Halfway

We are now half way through our time here in Malawi. Absolutely crazy how fast time flies when you’re having a blast! Also crazy how much you can learn in such a short amount of time – Independence is something I’ve learnt the most about recently. For so long I tried to do everything on my own thinking that I was being strong and independent but in reality it was very bad for me and made me miserable. I preached last week and a part of it was about how accepting Gods help doesn’t make you weak. It in-fact makes you stronger than you could ever imagine. Having God beside you makes you unbeatable. Accepting that you can’t do things on your own and you need God’s help has been one of the biggest lesson I’ve learnt here. As this trip comes with its very hard moments it’s super important to not try to deal with it all yourself but to give it to God. A weight comes of your shoulders and your mind clears when you do that. Your heart stops beating at 100mph due to nerves when you give it all to God. Breathe. Relax. And give it over. It’s a journey that doesn’t happen over night but it’s a journey I’m ecstatic to go on. Speaking of journeys, it is now less than 6 weeks till we go home! What a crazy thought!! But oh my days what an experience this has been so far. Truly a once in a lifetime opportunity, although at times I can get homesick I would not trade this for anything in the world. We have just come back from a 3 day Easter camp at one of the MOH sites – Matapila. This was insane!! Probably the best weekend I’ve ever had. The 7 of us girls plus some ABC students and some MOH sponsored students all camping out for 3 days was unreal. A very busy schedule but I was definitely in my element with the camping side of it. And the sunburn definitely made me feel at home.

We learnt so much more Chichewa over the weekend and made lots more friends which is lovely. The late nights and very early starts were the biggest struggle for us UK girls as since being here we have all turned into people who go to bed at 9:30 and wake up at 6:00. So going to bed around midnight and being up for devotions at 5am was a challenge for us pathetic young ladies who should be able to manage on very little sleep but unfortunately we cannot. There was a Soccer game (yes I called it soccer not football) on the Saturday which attracted a very large crowd. One of the ABC boys preached at half time which was very inspirational. And what an atmosphere it created! I thoroughly enjoyed myself and I’m not usually a fan of soccer. Unfortunately we lost the game but we didn’t go to win. We went to share the word of God, and on that we succeeded. We watched movies both nights with different preaches after them both. Our very own Josie preached on Friday night. Super super proud of her!! The movies attracted a lot of children. Probably a few hundred each night which was a great experience. I got to practice my Malawian dancing with them and they tell me I’m not too bad, which is great as I can’t dance very well in the UK. On the Sunday we all went to different churches with some ABC students. Kenneth (one of the ABC boys) preached. What I found so amazing was that although it was in Chichewa and I understood none of it, I could feel the passion in his voice and could feel God in the room. Incredible that even in another language you can still feel when God is present. Really showed me how omnipotent God is.

Lucky I was able to go to the camp as on Thursday I took a turn and was in ABC clinic getting blood tests. Luckily it was just a small bacterial infection and all was good. What a milestone though, not many people can say they have been to a Malawian hospital or had their blood taken in Malawi. Definitely one for the story books. But by the grace of God I was allowed to go to the camp and thank goodness I was as it really was a special weekend.

Thinking about coming home gives me so so many emotions that I try not to think about it too often. The things I have learnt here about myself and the people here are crazy. The self realisation and growth we all have been through each in our personal and spiritual lives both as individuals and as a group is amazing. To think that in less than 6 weeks we will no longer be here is the most heartbreaking thing I can think about. To say goodbye to such incredible people and such a fantastic place will be so hard. But I thank God everyday for the time we have had here so far and I continue to ask him for guidance and wisdom for the rest of our time here. He’s is doing such amazing work over here and I’m so blessed to be witnessing it.