On Saturday, November 20, we took a trip to Dzaleka, a refugee camp about an hour drive outside of Lilongwe. Kelly Dehnert, a music professor from Wyoming, set the trip up and about 35 students went on the trip with about 20 missionaries. In the morning, we met with a church who had people to translate for us. We split into 8 different groups to spread out across the refugee camp and listen to people’s stories about fleeing their countries and ending up in a camp in Malawi. Our group had 6 students, Carson and me. Our translator spoke Swahili and was from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), so we went to the area of the camp with people from DRC. We first listened to the story of the translator while sitting in his home. His wife left him recently because she could not handle the hardships of living in a refugee camp. He was left with 3 children to take care of. In the corner of the room we were sitting in was a bag of maize with the label “a gift of Spain” written on it. We found out that the people in the camp cannot grow gardens but are dependent on UN aid for all of their food. It is also very difficult for them to have jobs since they are not Malawian citizens.
We moved on from the translator’s home to the home of 2 more families. Their stories were similar. They fled DRC because they supported the presidential candidate who lost. The president who won started killing people of the opposing party. They ended up in Malawi because it was the closest refugee camp. They are totally dependent on God to provide all of their needs through other people and do not have much in terms of material possessions. This camp is probably the worst form of poverty I have ever seen but one thing stuck out to me even in the midst of suffering. Each time we asked what we could pray for and the response of the people showed me what true faith looks like. They simply said to pray that God continues to provide and protect them as they are in the refugee camp.
What?! No prayer to get out of that place? No whining because they are in a difficult situation? This is the faith that I believe we are all called to but I know I do not live daily in that kind of faith. I am American. My needs are provided. I am always safe. I do not have to rely on God for those things, right? Well, I am starting to view things in a different light. God can take it all away in an instant and would I say, “God please provide what I need today and keep me safe?” That is my new prayer that I would live in such a way that God is my All in All and my Sovereign. I want to rely on Him for everything and not depend on myself.
I am completely and totally thankful that I was born in the States and that God has blessed our nation so tremendously. I do not take that for granted, but I do not want that blessing to be something that I replace God with. I will go back to the refugee camp to continue to minister and share the gospel with non-believers and encourage the believers while being ministered to and encouraged at the same time.
After we had lunch, a group of students who are part of our college band, Mingoli, performed a concert. Jonathan Robson, a professor, shared the Word of God with the crowd and more music followed. As the music resumed, people started dancing and singing with the band and overall having a great time.
Thank you for supporting us and praying for us as we have the opportunity to minister with the ABC students in places that change us as much (or more) than it changes those we went to minister to.
Because of Jesus,
Jeff
