Dear Family and Faithful Friends, Supporters, and Prayer Partners,

Praise be to the Lord Jesus Christ who has done GREAT THINGS before my very eyes these past couple of weeks! Thank you to those of you gave sacrificially and who earnestly prayed for the safe travels of me and my mission team members to Malawi. We had a wonderful time and everyone made it to Bangula, Malawi and back safely. I think this was the best use of my time and money that I’ve ever made on any mission trip. We were out for 6-7 hours every day (except about 12 hours on Jesus Film day where approximately 400 people accepted Christ) training the local congregation in evangelism and some follow-up. We did have a break on Thursday and Saturday afternoons. The South Africans fed us well and I slept comfortably in a tent with a folding cot.

On Sunday, we introduced ourselves to our church and what we were there for. Our interpreters were Manda, a pastor in northern Malawi, and another pastor named Wolfred. My teammates were Natasja, Evangeline, and Mandie, all from South Africa. I encouraged the congregation to come each day and to remember that we were there to help them learn how to be witnesses for Christ so that when we are gone, they will be able to do so with confidence. In the mornings, before we would leave the church, we would train them on a different portion of the bridge.

The first day we did the entire bridge illustration and thereafter, for the following days, we broke it down, going into the verses in more detail. After the training sessions, we would split into smaller teams and go out each day to neighboring villages to witness. For the first two days, I did most of the sharing as an example to the church members, while the task of writing down names for follow-up was delegated to some of the men. It was difficult to get the women to share at first. It’s a cultural thing. But, as the pastor’s wife and a teacher began to share boldly, the other women eventually caught on. On average, approximately 100 people were saved every day with the impact of my group alone (that does not include the other 8 teams in other villages).

On Thursday, we surprised the church members by doing our usual training session and then having them give their testimonies. After we had prayed, we sent the Namtutu congregation off without us and told them to give us a report on the following day with the names of those who were saved. They did better than they thought they would. It really was a confidence boosting day for them. So, the last few days, my interpreter Manda, mission partner, Natasja, and I just continued to critique them and/or added something if they left it out and prayed for those new believers who requested prayer. By the end of the week, a total of over 8,000 people accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. To God be the glory!

To watch God work, the church members’ faith grow, and lives change was awesome. The testimonies of the church members at the end of the week just made me realize how so many people just need God’s Word, prayer, and good, solid Christian leaders to lead them in the right direction. The Holy Spirit does the rest and His power cannot be underestimated. We encouraged those who had Bibles to read them daily and to invite their neighbors and friends over to listen as well. My prayer is that those who are hungry for the Word of God will be able to get it and that more laborers will enter into Christ’s ripe harvest fields.

Here are some of the major needs of the those in Malawi:

1. Bibles (cost $15 per Bible; the need is always ongoing for Bibles)

2. Bikes for the HUB pastors to reach their members (cost $100 per bike; need 60)

If you are interested in giving to help with these needs, please let me know. I plan on posting details on how to do so later this week as it will have to made out specifically for Malawi.

I am going to get some rest for now, but for those of you who want to hear more explicit details (and trust me, there are MANY GREAT STORIES TO TELL)...stay tuned!

Yours For His Kingdom,

Melissa