March 10, 2010
Greetings once again from Malawi; “The Warm Heart of Africa”.
Saturday, March 6th was a very exciting day for the VOH Children. I sat by my radio yesterday and was overwhelmed with what I heard coming over the air waves of Malawi.
Just a few years ago most of the VOH children had no hope for a future. They had lost one or both parents and were rejected by their biological families. Most of them didn’t know who Jesus was, let alone have a personal relationship with him and be able to share him with others.
Three thirty Saturday afternoon… Malawi’s ABC Radio station 88.4 FM sounded out over the airwaves the VOH Malawi children quoting scriptures, testifying and singing of the goodness of God… to the whole entire NATION of Malawi. One child, 10 year old Felista Kachinewe stood to the micro-phone and with courage, confidence and a convection that stirred the hearts of listeners boldly told the nation, “No Jesus No life” It was powerful! Is God Awesome or what???
This morning they were invited to sing in a local church and shared; “God’s love is So High you can’t get over… under… or around… it”.
From all of us at the VOH-Malawi we take this opportunity to once again thank you for your support and pray God’s blessings on all of you.
February 6, 2010
This is an urgent call to prayer, please partner with us once again!
As most of you know my wife Ivy and I operate a children’s home at the Village of Hope (VOH), through the PAOC, in Malawi. We now have 44 children at the village and the challenges are growing every day.
We have 2 children, biological brothers, Joseph age 6 yrs & Gome age 3 yrs, that came to the VOH 3 years ago. The biological father is dead and the mother of the children is mentally ill and is HIV positive. One of the boys is also positive but the other isn’t.
The 2 boys have always been mischievous (but that’s kids) however over the past few months they have become aggressively violent and unpredictable. They have beaten other kids. Rven though they are well fed they eat rotten food from the garbage bin etc, beat the house walls and doors intentionally, throw clothes from the bedroom cabinets onto the floor, unmake their beds when the mother makes it, climb on the stove, furniture, cabinet shelves, and when disciplined they just laugh. They laugh when people get hurt and have no sense of remorse over anything they do wrong and are now starting to use foul language towards the mother. The influence they are having on other VOH children is not good, and we need this behavior to cease and only God can make this happen.
We believe this is a case of spiritual warfare and the enemy is using these 2 boys to destroy the work that God is trying to do at VOH. Those of you that are familiar with the VOH may remember the situation we had last year with some VOH children practicing witchcraft. We believe that this is once again an attack of the enemy… we are not fighting against flesh and blood here but against principalities & powers of darkness and these 2 boys need to be delivered in JESUS NAME!!
We just came through 21 days of prayer and fasting at the VOH and we believe the enemy is upset at what God is doing here. We brought godly people into the VOH to pray with & over the children, we have taken them to church for anointing and prayer but things seem to be getting worse. We need prayer partners to stand with us NOW for this need immediately. We are in desperate need for God to intervene in this case.
Our prayer request are:
1.) Pray that these 2 boys will be delivered and the havoc they are causing at VOH would cease in Jesus name.
2.) Pray that Ivy and I would have wisdom in how to deal with this situation.
3.) Pray that the house mother will have patience and direction on how to respond to such behavior but still show them love.
4.) Pray that what has & is happening through these boys will not influence the other children at the VOH and if it has, that this too would be corrected.
We need your prayerful support today. The children are currently undergoing assessments by a professional psychiatric physician to see if they are experiencing the same problems as their mom. If this is the case… please pray for their deliverance and that we would have wisdom in what to do and how to move forward in this area.
January 5, 2010
Praise God! Dumi does not have TB! That is good news, but unfortunately he was diagnosed as being HIV positive. At least now we know the problem and can get him the proper medication needed. He also still has a problem keeping down his food, so we ask you to continue praying for him and Beatrice. Both of them are now home from the hospital.
January 2010
Some of you may remember we lost a little boy, Fahad (AKA Josh) Siyami Mbang’ombe, on Friday, Nov 27 2009 and then on Monday Nov 30 we received another little boy name Lonjezo (AKA Dumisa meaning Glorify) Raphael.
