![]() Well, after a very very long two day trip, we finally made it to the Rafiki village in Malawi where I (Laura) lived 7 years ago. When we got off the plane and through customs, we were thrilled that both of our luggage bags made it (though we started getting a bit nervous when Nathan’s bag didn’t show up until the end)! As we stepped through the security doors to leave the airport, I saw my Malawian Mama, Bertha, waiting for us with arms wide open. I’ve missed that joyful hug of hers! She was thrilled to finally get to meet her adopted son-in-law (Nathan). It was a long 5 hour drive up to the village, but it was so good to have time to chat with Mama Bertha and catch up on the last 7 years. We got to the village at about 7:00PM on Thursday night, and enjoyed a wonderful dinner with all the long term missionaries here. Three of those people were actually here when I was here, so that too was a sweet reunion. That night we fell into bed after very little sleep for the past several days, and we slept a solid 14 hours. Sleep never felt so good! As we got ready to leave the guest house to walk down to the dining hall for a graduation ceremony, I stepped out the door and noticed a Malawian woman cleaning outside one of the missionary’s houses 30 yards away. I waved, unsure if it was who I thought it was. As I waved I heard the most familiar laugh as the woman dropped her broom and came running towards me shouting “Madam Laura!”. It was Mercy!... my housegirl from 7 years ago! The whole scene played out like a movie as we both ran towards each other laughing and then threw our arms around each other. It made my heart smile! The best reunion of all was seeing the kids. In 7 years, these little kids became teenagers, babies became young children, and they are each blossoming into the person God is creating them to be. I was so excited to get to finally see them, yet terrified that they wouldn’t remember me. It turns out that many of them didn’t think I would remember them either, so we were all joyfully surprised! In addition to the 70 kids I knew while I was here, Rafiki now has 30 additional children in their care. Nathan is enjoying getting to know them, though he is having a hard time remembering so many new names and being able to tell them apart. It is a lot to take in all at one time. When I saw each kiddo come in the room for the first time, my heart leapt as I recognized each of them. I did need help with some of the names, though I knew their faces well, but as soon as they said their name I thought, “How could I have forgotten!?” How awesome it was to see God’s faithfulness to what He began with these children so long ago. I remember almost all of their stories and where they came from. I remember how sick they were and how they started to transform with the love and good nutrition they received. Now, they are all incredibly healthy and growing so big! Some of the boys are growing taller than most Malawians. Debb, the village director, is a good friend of mine. She was sharing with me the different gifts and talents that are coming out of each child. They are all so different, and yet completely unique in who God made them to be. Today was our third full day at Rafiki. It was good that we arrived so close to the weekend so that we could have a few days to rest and get over the jet lag. We’ve spent the last two afternoons having fun with the kids. They are CRAZY little balls of energy, and so much fun. Yesterday, the kids and I started a game of Ultimate Frisbee, which kicked my butt! After the score was 3 to 3 for the game, I was barely able to breathe. I had expected we were reaching the end and asked how many points they play to. 10! I nearly fainted at the thought of any more running, but its near impossible to sit on the sidelines and not join in on the fun, no matter how exhausting it is. After Ultimate Frisbee, some of the boys wanted to play Capture the Flag. I said we should go find Uncle Nathan first. We found him fixing Paul’s bicycle. The boys had a fun time watching Nathan get dirty and joking with him. I realized that they just don’t get to be around a lot of younger men like Nathan as much as the older men. After the bike was fixed, the boys were eager to get to Capture the Flag, so we started walking back to the field. As soon as they found out Nathan was a runner they were ready to challenge his skills. They declared a race to the field, and took off in a flash. Nathan took off with them, and I think they were surprised by how fast he is. I decided to stand and watch the game instead of actually playing, but threw Nathan in instead. So much fun to watch! After three exhausting games of Capture the Flag, some of the boys took Nathan to go play basketball. (oh to be that young again!) They went down to the schoolhouse to get a ball, but found the door was locked. Without even skipping a beat, they turned to Nathan and said, “When this happens we just run,” and instantly they took off running. Nathan was flustered, but took off behind them. They ran a good half mile together before they had to stop for dinner. They had officially worn Nathan out… so much so that Nathan could hardly eat dinner! Apparently there was a short term missionary that was here awhile ago who was a runner. She taught the kids how to run long distances and how to pace yourself. At one point the kids were telling me everything she taught them, but my favorite part was this: Shadrack: “Auntie said that girls have more fat than boys” Jack: “Yes, they have more fat, but since we don’t have as much we can run faster” Nixon: “The girls take our fat from us, so we have to eat more” This afternoon (Sunday), I took a nap while Nathan went out to see what the kids were up to. I emerged about an hour later and went to see what Nathan was getting into with the kids. As I was walking, several of the younger boys came running up to me saying that Uncle Nathan wanted me to come. I asked where he was, and they pointed to a 35 foot pear tree and said, “Up there!” I couldn’t see anyone because the tree was so full of leaves, but as we got closer I heard, “Auntie Laura!” At the very top of the tree I saw a tiny Malawian head sticking out, and my jaw dropped. It was one of the boys Alex. I couldn’t help but to laugh, despite my motherly worries. These boys never get tired, and they never stop making me laugh. After climbing trees for an hour or so, they decided to take us down to the new school house that is under construction. They ran in and our of rooms, yelling, laughing, jumping, and occasionally flying. Then Shadrack, one of the boys, took me out to the back of the building where there is a hug dirt mound about 15-20 feet high. The boys instantly ran inside to get any boards they could find to slide down the sand mountain.
