1500 Bricks, Stomp Rockets, and Electricity

by Heidi Speakman

Thursday July 31 - We made a short drive to Mponela, another congregation in the Mponea parish.  We made bricks with the people of Mponela which are to be used to build a parsonage.  We made about 1500 bricks.  Wow are we sore.  The children watched in the morning, but after we played with them during a break, they joined in and helped make bricks.  We played with the children in Mponela with stomp rockets, jump ropes, and a frisbee.  They were so excited for us to be there and loved having their picture taken.

Lunch was again at about 2:30.  A truck load of people from Lilongwe (The ELCM Evangelism team) came and helped clean out the feeding center and assisted with the building of a sign near the borehole well.  Abusa Innocent invited us to see his house on the other side of the village.  The children all followed us there.  Abusa was so happy with his small house (this house has concrete floors and electricity which his old house did not), which reminds us of how happy we should be with all that we have in the United States.

To the Village of Chitenje

By Heidi Speakman

Wednesday July 30 - Today we went on a long bumpy ride on a dirt road to the village of Chitenje to help them build their church.  It is a congregation in the Mponera Parish, so Abusa (Pastor) Innocent went with us.  Most of us helped with brick laying and I went with the women to help them cook the meal on open fires.  We had cooked greens with tomatoes, goat meat, and Zsima.

Lunch was at about 2:30pm and then we played with the children.  During our bible study with the children, Pastor Kelly told the story of creation with the children helping us learn the words in Chichewa.  Each family also received a mirror with stickers to decorate the outside, to remind them that God created each of us in his image and loves each of us.

Why I'm excited to be on this trip

by Lizzie Franz, member St. Philip Lutheran Church

When people asked me why I wanted to go on this trip, I didn't really have an answer.  Mostly, it was just "why not?" I never had any emotional pull towards this trip in particular but a few days before we left, I realized why I was excited to be going.  Now that I'm here I can totally agree with everything that I was feeling.

I worked at Caroline Furnace for four full summers and one of the reasons I always love going home (there) is because it was a place of little worry - from the outside world at least.  I can go there and just be.  Be myself and be in the moment with those around me. This summer when I was there, I found myself using the wifi that was available too often.  I was very excited about why the wifi is there - so that we can share the real world of living with God with what we often think of as the real world back home - but instead I found myself snapchatting and using imessage to chat with friends and not focus on the world around me. I finally realized afterwards that I have become so attached to technology that I can't even go one day without seeing if I have any Facebook notifications or any funny tweets on my Twitter feed. That was when I realized that I really need a break to break me from that habit and what better way than to travel into a country where none of my technology works.

My favorite thing to do is be with other people, enjoy their company and have genuine relationships with them. That's hard to do when you have a cell phone in your hand that is distracting you. Here in Malawi, they do actually have cell phones but they use them to make "arrangements". Before we came, Kathleen and Pastor Kelly explained to us that we would be living on Malawi time - a flexible, ever changing schedule and so far that has definitely been true.

We arrived at the Lilongwe airport which was pretty easy going except that we weren't allowed to walk the 100 yards to the terminal.  Instead, we had to wait for the bus to come back since the people on the first bus wouldn't scoot over so we could fit. It took us a little longer to get through the airport than we would have liked, but that's ok because we were taken off earlier than originially planned to the grocery store.  We got the opportunity to visit with the representatives from the Northwest Wisconsin Synod on their last day and learn more about their partnership with the Lutheran Church in Malawi.

Our first plan for the day on Monday was to meet with the Bishop, but since it was a holy day, that got postponed until Tuesday. Instead we spent most of the hanging out and being with the people of Malawi, which was so fun.  We got to play frisbee and soccer with some of the children.  We also got to go to the mill, but instead of getting to see them ground the corn into flour, we got to watch them try to fix the machine and in the meantime teach each other English/Chichewa.

Tuesday morning we met with the Bishop and got on the road a little later than we were originally supposed to. We also are now staying in Mponela instead of Madisi because of a power outage, but that's all ok.  We got to visit with two of the ELDS projects that are going on here in Malawi and both of them were extremely cool to see.  It's amazing what God's people can do with a little help from their brothers and sisters figuring out what they need and getting them there. After these three days here, even though our plans have changed many times, I don't feel like I've missed anything. In these moments, being with the people here is all I need.  We are able to enjoy each other and what is happening, even in the craziness that is Malawi time.

Don't get me wrong - I still want to know how you all are doing and what you've been up to while I'm gone, but it can wait until we can have a nice long chat and really enjoy each others company.  And I still will snapchat you but I hope you can understand if I don't respond to yours right away. 

The need to feel known and loved is most truly satisfied by really being with the people around you.  Having your phone attached to you is a hard habit to break but it's one that's worth it. Even in the past three days, it has really come back to me how great a feeling that is.  I'm excited to return to my real world and live a life where I can focus more on the people around me than technology.  Sometimes God gives us gifts that will satisfy us in ways that we didn't imagine originally.  I am so blessed to be given the opportunity to be here, be with the people around me and be reminded of ways that we can show God's love to those around us.

Why I'm Going to Malawi

by Heidi Speakman, member of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Martinsville, VA

First of all, my youngest daughter (Kathleen Radtke) asked me. Then it took me a long time to make a decision, because it was out of my comfort zone. I took the time to identify what God wanted me to do. It was a tough choice, but certain scriptures talked to me and some ladies at my oldest daughters church prayed with me and for me.

Now I am embracing the joy and peace that my relationship with Christ gives me and looking forward to sharing this love in Malawi.

Malawi Bound in 3 Days!

On July 25, Pastor (Abusa) Kelly, Lizzie Franz, Kathleen Radtke, Heidi Speakman, Selise Miller begin their journey to Malawi.

While in Mponela they will make bricks for the parish center and do some plaster work on another church in the parish. They will also have the opportunity to have a couple of bible studies with the adults and five bible studies with the children.

The team will worship in Mponela on August 3.  They will also dedicate the feeding center which was a joint effort between Habitat For Humanity, Thrivent Builds, and the ELCM.  The borehole well, which was provided by St. Philip, will also be dedicated.  The second week of the trip will be spent traveling to different villages to share bible studies and other experiences with other congregations, a day on a safari, a chance to help feed 150 children at a feeding center, and a day of worship in Lilongwe.  The team will leave Malawi on August 11, arriving back in Roanoke on August 12.

Thank you to everyone that donated health kit items, money for health kit items we will buy there ($95 was collected at the June noisy offering), and money for the two extra totes of supplies.

Please keep the team, their families, and the people of Malawi in your prayers.  This is a wonderful opportunity as a church and community to strengthen our relationships with our brothers and sisters in Malawi.