Dumi was born on Tuesday Nov 4 2009 by way of C-section and not long thereafter, his mother passed away. The mother was HIV positive, which means that the child was exposed to the HIV virus but may not necessarily be positive.
Since the body of his mother was never claimed for burial (up to now, Jan 3, 2010) Dumi was never claimed, and therefore was considered an abandoned child. So he became the responsibility of the Department of Social Welfare (DSW) and was being held at the hospital until such a time as he could be placed with a foster family or into a childcare institute. Due to the overpopulation in the hospital, a doctor requested that DSW find a place for Dumi and after a case investigation carried out by the VOH, the DSW released the child into the permanent care of VOH Malawi as a permanent resident child, where he now resides in a home with Mother Beatrice and seven other siblings.
By Malawi law, an unclaimed body is required to be held for 3 months at the city morgue in the unlikely event that someone will claim the remains for burial. If the remains of Dumi’s mother are not claimed by Feb 2010, VOH has requested that the police release the remains to VOH Malawi so that we can give the mother a proper burial.
One never knows what a day will bring forth… Christmas Day we had a great celebration at our home with all the VOH children here for dinner… the next day, Dec 26, Dumi took sick and ended up in the hospital on life support for 2 days. Thank God, he has since progressed enough to be taken off life support, but he is still struggling. Beatrice has not left the hospital since Dec 26 and we are concerned that she will start to get run down herself.
Since there is no background history on Dumi’s mom or family, Dumi’s doctor ran a series of tests this past week trying to discover his problem. As a result of one of the tests, they feel it is necessary to run a more in depth x-ray tomorrow. They are suspicious that he may have TB, perhaps inherited from the mom, which also means there is a high possibility he is HIV positive. If the TB test is positive, he will be in the hospital for at least two more weeks.
Until last night, he was unable to keep his food down and is coughing to the point of nearly choking. They gave him a needle at 1:00 AM this morning to prevent nausea, but they can’t get the coughing under control. He is not in good shape.
Please pray for Dumi that God will touch him and heal him for God’s glory. Pray that he will not be positive nor will he have TB. Pray also that Beatrice will be strengthened physically as well as spiritually uplifted. We need God to intervene for Dumi. He is in need of a miracle or I fear we will lose him. We serve a God that is able… PLEASE PRAY.
December 2009
At the close of another year, we find ourselves reflecting upon the faithfulness of the tremendous God we serve. Thinking back over the past months it is so reassuring to see how the mighty hand of God was at work in even the most trying and difficult circumstances we faced. God’s grace and mercy have been the peace that we encountered settling our spirits when circumstances seemed almost too much to bear. We have truly been able to count our blessings this year, and give thanks to God who has been our never changing, ever abundant, source of joy & strength.
This year we saw the near completion of the construction stage of the VOH homes and celebrated with our Grand Opening / Dedication ceremony with delegation from Canada, Kenya, Zambia, and our Malawian family and friends.
Watching the children and moms participate in the program caused us to reflect back over the past six years from turning the first sod, finishing the first house, hiring the first mom, admitting the first child to actually experiencing the sounds and noise of forty three children playing in the playground, six moms and two aunties trying their best to be parent to non-biological children with so many different personalities and backgrounds, observing seven full time staff members fulfilling their role in the day to day operations of the village; it’s no mistake in saying… “This is indeed the miraculous hand of God working throughout the VOH.” We give all the Glory to God!
As we prepare for another “CHRISTMAS DAY” anticipating how the children spending their first Christmas with us will react when they open their gifts, share a turkey dinner and hear the Christmas story for the first time, one cannot help but reminisce about the goodness of God realizing that he gave heaven’s very best, HIS only beloved SON, who was willing to leave the Ivory Palaces of glory and come to earth in the form of man, be born as a baby in a stable and eventually lay HIS life down for each and every child that calls the VOH Malawi their home… Isn’t that awesome?
