Anna says: “We are thankful that the translator has finished the final section of Bibletime! Please pray for the revision and design stage to go smoothly.”
Comment: This is a significant milestone, and a cause for much thanksgiving. Not only does it mean that the Bible Time project is nearing completion, but it also frees up Gibson, our principal translator, to focus on other very important translation projects!
It’s hard to believe, but SALT is now six years old!
Although 30 September is our official year-end, SALT was actually incorporated on 21 September 2018 as Stephen & Gail Harper, missionaries to Malawi for over 20 years, were on a short retreat in The Trossachs, Scotland, with Jim & Janet McMaster.
The idea to form SALT was conceived because of the need to strengthen the base of the Gospel Literature ministry in Malawi. The Lord has honoured and blessed that decision in more ways than we could enumerate.
What began as a very modest exercise to distribute a few Gospel Tracts and Calendars now reaches almost every part of the country – and continues to expand.
Our Vision and Values remain unchanged as we seek to Enlighten, Encourage and Empower indigenous believers to fulfil their part in the great commission.
Please take a moment and give thanks with us for all the Lord’s blessing!
Who said there was no MGO 2024? Last month, brothers from the Saidi assembly visited nearby markets for open-air preaching and distributed Seedsower texts – it’s exciting to see local brothers taking initiative! Here are some pictures:
Learn more about MGO here.
We are so thankful that the new 4×4 Landcruiser we have been waiting on has finally reached Malawi. It is presently in bonded storage but is expected to finally clear customs and proceed to the dealership for pre-delivery inspection in the next couple of days. It will then go for registration at the Road Traffic Department.
Please pray for these final steps. Bureaucracy (and sometimes corruption) can be stressful and challenging.
Brother Harold shared this encouraging note after trip to the Lower Shire region to distribute literature.
Hi everyone, the Lord knows that it’s good to be encouraged for us to continue to serve him with renewed energy and joy. Today in the afternoon on my trip to the lower shire to supply literature and to replenish the literature stock in the container at Bangula. I met this man Mr Ntantha who spoke so sincerely how he was very much blessed by the conference in the book of Corinthians and how this opened his understanding of the book. After the conference he read through the book thoroughly and ever since he has been teaching the book at his church in Sunday school time. He has lamented the fact that this was his first ever conference with Salt and how he feel to have missed alot on the other three conferences he never attended. It was very fulfilling to listen to his comments on the conference and its impact on him. He asked and encouraged Salt to continue such holding such meetings of extensive and yet profound bible teaching. Can anything bring more joy and fulfilment than this?
As we give thanks and rejoice in the Lord’s provision, please continue to pray for the last leg of the long process to purchase a new Toyota Landcruiser utility vehicle for benefit of the work in Malawi. The vehicle eventually arrived at the Malawi border late last week and the process of customs clearance and registration is now under way. Pray that these remaining formalities will go smoothly.
The work has been beset with vehicle maintenance and reliability issues, so we are deeply grateful to those who gave generously to enable us to purchase this vehicle. The Lord sees and recompenses such sacrifice.
Please also pray that the Lord will make the vehicle a blessing in the work, especially in the literature distribution ministry, where we expect it to be of great service.
Please pray for the safe and speedy transit of the first of 3 shipments expected to arrive before the end of the year (DV). This has just been sent. and contains a significant portion of our 2025 Gospel Calendars (around 500,000), 42 boxes of Gospels and around 50 boxes of prison hygiene packs.
Later this month a further consignment of Classroom packs, other practical items and literature from Everyday Publications will be sent from Toronto. We are grateful to MSC and ACCTS for the kind use of their shipping facility. The remainder of our calendars, Nthawi ya Baibulo (Bible Time) booklets and other Gospel literature should follow in the next month or two, Lord willing.
Please also pray that the Lord will richly bless this literature to the salvation of many souls.
Does network troubleshooting constitute “real missionary work”?
As always, it’s been a joy to be back in Malawi. Today is the midpoint of a short trip which has already proved to be extremely valuable. I often feel frustrated that so much of my time seems to taken up with admin and planning, and not the “real missionary work” of preaching and teaching. Then I remember that Paul wrote, “there are varieties of service, but the same Lord” (1 Corinthians 12:5) and how he often commended the tireless efforts of many who evidently laboured behind the scenes, whom he was happy to call “co-workers”.
