Update from Malawi

Praise His Holy Name!

Since we last posted to our blog, there has been so much happening here in Malawi. Pastor Demitri from CC Cape Town and Pastor Mike from CC Parrl South Africa arrived from South Africa on March 2nd and began a Pastor's Conferencewhich ran from March 3 - 8th here at CC Lilongwe Malawi Africa. There were 125 Pastor's & church Elders from all over Central Malawi Many of them traveling 3-4 days to be here for the conference. They were all housed in the empty school rooms with cement floors, no running water and no cooking facilities other than open fires outside. They ate together and fellowship together until all hours of the night singing praise songs unto the Lord for the blessings of being involved & included in the conference.

The people of Malawi are some of the most loving, caring, warm, and nurturing people anyone will likely find anywhere in the world. "The Warm Heart of Africa" is how Malawi is referred to throughout Africa. The people we have ministered to are very teachable and they grasp the teaching concepts very well. They are eager to learn and grow in their depth of understanding of the Word of God and how to apply it to their daily lives!

There was also some 12 local people who attended church this past Sunday who gave their lives to the Lord for the first time. God's Spirit is working and we all sense the moving of the Holy Spirit the whole week. Pastor;s Demitri & Mike left on Monday afternoon back to their respective home churches, but expressing the strong desire to return to Malawi soon with others to assist in expanding God's work here in Malawi! Thanks Demitri & Mike for a job well done and we look forward to your soon return.

On March 25th, we have two nurses from CC Monterey Bay coming to Malawi for a two week mission work using their gifts in medical training to help with the many sick & diseased men, women, & children here in Lilongwe and surrounding areas. There are so many needs here that it is hard to verbalize all of them. People are so poor and everything here is so expensive. It is a daily battle to just to keep food on the table to feed your family, much less take good care of medical needs that we all have wherever we live. Walking is the main mode of transportation, as people are out by 5:30 am to start walking to their jobs and places of employment, if they have any employment? Unemployment is 60% here in Malawi, so street vendors are everywhere selling just about anything they can get their hands on to sell!

We will be now beginning laying the structure foundation of the new Pastoral Training & Discipleship School, deciding on final issues like curriculum, days people are available to come and who we will begin with as to number of students. Exciting days ahead, but the enemy is really ticked and throwing the kitchen sink at us, so please be praying for us and the people of Malawi as we continue the march of following our Lord for the spreading of the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout Malawi. Their current knowledge of the scripture is quite shallow, but they are eager to learn, and our enemy does not want us to succeed in helping them to grow.

Prayer needs:

1. Physical strength for us as the heat has drained us somewhat.
2. Wisdom in establishing the school for pastors.
3. Monetary assistance for these pastors so they can give themselves fully to the work of the Lord. ( $50.00 per month supports a Pastor, wife & family of 4 children)
4. A four wheeled vehicle to be able to visit the outlying villages where roads as we know them do not exist.
5. Pastor Tom is retiring from his full time job so he can devote full time to the ministry of the church, Grade School, Secondary School, and being a pastor to the younger pastors.
6. Continued good health for Nora & I both.

That's all for now, please keep us all in your prayers and we appreciate all of you for your love, prayers and support.

In HIM,

Steve & Nora