We would like to thank all our prayerful and financial supporters for your commitment to our ministry over the past year and ask that you would continue to pray that God will continue to bless our ministry so we can be a blessing to others. Just imagine, you that are partnering with us prayerfully and financially are a part of a master plan devised over 2000 years ago and still working today… setting captives free.
Be blessed and enjoy this festive holiday season with your families and friends, remembering… “Jesus is definitely the Reason for this Season”.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
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VOH Malawi Official Grand Opening – Dedication
December 5th 2009 was an exciting and memorable day for the Village of Hope-Malawi Trust (VOH). It was a day to give glory to God just as our program theme stated… “Come and see what the LORD hath done.”
Ivy and I were awarded the privilege nearly seven years ago to come to Malawi to be project manager for the construction of the VOH Children’s Homes.
The VOH became incorporated on February 27th, 2007 and shortly thereafter opened its doors for operation. Today six (6) of the twelve (12) homes are operating with a total of forty-three (43) permanent resident children.
We give the glory to the one who deserves all the glory… Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!!!
In her opening speech, our Guest of Honor Miss H. Kulemeka, Malawi’s National Director for “THE MINISTERY OF GENDER, CHILD DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNITY SERVICES” asked the audience to sing “To God be the Glory Great Things He Hath Done” after which she stated; “Being here today, seeing and hearing the moms and children as well as other various speakers, this song sums up what I feel here today… TO GOD BE THE GLORY.”
After she delivered her speech, Pastor Paul Foster, General Superintendent for the PAONL, performed the act of dedication after which she unveiled the dedication plaque, cut the “RED BOW RIBBON” and declared the VOH officially opened to the glory of God.
Other official delegates present at the event were; Malawi Government officials from various ministries, PAOM General Executive, interdenominational pastors, PAONL representatives; Pastor Paul and Mrs. Margaret Foster, Mr Allan Paddock, VOH Joyful Sound Home donor; Mr Dwight and Mrs Cynthia Petten, PAOC’s Regional Africa Director; Rev. Stephen Chaloner, VOH Zambia representatives; Mr. Allan and Mrs. Geneva Wright, PAOC Missionary colleagues and fellow workers from Malawi, Kenya and Zambia, VOH Board of Trustees, many Malawian family and friends, and of course… the VOH-MT Mothers, Aunties, staff, volunteers and last but certainly not least… THE VOH Malawi CHILDREN THEMSELVES.
The VOH Moms favored us with two beautiful song selections after which Beatrice Maseko (VOH first mother) and Jones Mwengo, VOH Social welfare/ child protection officer, delivered speeches. We heard messages of congratulations, read by Allan Paddock (NL), along with other speeches delivered by Allan Wright, Dwight Petten, Rev Stephen Chaloner, Rev. Gilford Matonga (PAOM Bishop), after which Pastor Paul Foster favored us with God’s Word. Immediately after the ceremony service a tour of the VOH homes was hosted by the National Director and Administrator accompanied by a very beautiful meal catered by Mara Kara (friend to VOH) and served by the many volunteers of the day.
At the time of the event Malawi was in a fuel crisis and transportation was a challenge, yet despite this, the event was attended by approximately 250 people who all put forth an extra effort to be with us, for which we were truly grateful.
In closing this special report I would like to remind us all that in view of the situations and backgrounds of each of the Village of Hope children… There are no second class citizens… God made us all in HIS OWN IMAGE… There is no minorities; no human being is greater or lesser than any other… We are all the same in God’s eyes.
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November 29, 2009
One never knows what a day will bring forth! Last night I got a phone call from the VOH Social worker (Jones) that the Department of Social Welfare (DSW) just called him informing him that a Dr at the Govt hospital had called the DSW informing them that a baby boy was born on Nov 5th. The mother died and the child was never claimed from the hospital up to now, Nov 27th.… 23 days later and the hospital is in no position to continue caring for him.
Jones and I left this morning to investigate the case and in route to that hospital we got a call from the YC House mother (Beatrice) to come immediately back to another hospital where she was.
