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Dave & Kari share their thoughts on their visit to Malawi in March 2024.

Dave is from a farming background. He has an interest in sustainable farming and how simple techniques can be used to improve yields and thereby food security.

Transcript

Hey, everyone

Stephen had asked us if we would just put a short video together for you all to be able to, just hear our thoughts and our first impression of our visit to Malawi

I think for, for both of us when we first arrived in the country, the one of the first things we noticed was the beauty of the country, mountainous, hilly

We would call them mountains, from from where we live in Ontario. a beautiful country. it’s densely populated

That’s the one thing that we both felt. having lots of people, lots of opportunities also to be able to share the gospel. we got to go to, a couple of schools and, and share the gospel with, with the kids there

We handed out some literature there as well. then some calendars calendars. yeah

The kids are pretty excited about that. when we arrived, the container with, Christian literature, had arrived yet and I know Stephen was, disappointed because he wanted us to be able to experience that. seeing the logistics of how everything works with, handing, the literature out throughout the country and to be a part of that would have been, would have been pretty neat. it was nice to be able to first take in salt and go to the facilities and see the buildings and, and the layout of the land and the farm and, what your hoping to, to do there. and of course, with my farming background that was, neat to kind of get the wheels turning and, and see the opportunities that, are before you there with, being able to grow food for people

I think there’s, a lot of potential with, with what you’ve got there for a layout on your property and, use that for, for the Lord’s work. we we had a chance to go up to Lilongwe and to the, refugee camp

We able to take that and and tour around a wee bit just to see what it’s like

I’ve never been both of us have never been to a refugee camp before

I really enjoyed, having the opportunity to see the ladies and at their sewing machines when we first went in, and, and, they quickly brought it bags of things that they had sewn

And that was really cool

I just felt like I really made a connection there with some of those ladies, and, it was really special, a really neat opportunity

It’s neat how you can connect, so quickly, I find with, with people. when you come down to their level and, and, you take an interest in what they’re doing, the kids feeding program, that was, that was an eye opening experience for myself

I remember getting a little teary eyed, as I was handing out the food, just, to see these children, you know, literally having nothing or very little and and to be able to provide, a meal for them and to be able to share the gospel with them

So, yeah, overall, we had a really good a good trip, a good time

I’m just grateful for Stephen’s. kindness and taking us around, driving us around and we’re thankful the Lord kept us safe and provided a vehicle for us to be able to do that with, even though it did break down a couple of times

Nothing too major

We’re thankful for Stephen’s, hospitality and kindness and and, willingness to, to give us, a tour of the country part of it

Anyway, so it was it was a fun experience

Yeah. we’re going to be in prayer for you guys, Yeah

Well, I’m not sure what the future holds for us, but we would ask your prayers as well. as we were seeking for what the Lord would, would have for us, so

Anyways, thanks so much

Okay

Thank you, thank you

Yeah.

Brother Goodson shares why he’s so encouraged with the spiritual progress at Saidi

Recorded in October 2023

Transcript

The spiritual work here at Saidi is going up because we started with a small small team [group] but right now we have a large number So we praise the Lord because there’s spiritual [work] is going up And right now we plan to have next baptism at the last week of this October So I’m very encouraged Very encourage Because I [didn’t] believe maybe we can find the people as we see right now so I’m very encouraged because I see that Lord himself is [bringing] the people to us We need to pray for the work of the Lord here Because every time we we meet with the challenges as you know here in Malawi people is very suffer with the hunger and other problems here so we’re looking [after] the spiritual And also we’re looking [after] the body of the people so we need to pray [for] the work of the Lord here

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One year on, team members share their thoughts on the challenges and opportunities of Cyclone Freddy.

Recorded in October 2023

Transcript:

After the Cyclone Freddy happened we visited so many camps preaching the gospel and giving out some flour as a relief measure

So that has also been an eye opening to me as regards to the problems that people face when it comes to disasters like this

Initially the work started with would I say it immediate response relief. So distributing food to the camps. And with that distribution also sharing the gospel with people. But in the recent months it’s been more about rebuilding the houses of some whose homes fell during the storm.

