So Many Good Changes

So much has happened since we left Lilongwe nine months ago. We were just starting to feel at home, which is no small thing, given the fact that there isn’t much familiar about Malawi to an American. Thanks to our supporters and sponsoring church, we had imported housewares, books, tools, and even a dog into Malawi in order to be at home there. We had planned to be in it for the long haul and wanted our home to be a comfortable, secure place for our family to retreat to amidst difficult days on the mission field—and there were difficult days. Then the pandemic hit. We were in the States on furlough when it did and haven’t been back since. What was supposed to be a month long trip has turned into a full blown move back to the States. We had our dear friends in Malawi sell what they could and give the rest away. It’s been heart wrenching, to say the least. Though we’ve moved out of Africa for now, God’s work there is still going strong, and some positive changes have taken place.

In the time we’ve been gone, Malawi has elected a new president, which we think is a very good thing. We know his daughter and son-in-law, who is also his speech writer and top aid. They’re good people. I taught their son at the international school, so I feel like I can vouch for them on a level that only someone who spends time with your children can. Kids tell family secrets without words. They seem like people who might lead Malawi into a better future, but politics has a way of taking good intentions and weaving them into a web of greed and corruption, so we will continue to pray for their hearts to remain fully His. The forgotten children of the villages need more than just a ray of hope from this new government. They need a leader who will turn to God and put the country into His hands.

Somewhere between the personal issue of our change of address and the more global issue of the government lies the discussion of what has developed in the ministry this year. The feeding program that we started while we were there is now providing food for ninety children every day. That’s twenty more than when we left for furlough! Also, the property where we built the preschool now has running water. This is the first time these kids have ever had access to such a thing. We’ve been able to continue to raise money through Donor See online, and our faithful supporters have not only continued to give to the cause, but some have even increased their donations. With that money, we have been able to build two houses for widows and their children, and Snoden, our friend and Malawian partner, is overseeing the building of a wall to secure the property where the kids eat and go to school each day. It’s also were Snoden and his family live and where all of the program’s resources are stored. Because so many of the kids are HIV positive, a large part of our ministry is also to get regular medical care for them, so Snoden also transports them to and from the local clinic on his motorcycle. Through all of this, our main goal is still to share the Gospel and biblical teaching with these kids and their families. With your overwhelming support, it seems the ministry may just be getting started. 

God has sufficiently calmed our fears about the kids in Tambalale Village not getting what they need in our absence. We talk to Snoden almost daily through the miracle of technology, and he and his wife are rising to the challenge of feeding ninety children and educating forty-five. It’s not an ideal situation in that they need more help to better care for so many children, but it is stable. Also, our family is experiencing considerable personal challenges during this transition, but, like the situation in the village, we are also stable. As the dust settles and we are able to evaluate where we are in this ministry, we hope to see more positive changes that will allow us to move off of our position of stability and into a more dynamic place of growth and improvement. God started this mission by allowing us to feed a few hungry kids, and we don’t want to stop until no child is hungry and every child is being educated. It seems like an impossible task, but our God just so happens to specialize in such things. 

The Methuselah Tree

        The oldest tree in the world is in the White Mountains of California. It’s a bristlecone pine thought to be 5,000 years old, and it’s affectionately called Methuselah. It seems fitting that it has a biblical name, since trees carry such significance throughout the Bible. There are so many great lessons to be learned from trees, and you may have heard sermons or read devotionals along those lines. I’ve always been enamored with them—even since before I was a Christian—and now I’m fascinated by the many analogies that can be used to compare trees to our Christian lives. One in particular really spoke to me this week. 

We moved into a new house just days ago. I was admiring an old oak in the yard and what must be a deep and far-reaching root structure, while feeling a bit sorry for myself for having no roots at all. I’ve moved over thirty times that I can remember and was mourning the separation from friends and family, the loss of keepsakes, and the fact that I’ve never been anywhere long enough to get comfortable with a routine. Then this thought struck me: that tree’s root system has a direct relationship to the reach of its branches—and so does mine! The roots of a tree may extend three to five times as far as its longest branch. My roots in the Kingdom also grow stronger when I reach out, but in a different way. 

It may be the stagnation that allows trees to take root in the earth, but Kingdom roots require movement out of our comfort zones. They only grow stronger when we’re actively pursuing God’s will. For me that’s been moving around the world to share the Gospel. For you it might be forgiving someone, befriending a difficult neighbor, or even embracing changes in the church service in order to be more relevant to the world. Branching out is bound to look different in different people, but one thing is for sure: strong Kingdom roots are only established when Christians agree to branch out and follow God’s will. Every time I agree to go where God calls, my earthly roots become shallower, but I gain brothers and sisters in Christ and my relationship with Jesus is strengthened. Every time I branch out by doing something that I can’t do without Jesus, He causes my Kingdom roots to grow a little deeper.

The first Psalm says that those of us who are rooted in the Kingdom are like trees planted beside streams of water, implying that we’ll always have what we need to grow and mature. Interestingly, established trees in nature don’t need much water at all. (Methuselah only gets about a foot of rainfall per year.) Instead they take advantage of water when they get it, but they don’t spend their lives searching for it. Only young trees do that. As Christians, a mark of maturity is when we stop indulging in self-serving behavior and start putting others before ourselves. If comfort is my priority or I spend most of my prayer time asking for things for myself, I should probably examine my life. My roots may be suffering from stunted growth, and a sturdy root system is crucial when it comes to adversity. If you’ve ever tried to remove a mature tree from your yard, you know what I mean. It can be nearly impossible. You can chip away at an established root system all day with little to show for it in the end. Likewise, we have an enemy who daily hacks away at our Kingdom roots. If they’re strong, Satan will have his work cut out for him. If I live in the realization that I’m planted beside the stream of Living Water, then I’m free to branch out when God calls. Only then will my roots be like Methuselah’s, able to sustain drought and hardship and still thrive.