BIBLE WAY BAPTIST
MINISTRIES
NJULI & MBULUMBUZI
October 27, 2014
It is late afternoon and Rackson and I have had a busy day
getting things done for the ministry. The afternoon has been quiet and has
given me time to contemplate on things I see and hear as I move within this
exciting country.
This morning started as usual for me. Up to the sounds of the
children getting ready for school. The kitchen being readied for cooking and
the sound of water being heated for our coffee. Two cups is all I ask but I
know there will be more if I ask. Grace fried nsima in bacon fat along with one
egg and five strips of bacon. The double portion of nsima she served was enough
for the day, I thought. When we finished Rackson and I sat around the table and
discussed the day and what we were going to do. But first bible study and
prayer.
Our first stop was to let Grace off at a
mini-bus location so she could go into town for her business of the day. We
then headed for the Fullford compound in Mapanga about 6-7 miles from where
Rackson lives in Manchinjiri section of Blantyre. We stayed about an hour while
John was busy getting things on the lorry to head back to Tengani. After much
ribbing about my haircut we bid him Godspeed and we were off to see the Chief
at Mbulumbuzi. Again we spent almost an hour with her. She is about a 25 minute
drive on a good road from John’s. I am not sure why we were there but everyone
was happy and I guess that is all you can ask for sometimes.
It was getting close to noon and we needed to shop for the
evening meal so it was a good time to hit the Shoprite located in the Chichiri
Center, Blantyre. We got what we needed and took time for lunch at the Chicken
Cottage. The logo there is of Foghorn Leghorn saying “Luv Dat Chicken” we’re
not in Kansas Toto. We stopped at immigration to check on the residency papers
for John and his family, however it was not back from Lilongwe. Went to
transport office, think DMV but even slower checking on his drivers’ licenses,
not back from Lilongwe. Two strikes and I was ready for home and a warm shower
in the quiet of the afternoon.
Malawi is two countries and both are normal yet one does not
know the other as they almost never cross. I will tell you what I mean. I
mentioned in one of my last writing about the Saturday service, well here is
what struck me when I got home that evening. As you seen in the pictures of the
village we taught in, how all the building were of mud and grass and a few huts
with a tin roofs. Chickens, goats and a few stray dogs running around. No
running water. Only a hand pump well for the village. Also no electric power so
the only light is fire or paraffin. When we finished service and the following
fellowship Grace did not feel like cooking so we went to Chichiri for a meal.
As I sat there it seemed very unreal that just 18Kms away or about 30 minutes’
drive there were people who could not imagine what we were enjoying, lights,
food cooked by someone else, all kinds of cars in a parking lot and money to
spend on things like ice cream which they will never see. The two Malawi’s are
separated by several hundreds of years and the ones in the villages will never
know about the other. God has called me to a strange and wonderful place of
which I have yet to get my mind around. My heart gets it but my mind not yet. God has made a beautiful country but the
poverty of the people has made a mark that has marred the environment. Almost
all the trees here flower at some time in their season of growth but the people
in their want for wood have cut the limbs in such a way as to make a tree look
grotesque to the eye while still trying to bring the beauty of blooms to a place that lacks the capacity to see it.
I thank God for my time here and I pray he has more in store for me. Thanks for
your time and letting me run on. Maybe I am a little home sick. Time to listen
to Redeemed before I go to bed.
Because of the Cross,
Bro. Chuck
