on a mission trip, at home, playing volleyball, or just hanging out with friends, we must be showing those around us the love of Jesus. We then took time for a tea break and to play some different games. We had a relay race and then played some games with water balloons. After eating a very American lunch of hamburgers, we had another teaching time about the importance of prayer and how we should pray without ceasing. We then set aside time and split into groups, and went prayer-walking. We walked about the Boma, the market, the TAYO office, the grounds where the kids play soccer, and among the village. We then concluded with our final teaching time on abandonment to Christ and how He must increase in our life and how we must decrease (John 3.30). Afterwards, we had a praise and worship time with English songs, they had been asking us to teach them for some time now. We then fed them dinner, chicken and rice, something more familiar for them. When leaving, our friends told us how grateful they were and how much they had learned and appreciated the day that was planned for them.
There were only 8 of our friends from TAYO that attended the retreat. We knew it was going to be a small event at the very very most there would have been 20 people there. Though with only 8 people in attendance, I feel like it was a very intimate time with them. These 8 people that were there are leaders of the TAYO organization that we partner with here. They are all individuals that have completed secondary school. They have the ability to impact not only the TAYO organization and all of the schools and organizations that they influence, but they have the ability to impact the whole Thyolo district, and God-willing all of Malawi.
We had bible study on both Wednesday and Thursday this week. Wednesday and the bible study at TAYO was good. We decided that we would finish telling storied from the Bible and our personal testimonies that we had begun, but never finished a few weeks ago. At first no one really wanted to be the first to share. Then Nafe, a girl that had not shared a story yet, shared first. More than half of the group shared either a story or a verse that had really impacted their life. There was one girl who had yet to share a story either time we have done this activity. And she said that she would be the first to share something next week. It is very encouraging that all of them are beginning to feel comfortable talking about their faith and to share stories from the Bible. Thursday’s bible study with the kids was led by Thoko. She told the story about Jesus feeding the five thousand. She then asked them questions about the story as usual. Thoko seemed really frustrated at the end of the bible study. She told me that she just felt like none of the kids were listening. I explained to her that sometimes, it may seem as though the kids aren’t listening at all, and there may be one that hears something and that one thing changes their life. We may never know the full extent of the things that we do or say here on earth.
With it being the first of May, that means that I will return at the end of this month. We have already began to say some of our good-byes. Our friend Chisomo has returned to school and won’t return until June after we are gone. Pray that in the next few weeks that we will be focused at the task on hand and not just on our return to the States. Pray that the remaining time here would be precious, sweet time with our friends. Pray that we would be able to leave here with no regrets because we know that we have been completely obedient to everything that the Lord has asked us to do. Pray that the work that has been begun here will continue on. That we wont be needed because the work here if more than work of ourselves.
In closing, I will leave the theme verses from our retreat on Friday.
Colossians 2:6-7
And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.
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