Friday, March 30, 2007

It's Friday in Malawi!

Well, the last 2 days have been banner days for our trip here! I am happy to report that the project is fuly underway, the contractors appear to be taking things less casually, and are working daily digging the foundation. Our drainage ditch is functioning well, and keeping the spring water off the work site, but it has rained off & on for the last 2 days, so it hasn't dried out as much as we might like. The pastors are very good at taking assignments seriously and, in fact, are enjoying the responsibility.

Wanda and the girls went to Chirimbe to the ladies' Bible Study there, and had an amazing time. Wanda had her first lesson in negotiating minibus fares (overcharged on the way there, then the Malawian ladies took it upon themselves to negotiate a better fare for them on the way back). So many things here cost only what you can negotiate for them. Craziness. Well, the Bible Study itself was very mind-bending. The people in this area live in a cross between a hut and a cardboard box, most of the ladies in the church are already caring for 2,3,4 or even 5 orphans, and have very little food or clothing necessities. However, even in poverty, they show a pride in their home and an ability to raise respectful and obedient children unmatched in the west. The ladies asked good questions, and Wanda addressed some of their concerns; Erika and Liz charmed the crowd with their attempts at singing Chichewa songs, and some medicines were distributed by Doctor Wanda. She came back with a list of needs and a list of potential medical problems that will be addressed over the next few days.

Today, Wanda went to a market in a nearby town with Madalo, fiancee of Aubrey (one of the pastors) and looked over fabrics for dresses. The girls were measured for fitting, and they had a ball! In the afternoon, they returned and spent the afternoon talking with Rhoda, a widow from the Ndirende church who has a lot of needs, but has a rare spirit and a love for the Lord.

Much of my time has been spent in the "nuts and bolts" of the orphanage project, but, this morning, we had a pastors meeting, starting at 8:00 AM and lasting until after 1:30 PM!! We were covering the book of Romans chapters 7-13, and each pastor was covering one chapter. I was praying that we would have an opening to address the real needs of the pastors in the group, and the Lord just blew the doors wide open. I think this was a very important healing time for past hurts and for jealousies that satan has been fanning for months. We started with the need for the leaders to lead by example (1 Cor 11:1 - Paul tells the struggling church at Corinth to imitate him, since he is imitating Christ), starting with a true love for each other - then proceeding with a study on the Scriptural verses about different gifts and personalities, then how failing to respect other personality types and gifting can lead to false strife (this will sound familiar to Donnie & Carrie, as well as Shawn & Heather). Finally, in the pouring rain, huddled under a thatched hut, we approached the need for the pastors to repent of their strife-causing habits that have produced some of the friction here, and the effect was very powerful. All prayed for a renewed spirit of love and acceptance, and for patience to wait for the Lord to place them in true areas of giftedness. Many seeds were planted this morning, and the group of pastors is responding very well.

Tomorrow, we are going out into the country to visit with Tendai in the morning, and visiting a couple of houses with sickness in them in the afternoon. Sunday we will go to the Kolokot (sp?) church and then rest, getting ready for a full next week.

Pray for us:
1. Unity in the pastors, that the seeds planted today will sink deep into their spirits. I could see them thinking as they walked during the later part of the day.
2. The truck price has dropped from 1.590 to 1.350 - the man needs to sell. Meanwhile, uncommitted funds have risen from .800 to 1.020 - so that the difference between available funds and selling price is now 330,000 Kwacha = $2300 US. We are praying about the wisdom of this - we will save so much money on transport costs, but are not ceratin that the "status" of having a nice truck is driving much of the desire. I'm not certain about that motive, though. Also, the truck could easily be sold after the project is complete for almost all of the buying price.
3. We are encouraging absolutely ethical behavior on the part of the pastors. We also strongly desire that they see themselves as equal in the ministry here. This is tough with Frank Maini being such a strong figure - he tends to dominate, and we are trying to encourage a servant's heart in him. Pray for this.
4. Wanda is still struggling with some of the late effects of a virus that has been plaguing her for the last 2 months (I suspect a latent mono), she has painful glands and fatigue. Pray for her.
5. Erika has received at least 3 marriage proposals during her travels here. Wanda is learning how to say in Chichewa, "Erika has a very big father, you can deal with him>" (smiling)

We love you all!!

