a fieldtrip report.
The malawian encounter with african enterprises as seen through the eyes of serve the city,
a field trip report.
Stellenbosch, 28-09-2009.
Introduction.
In June of this year Serve the City was on mainland Europe in the city of Brussels, to join our Belgian counterparts in a week of serving that city. We found out that they people there had a trip planned into Malawi, because a certain church in Belgian had donated money for shallow wells to be dug in towns on the outskirts of Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi. We were cordially invited to join in the mission, and thus this report covers both Serve the City in Brussels and in South Africa. We went to see the wells, we went to explore the possibilities of creating a long term relationship with the people working there, being African Enterprises, and we went to see how we could serve. This document will provide an oversight of the all the things done and a summary of thoughts on the matter.
Trip.
The South African delegation was made up out of seven South Africans, a Swazi and a Dutchman. We met up in Magaliesburg, from where we drove to Lilongwe in two days on Thursday the 10th of September, stopping over in Zimbabwe for a few hours of sleep. The method of transport was a minibus with stickers on its side and back that read : ‘disciples for Christ’. A friend had kindly put it at our disposal so we would be able to keep transport costs low, something we are hugely grateful for. Only two of our team were legally allowed to drive this vehicle, one of which was added to the team last minute, and we are still greatly indebted to them. Upon driving through Zimbabwe, we were approached by significant amounts of people who all had requests for bibles. Just before leaving, a sponsor had given a number of bibles for us to distribute as the opportunity would arise. So it happened that we were able to supply a fair measure of people, most of which were government officials, with bibles in a language they were comfortable in.
petrol station in zimbabwe.
We arrived in Lilongwe early on the Sunday morning, where we were met by our wonderful friends, Enoch and Dorothy Phiri. They directed us to our sleeping place, wonderful cabins on the grounds of the African Bible College. We took note of the fact that the Belgian two-man team, being Carlton Deal and Jodi Theut, had safely made it into their beds, though their flights were re-routed and now included a change of flights in a different African country.
Later that morning we visited to different church services. The first one, which due to its early start was only a few hours after arrival, did not have the full team’s presence. It was a Presbyterian service, and a good experience. The second church session saw all of our faces arrive as we drove up to the two tents where the event was happening. It was called a revival meeting, and featured two tents, speaking grounds in the middle of them, three preachers and a multitude of choirs. The singing was beautiful, the speaking unintelligible, as none of us had mastered Chichewa and our introduction to the people a lot of fun. We were all asked to come forward and share with the crowd what our name, age, and marital status was. We were translated ferociously by Enoch, whose voice is as deep as the ocean, and his words often elicited laughter from the attendants,0 leaving us wondering what was actually going on. As we left we performed a little dance that had previously been recited, took a bow and walked off.
We left the meeting half way through and made it back to ABC, where we discussed the game-plan for the following days. It became clear that the essential goal of our trip was to see and seek to understand what exactly African Enterprises does in Lilongwe, and so we were scheduled to visit different project over our time there.
It was decided we would visit sewing classes and the wells on Monday and go into the offices and three schools on Tuesday, leaving Wednesday open for the moment. The rest of the afternoon was spent resting up and in preparation of the following days, so as to be able to step into what might be asked of us.
Monday morning we were picked up by Enoch and driven to the outskirts of Lilongwe, where AE hosts sewing classes. They are aimed at and given to women who they place in the ‘vulnerable’ category. They may either be widowed, divorced, single or simply young and alone on the world. The aim is to equip with a skill that will enable them to provide the necessities for whatever family they might have. As the women shared their names and their reason for being there with us, it was wonderful to hear the difference these classes made and the hope it infused into their lives. Carlton was appointed spokesperson of the group, which meant that every time we were asked to share something biblical, he would share of Jesus and the women at the well, and he shared well.
After finishing up there, we drove further out of town, to some of the villages where shallow wells had been built. The chiefs of the village had gathered, along with a number of other people, and both sides expressed their thankfulness to one another. It was a blessing to see the difference a well made, as we walked by the old water hole, a dirty place, where the animals drank and clothes where washed. We shared about Jesus, prayed communally and saw the well in action. The same happened at two other wells, and at the end of the tour we were shown around one of the villages, going inside houses and being explained what went on.
Tuesday morning we drove into Lilongwe, meeting the AE team that worked in Lilongwe, and greater Africa. The international head, Stephen Lungu, also happened to be there, and we had a great time hearing from him as he shared some of his testimony with us. The Belgians presented their gifts to the team, including chocolates, comic books and two devices called Proclaimers. These are machines that have on them the recorded bible in different languages, to be played in open areas and to be heard by many.
After the social meeting we went into three different primary schools. AE is providing schools with material for AIDS awareness classes, and were impressed with its content and the way it was shared with the students. We would also perform a small dance, a song and share a story with the children, to make their day a little different than others. It was great to see effort being put into these children’s lives, and to see such a good method being presented to the schools. It was decided that Wednesday we would visit the wells one more time before leaving, to better the relationship with the people there, and to see what these Proclaimers looked like in action. After this, we were treated to a trip to the markets, accompanied by an AE staff member who graciously joined us and guided us in the correct direction. It was a fun experience haggling with the Malawian market-men, even if it might become tiring to explain that our money is now really gone, if it was there in the first place.
