Home to California

Well, we all made it home safely from Malawi. What an incredible experience. Every day I think of something else that happened that made it so special. God was definately at work thruout our trip, keeping us safe.

After we left COTN in Lilongwe, we journeyed on to see Maribeth at Acts III in Blantyre. It was so great to see where she has lived for the last year. She has done such incredible things with the Malawi Montessori School and the leadership training that she has done with teachers. Her heart is so huge, and her passion is so contagious. We stayed with her at the ActsIII facility, right on the edge of the village in Ndrande. I was most amazed by the amount of human noise that echoed out of that village. We spent a lot of time with Maribeth touring orphanages and seeing what she has been doing. I was impressed by the number of contacts that she has and the impact that she is making on the village there. We got to paint ABC murals on several walls in the orphanages. It was truly a blessing for us to be able to do that and so see how a little paint makes such a difference. The teachers at the schools (all volunteers) were so happy to be able to grab a paint brush and help.

I was so blessed to travel with such an incredible team. We had a lot of fun getting to know each other. It was so great for me to see everyone stretch out of their comfort zones to serve God and his children in whatever way they needed.

Thanks to all who were praying for us. I felt safe and protected, covered in your prayers.

God Bless!

Mark's Thoughts : Part 7 plus visuals

I thought it would be a good idea to see why we went to Africa in the first place. The children there are so happy and they are always eager to have their picture taken. Here are just some of the precious faces we were blessed to hang out with. God is doing some amazing things with these kids. They truly are the future of not only Malawi, but whatever worldly plan God has for them. The impact they have made on all our hearts is indescribable. God is good!

Mark's Thoughts: Part 6

I survived!!!! I made it through two intensive weeks with five women. They actually were not that intensive. I had a great time with my team of ladies. The Lord's hand covered us the whole trip. Thank you Jesus!!!! Now that we are home and have time to reflect on our trip I know I will have more to say about our incredible experiences. It was an awesome trip. Our time in Malawi was packed with so many activities that it will take time tell them all. Thank you for all your prayers and support. We definitely felt them thousands of miles away. Praise God!
More thoughts to come...

Final nite in Lilongwe

We have finished our time at COTN. This is our last night here. We had a great time in Chiwengo Village. We were able to put new screens on three of the houses, they were so excited to be able to sleep with their windows open. We also donated three laptops to them and provided basic lessons. They were so excited to have the ability to use a computer. It was wonderful to be able to bless them with those items. We went to the village to say farewell to the widows.
Tomorrow we are off to visit Maribeth at Acts III in Blantyre. It will be great to see what is going on in that ministry, and to connect with her.
More later!!

Bless you!

Made it!

It is so great to be back in Malawi. We were greeting so warmly at the airport by widows and several people that we had made connections with last year. They always make you feel like you are home again. We have spend the last two days with the widows and children. Monday we went with the widows to their homes so they could show us the life of a Malawian woman – how they cook, clean, chop wood, carry water. We all had the opportunity to learn to do these things. Even though we all know how to sweep, it is a little different to be sweeping and mopping dirt!! It provides great entertainment for them. The children are so beautiful. We were greeting all through the village with cherry smiles and waves. They love to walk with us and hold our hands.
We spent Tuesday morning with the widows, doing a little Bible teaching and making beaded bracelets with them They were so excited to have us there with them. We will be heading back on Wednesday morning to bless them with all of the fabric and yarn that was so generously donated. They are going to be so excited when we show up with 3 full suitcases of materials just for them. They use those materials to make items to sell to generate income. Thanks to all who donated items for these beautiful women.
Yesterday we had the chance to meet with the children that we have sponsored individually. It was great to have lunch with them, and just have a chance to get to know a little more about them.
We went to the Children’s Crisis Nursery on Tuesday afternoon and had such a wonderful time holding little ones. They have 14 babies there at the present time, so you can just go in and pick one up to cuddle. I was in heaven. They had little 5 day old baby twins that were so sweet…
We are off this afternoon to head up to another village up north. In this area, COTN has several houses where 8-10 children live. While there, we will put new screens on their homes. We will spend two nights up there. I can’t wait to see what God has in store for us up there.
We covet your prayers!!
Will write more when I get a chance!
God Bless You!

London!

We made it to London this morning. Flights were all on time, and all. We rode the tube into London and went to the Tower of London, saw the jewels and some castles - ate fish and chips, and are now back at the airport waiting for the next leg.

I am so excited to get to Malawi and meet with the people from Children of the Nations. I know that God has such incredible plans for our time here. I received a call just as we got on the plane in SFO that they were anxiously awaiting our arrival.
I think we are more excited to see them, tho.

More when we arrive, if we get internet access.

God Bless!!

