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Here at Thondwe we are in the throes of preparing for Malawi Gospel Outreach (MGO) 2023. Ordering texts. Distributing invitations. Booking accommodation. Planning activities… The list goes on.

And in the midst of all the busyness, it’s natural to start wondering if it’s worth all the effort.

Short-term mission work gets a lot of criticism. And let’s be honest, some of that is well deserved. We’ve all heard stories about ‘those people’ who go visit missionaries to ‘help’ and ‘encourage’ them and end up leaving them more worn-out and discouraged than before. Or the enthusiastic but naïve volunteers who end up committing countless cultural taboos and damaging the reputation of the work.

So what about MGO? Is it helpful or harmful? Is it worth the effort?

Well, now that I’ve experienced it from the perspective of someone on the ground, I think I can safely and unequivocally say that it is definitely worth the effort.

The Encouragement from Short Term Missions

For one thing, it is a tremendous encouragement to the local workers.

It can get lonely down here! Of course, we have an amazing team, and we generally enjoy working together. But we miss the varied and frequent fellowship that believers experience in countries with multiple assemblies and regular Bible conferences. So, getting to spend two weeks with a group of believers, fellowshipping in the gospel, singing hymns, and talking about the Lord is a tremendous boost to us!

Not to mention the encouragement of people taking time to come and see what the Lord is doing here. It shows that the interest goes deeper than surface level, and it assures us that there are some who will be praying with a personal knowledge of what is going on.

Extra Manpower from Short Term Missions

The increase in manpower, as simple as that may sound, is also a help. With a team of believers, we are able to do different kinds of outreach than normal. Distributing several thousand texts at the market? This certainly can be done with two or three people, but it takes a lot more time and energy than when you have ten or twenty. Corralling six hundred kids for the day? Perhaps it can be done with only a few adults, but it’s certainly not advisable.

MGO makes a positive impression in the community. I was chatting with the teens in my Bible study group last night about this year’s outreach. The boys were asking about the guys who came and played football with them. Another asked about Bill, who came and helped preach the gospel. And everyone in my neighborhood remembers ‘Royce’ (Lois). Why? Because she took time to try out her Chichewa with the women and be silly with the children. It turns out you can communicate love and genuine care – two things that are often missing here – regardless of a language barrier.

I think I can speak for the visitors too – having once been one myself – and say that it’s also an encouragement for them. While reaching others with the gospel should be the thrust of our life, there is something unique about setting apart an entire week or two for that specific purpose.

It also gives them a better understanding of the work. It strengthens the connection between supporting assemblies and missionaries/workers and leads to more intelligent and informed prayer.

I could go on, but this is already way too long. I’ll end with this: Could it also be that it might be a tool the Lord uses to raise up others for the work here? That’s what happened with me, and we’re praying that might also happen with others.

Of course, no two MGOs are the same. Different people and different activities lead to varied dynamics. So, prayer is needed and appreciated that the Lord will work in and through us all to encourage and be encouraged and unitedly spread the good news about Jesus Christ.

Pray

Please pray for a day of peaceful protest and prayers planned in defence of the Biblical position on Marriage and Sexuality across Malawi on Thursday 13 July. This has been planned by various church alliances, who are also calling for church leaders to organise “intensive prayers and teaching in our Churches” between Friday 14 and Sunday 16 July. This anticipates an upcoming legal challenge to Malawi’s laws prohibiting same-sex relationships.

Urging all Malawians irrespective of faith to stand and protect the family, their Press Release states,

“As Churches we believe that sexual acts are only permissible between man and woman (Married partners). Hence we would like to make it clear that Same Sex unions are ungodly, unnatural, and culturally unacceptable and a direct perversion of Gods ordained order of family. We therefore reaffirm our position against the legalization of acts which directly threaten the existence of the family in this country.

“We are convinced that marriage is between two people of the opposite sexes- male and female. Anything contrary to this divine order is unacceptable and does not please God, our creator. Malawi cannot afford to take a rebellious path of disobedience to God at a time when we need Him most to heal our nation. Let us all unite and defend our nation from self-destruction. “

The need for such a statement would have been unimaginable in Malawi a very short time ago. This is clear evidence of unwelcome western influence driving the social agenda. As one of the poorest countries in the world, constantly in need of financial support, it is very difficult for Malawi to resist the pressure to liberalise its laws. It is also a salutary lesson that we cannot take for granted the liberty we enjoy in the Gospel.

Please pray that the planned protest will be peaceful, and that Malawi will be preserved from the “self-destruction” spoken of in the press release.

Pray

Please pray for the final preparations for MGO 2023, which is now just 4 weeks away.

We have a very much smaller overseas team than in previous years, but this will give opportunity for local believers to play a larger part.

Please specifically pray

  • for the production of the texts to be distributed
  • for travelling mercies safety and good health of the team,
  • that the Lord will use this as a an opportunity to raise up other local believers to help with this work
  • that we will be able to plan and schedule the right activities to match the size and abilities of the team,
  • and that the good seed would fall upon prepared ground.

Pray

Anna writes: Please pray that our visit to Dzaleka and Divine Touch (Street Kids’ Feeding Program) will be a blessing and encouragement to them and that the Lord will watch over us as we travel.

Note: Anna and Wati will be travelling this incoming week to monitor the progress of the Bibletime work at Dzaleka, as well as the various relief programs SALT supports there and in Lilongwe. In recent months the Government has been forcibly returning immigrants to the camp, exacerbating the overcrowding there.

