Thursday, January 17, 2008

Greetings from Malawi

I have a friend that is over in Africa right now and I wanted to post an update she sent to us about the trip. Pray for Jessica and Lisamarie on their trip...

With a free moment to sit and think about all that has transpired in the past month, I sit and write sending you all warm greeting from Malawi! What a month is has been! As fond memories of my sisters recent wedding are still fresh in my memory, so are the lyrics of the ultimate Bon Jovi wedding song... "living on a prayer..." which has really become a motto and way of living here in Africa. Months ago we prayed and here we are... living on that prayer...

Malawi has been a wonderful experience in which we have been given the opportunity to reconnect with some old friends who have taught here in Lilongwe for the past 3 years! It has been a blessing to see the work that they have done and to help them in their classrooms as much as possible. And yet while, teaching in Malawi is not much different then teaching in the states, outside the walls of the classroom the reality of Africa can be difficult to understand.

While visiting orphanages, feeding babies at a nursery, and walking through villages can be an eye opening experience, there is always the lingering question, why?. Why is Malawi mostly orphans? Why are certain children blessed with food and and ability to attend school while in another village orphans wander the streets? What is God ultimately doing and how can our efforts really help? Does anyone really need our help? When we talk about wanting change and wishing more for people, do we just desire them to have the comforts we are used to?

I wish I had the time to share story after story of all the things that we have been doing here in Africa in more detail... maybe, if time allows, it can happen in Mozambique...

Please continue to pray for safe travels as we are leaving for Mozambique today! Continue to pray for the eyes to see all that God has to show us and for the continued ability to wrestle with all of these thoughts!

Missing you all!

Jessica


Attached pictures are from doing Laundry in Kenya and with children at a village in Malawi




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