Mark's Thoughts : Part 5

Okay.... it is Friday morning! We leave today in a matter of hours not days anymore! WOW!!! Go figure I woke up early unable to sleep. I feel anxious to get going, but at the same time I am feeling confident and as well prepared as I can be. Bags are packed and I am enjoying my last cup of coffee at home. My goal for this morning is to get as many hugs and kisses from my family I can before we head for the airport. So far I am well reaching my goal! Praise God!!!

Pray for safe travel for team Malawi '09!!! Woohoo!!!!

YEAH!!!! Team Malawi 2009!!!

Final Team Meeting

It's so incredible that two weeks from today, we will be heading back to Malawi! For half of us it is the excitement of going back to a place that we are SO touched by, for the other half, there is the great anticipation of the unknown. I remember that feeling last year.
We had our final team meeting and dinner last night. Before that, we met at Mark's to pack supplies into suitcases and get them all weighed. We have such a great assortment of things to take over to Malawi with us... fabric, books, crayons, toiletries, yarn, beads! Our bags will be packed to maximum capacity!! That is so great!
Our team will be serving together at the World Vision Caregiver Kit build project here at Lakeside Church next Saturday - which is sure to be an awesome experience.
We have received our schedule from COTN so now know some of the things we will be helping with. It looks like there will be plenty of time spent with the widows and children. We will travel to another village and install screens on windows and teach computer skills to some of the older children.
I am so honored to be able to return to Malawi. Thank you to everyone who has given financially, donated items and committed to pray. People have committed to fast for our team (one is fasting today!!). Thank you, thank you, thank you!
God Bless You!

Mark's Thought's Part : 4

"Even a child is known by his actions, by whether his conduct is pure and right." Proverbs 20:11.

"He called a little child and had him stand among them...unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Mathew 18:2-4.

God shows us things in so many different ways. Even at times when we are least expecting it. Yesterday God humbled me through a child and confirmed the reason I am even going on this trip. Here is my story:

I was at a children's birthday party for a friend of ours. My daughter and their daughter are both 7 years old and are like two peas in a pod. My daughter's friend had heard about my trip to Africa to help orphans her age that are less fortunate than we are. Before we left the party she had brought me an envelope which she had decorated with her name and flowers and other adorable pictures that 7 yr old girls love to draw. Inside the envelope was money for my trip from her. It was all her allowance money she had earned. She gave it up without the blink of an eye. For her it was like giving up all she had.

I was not only humbled by her selfless giving, I was encouraged to go to Africa and show those kids that people do love and care about them thousands of miles away. To see life through a child's eye makes you stop and rethink about what is important. Jesus calls us to be like a child and not let the world cloud our minds. Why can't we all show selfless love and compassion without analyzing it all to death. The answer really is quite simple.

Mark's Thoughts : Part 3

The garage sale was a huge success. It was a major blessing in so many ways. The first blessing was our team working together to get the sale organized, set up, and torn down. This is a great team and I think we are going to do great things together while we are in Africa. The second blessing was God bringing all the people to the sale, which by the way was a ton. There were cars parked everywhere and people coming from every direction. Another blessing was the weather. God kept the rain away all morning and gave us just enough time to do what we needed to do. There was one part during the morning when I looked up and saw a square patch of blue sky directly over the house we were at.....seriously. The best blessing of all was being able to bless all the people who bought stuff at our sale. We sold tons and tons of stuff at ridiculously low prices. There were some people who desperately needed clothes and we were able to provide the clothes at next to nothing prices. They walked away with the biggest smiles. What blows me away is how much we still made selling everything so cheap. God definitely had His hand over that garage sale. Thank you God for all your blessings. Africa, here we come!

Praises!

We had such an awesome time at the garage sale. It was a great day for our team to come together to raise funds for our trip - we raised over $1200!!! What a blessing! We had so many great items donated to sell - thanks to all who donated for this great cause. The weather held out until noon when we got a little rain. WOW! Our God is great!
Our team is such an incredible team of hard working people. Everyone has their own reasons and passions for serving - it is so cool to see it all coming together. I know from past experience that we go with the heart of serving - but come back with a renewed faith in our Lord. I can't wait to see what God will do in our lives. It is most definately a win-win situation!
I am getting so excited to go - one month away! That is so hard to believe. Things are coming along great. We had another team meeting last week. Handed out so much information to the team, they had to be a little overwhelmed. We have secured a laptop to take over to COTN to donate and to help them learn a few basic computer skills on.
Thanks for keeping us in your prayers. I pray that all of the little details will come together in the month ahead.

Mark's Thoughts : Part 2

This trip is coming up in a hurry. As I plan and cross things off my list to prepare it gradually sinks in that I am going to be gone for 16 days. To some it doesn't sound very long, but for someone with a young family it feels like an eternity. It is going to be hard leaving behind my wife and three kids (third one was born 3/13/09) for two weeks, but it will be a great experience to share and talk about with my kids as they grow up. I am sure my perspectives and priorities will change after the trip. I am excited to see what God wants to teach and show me.
Only 6 weeks to go!!!