From the time that we met with the problem of the cyclone Freddy we started to visiting in to the different camps and also we share the food and right now we are rebuilding the houses for the few families and we are already finishing nine houses

The great part of Cyclone Freddy is that we were able to visit as many people and preach the gospel in an environment where the hearts are so ready to receive the gospel in the camps that we’ve been trying to visit we are the only organization that has been able to make an impact both spiritual and physical

We’ve been able to go there and preach the gospel on a weekly basis some organizations just visited the camps once and gave them like five kgs of maize

Very encouraging because when the brothers and sisters from other countries when they listen the problem here in Malawi they take part to help us

So this is [a] very [great] encouragement And I pray for the sisters and brothers who will take the part to help us here in Malawi

And also I ask them to continue to help us because we have still a problem here

It’s been a good opportunity to share the love of Christ in a practical way. We’ve gotten to know some people that we wouldn’t know otherwise. The situation is not over and we’re in for a really bad couple of months because of the destruction of crops from the cyclone.

And the needs aren’t going away. They’re just getting more and more. So pray for wisdom discernment and kind hearts. Caring hearts.

Because it can be overwhelming.

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We praise the Lord for a very enjoyable and profitable week of teaching at our 2024 Bible Conference.

After an unavoidable hiatus due to Covid and cyclones, it was wonderful to host over 50 of our volunteer literature distributors for a week in the Word of God.

We took the entire letter of 1Corinthians as our subject for the week. This ensured that we focussed on the major themes and really important lessons of the book. It also helped the brothers see how a complete Bible book is a consistent whole.

We had to restrict the number of attendees due to our current space limitations. Nevertheless, some brothers came from Mulanje and Nsanje in the South, and a few from Lilongwe in the Central Region. At least one brother even came from neighbouring Mozambique! Many commented that they had never had the privilege to attend such a Bible Conference before. Based upon the written feedback they gave, many were learning fundamental Bible truth and principles for Christian living and Church life, for the first time. It was thrilling to see their rapt attention during the teaching sessions, and their engagement during the group study workshops. As usual, the Q & A sessions provided abundant teaching opportunities too!

During one of the breaks near the end of the conference, Anna gave a short presentation to introduce Nthawi Ya Baibulo, the children’s Bible study curriculum which we are translating. I was encouraged to see a healthy interest among a number of the brothers already engaged in children’s work. Hopefully, this will be a real help to them in reaching the young people in their areas.

Next Bible Conference, God willing?

We have already begun to think about when our next Bible Conference will be. We have only been able to reach a small percentage (less than 1/5) of the volunteers we regularly supply with literature. It is impractical to reach them all in their own areas, and impossible for us to host them all at Saidi, at present. So, we have a real dilemma. Do we invite a fresh cohort of 50 so that we reach more individuals? Or, do we invite the same group back in order to build upon what they have just learned? Please pray that we will have wisdom to make that decision.

Please also pray that, if it is His will, the Lord will enable us to build suitable accommodation to facilitate more conferences, and to host more people. This would truly be an enormous blessing for the work.

Teaching Session
Boys will be boys!
Workshop Session
Hand-washing before lunch
ScreeWorkshop in one of the Summer Hutsnshot
Q & A
Teaching Session
Some of the Brothers
Group Photo
Workshop Group

Food Insecurity has improved only marginally after Cyclone Freddy. Many areas, especially in the Southern Region, remain in Crisis (IPC Phase 3) and remaining official maize reserves are only enough to feed 200,000 households for 1 month, according to official estimates.

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It was an immense joy for me to sit down to break bread for the first time with the young assembly at Saidi this morning.

The Lord has really been blessing the work there. It is thrilling to see the beginnings of a spiritual harvest after years of sowing.

A big part of me would dearly have loved to be present a few weeks ago for the inaugural breaking of bread. However, I remind myself that the saints here have done exactly as I’ve always taught them they should do. That is, to seek to honour and obey the Lord, and to look to His Word alone for their guidance. To value the Lord’s presence above the presence of any missionary. And so I am glad that they did not feel that they needed a visitor’s blessing in order to begin meeting as an assembly. But I would still have loved to have been there!