You may remember Fahad (AKA Josh) born Oct 11th 2009 arrived at the VOH Malawi at the age of 39 days on Nov 18th 2009. Both his mother (deceased) & Father were HIV positive and were taking ARV’s twice a day. His mother was also taking a treatment hoping to prevent the child from being positive but since Josh was under the age of 6 months he could not be tested.
Wednesday afternoon, November 25th Josh started refusing his milk bottle and his mother Beatrice became concerned and monitored him for a few hours and then informed me of the situation around 5:00PM. I instructed Beatrice to monitor him closely and if he didn’t take his milk during the evening / night, take him to the clinic first thing Thursday Morning. There was no change overnight so Beatrice took Josh to the area 30 Police clinic 7:30 AM on Thursday. There wasn’t much they could do for him at the clinic but he was diagnosed with malaria so they gave her medicine for that, with specific instructions not to give him that medicine yet but referred him to Baylor HIV Clinic (Govt operated) and advised her to use whatever medicine Baylor prescribed.
Since Josh was now 6 weeks old he could also be tested for HIV aids and it was discovered that he indeed was exposed to the virus but the results, as to whether or not he was positive himself, would not be verified until sometime in January 2010.
Baylor Clinic was concerned that at 6 weeks Josh was still only weighing 2.36 kgs. So they referred him to Kamuzu Central Hospital (another Govt. hospital).
At Central they ran more tests and confirmed the Malaria and Marasmus (severe malnourishment) and Pneumonia. The Doctor was suspicious of other problems and so he ordered a spinal tap and the results confirmed Meningitis. He was immediately admitted and prescribed medication for all 4 problems and treated through I V. and around 3:00 PM he was hooked up to oxygen.
Beatrice was informed that he should remain in the hospital until they could at least get him past the malnourishment stage. Beatrice stayed all night and Margaret (Lewisporte Mother) came at 6:50 AM Friday to relieve her. Beatrice however, wanted to stay until the Doctor came in at 8:00 AM to get an updated report first hand. The Doctor said Josh should stay in the hospital and on oxygen until his breathing was stabilized and he could breathe on his own.
Beatrice stayed with Margaret for another while but around 10:30 AM Beatrice noticed that Josh looked different. She left Josh with Margaret and ran for a Doctor who returned with her and un-hooked the oxygen, took his vital signs, and pronounced that Josh had died around 10:30 AM, Friday, Nov 27th 2009. The death certificate will not be ready until next week but the Dr said it was probably a combination of all 4 things that caused his death but most likely meningitis.
The funeral service also took place today 1:00 PM at Area 18 cemetery in Lilongwe near the VOH.
The Cultural ways are quite different here. Death is just part of life… There is no coffin for an infant child, just wrapped in a Chinetenje (wrap) and the mothers take the child to an unmarked grave area and bury the child themselves. It seemed so cold according to our culture standards of burial… it happened so fast… pronounced dead at 10:30 AM, wrapped in his own blanket, put in my arms and told… go bury the body… we buried the remains and were home again 1: 30 PM.
It was quite a shocking experience for Ivy & I, especially realizing that just yesterday they buried Ivy’s 16 year old Nephew in NL… we were reminded of the events surrounding a burial back home… it’s just too dramatic to describe the events here, at the end, myself and a house mother covered in the grave.
When I was leaving the VOH today Beatrice said to me, tears in her eyes… “Uncle Junior it seems as if I left my baby somewhere and I need to go get him and bring him home”. Ironically, Beatrice was the first VOH mother; she received the first baby, and had to suffer the pain of losing the first child to death.
We know that God’s grace is sufficient and Josh is with Jesus but that doesn’t alter the fact that this is the first child we lost through death at VOH Malawi and everyone at VOH is very sad and upset today. Please pray for Beatrice and the children at the YC home (where Josh resided) as well as all VOH moms, aunties, and children.