Wednesday was to be our last day with African Enterprises. We were escorted into the villages once more, and we had a fruitful time. A Proclaimer was set up and read New Testament scriptures to all who would listen, a large number of people. We painted and molded clay together, impressing God’s uniqueness and love for all, and it was touching to see the participation of all, from the least and smallest to the most important. The time together had been concluded at an earlier stage, and going back to the campus meant the end of our time in Lilongwe.
Retrospect.
There are several things that we have taken with us, after both our time in Malawi and the processing thereof.
It was a blessing to work together with Enoch Phiri, and we immensely grateful for all his hard work and the way he took care of us. AE’s aim was to increase our awareness and understanding of the work they do in Lilongwe and greater Malawi, and they succeeded. We feel that we have entered in to the beginnings of a relationship that will be nurtured over time, with input from both ends of the line.
It was a blessing to see how much difference a well makes in the villages we visited, and how much difference new wells will make in similar villages. We believe that this is a healthy we to add to AE’s work in Lilongwe.
The realization of the havoc HIV/AIDS is causing has become a greater reality. To physically see the amount of hands go up in a classroom full of children when asked who do not have parents is a serious eye opener. In Malawi, there is no unemployment. That is due to the fact that AIDS is killing the people so fast, that there are not enough people to fill vacancies.
The need is great, and what we have seen African Enterprises do is admirable. We commend them for their love of God and their love of people. As Serve the City, we will commit to more involvement in southern Africa. and appreciate the insight and opportunity AE has given us by hosting us for the time they did. It was expected that our role would be a more practical one, but we are joyful to have been able to encounter the things we did. We believe that our visit, input and work was of value to them, and we hope to have served them well during our time together. From what was communicated to us by them, that has indeed been accomplished, and for that, once more, we are grateful.
In love,
Serve the City
Post Scriptum.
Both on the way up and the way down, we stayed over at a guesthouse in Morgenster, Zimbabwe, some three hundred kilometers from the South African border. Our time there was an expected blessing, and the kindness shown to us will not be forgotten. On our way down, we were kindly given the history and tour of the town, with its hospital, school for deaf children and old printing press, amongst other. It has left and impression on us, we look forward to going back there, too, to serve amongst people already doing the same.
a field trip report.
Stellenbosch, 28-09-2009.
Introduction.
In June of this year Serve the City was on mainland Europe in the city of Brussels, to join our Belgian counterparts in a week of serving that city. We found out that they people there had a trip planned into Malawi, because a certain church in Belgian had donated money for shallow wells to be dug in towns on the outskirts of Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi. We were cordially invited to join in the mission, and thus this report covers both Serve the City in Brussels and in South Africa. We went to see the wells, we went to explore the possibilities of creating a long term relationship with the people working there, being African Enterprises, and we went to see how we could serve. This document will provide an oversight of the all the things done and a summary of thoughts on the matter.
Trip.
The South African delegation was made up out of seven South Africans, a Swazi and a Dutchman. We met up in Magaliesburg, from where we drove to Lilongwe in two days on Thursday the 10th of September, stopping over in Zimbabwe for a few hours of sleep. The method of transport was a minibus with stickers on its side and back that read : ‘disciples for Christ’. A friend had kindly put it at our disposal so we would be able to keep transport costs low, something we are hugely grateful for. Only two of our team were legally allowed to drive this vehicle, one of which was added to the team last minute, and we are still greatly indebted to them. Upon driving through Zimbabwe, we were approached by significant amounts of people who all had requests for bibles. Just before leaving, a sponsor had given a number of bibles for us to distribute as the opportunity would arise. So it happened that we were able to supply a fair measure of people, most of which were government officials, with bibles in a language they were comfortable in.
petrol station in zimbabwe.We arrived in Lilongwe early on the Sunday morning, where we were met by our wonderful friends, Enoch and Dorothy Phiri. They directed us to our sleeping place, wonderful cabins on the grounds of the African Bible College. We took note of the fact that the Belgian two-man team, being Carlton Deal and Jodi Theut, had safely made it into their beds, though their flights were re-routed and now included a change of flights in a different African country.
Later that morning we visited to different church services. The first one, which due to its early start was only a few hours after arrival, did not have the full team’s presence. It was a Presbyterian service, and a good experience. The second church session saw all of our faces arrive as we drove up to the two tents where the event was happening. It was called a revival meeting, and featured two tents, speaking grounds in the middle of them, three preachers and a multitude of choirs. The singing was beautiful, the speaking unintelligible, as none of us had mastered Chichewa and our introduction to the people a lot of fun. We were all asked to come forward and share with the crowd what our name, age, and marital status was. We were translated ferociously by Enoch, whose voice is as deep as the ocean, and his words often elicited laughter from the attendants,0 leaving us wondering what was actually going on. As we left we performed a little dance that had previously been recited, took a bow and walked off.