During the past week we had the following reports from William (Dzaleka) and Edward (Lilongwe):

Life and death are much more raw in Malawi than in the West. People here accept as normal parts of life things that we take great pains to sterilize and sanitize.

Few things better exemplify this than a funeral.

Everything stops for a funeral

Anyone who’s lived in this part of the world knows that everything stops for a funeral. As they often have no way to preserve the body, they need to attend to things promptly. There’s also an expectation that everyone in the village will attend. (That may be because of a strong sense of community. Or, because people don’t want to be accused of using witchcraft to contribute to the person’s death. It is sometimes difficult to tell). And so, the death of someone in the village today means that no one will be at work tomorrow. It’s a constant reminder that death is an interrupter, an unwanted but ever-present intrusion in life.

Nothing makes that more evident than the wailing you hear as you approach the home of the deceased person. I can’t make a blanket statement about how Westerners grieve. After all I’ve heard that my Italian ancestors knew how to do justice to the whole wailing thing. But most of the funerals I’ve been to have been quiet affairs. The family and friends of the deceased silently weep. Those in attendance offer their condolences in hushed voices and whispers. That’s not how things are done here. The wailing starts long before the funeral and it continues throughout, as the women of the family cry for the dead person who has left them.

Weeping

Usually, the family members sit in the house around the coffin. When they nail the coffin shut and bring it out for the community to view, the weeping becomes louder and more pronounced. They continue weeping at full volume as they load the coffin into the back of a truck. Then the family members squeeze in around it, and everyone makes their way to the graveyard.

Simple things, like hearing the hammer nailing the lid of the coffin shut. Watching different men from the community fill the grave and then hoe the dirt into a mound. These were jarring for me the first time I went to a funeral. They serve as startling reminders that there is an actual dead person present. And that dead person is literally being buried – physically removed and put away from the living.

At the last funeral I attended, I sat on the ground with the other women who were there. I was waiting to hear what kind of message the officiant would give. My back was sore from trying to imitate the ramrod-straight posture of my Malawian companions. (That’s something I don’t think I’ll ever master). I was tired from being in the sun all day. And I was desperately hoping that there would be some kernel of truth in his sermon.

Life and death without hope

There wasn’t. His words of “consolation” and “hope”? Go to church and work hard for the benefit of your church, so good things will come to you. That was it. No truth, no hope, no consolation.

As we walked back home, some of the older women were reflecting on the service.

“There was no reading from the Bible?”

“Did you catch if he read from the Bible?”

“No, I think he just went right to giving advice.”

“No reading; that’s not good.”

All I could think was that the problem was much more significant than simply neglecting to read a portion of Scripture. That man was leading people astray. Encouraging them to cling to something that will neither save their souls nor give them hope for their lives. And, sadly, this is what they preach so often. In a country where life is painful and death is a constant reality, many people are living without the hope of the gospel.

Please pray with us that the gospel of Jesus Christ will reach and penetrate the hearts and lives of the people of Malawi. Through literature, open-air preaching, and relationships. Pray that the Lord will use SALT to spread His love to a hurting people and offer them true and lasting hope. Hope for this life and hope in death.

Pray

Anna requests that we pray for the upward and outward growth of the new little assembly.

While it is thrilling to see the progress so far, please pray that the Lord will add more to the number there, and that each will progress toward spiritual maturity. The will undoubtedly be difficulties and there are many potential pitfalls, so please pray earnestly for the preservation of the work.

According to Brother Harold there were “tears of thanksgiving to the Lord” on Lord’s Day for what he has done at Saidi.

Six believers were baptised, with many people coming to witness the event. The Gospel was preached, and together with the newly-baptized believers they all sat down to break bread as an assembly for the first time.

This is the fruit of years of labour in the area. As you give thanks for all that the Lord has done, please also pray that those who have obeyed the Lord in baptism will be richly blessed in their souls, and that the new assembly will be preserved and prosper in the days ahead.

Baptism at Saidi
Baptism at Saidi

Anna asks that we give thanks that the Bible studies we held in May have borne fruit, and that a number of people have requested to be baptised. This is not only a testament to the Lord’s goodness, but also to the labours of Brother Goodson who has faithfully preached the Gospel and taught the Word of God in the area of Saidi / Thondwe for several years.

Please also pray that those who will be baptised next Lord’s Day will continue to grow in grace, and that we will soon have the joy of seeing an assembly planted in the area. Please also pray that the baptisms will speak to the many others who regularly listen to the Gospel at Saidi, but have not yet responded.

Pray

The team in Malawi will be meeting on Monday to discuss preparations for MGO 2023. Please pray that they will be guided in their deliberations. They will also be further discussing the development of our Child Protection procedures, following the very useful training held earlier in the year, prior to the cyclone.

Pray

As we phase out of emergency relief work, pray for wisdom to know how to continue helping in light of overwhelming and long-term need. Continue to pray for the gospel that we have been privileged to share as a result of the storm.

Note: The Government has understandably been concerned to reopen many of the schools formerly being used as temporary accommodation for people displaced by the cyclone. Sadly this means that hundreds of thousands of people are being forced out of the camps without any alternative solutions being offered. This makes it almost impossible to reach many with needed food aid.

ENLIGHTEN | ENCOURAGE | EMPOWER

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