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November 17, 2009
Greetings everyone,
For those of you that have contributed to Jones surgery he wants me to pass on his regards and his sincere thanks. He went into the theatre this morning for surgery at 8:45 AM and came out at 11:30 AM. He phoned me at 12:15 noon overwhelmed by what people have done for him. He was conscious throughout the surgery and said it was scary but God was with him.
The first words he said was “The surgery is a success and I am so grateful for what people have done to me” … Malawian way of saying… “What people have done FOR me” .
I will keep you posted as time goes on. He will be in the hospital for 3 – 4 days and he said he was heading back to sleep now…LOL! He’s a good man and we thank you for all you have done for him.
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October 2009
Today we opened the second sponsored Gander house and have two children, Wenase and Praisewell, a new baby we got today. This reaches the half way mark in the 12 homes that originally needed sponsorship. Please pray that God will continue to open doors for us that we will be blessed with more children in the days to follow. Please continue to pray that we will find more good house mothers and that we will raise the financial support needed to sponsor the operations on the last 6 homes.
This is a little history on our new baby boy…
Praisewell Ayishoshe Jamu nicknamed “Praise” was born on April 12th 2009 to Mrs. Violet Jamu & Mr. Ayishoshe.
Mr. Ayishoshe a mini bus driver from Mzuzu, Malawi was involved in a vehicle accident which claimed his life late 2008, actual date unknown.
Violet, left alone to care for her six (6) month old baby boy, developed a severe case of pneumonia on Oct 3rd 2009 and died 3 days later on Oct 5th at the age of 20 years.
Praise, at the age of 6 months, was now a double orphan with no mother or father left to care for him, therefore the only relative available to care for him was his Great Grand-mother, Latesi Selemani Jamu, now in her late sixties.
Latesi has a small piece of land where she grows enough maze (the staple diet of Malawians) to sustain her only. Violet’s young brother, Rasford, who periodically finds piece work projects, managed to give Latesi a little financial assistance to buy some milk for his nephew but not enough to sustain him very long.
Since the death of Violet, Latesi has been feeding Praise white maze flour which should not be given to children until they are at least 1 year old. This has been causing him severe discomfort and cramping of the stomach, and for the past couple of weeks Praise is doing a lot of crying.
On October 19th 2009, the Malawi Department of Social welfare (DSW) contacted the Village of Hope-Malawi Trust (VOH-MT) seeking their assistance in this matter. Since it is quite evident that his uncle and widowed great-grandmother are unable to care for his needs properly Praise is in a very vulnerable situation. Already he has experienced pneumonia and malaria. If left to be raised by his great-grandmother the possibilities of not receiving education, proper medical care and nourishment are very high.
On October 21st 2009, Praise was accepted at the VOH-MT Children’s Home as a permanent resident child. Upon arrival at the VOH-MT, Praise immediately inherited a new sister (Wenase) and a new Mother (Angela). We PRAISE God that He has directed Praise to the VOH-MT where he will receive love, and the proper care he needs and deserves.
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Greeting’s everyone,
Please pray for our social worker Jones Mwengo. He left for Blantyre city today for surgery on his knee to have all the pins removed from the accident (that took place in November 2008). A couple of weeks ago through an x-ray they discovered that in the accident his hip socket was broken and a piece of bone broken away. They are also attempting to do something with this to try and alleviate some of his pain. His surgery is scheduled for Tuesday morning Oct 13th 2009. Thanks for your prayers on his behalf.
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September 15th 2009
Greetings in Jesus name:
Ivy and I would like to call all partners to PRAYER! We have an urgent request as a result of a very serious matter facing us at the Village Of Hope and we need God to intervene NOW!!
Due to so many difficulties and challenges that we have been facing at the VOH, Ivy has organized weekly Bible study and prayer time for the VOH Moms. The mothers are doing prayer walks around the property, and over the past few weeks there has been much prayer an fasting for the Lord to intervene in the challenges we are facing.
It seems that every day there is some new challenge. You may recall Mr. Jones motorcycle accident, Beatrice’s broken finger and now Ivy is down with a severe case of Malaria.