We left the meeting half way through and made it back to ABC, where we discussed the game-plan for the following days. It became clear that the essential goal of our trip was to see and seek to understand what exactly African Enterprises does in Lilongwe, and so we were scheduled to visit different project over our time there.
It was decided we would visit sewing classes and the wells on Monday and go into the offices and three schools on Tuesday, leaving Wednesday open for the moment. The rest of the afternoon was spent resting up and in preparation of the following days, so as to be able to step into what might be asked of us.
Monday morning we were picked up by Enoch and driven to the outskirts of Lilongwe, where AE hosts sewing classes. They are aimed at and given to women who they place in the ‘vulnerable’ category. They may either be widowed, divorced, single or simply young and alone on the world. The aim is to equip with a skill that will enable them to provide the necessities for whatever family they might have. As the women shared their names and their reason for being there with us, it was wonderful to hear the difference these classes made and the hope it infused into their lives. Carlton was appointed spokesperson of the group, which meant that every time we were asked to share something biblical, he would share of Jesus and the women at the well, and he shared well.
After finishing up there, we drove further out of town, to some of the villages where shallow wells had been built. The chiefs of the village had gathered, along with a number of other people, and both sides expressed their thankfulness to one another. It was a blessing to see the difference a well made, as we walked by the old water hole, a dirty place, where the animals drank and clothes where washed. We shared about Jesus, prayed communally and saw the well in action. The same happened at two other wells, and at the end of the tour we were shown around one of the villages, going inside houses and being explained what went on.
Tuesday morning we drove into Lilongwe, meeting the AE team that worked in Lilongwe, and greater Africa. The international head, Stephen Lungu, also happened to be there, and we had a great time hearing from him as he shared some of his testimony with us. The Belgians presented their gifts to the team, including chocolates, comic books and two devices called Proclaimers. These are machines that have on them the recorded bible in different languages, to be played in open areas and to be heard by many.
After the social meeting we went into three different primary schools. AE is providing schools with material for AIDS awareness classes, and were impressed with its content and the way it was shared with the students. We would also perform a small dance, a song and share a story with the children, to make their day a little different than others. It was great to see effort being put into these children’s lives, and to see such a good method being presented to the schools. It was decided that Wednesday we would visit the wells one more time before leaving, to better the relationship with the people there, and to see what these Proclaimers looked like in action. After this, we were treated to a trip to the markets, accompanied by an AE staff member who graciously joined us and guided us in the correct direction. It was a fun experience haggling with the Malawian market-men, even if it might become tiring to explain that our money is now really gone, if it was there in the first place.
Wednesday was to be our last day with African Enterprises. We were escorted into the villages once more, and we had a fruitful time. A Proclaimer was set up and read New Testament scriptures to all who would listen, a large number of people. We painted and molded clay together, impressing God’s uniqueness and love for all, and it was touching to see the participation of all, from the least and smallest to the most important. The time together had been concluded at an earlier stage, and going back to the campus meant the end of our time in Lilongwe.
Retrospect.
There are several things that we have taken with us, after both our time in Malawi and the processing thereof.
It was a blessing to work together with Enoch Phiri, and we immensely grateful for all his hard work and the way he took care of us. AE’s aim was to increase our awareness and understanding of the work they do in Lilongwe and greater Malawi, and they succeeded. We feel that we have entered in to the beginnings of a relationship that will be nurtured over time, with input from both ends of the line.
It was a blessing to see how much difference a well makes in the villages we visited, and how much difference new wells will make in similar villages. We believe that this is a healthy we to add to AE’s work in Lilongwe.
The realization of the havoc HIV/AIDS is causing has become a greater reality. To physically see the amount of hands go up in a classroom full of children when asked who do not have parents is a serious eye opener. In Malawi, there is no unemployment. That is due to the fact that AIDS is killing the people so fast, that there are not enough people to fill vacancies.
The need is great, and what we have seen African Enterprises do is admirable. We commend them for their love of God and their love of people. As Serve the City, we will commit to more involvement in southern Africa. and appreciate the insight and opportunity AE has given us by hosting us for the time they did. It was expected that our role would be a more practical one, but we are joyful to have been able to encounter the things we did. We believe that our visit, input and work was of value to them, and we hope to have served them well during our time together. From what was communicated to us by them, that has indeed been accomplished, and for that, once more, we are grateful.
In love,
Serve the City
Post Scriptum.
Both on the way up and the way down, we stayed over at a guesthouse in Morgenster, Zimbabwe, some three hundred kilometers from the South African border. Our time there was an expected blessing, and the kindness shown to us will not be forgotten. On our way down, we were kindly given the history and tour of the town, with its hospital, school for deaf children and old printing press, amongst other. It has left and impression on us, we look forward to going back there, too, to serve amongst people already doing the same.
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