Rick & Wanda & girls

Thursday, March 29, 2007

Hello from Malawi, Thursday March 29th

Wow, do we have full days! There are so many details of the orphanage that come up, and SO much walking. We have contacted the area Congoma, and they (of course) tell us that we must belong to their organization (a gathering of different NGO's whose main purpose, it seems, is to collect a whopping 42,000 Kwacha annually from each member. ) - The fellow at the Congoma could not tell me what benefit is derived from membership, except that we could share information with other NGO's... ??? We will be following up on this some more.

We have obtained 120 Chichewa Bibles, and Erika and Liz are hard at work gluing "Moslem witnessing tools" that Randy has prepared into each of the Bibles. We have also obtained 30 songbooks from the Assembly of God Press in Limbe (possibly the LONGEST walk of my life - fortunately the girls were not with me), 6 pastors' manuals (written in English & Chichewa - a shortened version of our "Book of Common Prayers", and I slipped in a non-completed marriage certificate for our little pastor Aubrey, who is SO CUTE, engaged to be married to Madalo when Randy arrives in May - they are both very excited!

We have also obtained the first 100 bags of concrete, and I have formed a relationship of sorts with the suppliers, a cute older Indian couple running a hardware store in Blantyre. As I had expected, KAMA construction came back with a VERY high price for the ditch around the property, and I think they were surprised when I told them this was not acceptable and that we would do the ditch ourselves. I think shocked would best describe their reaction when I picked up an axe and shovel and started digging the ditch myself, followed by Bosco, Aubrey, and Frank Gama digging the expensive ditch in about 2.5 hours, even working through a HUGE downpour (which felt SOOOO good). I think the pastors were very amused at the whole thing - there was a big pile of large stones (50-80 pounds) sitting right where the ditch needed to be dug, and it did look like we'd have to go around it, but I just started picking up rocks one at a time, and soon the pile was moved. A real lesson here! (How do you eat an elephant?)

The best part of this story was the walk home. The other pastors were going in the opposite direction with their wet clothes, so I walked the 2 miles back to our hotel by myself, soaked to the bone and covered with mud. The sight of an old, "fat" white man with a pony tail (all the men buzz their heads here) often causes a stir, but imagine the same picture in soaked clothing and covered with mud, walking along a main road to town. I had to contain myself to keep from laughing outright at a couple of the looks I got. A minivan slowed down to see if I wanted to pay for a ride, then took off when they saw me!!

I have had, along with the orphanage-related issues, several excellent opportunities to sit and talk with key players in the churches here, and all of them are very receptive to suggestions and to teaching - in fact, they are begging for help. I have told them that the Lord is providing Shawn to fill this gap, and they are very anxious to receive the Wallace family. In a great many ways, I am simply preparing the soil for their stay here. I have sang/prayed/analyzed/encouraged/exhorted Elton, one of the pastors who is carrying around a great deal of hurt from past and present issues, and had an excellent opportunity to speak into several of the issues - much more work to be done here. I have been able to go deeper with Frank Maini, the senior pastor, and work with him on the idea that the best leader must be the best servant - that, becase he is in a position of leadership, we expect him to be the servant of all. I have spent some time with Rhoda and her "adopted son" (a complex name that I haven't gotten yet) , and Wanda will spend more time with her tomorrow. It just appears to me that the Lord is orchestrating each step in this process.

I know that I promised to send you a more complete prayer list, but that will have to wait, as the Icon is closing down. I had an amazing phone call with Randy, I am astonished at how the Lord is speaking to us so clearly. Pray, most of all, for this to continue.