With all the prayer and fasting taking place God is starting to reveal some of the problems within the VOH. Last week we felt impressed to have all the children taken to the local church and have them all dedicated to the Lord. The next week eight children came forward to their moms and informed them they were practicing witchcraft and they wanted to stop. It seems that 4 children were involved in this before coming to the VOH and they were recruiting children within the VOH.
This is serious!!! We have called the churches and other prayer groups to come and anoint with oil the VOH homes, beds, rooms, children, moms, vehicles and everything VOH owns, they have prayed the prayer of faith that God will deliver these children.
The good thing is that the children have recognized their situation and they are the ones that have come to us confessing and wanting to stop these practices, but they are feeling overwhelmed by a power to continue. One child even said he was responsible for Mr. Jones accident and another claimed she caused Beatrice to break her finger.
Folks, to a lot of you, this might seem like a fairy tale but in this country WITCHCRAFT IS REAL… it is not a fable. It is very much in practice, especially among younger children that are taught by their grandparents when left to be raised by them. No wonder we have been facing struggles and challenges on a daily basis at the VOH Malawi. Our children need deliverance!!!
Remember, when we go up against the enemy we need the covering of the blood of Jesus on our lives, he will fight back… but we must remember that God’s word says that, “Greater is HE that is in us than he that is in the world”. Therefore, we send out an urgent prayer request to all churches, prayer groups and fellow born-again believers around the world…
PLEASE PRAY THAT THESE CHILDREN WILL BE DELIVERED COMPLETELY IN JESUS NAME, AND THAT VOH WILL MOVE FORWARD UNDER THE ANOINTING AND POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
Thank you for your prayers!
===== June 15, 2009Since our last newsletter we have returned to the Philippines to attend and speak at the 20th anniversary of Noah’s Ark. It was great to visit and connect with all the children that we left six years ago. My how time changes people! Some have grown into young men & women and some, who were just toddlers back then, are now nearing their teens. I guess that means we are getting older as well. From there we went to Bali, Indonesia for our World Wide retreat and connected with missionaries from all over the world and reminisced about God’s goodness to us in our ministries. Recently we received funding from individuals that had visited Malawi in 2008 with various teams. The funds we received were specified for certain events. One such event was a feeding program for widows in remote villages. We did three feeding programs through the local churches and it was a delight to see the response of the elderly when they realized that someone, somewhere, that they didn’t even know, cared for them. This opened a door whereby we not only told them, but demonstrated to them, God’s love for humanity. It’s amazing how much louder actions are than mere words.
In Canada now I guess winter is over for you. We are just going out of our rainy season and the cold season (winter) is fast approaching. Last year the Village Of Hope (VOH) planted its first gardens and now with the rains finished, we have started our very first harvest and the children, mom’s and staff are very excited about the yield.
VOH Malawi now has thirty-six children on site and five houses open. We still use one of the houses for various activities but we thank God that one of the local churches, Lilongwe Pentecostal Church (LPC) has taken the VOH community under its wing and provides transportation every Sunday for all the children and mom’s to attend the second Sunday morning service. Great things are happening in the lives of the children. During the Easter break the VOH Children have been busy doing ministry through Easter skits at LPC and for our visitors at the VOH activity centre. One of our children is now in boarding school and getting good grades for which we are also thankful.
This past week month our visiting team from Canada donated maze flour, clothing and blankets to the elderly, street children, and orphans as well as wheelchairs to the disabled. It was an awesome week and we thank God for the opportunity we had to express His love once again though our giving.
Many people have asked how Jones is doing; we are grateful that Jones is out of the cast and back to work full time. He is very positive and attributes his miracles to God’s grace.
There are still many challenges but as Jones would say, “God is in control, Sir!” That’s encouraging to know.
We ask that you would continue to pray for the VOH Malawi. We are still in desperate need of housemothers. We need God to intervene on our behalf. Would you pray with us today and believe that God will meet this need? Also, please continue to pray for operational funding so we can continue to open more houses and fill them with children.
Thank you all once again for your love and support remember we are “YOUR HANDS EXTENDED.”