It was so much fun to see boys being boys. It almost made me want to be a boy ;) Less worry and more play! I suppose I can still do that as a girl ;) As I sit here and type tonight, my heart is so full. I have fallen in love with these kids all over again, and with the beautiful country of Malawi. Next week Nathan and I will be substitute teaching some of the 7th and 8th grade classes so that the teachers can attend a city wide meeting. Outside of that, Nathan’s list of projects is already growing by the hour, which neither of us are surprised about. I will be doing some training with the Mama’s and older boys on nutrition and how to eat balanced meals to help with some challenges they have been facing. Debb has also asked Nathan and I to consider leading a worship and devotional time for the older kids next weekend. She pointed out that they really don’t get to hear about marriage and healthy dating from young couples, but just from couples who have been married for 20 years or more. She asked us to pray about it and see what God puts on our hearts to share. Please pray with us for that. Nathan agrees it is a good idea and very needed, but he is a little out of his comfort zone with it, as am I. Sometimes that’s when God does His best because we are completely dependant on Him. Thank you for reading all these stories and letting me share life here with you a bit. I hope to write more later this week, if not next weekend. God Bless! Laura (& Nathan)
7 Comments
One week until we get to hug these faces and so many more! Though many of them are now teenagers, I will know them when I see them. I will remember their stories and the lives God rescued them from 7+ years ago.
It's amazing to look back on these 3 months of preparing for this trip and to see God's incredible faithfulness. Every specific prayer we have asked God for, He has answered! Today, we revel in more of God's faithfulness unveiled. As of last week, we were a bit disheartened to realize that we actually needed about $1,100 more than we originally expected. This meant that in the next two weeks, the Lord would have to provide $1,900 to cover everything! This also came on the heels of our car and both of Nathan's work trucks having to go in to the shop for some very pricey repairs. Every circumstance around tempted us to get worried and anxious. Yet, we were able to remind each other that the Lord is faithful to His promises, that He doesn't abandon those He calls forward, that He doesn't begin a work He won't provide for. So we clung to faith and prayed... God gave us abundant peace. As the weekend came, I went to check my email and found that someone had donated $1,000 to the trip! Then promptly received another email alert that someone else had donated another $100. One day after that, I received a text from a friend of mine who informed me that he and his wife had sent an $800 money transfer to our bank account! I don't know if you are doing the math here... but that is EXACTLY what we needed to pay for the rest of our trip expenses! Only God does that. Only God can prompt hearts to be faithful to give SO GENEROUSLY to something He is doing. I am still completely in awe of His faithfulness. As I sit and recount all the ways God has answered our prayers in the past three months, all the trials He has brought us through, and all the ways He has broken us to be more humble and dependent on Him, there is no doubt in my mind that this trip is HIS. It is His will, and He has great things He wants to do. I've purposed myself to not have expectations on what the trip will be like specifically, but I do expect God to move mountains and do great things in our time over there. I expect He will draw us so near to His heart as we see His heart poured out for His African children. I expect my heart to be broken in a thousand ways as I let myself feel what He feels with the hardships many of them face, but I also expect to feel His joy in rejoicing at the ways His children are coming to know Him and grow in Him. I've been disappointed in the past... not because God didn't show up or work powerfully, but because I put God in a box with my expectations. I put a timeline and a picture on what it should look like, what I expected would be most impactful. God continues to remind me that my ways are not His ways, nor my thoughts His thoughts. His ways are far higher and much greater. So in this next week, will you pray for God to continue preparing our hearts? Pray for all the little details that now need to be tended to to come together. Pray that we will receive our Mozambican visas in time (they also have our passports which we obviously NEED). We know God is in control... so where we have been anxious and stressed in the last month, where we have not leaned on His grace and put on His armor, we have repented and asked for His grace to let us depend on Him each day. Our struggles have only served to remind us how much we need Jesus... and how, apart from Him, we really have nothing good to offer. He is our everything! Africa, here we come!!!!! We are officially 2 1/2 weeks away from our departure for Africa. We leave July 21st and will be returning August 31st. It is completely surreal to think we are actually going, and SOON! I'm excited and terrified all at the same time.
