A brief update from Livingstonia

Hello everyone, it's Michael here. I had the chance to speak briefly with a few members of the team yesterday on their day-off. They have just finished their first full-week in Livingstonia, which is situated high up on a plateau over-looking Lake Malawi. The original Scottish Missionaries settled here in the mid-late 1800's when their original attempts to settle at a lower elevation and near the lake resulted in many lives being lost due to Malaria.

The view from Livingstonia...
Denise reported that everyone was doing very well and that there are no health concerns to speak of despite the occasional headache or upset stomach. The team had just returned from a hike to the Manchewe waterfalls, a 45 minute-1 hour hike each way.


Here is a picture of one of the staff houses, similar to where the team is staying (not sure if this is the exact one).
Denise reported that she, Clay, and Austyn have been working on putting together Transcripts for the Registrar's office as the secretary who was responsible for this is no longer with the University. They have also spent time sitting in on some of the classes with the summer school students and have made friendships with them and other students on the plateau.

Lizzy and Rebecca have been working at the David Gordon Memorial Hospital (pictured below) in various capacities. Lizzy witnessed her first C-section and the joy of new life one particular day, but witnessed the following day the death of a young boy who suffered from malaria-like symptoms. This was a very difficult thing for her, as it would be for anyone. Please pray for her that God's grace and love would cover the entirety of her experience, through the joys and through the sorrows...


The last picture is of the church at Livingstonia, where the team was in worship earlier today:


P.S. all of these pics were nabbed from the internet as there is very limited internet access on the plateau. Clay indicated that another team discovered a good connection near the hospital in Ekwendeni, so they should be able to send more updates next week upon their return (Sunday or later).

Thank you you for your continued prayers!

Picture update

Here are a few pictures for your viewing enjoyment!

Outside the Community HIV/AIDS Center we watched as a dance was performed to heighten awareness of HIV/AIDS.

Clay had a chance to play with the band. The HIV/AIDS Center uses music as a tool to draw people from local villages together and then uses that opportunity to educate them about the virus.
Michael with Rev. Levi Nyondo. Rev. Nyondo is the General Secretary of the Synod of Livingstonia. He manages all of the day-to-day operations of the Synod and holds a very influential position.


In the middle is our friend Gabriel. He visited Oklahoma three years ago and spoke to the students at TU. He welcomed us to his home and his wife prepared a wonderful meal for the team!
Meeting some of the young people after worship in Ekwendeni.

Michael preaching in the Ekwendeni Presbyterian Church, built in 1888.

Lizzy takes a try at the Malawian version of "Fish and Chips."

Team Photo taken at Ekwendeni.

A quick update...

It's Michael here, and since I am the only one with access to the
internet at the moment, I just briefly update you to let you know that
I arrived to Lilongwe this afternoon to begin the journey home
tomorrow. I met with our friends at the Ministry of Hope and
finalized the itinerary for the team when they arrive in late June.
The supervisor of the feeding center where they will be stationed was
also in the office today, so it was very nice to meet him as the team
will likely be staying in his home and that of one other.

On a different note I thought you might be interested in knowing that
my trip the bus from Mzuzu only cost me $2...and a sore bottom :-)
However, the cost for a private taxi would have been at least $150,
and I would rather see those funds put to good use here in Malawi!

I received word that that students had a very good visit to the
hospital today as well as the
Secondary Girls School. I was told that Clay and Austyn will be
teaching them some elements of thermo-dynamics when they return from
the Plateau.

This will be my last note from Malawi as I depart in the morning, but
will continue to update the blog as I am able when I return!

All Is Well!

It's Michael here, and I have just left the team in good hands at
Ekwendeni Mission Station. Everyone is in good health and in good
spirits! As I was leaving, the team was meeting with young people at
the Community HIV/AIDS Center, which offers a variety of programs and
service, including a meeting place for after-school activities
designed to keep kids in safe places and out of situations that could
lead to promiscuity, etc. They also provide testing and counseling
for those infected by HIV. Clay is wowing everyone with his saxophone
playing skills, and had a chance to "jam" with the band and the
community center. They only play songs with three or four chords, so
he is hoping to adapt, as well as teach them some new things about
jazz, etc.

Today we also met the General Secretary and his staff, Rev. Levi
Nyondo, as well as visited the Livingstonia Synod AIDS Programme.
Everyone is adjusting to the "pace" of life here, which is quite
different from back home. Tomorrow they will visit the hospital so
Lizzy can get situatied, and on Wednesday they will head out to visit
some community programs designed to educate young people about
HIV/AIDS. The staff at the University of Livingstonia is looking
forward to the students arriving to the Plateau on Friday, and so the
schedule is coming together quite well.