We are really looking for wisdom as regarding the truck purchase. We have opportunities to buy nearly new trucks for $12000 equivalent or used trucks which may not function well for about $6000. We are researching these options at present, and praying for the Lord's will in this area. He will let us know. We have $6000 in the budget.

More later!

Rick & Wanda & girls.

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Malawi Update Tuesday March whatever

Hello to all you brave souls who somehow found this blog site. Wanda and I are trying to double-team you! She's answering e-mails while I type frantically, trying with little chance of success to catch you up on the evnets of the last 2-3 days. I typed a 2-page summery of my first day here, then realized that the summery would take longer to read than it took to live it!
The Lord has been very good to us - He has moved in ways that are unbelievable, and the pastors are seeing it and are amazed. I hardly know where to start. First, a disappointment. Grey Mnunka, the pastor who left Blantyre with some of the ministry funds and several important documents, is not meeting any of the criteria for repentence. I had thought that he would have repented, placing himself under the authority of the local church for appropriate discipline, and that Wanda and I would have the opportunity to help restore him and establish terms of restitution. I had hoped to proceed from there to using him in a position of carefully-watched authority over some of the purchasing situations. However, I found nothing of the sort. He has evidently left Malawi again, talking repentance while trying to set his own terms for return. He has shown no real contrition that I can identify, and we are moving on without him. We have taken several final steps to remove any possibility of his doing further damage, and the Lord has clearly blessed every step that we have taken. We have replaced the corporate seal that he kept in his possession with an imprinted seal, so that his seal can no longer be used. We have copies of the corporate license and the constitution that have been located and placed in safekeeping. Grey no longer has any leverage, and his plan to use these items as bargaining chips for some kind of false "negotiated repentence" has been thwarted. If He had thrown himself at the feet of the cross, and accepted the consequences, we would have loved to work with him and to restore him. Without that choice, I will be discussing with the Board of Acts3 the apparent fact that we are not dealing with "taking a brother to court", but rather with placing consequences on one who needs saving grace.
Sorry to labor that point, but, since that decision has been made, the Lord has been carrying us along in marvelous ways. We have met with the architect, and he had 4 sets of plans extra that he offered to sell to us at 7000 Kw ($45). Since Randy had suggested that we get an extra set of plans for $30, I countered for him to give us 2 sets for the $30 (since that's all that we would ever need), and he accepted! We have the stamped copies with us, and the contractors took a set for their work.
We went to the Foreign exchange expecting to negotiate for 148 kwacha per dollar, and were offered 151 Kwacha per dollar, a 2% increase in available funds! Today, in completing the transaction, we got all of the donated money into the bank, then learned that the Malawi government is closing all foreign exchanges as of the end of the day. If we had waited until tomorrow to do the exchange, we would have been forced to trade at 136 Kwachas per dollar, a big loss (the prevailing bank rate). the Lord protected us in a most unusual circumstance, exchanging dollars for Kwacha in the back room of a Cell Phone repair shop front in a very dark town north of Blantyre. It all went well.
As we approached the National Bank to deposit the funds, the Lord had put a real check in my spirit (not that usual for me...) and, after the lady at the bank told us that she couldn't help us because it was too late in the day (it was 10:30 AM, the bank opened at 9), We immediately went down the street to the INDE bank, and opened our account there. (Randy had threatened to do this in the past, so we felt that it was time, and the Lord confirmed it big-time.) We met a marvelous Christian banker lady there named Martha Moto, and she helped us SO MUCH, including visiting the site of the orphanage personally and discussing our project in detail. After the fact, I was reminded that the lady at the National Bank was a friend of Grey's.
THIS PROJECT IS SO MUCH BIGGER THAN ONE MAN - bigger than one founder (I'm sure Randy would agree), bigger than one runaway pastor, bigger than our sometimes pitiful efforts, bigger than one wonderful donor, bigger than one church, bigger than one missionary family that is about to invest their lives in the project, just bigger.