Blessings
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April 2009
Please click here for a CBC news report on the Malawi Village of Hope
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February 15, 2009
It’s hard to believe that we are already in to our second month of 2009. It seems like it was just yesterday that we celebrated the New Year activities.
Ivy and I have been really busy this past two month. Jan.15th 2009 we received a new 4 month old baby boy named Esau Bread. Wednesday Feb. 11th we opened the 5th VOH-Malawi home, “Solomon’s porch”. God willing by Wednesday Feb 18th we will have two children in that home. We covet your prayers for this new venture.
Last month, Jan. 2009, we visited Noah’s Ark, a Children’s home in Banaue, Philippines that I oversaw being constructed. I (jr) had the opportunity to speak at the 20th anniversary of Noah’s Ark to nearly 400 people that attended the event. Linda Veldhuizen, the Director of Noah’s Ark, is doing a tremendous job there.
We attended the VOH-Malawi church Sunday Feb.15th 2009. Ivy asked all the kids, from the youngest to the oldest, what they wanted to be when they grew up. Some said Soldiers, Police Officers, Lawyers, Doctors, Nurses, Teachers, Pilots, some girl dared to be the State President some day. Ivy then gave a brief message entitled… “Believe in your Dream.” She challenged the kids to have a dream… Believe in it… Hold tight to it… BECAUSE… with God all things are possible. When she finished the children started to sing… “I’m in the Lord’s army”… it was powerful.
A few years ago Malawi had a shortage of maize and a number of people died of starvation. This year it seems to be somewhat of a repeat of that and so Ivy & I, beyond our VOH duties, are currently working with the National Churches to spread the good news of the gospel through food distribution. Just last week I stepped out in faith and bought 20 bags of Maize flour, Pounded corn, the Malawian stable diet. That evening before I even got the flour unloaded from my truck I received a phone call from NL with over a $1,000.00 donation for such a need if I saw one. How awesome is that?? He (God) answered the need even before we prayed!! Already we have partnered with 2 churches to do an outreach ministry and corn distribution. Pray that this will be the means of many souls coming to know Christ in a personal way.
We are uncertain at this point in time what God as in store for us this year 2009 here at VOH-Malawi but one thing is certain… in His time… in His will, He worketh all things well.
We covet your prayers for VOH-Malawi, our personal ministry, and the finances to see the construction finished and every home operating at the VOH-Malawi bringing Glory to the name of our Lord & Saviour, Jesus Christ.
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December 31, 2008
We contemplated sending out our Christmas greeting the 24th but decided that since we had plans to have a birthday party today, Dec 25th, to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ we thought we would wait and send you a picture or two along with a simple message.
There was 43 people at the birthday party which we had the privilege to host at our home. One of the children prayed and thanked Jesus for where H e brought them from and where they are today. This was their birthday gift of “thanksgiving” to Him.
We hope that the birthday party that you have to celebrate our Lord’s birth today is as precious as ours was. We had a cake and the children sang Happy birthday to Jesus.
The message we at the Village of Hope-Malawi would like to send out to you this year is that Christmas is simply a time to say. “JESUS WE REMEMBER IT’S YOUR BIRTHDAY.”
From our home to yours… “Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.”
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November 18, 2008 (Praise!)
“We would like to thank all of you that remembered Mr. Jones in prayer this week (see below**). Mr. Jones is a vital part of the VOH-Malawi and we thank God for his speedy recovery. He was released from the hospital today and he asked if he could please return to work tomorrow. Already he is walking around a little without his crutches. He asked me to thank you all and to tell you of his miracles.”
November 16, 2008
Prayer Request
I (Jr.) was in the hospital this week with severe angina attacks. I got out of the hospital yesterday feeling much better, but I sure could use the prayers of God’s people for a full and speedy recovery.
Thanks so much.
November 15, 2008
It’s been a long time since we did a newsletter. Too Long!!
Since July, in our time back in Malawi we have been extremely busy hosting three VOH teams from Canada and trying to get re-adjusted to life in Africa. Although busy, we really enjoyed the team from YC, Lewisporte, and Grand Falls, NL.
