Malawi 2014 by Sally Bryant

by Sally Bryant

We should seek not to control others but empower the powerless, lift up the fallen, reconcile, create opportunities, and encourage maturity. One of the groups in Malawi this year summed up their understanding of New Man, New Woman, New Life with those words.

 

Muli Bwanje…with a Chinese accent! It’s been two years since my last trip to Malawi, and the country has definitely changed. Two primary sources of investment, one from China and one from petro dollars, are changing the face of Malawi. Chinese investment in Malawi is seen in the new 40,000 seat, $70 million soccer stadium under construction and in new businesses such as the Yangtze Restaurant and Golden Peacock florist. Petro dollars continue to fund mosques, Islamic education, and “investment centers.” This year, the five-times-a-day call to pray was inescapable throughout Malawi. One of the pastors told me that while Christian churches struggle to build their building, with church members laboring to make their own bricks, mosques are built quickly with investment help from petro dollars. Islamic Information Centers are popping up in “strip malls,” where Islam is called “the religion of all prophets.” The Al-Jazeera Investment Shopping Center stands proudly near the village where I did one of the trainings.

 

 

 

Malawi has a population of 16 million, one million of whom are orphans. Sexual superstition is rife, with many believing HIV/AIDS can be cured by having sex with a virgin. This often leads to the rape of very young girls (some around age 4) by men infected with the disease. Witchcraft, despite the government’s best efforts, still flourishes. The Sons of Aaron, named after the incident in Exodus 32 where Aaron and the Israelites worship the golden calf, are known for their witchcraft and were increasingly visible. Many of those we work with deal with the fallout from those in their church who turn to witch doctors to find favor in a romantic relationship, to advance at work or to gain a competitive advantage. This is the background for our work in Malawi, one of the poorest countries in the world.

 

 

 

I left for Malawi with two water carts provided by a man in my church. These water carts are highly-prized, often being used as ambulances to carry sick villagers or pregnant women to the nearest clinic. I’m happy to report they made the 31 hour journey problem-free!

We held two workshops; one in Lilongwe and one in Blantyre. Pastor Phillip Mulinde provided his church for our workshop in Lilongwe, with most of the attendees hearing the New Man, New Woman, New Life training for the first time. Phillip and his wife Angela were very gracious hosts. I was entertained by the chickens, who were frequent visitors to the church as they wandered in and out!

 

We awarded certificates to 29 people. It was a joy to be reunited with a long-time Empower cheerleader, Pastor Frackson Yotam M’Bwalo. The attendees were already planning to present this material in their churches.

 

I had the joy of meeting a darling “power couple” in Liilongwe. Recently married, Thokozani and Alphonsina Zllowereza plan to teach NMNWNL in their church and to their peers.

 

 

 

 

 

Pastor Bright Bottoman and his wife Gertrude hosted the second workshop in Blantyre. Bright has been working with Empower since 2009 and brought together a very receptive audience. Since I last saw them, they have been blessed with a daughter, Meekness, in addition to their two sons.

When we began the training, we asked the participants to define the ideal marriage relationship. They defined it in this way: “A woman should satisfy her husband sexually at all times. She is there to cool the desire of the man without any excuse. A woman should be quiet. She does not have the power to control the house when the man is there. Her job is to do the household work.” At the end of our training, they defined the ideal marriage relationship as “the one-flesh unity described in Genesis 2. We now understand that man and woman were created as equal in God’s design.”

 

One of the most powerful moments of learning came during our discussion of how freeing women also frees men. With the help of my translator, we acted this out; as I knelt down with him pressing down on my shoulders, we saw how this posture trapped both man and woman. When the woman was forced into a submissive posture, the man was also trapped, unable to stand upright. Then he helped me up so I could stand by his side and we saw the freedom that comes to both man and woman by the restoration of equality.

During the second day of the workshop, a very passionate discussion broke out. There was a vehement exchange between two women. I could not understand what they were saying but knew that it was connected with the teaching in some way. Both women spoke for several minutes, gesturing emphatically. When I could finally ask my interpreter what they were saying, he replied this was the first time they learned they had NOT been cursed by God. Jubilation broke out among the group as they realized for the first time in their lives they have been blessed by God, not cursed, and are set free in Christ!

 

 

 

 

If you ever wonder why we travel so far to do what we do…it’s the hope we have in creating a different future for girls like this. Change is coming to Malawi. My “crystal ball” can’t tell me how Malawi will be affected by Chinese investment and the rise of Islam. But I know Empower International Ministries are affecting Malawi because I see marriages being healed and families made whole.

And the work continues. Our partners in Zambia, Pastor Simeon Moyo and Pastors Francis and Esther Sililo, are working to deliver the NMNWNL training throughout Zambia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On a personal note, I was able to see my adopted son, Arnold, his wife Esther, and their orphanage. They feed and school about 60 children. Pastor Arnold hosted Linda and Russ Ikeda as they presented Created to Belong, providing training to those who care for the children. The orphanage hopes to become self-sustaining, and to help achieve that goal, they are working on three primary projects: Goats, carpentry, and sewing. They are raising goats, and we are happy to report their flock of goats is multiplying. Young men who have recently graduated from the orphanage are setting up shop as carpenters. We are beta-testing a sewing project made by the women on a treadle sewing machine that hopefully will result in travel bags sold on Etsy and other online opportunities.

 

Thank you for your prayers!

 

   Sally Bryant