Although my last visit was very much about the “real missionary work”, this visit has been more about necessary “behind the scenes” activity. We’ve spent a lot of time reviewing the conference in May, and how to add value to something which was evidently of great profit to many. We have also spent much time thinking about the much-anticipated launch of Nthawi Ya Baibulo (Bible Time), which gets closer with each passing week. There is already a lot of interest in NYB, and we want to make sure that we manage the roll-out carefully.
In addition to this, SALT has recently taken overall responsibility for the Emmaus work in Malawi. Although a phenomenally valuable teaching and discipleship resource, Emmaus has failed to reach its potential in Malawi due to the absence of a national coordinator for the past 7 or 8 years. Please pray for Anna who has accepted this responsibility on behalf of SALT, on top of her already-busy schedule.
Yesterday, we met with Gibson, our main literature translator. I’ve worked on and off with Gibson for many years, but he and Anna have done a fantastic job over these past 2-3 years, cooperating on the NYB translation. With less than one month’s work remaining (by his estimate) we are looking forward to letting him loose on some other important translation projects.
To be honest, although I do often feel frustrated that I’m unable to do as much of the real missionary work that I love, I am humbled, and sometimes rebuked when I think of all that the Lord has privileged me to be involved with here. The work has grown beyond recognition, and maintaining that necessarily involves a lot of tedious and “unrewarding” effort, which the Lord graciously blesses.
I’ve been very happy to be accompanied by Bro Mark Beach, who has recently volunteered his extensive experience in missionary literature work. Mark has been involved for many years in various aspects of Christian work, most recently leading Everday Publications Inc, highly regarded in assembly missionary circles for their helpful resources in “Everyday English”. He also brings his experience in accounting and bookkeeping, which has already lifted a great burden off my shoulders. I believe that with his help and your prayers, the work will go forward from strength to strength.
I shouldn’t forget that there was some “real missionary work” on Wednesday, when we had a visit at one of the prisons, around an hour’s drive from base. What a thrill as around 350 inmates sat attentively listening to the Word of God. Pray that the gifts of a hygiene pack left with each will be a blessing. Each pack contains a leaflet with a simple Gospel message. And, of course, I’m looking forward to being with the assembly at Saidi tomorrow, when doubtless I’ll have opportunity to share the Word of God with them.
Thanks for all your prayers.
Meet Goliat Chisowa, a gospel literature distributor from the southern region of Malawi.
Transcript:
My name is Goliat Chisowa, I stay in Mwatheta village.
I have a family. I have six children.
Calendars help us, we give them to students so they can know the date.
The tracts encourage us because not everyone has a Bible. The tracts encourage us in the Word. For example, the tract “Going to Hell is your own choice”. So, where we may not have Bibles, we make use of the tract.
Meet Cyford Chimwaza who shares how tracts help him share the gospel in the most remote areas of southern Malawi.
Transcript:
My name is Cyford Chimwaza from Phalula in Balaka district.
[Tracts] help very much because we distribute in the remotest areas where people cannot find any literature, and when we reach them it shows that we are reaching them with Jesus and the Word of God. And we very much appreciate for the tract. [We distribute] In the district of Balaka and also in other districts, but our ministry we do very much in the remotest areas. So it’s like in the village, like in Manjawira and even in Phalula and around, even we enter into Ntcheu, Neno – around this area it’s where we distribute the calendars and also the tracts. And also we show Jesus film. So wherever we show Jesus film, we distribute the tracts. So it’s very effective in our ministry.We would like people to pray for us, especially this year as we are going through [a] difficult time with hunger and economic challenges. So when we meet the Christians and even other people, when we are talking about the Word of God others wonder how they can understand this as they are going through the hunger problem and other things. So if God [can] help us to give us wisdom so that whatever little we have we can also share. We share the Word of God spiritually but also we could love to share other things practically, like food and even medication. So, if God can open the doors of the help so that we can also extend the help to the needy. As we show spiritual love, we show also physical love as Jesus did. So help us to pray for that.