Just a “large handful” of believers presently comprise the assembly. Recently, seventeen others asked for baptism and to join the fellowship. Brother Goodson has begun the process of hearing the testimonies of those interested. In conversation a couple of days ago he was telling me how impressed he is with the level of understanding of the Gospel. Many others come regularly to hear the Gospel, and today there were several new faces, as there are every week. It was a privilege to be able to share the Gospel with them… Wodala munthuyo wokhululukidwa tchimo lake; wokwiriridwa choipa chake! Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Amen!

Goodson also mentioned that other nearby churches are surprised how many abambo (men) consistently attend the meetings there. Most other churches are mainly comprised of women. However, at Saidi it’s around a 50/50 split. Goodson rightly attributes to the fact that the Lord is at work.

Over the next week, we plan to have Gospel meetings at the site each afternoon. Please pray that this would be a means in the Lord’s had to reach more unsaved, and to establish those who have professed faith. The believers have distributed many invitations.

We praise the Lord for all he is doing.

Introduction

In March, Cyclone Freddy wreaked havoc in Malawi, causing immense destruction and loss of life. With a total death toll of over 1000 and over 1,000,000 people displaced, the impact of the disaster was heart-wrenching. The storm destroyed thousands of hectares of mature maize, leaving communities vulnerable to hunger and economic challenges. In the face of this catastrophe, SALT tried to respond with compassion, wisdom and determination. The Lord enabled us to provide emergency aid to over 1000 people from around 10 villages.

The Lord’s people responded generously . We want to update you on our ongoing relief efforts and how we plan to continue helping those affected by Cyclone Freddy.

Immediate Relief Efforts

In the immediate aftermath of Cyclone Freddy, our team visited numerous evacuation camps, like the one at Lisao. We distributed much-needed emergency aid to the affected communities. The aid included plastic sheeting for emergency shelter, 13,500 kgs of maize flour, approximately 670 kgs of beans, and 2300 soap tablets. While we were able to provide assistance to those in need, we faced challenges as most of the evacuation camps were in school buildings, which were disbanded later, forcing people back to their villages, often with no choice but to rely on already impoverished relatives.

Assisting Vulnerable Individuals

Recognizing the plight of vulnerable people, such as widows or those caring for orphans, we aim to construct 15 new houses, as we are able. Additionally, we plan to assist in repairing numerous other houses for vulnerable individuals in the affected villages. However, the serious economic difficulties in the country, including scarcity and soaring prices of cement and shortages of fuel, have posed significant challenges to our efforts. Nevertheless, we remain committed to providing safe and secure housing for those who need it most.

Buying maize for later in the year
House construction at Pa Mchenga.JPG

Preparing for the Future

To improve long-term food security for our community, we have taken the initiative to purchase a reserve of over 12 tons of maize. We will distribute this later in the year to alleviate hunger. Moreover, we are determined to enhance our ability to respond effectively to emergencies like Cyclone Freddy in the future. With some of the funds donated, we plan to invest in an irrigation system on several acres of farmland adjacent to our site. We hope this project will significantly improve our capacity to support the needs of the community during times of crisis.

Impacting Lives with the Gospel

Our aim is always to keep the Gospel “front and centre”. Through all our interventions, we have had the privilege of sharing the Gospel with those we have assisted. This has had a profound impact on the affected communities. One heartwarming message of gratitude that we received reads,

“we want to thank you for the help you have given without respect of religion… the people are very grateful because you have helped more than all the other help we received and also because of the Good News which you sowed.”

The opportunity to bring comfort and the hope of the Gospel through actions and words has been the greatest blessing during this difficult time.

Conclusion

We continue to rebuild and provide assistance in the aftermath of Cyclone Freddy. We are deeply committed to supporting the affected communities in our vicinity. We trust that our relief efforts, though challenging, have been a testament to the power of compassion, generosity, and faith. We thank all our supporters and donors who have made this possible. With your continued support, we aim to bring lasting change and resilience to the lives of those affected by the cyclone. Together, we can rebuild hope, one step at a time.

ENLIGHTEN | ENCOURAGE | EMPOWER

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