Those who are trying to call the team are encouraged to do so on
Saturdays/Sundays. We are not charged for incoming calls. Text
messages from skype are coming through as well, but we are having
difficulty sending texts out of the country. If you try and call and
no one answers, please know that it is because they are in some sort
of activity at the moment and you should feel free to try back a bit
later.

That's all for now! I leave in the morning for Lilongwe on a bus
(should be exciting!) and arrive home to Tulsa on Thursday evening.
Until then, we have been encouraged to adopt the same posture as the
Apostle Paul from Acts 20:17-24, where he reminds his closest friends
that he served with humility, with tears, and with his presence. At
the core of his message was one of repentance (re-thinking, turning
around) and faith in Jesus Christ, through the rich message of God's
grace. Grace and Peace to those at home!

We Made It!

A very brief update to let you know that we arrived safely to
Lilongwe, Malawi this afternoon. Eveyrone is well, and all of our
luggage arrived safely also.

We depart in the morning for Mzuzu/Ekwendeni. Thanks for your prayers!

Life on the road

Since I, Rev. Michael (as they call me in Malawi), am only with the team for a week or so, I have volunteered to give our first travel “update.” Be forewarned, the updates will likely grow less frequent as we make our way further and further from any consistent access to the internet ☺.

Everyone is doing quite well, and the travel thus far has been of the best kind: uneventful. Well, minus one small glitch. As we were checking in at the Tulsa airport, Sue (the very nice United Air Rep.) informed us that our flight was going to be delayed at least 1 ½ hours, which then meant we would miss our connection in Chicago on to London. Sue worked her magic and moved us to American Airlines, so before you know it, we were booked on a flight to Dallas and then to London from there. We literally walked off the plane in Dallas, rode the sky tram around to our terminal, and walked right on the next flight.

I reminded the team that “we go nowhere by accident…” and already a few of them have had good conversations with seat-mates about where they were going and what they were doing. While discussing HIV/AIDS, one person asked Austyn if she had any moral dilemmas in helping people who, themselves, had acted immorally to contract HIV/AIDS, to which she replied, “didn’t Jesus offer healing to others regardless of their moral character?” Nice.

As I write, our 9+ hour lay-over in London is nearly complete. We had plenty of time to venture out of the airport, and hopped a train from Heathrow to Picadilly Circus to begin our brief self-guided walking tour of Central London. We made our way through the Theatre district, down to Trafulgar Square, and then stopped at the Tesco to grab sandwiches, chips, cookies, fruit, and beverages for a most-wonderful picnic in St. James Park! It was very fun and quite spontaneous, actually. After dodging squirrels and pigeons we walked down to Buckingham Palace and then back on the other side of the park up to Parliament square, Big Ben, and Westminster Abbey. The time went fast, but it was a relaxing way to spend the day.

Many thanks to everyone for your constant prayers and support. I’ve led several teams over the years, and I mean it when I say this group has a great disposition and openness to the Lord’s leading. They get along very well, travel with ease and a sense of great flexibility, and they love to laugh together. All of these attributes will enable them to flourish over the next two months.

“Commit your way to the Lord; Trust in Him and He will act: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noon-day sun.” Psalm 37:5-6

"You go nowhere by accident.
Wherever you go, God is sending you.
Wherever you are, God has put you there.
He has purpose in putting you there.
Christ who indwells you has something He wants to do through you wherever you are.
Believe this and go in His grace and love and power."
- Dick Halverson, former Chaplain of the US Congress

A Very Rough Itenerary...

May 14-21
Location: Ekwendeni
Mission: Clinic/hostpital, Ekwendeni Girls School, LISAP, Youth Dept., Primary and Secondary Schools

May 21-June 6
Location: University of Livingstonia (plateau)
Mission: Hostpital, assisting and tutoring summer school students, conduct bible studies/fellowship time, team building activies, games

June 7-June 23
Location: (Denise and Becca): Embagweni
Mission: Hostpital, community youth center, School for Hearing Impaired Students, Teacher's Training College.

June 24-25
Location: Bandawe
Mission: Mkundi Orphan Center/relax at lake. (Group has reconvened)

June 26-July 4
Location: Llongwe
Mission: Ministry of Hope, orphan care feeding centers, conducting VBS, ect.

July 5-6
Location: Liwonde National Park. Game reserve and fun!

July 7
Free

July 8
Depart home!