Hello! Welcome to our blog about the time we're spending in Blantyre, Malawi. First off, it'd be good to explain why we're even going in the first place.
Origin Story
I (Ben) have grown up in a family full of missionaries, so I've grown up pretty used to the idea of people living overseas. I even spent the first five years of my life living in Albania. You could say it's in my blood. To be honest, that's what I've thought ever since committing my life to Jesus when I was 18 - I'll probably do something 'like that' someday. I even felt like God confirmed that to me one summer at a Christian camp, that He was calling me to something abroad. The what, when and how I wasn't sure of though.
Ever since I've known Bekah she's known God has given her a heart for Africa. Now, a lot of people may say that they have a heart for somewhere, but not many people get so emotional that they weep with joy and compassion whenever they think about that place. This compassion is one of many reasons why I love Bekah so much and asked her to marry me. When we got married, we were both "super excited" (an old Bekah catchprase) about what the combination of these passions could mean for our future.
Grace Connection
In our first year of marriage, Grace Church Nottingham (our church) started growing a relationship with Scrivin Kamanga, the pastor of a small church in Malawi. Scrivin visited Grace Church on Vision Sunday (when the church explains what God is calling them to do in the following year) and Scrivin's vision for his church back in Blantyre was incredibly similar to ours. This joint vision lead to the leaders of both churches wanting to develop the relationship further to see how we can support and encourage one another.
Visits
Bekah and I had the opportunity to visit CCC (City Christian Centre) in Blantyre in both 2016 and 2017, for a couple of weeks. We were so blessed and encouraged both times. Seeing the work the church was doing to love and provide for the very poorest in a nearby village (despite being significantly poor themselves) was inspiring. Experiencing their fierce generosity and abundant joy first hand was humbling. Joining in their obedience to pray and seek God with such faith was both uplifting and personally challenging. Basically, we were won over. We loved the friendliness of the people, their love of God and their heart to love those around them.
After the second trip there especially we came away knowing that it wouldn't be the last time that we visited Scrivin and our other brothers and sisters in Malawi. Again though, the when and how was unclear.
Decision Time
In June 2018 Scrivin came to the UK to visit Grace Church again. Having him visit our home, as a friend, and share some of the struggles they were facing as a church, we really felt God speak to us about going and being with them for longer. That same evening, Scrivin was talking with a friend of ours about how much they would love to have someone from the church stay for a longer term, and our ears pricked up!
We spent a lot of time praying about it, and asking advice from our church leaders, and decided that we would go for a year, to be members of their church, to serve alongside them, and to support their growing ministries. We will also be spending some time teaching at an Orphan Care Centre that provides free food and education for children throughout primary and secondary school. We can't wait to share our lives with these people we have the privilege of calling friends, brothers and sisters. We are particularly excited to be involved in their children's work, their social justice ministry, and some administrative bits too. But mostly we are excited to see what God is going to do as we seek Him and trust Him in new ways this year.
God has been so faithful as we made this (pretty scary!) decision. Bekah would freely admit she has always needed to feel in control, and have a plan, and has often felt held back by fear, but as God has been placing this country and this church on our hearts, he’s also been teaching us to follow him even when it’s scary. It is a testimony of God's answer to prayer that we feel so peaceful, and so excited about this next year! There’s still a lot of unknowns (where will we live!), and a lot we are still praying for (the finances to afford to live out there!) but we feel full of faith that God is watching out for us, and will be keeping us safe.
If you pray, please be praying that we find a place to live smoothly...and soon(!), and that we are able to settle into our new home quickly once we arrive. Please also pray for good sleep on the flight, and for health and protection for the year.
Love, B&B
Origin Story
I (Ben) have grown up in a family full of missionaries, so I've grown up pretty used to the idea of people living overseas. I even spent the first five years of my life living in Albania. You could say it's in my blood. To be honest, that's what I've thought ever since committing my life to Jesus when I was 18 - I'll probably do something 'like that' someday. I even felt like God confirmed that to me one summer at a Christian camp, that He was calling me to something abroad. The what, when and how I wasn't sure of though.
 |
| Visiting Grandma and Grandpa Casebow in Uganda, aged 6 |
Ever since I've known Bekah she's known God has given her a heart for Africa. Now, a lot of people may say that they have a heart for somewhere, but not many people get so emotional that they weep with joy and compassion whenever they think about that place. This compassion is one of many reasons why I love Bekah so much and asked her to marry me. When we got married, we were both "super excited" (an old Bekah catchprase) about what the combination of these passions could mean for our future.
 |
| Mutende Children's Village, Zambia, aged 18 |
Grace Connection
In our first year of marriage, Grace Church Nottingham (our church) started growing a relationship with Scrivin Kamanga, the pastor of a small church in Malawi. Scrivin visited Grace Church on Vision Sunday (when the church explains what God is calling them to do in the following year) and Scrivin's vision for his church back in Blantyre was incredibly similar to ours. This joint vision lead to the leaders of both churches wanting to develop the relationship further to see how we can support and encourage one another.
Visits
Bekah and I had the opportunity to visit CCC (City Christian Centre) in Blantyre in both 2016 and 2017, for a couple of weeks. We were so blessed and encouraged both times. Seeing the work the church was doing to love and provide for the very poorest in a nearby village (despite being significantly poor themselves) was inspiring. Experiencing their fierce generosity and abundant joy first hand was humbling. Joining in their obedience to pray and seek God with such faith was both uplifting and personally challenging. Basically, we were won over. We loved the friendliness of the people, their love of God and their heart to love those around them.
After the second trip there especially we came away knowing that it wouldn't be the last time that we visited Scrivin and our other brothers and sisters in Malawi. Again though, the when and how was unclear.
 |
| Mount Mulanje, Malawi, 2017 |
In June 2018 Scrivin came to the UK to visit Grace Church again. Having him visit our home, as a friend, and share some of the struggles they were facing as a church, we really felt God speak to us about going and being with them for longer. That same evening, Scrivin was talking with a friend of ours about how much they would love to have someone from the church stay for a longer term, and our ears pricked up!
We spent a lot of time praying about it, and asking advice from our church leaders, and decided that we would go for a year, to be members of their church, to serve alongside them, and to support their growing ministries. We will also be spending some time teaching at an Orphan Care Centre that provides free food and education for children throughout primary and secondary school. We can't wait to share our lives with these people we have the privilege of calling friends, brothers and sisters. We are particularly excited to be involved in their children's work, their social justice ministry, and some administrative bits too. But mostly we are excited to see what God is going to do as we seek Him and trust Him in new ways this year.
God has been so faithful as we made this (pretty scary!) decision. Bekah would freely admit she has always needed to feel in control, and have a plan, and has often felt held back by fear, but as God has been placing this country and this church on our hearts, he’s also been teaching us to follow him even when it’s scary. It is a testimony of God's answer to prayer that we feel so peaceful, and so excited about this next year! There’s still a lot of unknowns (where will we live!), and a lot we are still praying for (the finances to afford to live out there!) but we feel full of faith that God is watching out for us, and will be keeping us safe.
If you pray, please be praying that we find a place to live smoothly...and soon(!), and that we are able to settle into our new home quickly once we arrive. Please also pray for good sleep on the flight, and for health and protection for the year.
Love, B&B
Wow, amazing stuff guys. God bless you both! Looking forward to hearing more about what's going on when you get settled in!
ReplyDeleteThanks Luke!! Hope you guys are both doing well up north :)
Delete