The teams were a blessing to us personally in so many ways but especially to the children of VOH. The children still talk about these teams.
In Canada now I guess most people are getting ready for Christmas, rushing around trying to find gifts for people who have everything, while in Africa people are struggling to get enough food for today. This is the time of the year when people are starving because all the maze (staple food) is finished from last year’s harvest and they are waiting for the rains to come in order to plant for next year.
Here in Africa they celebrate Christmas the way it is suppose to be celebrated; “The birth of Jesus”. If they get a chicken and rice for Christmas dinner they will be so thankful.
WE TAKE SO MUCH FOR GRANTED. As you celebrate Christmas this year, think of all the blessings that God has blessed you with.
We now have thirty-one children on site and four houses open and seven houses completed. We use one of the houses for chapel, school (we have three teachers who tutor our children three days a week), our Saturday children’s program, and church on Sunday (one of our house mothers is an ordained pastor). Our children just finished school for this year and many of them came first in classes of 200 kids and for that we give God praise.
We have seen these children grow spiritually, mentally and emotionally in the past few months.
These children come to us from all backgrounds:
1.) Alfred:
An eight year old boy came to live at VOH, he was always beating the other children. When his house mother asked him why, he said, “That is what I am used to. My caretaker always beat me and so I want to always beat other children.” One day he told his housemother that his body was itching and it felt like he needed to be beaten. She explained to him that we do not beat children at VOH, but he didn’t understand. She explained to him that God loves him and that his family at VOH loves him. He was so happy to hear this. He had never been told anything like that before.
2.) Robert:
A troubled 6 year old boy, he came to us with many problems. He lived with a single uncle who left him alone all day long with no food and he had to snatch food from people to survive. We had him evaluated by a psychologist and they said he was mentally challenged and advised we send him back to the village. But the people at VOH prayed for him and did not want him to leave. He is one of the children who came first in class. God is working miracles in the lives of these children.
3.) Baby Estere:
She is growing up tooooo fast. This is the baby whose mother died in child birth. They had selected a person to sleep on top of the baby to smother her in the night and bury her with the mother in the morning. But, thank God, VOH heard about it and was able to send their social worker to the village and arrange for her to be brought here. She is so cute. She is nine months now and is starting to stand by herself. The other children just adore her; she is so pleasant and such a happy baby.
Just as we were ready to open another home, after 4 months of waiting for the power company to just come and plug in the meter switch (they wanted to be paid a bribe and we refused, so they made us wait a long time), our housemother (63 years of age) told us she is ready to retire . We now have another housemother in training and we believe that with God’s help and the finances we will open very soon.
**This week, Mr. Jones our social worker was involved in a very serious accident. Some donors had just bought him a motorbike for traveling (he was spending over half of his pay in bus fares to get to and from work). A car came through a red light and hit him side-on leaving him unconscious. A Good Samaritan saw it and took him (and the bike) to the hospital, where he underwent surgery to try and save his kneecap which was severely crushed. Besides this, he also has two broken ribs. Please pray for him.
He is very positive and told us not to worry; God is in control and already there have been three miracles.
1.) Until this week there was no one in Malawi capable of doing such surgery, but a new doctor came this week and Jones is the first one ever to be operated on for this, within this hospital.
2.) He is a Zimbabwean and therefore had no family in Malawi to stay at the hospital at night with him (this is the culture here) and a VOH worked volunteered to stay every night.
3.) The fast recovery he feels is taking place within his body. He contributes all these miracles to God’s grace. “TO GOD BE THE GLORY.”
Let us stop here or we may bore you with such a long report. But let us finish by saying; despite all that the enemy is trying to do to discourage us and to tear down the work of VOH, we received a very encouraging hand-written poem from Canada today. This is part of what it said: “Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus… In Him we find peace and rest…Call upon him, He is waiting… In His presence you’ll be blest.”
As Mr. Jones said, “Don’t worry, Sir — everything will be okay. God is in control.”