Internet, or Not
The world is getting smaller. Progress is a global thing. Even Malawi has changed since we first came (for instance, we can now buy cheese!)
Internet access, however, is one big reminder that we live in a developing country.
While people in America are surfing the web at 4800 kilobits per second, we get about... 3. And that’s if it’s not school hours, business hours, or cloudy (Lilongwe’s connected to the rest of the web via satellite, after all.) The big news is a fiber optic cable that is supposed to bring fast internet here in 2010.
All that to say, if you’re wondering why we haven’t posted on the blog or been on Skype lately, that’s usually the answer. Nothing to worry about. It’s just cloudy this time of year.
But don’t let that keep you from writing! We love getting emails and Facebook messages and blog comments from all of our friends, even when we can’t write back for a couple weeks. It means a lot to hear from you all.
Church Membership
Like most international cities, Lilongwe has a revolving door, with people constantly coming and going for many different reasons. So one of the big highlights of last month was when 20 people became our church’s first members. Like our city, we were a mix of internationals, Malawians, and other Africans. After the Sunday service, we spent the afternoon having a poolside barbecue.
Church membership isn’t anything mystical; it’s just a commitment to care for the other people in our church like the Bible describes. Having a group of people who are all dedicated to those things creates an environment of love, accountability, service, and worship.
Please pray for our church members, including those we’ll welcome in the weeks ahead. Pray especially that we’ll be faithful to grow in love for God and for others, helping our church to be a place of spiritual maturity.
What the Rest of Our Life is Like
In addition to the major ministry activities we summarize in these newsletters, our day-to-day life is full of random things. Here are a few little snippets from the last few weeks:
*Paintballing with the youth group guys
*Visiting a neighboring village
*Fighting off a nasty bacterial stomach bug
*Babysitting the Biedebach kids for an afternoon
*Hosting 2 Ladies’ Bible Studies in our home every week
*Shopping in India Town for wire, fabric, wall anchors, and door handles
*Sitting down to eat fish, nsima, and relish with our house painters
*Celebrating a year and a half of marriage - and loving it!
*Wondering why we didn’t bring at least one spare bulb for our only battery-powered lantern
*Making a wedding cake, and sending it to the wedding via 7 minibus taxis and 3 bicycle taxis
*Moving into our house!
*Taking the Biedebachs to the airport for their furlough
*Having a display case made for the crocodile skull
*Skyping with our parents every Sunday (if we have internet)
*Hiking Nkhoma mountain for the men’s prayer morning
*Trying to find a guard dog, and deciding not to take the 3-legged one
Thanks!
Thanks for being part of our team, for your prayers and encouragement! We know that this is not something we do on our own, but that we have the privilege of being a part of the body of Christ. We are so blessed to serve here, and cherish your prayers all the more in these coming months! - Matt and Rachel
Floreen Newsletter Update
- Praise the Lord for His provision of a house for us! We have moved in and continually thank the Lord for this great gift!