Medical: Today (Tuesday) was the first clinic away from the church and in a village which was about a mile from the Madisi church. The team worked with local practitioners that included two doctors, two clinical assistants and three nurses. They were also assisted by two surveillance officers (think crowd control). The combined group saw about 135 patients. There was an outbreak of scabies in the village, so many patients were treated for it. There was also a lot of malaria. After returning to the parsonage, the team saw additional patients at the church. The team is tired but enjoying every minute. Tomorrow, the team will travel to a village that is about three miles from the church to hold another clinic. The team cannot wait to see what is in store for the team at this more remote village. Mary Beth advises that it can be seen that God is working through the team and using them for His glory.
Education Team:
Today God continued to show us His children of Malawi. We ventured into the country side of Chembayu, not knowing what we would encounter and what we saw reminded us of the realities of poverty. For the past two days we have worshiped and taught in a sanctuary with plastered walls, wooden pews and a proper pulpit…a familiar setting to all of us. As we walked toward the church today, the normal familiar became unfamiliar. We were greeted and ushered into what can best be described as a straw hut with a hard mud floor, but the people were warm beyond expectation, as they have been during our mission. We finished another great day of training and were invited to the surrounding villages church revival and football (soccer) match. We were overcome with joy today from everything we experienced, but our main takeaway after our team debriefed in the evening was the lack of bibles in the church community. Our team is energized and ready for another meaningful day tomorrow.