There is still so much to do before then that we really can't figure out how it will all get done... but this morning, I am resting in the truth that "He who calls us is faithful; He will surely do it." That being said, we desperately need prayer right now. The last few weeks have been so busy, and just plain hard. Our schedules have been nonstop for about 2 weeks straight. I have had 2 bridal showers, we hosted a wedding BBQ for some dear friends, I taught the dance classes at High Five for a week (our church's version of VBS) plus still met with clients at work. On Sunday, I helped the kids to perform at both church services. I have had dance practice each week and this week we had the privilege of having Nathan's parents visit. Nathan's truck broke down with over $2000 of needed repairs, he has been working about 50+ hours a week, our car is starting to have engine problems, all while still trying to finish booking flights (15 flights total for our whole trip), getting our visa application submitted for Mozambique, finding accommodations for places we are overnighting in, getting vaccinations, and there is still SO MUCH MORE TO DO! On top of that, it's like Satan just knows what buttons to push and how to get under our skin to make us frustrated and distracted. This past Wednesday, I finally had a meltdown. A dear friend of mine at dance practice came over and gave me one of the best hugs ever... It was one of those hugs that, if you are on the verge of tears, will bring on the tears no matter how much you try to hold them back. It warmed my heart, but at the same time it brought forth all the flood of emotions I have been trying to suppress for the last two weeks. I calmly stole away to the bathroom, and then proceeded to have a mini panic attack/meltdown/really ugly cry. I wish I could say I have a glorious story of God's giving me and Nathan the grace to handle the last two weeks, but the truth is we have struggled. We are so busy that we don't have a lot of time for each other - time without everything we still have to do weighing on us - nor have we had a lot of time to pray. In the midst of it, God has seemed so far away, even though I know He has been with us every step of the way. Yesterday morning, Nathan prayed for the Lord to help us put on the armor of God again. My small group girls have been praying and encouraging me every time I reach out to them. Finally, something broke. I was able to pray again. We were able to laugh again. We were able to start believing God's promises for us again, and we were able to really love people again. Let's face it... when you struggle like that, loving people is hard. When our hearts are hardened and not trusting God, they become selfish and self focused. It's a dark and dangerous state to be in. Praise God He doesn't let us stay there unless we choose to! Why am I sharing this? Sometimes I think we like to share the struggles with the awesome victories that are powerful testimonies... but it can tempt us into thinking that if we struggle and don't see those victories pretty quickly that we are to blame. Maybe we are. But maybe the Lord just wants to teach us to persevere. Maybe He just wants us to remember how dark the darkness is without His light. Maybe He wants to fortify our faith by having to believe His promises in our mind when we don't "feel" all zealous and empowered and excited about Jesus. Maybe we just need to learn how to use our armor and our sword of the Spirit more, and we can't learn that without having something to fight through. I'm learning to trust God when I don't feel like trusting God. I'm learning to be okay with waiting for Him to answer, and not having to figure out what I'm doing wrong. I'm learning to repent ALL THE TIME for the sins in my thoughts. And I'm learning to just simply remember who God is and that He is for me and not against me. He will never leave me or forsake me, even when He feels so far away. I pray He will teach you that too... and I pray He will help us to be more fortified in our faith. Please pray for us as the Lord leads you to over the next couple of weeks. We need the mighty hand of God upon us to get everything in order with our businesses, our home, and finalizing things with our trip. In the next two weeks, we also have two weekend trips we will be taking - one for a wedding, the other for a loved one's big celebration- plus a dance show on July 12th that I will be performing in (you should come!!). Time is short, but God is mighty! Please pray with us. Many people continue to ask us what we still need. Right now, we just need a few things:
I'm sure we will find more things we need over the next few weeks, but this is what we can think of at the moment. If you would like to let us borrow anything, keep in mind that it will be going to Africa, and MIGHT NOT make it home to you. Thank you for joining with us on this journey! We know God has great things He is doing in Malawi and Mozambique, and we are so excited to go be a part of it! “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:9 |
Nathan & LauraHappily married and pursuing God's call on our lives. Archives
May 2016
Categories |