6 Weeks!

Wow! I just looked at the calendar and realized that there are only 6 weeks until we are on our way. So much great stuff has been happening. Share partner letters went out from all all of our team and we are getting an amazing response in both prayer and finances. Thanks to all of you! God is good. I am in constant contact with both of the areas we are visiting. Plans are being made for an incredible time.

As of today, when we are working with COTN in Lilongwe, we will be helping with the widows program - teaching them a song, encouraging them through scripture, creating bracelets and visiting their homes. One of our team members has prepared a Bible Study lesson for the children there, and we will visit the Children's Crisis Nursery to hold and love on some little ones. Another very exciting thing will be a little side trip up to a village in Chiwengo where we will put screens on the windows to keep those pesky mosquitos out. COTN is trying to get some laptop computers donated so we can teach them some computer basics. We will visit the children living in the homes provided by COTN - there are two new little babies there that we will love to hold.

While in Blantyre, visiting Acts III/Malawi Montessori Project and Maribeth, we are planning to do our Bible lesson with the children in the village, and to paint alphabet murals on walls in the learning centers. One of our team members is hard at work preparing that. We will get to help in the garden, visit the hospital and just spend time with the people there.

I am so blessed to get to be going back to Malawi, and especially blessed to have such an awesome team!

I pray that God will work mightily in your life~

Mark's Thoughts : Part 1

I am so excited to be part of this team (even if I am the only dude). I think this trip is going to be filled with so many life-changing experiences that none of us really know what to expect.

That is part of the joy of trusting in the Lord and letting Him guide us and show us part of the world through His eyes. Keeping an open mind and an open heart for this trip will allow all of us to see just a fraction of His love and grace. How awesome is that!

As our itinerary continues to fall into place as to what we are going to do and see I get even more excited. Praise God!

Garage Sale

I just wanted to let everyone know that we are having a garage sale to raise funds for this trip on Saturday, March 21st in Folsom. Garage sales were the original way that funds were raised for ActsIII when Maribeth first was planning to go... so it is only fitting that we try to raise funds in the same way for this trip. All funds raised will be used for this trip, either to help pay for air fare, food, etc. or will go to the ministries that we will be serving. Please let any of us know if you have items you would like to donate, and we'll pick them up.
Bless you!

Moving forward

We have the airline flights confirmed! It is so exciting to see this trip coming together. The team members are getting their Share Partner letters out. I just know that so many prayers will be lifted and answered because of these letters going out. Just imagine...by the end of next week - at LEAST 150 new people will have Malawi on their hearts. Many of them praying, but ALL of them aware of something happening. That's so great! God will be glorified!
There are so many little things happening that are so awesome. Debbie's husband has found someone to donate 15 soccer balls - the children won't be kicking a can or rocks around!! She has also found a friend to donate some fabric. Let me tell you - there is no limit to what they can do with material, yarn, etc. We will also take some of the fabric and yarn on to bless the women in Blantyre. Kelsey is working to try to get some plastic flutes for the music room at the Montessori school, rumor has it she is going to learn a song or two to teach them, too!! Pegi is doing research to find books to donate to the schools that have children of all colors pictured in them! The kids love to see that. It just warms my heart to see this team all working to try to find ways to bless the people of Malawi.
I pray that our team will continue to listen to God's prompting to ask - and allow others to bless this trip!

Things to look forward to...

Last year, we visited Children of the Nations in Malawi. Here are some pictures of what we got to experience...

First there were the beautiful, innocent children...

We worked with the widows program there. They are knitting and sewing items to sell to support their families. I was so taken by how beautiful and loving these women were. They loved to dance and sing of their love for Jesus.

We also had the chance to go to a widow's home and help to prepare a meal with them. What an experience. Of course we didn't speak their language, but so much was communicated, just by being there with them.

I can't wait to get back to see how much the program has grown and how God has blessed their lives.

Trip Planning

Okay! We are in the process of making plane reservations. We have had our first team meeting. I am so excited and feel so blessed to have such an amazing group of people going with me to Malawi. Last year was incredible, and I can only imaging what God has in store for all of us this year.
Our team is comprised of two other women who went to Malawi with me last year. They are both true friends that I love to spend time with. We have a dude coming with us this year - he has an incredible heart for Christ. He has spend so much time supporting Maribeth, one of the women we'll see on our adventure. He will be such a blessing to her. There are two other new members on the team, one a beautiful young lady with a HUGE burn to get to Africa and serve God and the people there, and the other one with just a desire to serve however she can.
It is so incredible how we are all connected in such a unique way - and I can't wait to get to know each one of them a little bit better. I do know no one will be be same when we get back.