We learned about presence being a ministry in our formation training. I remember Paul, our Program Director, saying more than once that we’d need to learn to be okay with just being and not always doing. For most Americans this is not an easy task. We focus on productivity, accomplishments, or to simply put it – getting things done.
Looking back to mid-November, it started getting difficult for us to be content “just being present.” Our daily life was becoming a bit more routine; we spend quite a bit of time at the 2 preschools we work with and attended various meetings at church. In our spare time, we typically play with the neighborhood children or the children who come to the church property on the weekends for tilitonse (Sunday School, but on Saturday’s—all morning!) Life was beginning to feel “smooth.” [Read more…]
Our daily life is becoming more of a routine. We are adjusting to regular power outages ranging from 2 – 8 hours every few days. About two weeks ago the pump for the bore hole, where we get all of the water for our house, broke. It took just over a week to repair. Conveniences make life easier but they aren’t always necessary or available here in Malawi. For a short period of time we drew water from the neighbor’s outdoor spigot for essential water needs until the pump was fixed. 
“What do you think? A man had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ The boy answered, ‘I will not.’ But later he had a change of heart and went. The father went to the other son and said the same thing. This boy answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but did not go. Which of the two did his father’s will?…” Matthew 21:28-31 
The past few weeks have been very busy for us. The Lord continues to bless us with good health and happiness during our many activities. We thank Him daily for bringing us to Malawi and allowing us to share His love to those we meet. 
We are long overdue for a blog update. We have had a busy, but good beginning of the school year here. When we last wrote it was summer vacation, and the children were on break from December until March. During the break we took the opportunity to get involved with teaching English at vacation school, getting to know our neighbors, and helping interpret for a large medical brigade of U.S. doctors who came primarily from MN. Emily also kept on baking with the women’s baking cooperative during the summer. They are a determined group of women who didn’t want to take the summer off! We also took a small vacation to Ecuador, which was an incredible experience. Here are some updates about our ministries for the 2013 school year. 
During our preparation time back in Chicago in 2009, a wise missionary, the dear Sr. Madge, told us that Mission is “to help others to see the seeds of God in their lives, how God is already acting within them.” As Maggie and I begin this part two of our missionary service, I have been reflecting much in these first days back in Ethiopia on my need to reflect – especially on why I am here, what I am doing each day, and what is mission. 
When Rafael and I first arrived here to Perú on January 26th of this year, we spent a few weeks living with the Comboni Fathers at their house in the city of Trujillo while we settled in and became more familiar with the area. In March we moved out on our own, to the housing that the Comboni Fathers have provided us within the district of El Porvenir, a slum on the outskirts of the city. Living in this district are an estimated 164,931 people, in an area just over 22 square miles. We live among the people here in the neighborhood of Grand Chimu. This name comes from the leader of the Chimu culture, which thrived here in the northern part of Perú, until they were conquered by the Incans in 1470. We live in a couple of rooms on the second floor of a small parochial school for children, teens, and young adults with disabilities, which is next door to a small chapel that is cared for by the Comboni Fathers. 