First of all, my luggage arrived yesterday and we were able to pick it up at the airport before traveling to Mangochi. Many thanks to Becky for the use of her clothes, but it's really nice to have my own now.
We arrived safely in Mangochi on Wednesday night. The clutch in the van had gone out when we left Blantyre. Doug was able to drive the 3 hour trip to Mangochi with no clutch! God definitely had our back, especially given that we were in need of a vehicle for our day today (Thursday) and He provided one through another friend of Doug and Barb's here in Mangochi.
Doug and Barb serve in Mangochi among the Yao tribe. Some of the Yao are Muslim, while others have never had an opportunity to learn of Jesus or salvation through Him. Doug and Barb's ministry is to go out to many remote villages to teach the Bible chronologically to them.
While this is my first time in Africa, I had no idea how many other "firsts" would happen today! A visit to a village in Malawi, lunch of "ugali" (maize flour patty), goat stomach, "pigeon peas" (beans), visiting the lake in Malawi, driving in Malawi (at night) and having hippo and "futali" (sweet potatoes with peanut sauce). Our day begin on Thursday morning with a 30 mile trip (which would take almost 3 hours to travel...you will understand when you see the pictures of the roads!) to go to "Village 14" (as Doug calls it). We stopped to pick up Daud, a native believer that works with Doug in the villages. After stopping at the market for items to prep for our lunch at the village, we began our journey to the bush.
We were traveling on roads like this, at the same time dodging many potholes (or more like ditches) in the road, goats, people walking and bicycling while transporting many things like sugar cane or charcoal.
We arrived at Village 14 and were greeted by many happy people. I couldn't resist the opportunity for a selfie with some of the children!
The time at the village was just such a beautiful experience. Our world is so big! Our God is so amazing! It was a joy to visit the people in the village today. They are learning and studying some things in the Old Testament and have some memory verses. Doug and Daud reviewed the verses with Barb, Bridget and I on the way to the village. So, in an hour, we worked on memorizing 4 verses from the Old Testament. Once we arrived at the village and they began their study and review, we were included in the review with them! I believe they were encouraged as they saw that we were learning, just as they were learning. And, they saw us make mistakes, too, and we could all laugh together. What a special time.
What a gift it is that we are able to reach out to these Yao people in such a remote village in Malawi. There are so many more people to reach!
After leaving the village, we traveled back to town and arrived at Lake Malawi late afternoon. We spent about an hour there, relaxing and watching the sun set. What a beautiful setting!
What. A. Day. I am still thinking about the time at the village and processing everything I saw.today. It was crazy how we went from one extreme to another (village to Lake Malawi), but that's how it is in a lot of countries and towns. I am so thankful for this opportunity...I still can't believe I am here!
Tomorrow morning, we will be making our way back to Blantyre. We have a lot of traveling on this trip. Thanks for your prayers for vehicle and travel safety.
We arrived safely in Mangochi on Wednesday night. The clutch in the van had gone out when we left Blantyre. Doug was able to drive the 3 hour trip to Mangochi with no clutch! God definitely had our back, especially given that we were in need of a vehicle for our day today (Thursday) and He provided one through another friend of Doug and Barb's here in Mangochi.
Doug and Barb serve in Mangochi among the Yao tribe. Some of the Yao are Muslim, while others have never had an opportunity to learn of Jesus or salvation through Him. Doug and Barb's ministry is to go out to many remote villages to teach the Bible chronologically to them.
While this is my first time in Africa, I had no idea how many other "firsts" would happen today! A visit to a village in Malawi, lunch of "ugali" (maize flour patty), goat stomach, "pigeon peas" (beans), visiting the lake in Malawi, driving in Malawi (at night) and having hippo and "futali" (sweet potatoes with peanut sauce). Our day begin on Thursday morning with a 30 mile trip (which would take almost 3 hours to travel...you will understand when you see the pictures of the roads!) to go to "Village 14" (as Doug calls it). We stopped to pick up Daud, a native believer that works with Doug in the villages. After stopping at the market for items to prep for our lunch at the village, we began our journey to the bush.
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| Ready for our road trip! |
We were traveling on roads like this, at the same time dodging many potholes (or more like ditches) in the road, goats, people walking and bicycling while transporting many things like sugar cane or charcoal.
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| Typical roads on the way to the villages |
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| Guy on a bike transporting charcoal |
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| On the way to the village |
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| Brick-making |
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| Teaching at Village 14 |
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| Homes in Village 14 |
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| Lunch--Ugali (white patty--staple in most of Africa), goat stomach and pigeon peas. First time for everything! |
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| Bridget and I having lunch |
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| Preparing maize flour in the village |
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| in the village |
What a gift it is that we are able to reach out to these Yao people in such a remote village in Malawi. There are so many more people to reach!
After leaving the village, we traveled back to town and arrived at Lake Malawi late afternoon. We spent about an hour there, relaxing and watching the sun set. What a beautiful setting!
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| Lake Malawi |
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| Lake Malawi |
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| Sun setting over Lake Malawi |
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| Bridget and I eating hippo for dinner...tasted like venison |
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| me driving,..at night...shifting left-handed and driving on the opposite side of the road! |
What. A. Day. I am still thinking about the time at the village and processing everything I saw.today. It was crazy how we went from one extreme to another (village to Lake Malawi), but that's how it is in a lot of countries and towns. I am so thankful for this opportunity...I still can't believe I am here!
Tomorrow morning, we will be making our way back to Blantyre. We have a lot of traveling on this trip. Thanks for your prayers for vehicle and travel safety.
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