Maureen.   She is a beautiful older woman here in Malawi. Our first week of being here, her daughter was in the hospital and we prayed for her, she was healed.    The other day she came up to us because she wanted prayer to be closer and stronger in her relationship with Christ. We prayed for her. She went stiff. Something inside of her didn’t want us touching her.    Her arms were locked and completely stiff, her hands were bent in an unnatural position. She was not in control. We didn’t let go. Everything inside of me was telling me to...

    We were bumping down the dusty village road to the widows’ ministry when our contact, Moses, asked who was  giving the word of exhortation….   cricket   cricket   cricket.   Then God told me I was…so I was like, “Oh! Yeah! I am!”   My response to God’s leading was this:   Really God? What the heck am I supposed to talk about? We are literally five minutes from being there. You think this is funny don’t you? Well. You’ve got five minutes to give me something to talk...

A picture. A snapshot. A perfect moment caught forever in a photograph. I wasn’t even aware it was being taken. Me, surrounded by kids, being embraced. An innocent, perfect picture that breaks my heart. I love these kids. I love these kids more than words can describe. I’ve only known them for 2 weeks. Brief encounters. They’ve stolen my heart.   This photo moves me to tears. I’m not ready to leave them. I still have 3 weeks, but it doesn’t feel like enough time. I knew when I signed up for this that I was signing up for...

The women greeted our van with singing and dancing. They ushered us inside and placed us in the only seats in the house. They continued singing, crying out and praising God at the top of their lungs. They sat on the floor as we introduced ourselves. They shared their stories, their lives. And we shared ours.    They poured God’s love into us with their singing. They held us and danced with us.   These were not women with easy lives.   These were widows. Some had children less than a year old still on their backs.   Each of them was at a...

The women greeted our van with singing and dancing. They ushered us inside and placed us in the only seats in the house. They continued singing, crying out and praising God at the top of their lungs. They sat on the floor as we introduced ourselves. They shared their stories, their lives. And we shared ours.    They poured God’s love into us with their singing. They held us and danced with us.   These were not women with easy lives.   These were widows. Some had children less than a year old still on their backs.   Each of them was at a...

So I decided that this blog was going to be out of my first journal entry from Malawi. Everything is so amazing and I am loving it here. God has blessed me so much already and I am so anxious to see what else He has in store for us.    Malawi Day 2 1/22/13 6:00AM   Hearing people praise God is beautiful in any language. God, you are so amazing and I am so unworthy of all that You give. Thank you.   I am surrounded by your creation. Plants, animals, a beautiful sunrise hand-painted by You, and Your people worshiping and praising you.   The sound of...