Grass Dec 2018

Merry Christmas from a hot and sunny Malawi!

With the coming of the Christmas season, I have spent much time reflecting on all of the good gifts God has given to Rafiki Village Malawi. In the spirit of Christmas, I would like to use the word “gift” as an acronym to share four precious gifts the Lord has graciously given our Village.

G—God’s Word at Work

If you were to drive in to our Village on any given morning, you would notice all of our children, teachers, staff, RICE students, and missionaries engaged in studying God’s Word through the Rafiki Bible Study. It has been thrilling to watch my RICE students grow in their love for God’s Word by engaging in discussion, asking good questions, and applying the lessons to their own lives. When the Bible study is finished, God’s Word is immediately put in to action all across our campus. I see it in the way the Rafiki Mothers discipline and guide their children, and in the way the teachers teach their students with God’s Word as the foundation. Even when people leave our Village at the end of the day, students and staff take what they have learned in the Bible study and teach it to their families and friends. God’s Word is powerful, and it has been a true joy to see so many Malawians enthusiastically studying the Bible each day.

I—Indescribable beauty

As one of the tenets of Christian classical education, we are teaching our children and students to love and appreciate the beautiful things God has made. Our Village is situated in the mountains of Mzuzu, and words fail to describe the beauty of the sunrise and sunset over the mountaintops. How thankful I am to serve God in such a beautiful place.

F—Friends

The word Rafiki means friend in Swahili. It has been a blessing to befriend many Malawians over the past few months. God has blessed us with a great national staff who have helped me learn about the culture of Malawi, and who have become dear friends of mine as we partner together in ministry. I have enjoyed building friendships with our church partners who are so excited to share in God’s work with us. It is so exciting to watch their faces light up with joy at the prospect of bringing Christian classical education to the church schools of Malawi. How thankful I am for these dear friends that have made ministry in Malawi a joy.

T—Teachers in training

The majority of my day is spent at the RICE (Rafiki Institute of Classical Education) Program where I instruct and guide several Malawians in their quest to become Christian classical educators. The program is rigorous and requires much dedication on the part of the students, but it is thrilling to see them persevere. Three of my students are currently participating in a practicum at our Rafiki Preprimary School. After completing their first day of practicum, they returned to the RICE building with huge smiles on their faces, exclaiming all of the new and wonderful things they had just witnessed. Simple things such as students walking in lines and teachers calling the students by name were drastically different from the education they experienced in the government schools. It is such a delight to see them view education in a new way, using God’s Word as the foundation.

As you can tell, God has abundantly and graciously blessed the work at Rafiki Village Malawi. Above all, I am grateful for the precious gift of God’s Son, and am humbled and blessed to serve Him here in Malawi. I greatly appreciate all of the prayers and support from my friends and family. I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

For a printer friendly version.