We met with the contractors this AM, and I was not surprised to find that they have seen me as an easy mark for their plans to run up the price and dominate the playing field. If they think this, they have another think coming! They tried to say that labor costs have gone up 10% since the project was delayed, so that the prices should be renegotiated. I expressed willingness to discuss a 1-2% increase - they were not happy, but I think they understood my reasoning. The property really does have a drainage problem, and KAMA Construction offered to deal with it, for a price. I am still waiting for the price, but I think they will be surprised when they find me unwilling to pay their price - the pastors and myself will do the trenching ourselves, if need be, to prove that their estimates are ridiculous for extra work (I haven't received the estimate yet, but I'm very sure that it will be something idiotic.) I'm now dreaming about trenching and drainage pipes - I have gone around the entire property wall, and have identified a number of needs that we will be addressing.
The pastors are marvelous people - they each have their limitations, but they are a joy to work with, and we have been well-received. We have been scurrying around from one difficulty to another, and are looking forward to a little rest in the next few days. We have a long list of issues that are right in the middle of resolution. Wanda and the girls are walking miles and miles, riding minibuses like pros, meeting local ladies and fitting right in here. They are very tired, but very satisfied thus far...
I have so many prayer points for you, but I'm honestly running out of mental energy - I have been taxed to the full. Here are a few, I'll provide a more complete list tomorrow:
1. Pray for wisdom in dealing with the very nice and polite snakes from KAMA Construction. I have not been fully impressed by the quality of their work or of their work ethic. Money seems to be their language.
2. Pray for efficient use of funds. We are looking seriously at the purchase of a truck to reduce transport costs. Pray for Pastor Bosco, who has been given this responsibility. The Lord has given us an extra 2% (almost an extra $1000 !!!). We should respond appropriately.
3. Pray for strength for Wanda and the girls. The schedule is very taxing. The stress today from the money exchange was unbelievable (Wanda was there but not the girls - they were at the hotel entertaining Madalo, the fiancee of one of the pastors (Aubrey))
4. We are entering another phase of our time here - looking at various networking options. We already have, through Frank Mieni, contact with a government office to help with needed procedures. We will be visiting the Congoma office, a central NGO office that Randy has visited before. We will be visiting a YWAM base once things settle down sufficiently. Pray for good relationships to be begun that will benefit the Wallaces when they come.
5. Pray for Shawn and Heather as they close down their ministry at the church in Kinsman, Ohio. I would like to express my strong feeling that the ministry here will be so effective that the Kinsman Chapel members will rejoice to give up their senior pastor to such an effort, although they are currently suffering the loss.
6. Pray that I (Rick) will find quiet time with the Lord regularly. I need it. The day starts so early here, and I'm up before 6AM, but it's not enough to get in true quiet time. I will need it to organize my thinking on other issues, such as much needed interim pastors' training, and speaking in several of the churches. The Lord was gracious to me in providing words on Sunday to augment Pastor Aubrey's call to obedience by Christians. I need more of that provision.
7. Pray for Elton, pastor of the third church here. The Lord has used the experiences with Grey to strengthen Frank Gama, but Elton is definitely flailing spiritually. I will be meeting with him tomorrow (Wednesday) evening.

I am so much in need of communication with Randy, we have a number of decisions to make together. So far, we have not been able to get in touch effectively. I do know that he's alive...

The Acts3 Malawi phone number (new) is 09432036.

Love to you all!! I believe that Wanda is returning e-mails individually while I am providing this long, long missive.

Monday, March 12, 2007

Entering the modern era - finally!

Wow! We are really on the internet! We've been reading Jeannette's blog for a while, and are trying to improve communication with family pictures/events. We have some new photos of Candice's twins to share with cyberspace! We'll do a more complete update once I have some familiarity with the whole blog thing. Here are the pictures! Ricky is on the right, in striped blue. Tommy is on the left, in white.

I SO can't get control of this editing function. I'll do better next time...

Rick