Its a Long Way to Lilongwe

By Harry Kooistra

From the air approaching Lilongwe International Airport, Malawi appears a luscious green – an appealing contrast to wintry Michigan. The last time we were here it was brown and a blue haze hung over the countryside.

In January of this year we were privileged to visit Malawi on behalf of the Board of Word & Deed. Mr. Pete VanKempen, his daughter Louise, Mr. Corney Les (Canadian Board), and I met up in London and continued on to Nairobi, Kenya. The next leg of the journey, from Nairobi to Lilongwe, featured a spectacular view of Mt. Kilamanjaro and Manuel Kamnkhwani (Word & Deed Project Director in Malawi) waiting at the airport. While the rest of us went to our lodging to get some rest, Corney went shopping for clothes to replace his lost baggage.

Harry Kooistra enjoys a meal with Word & Deed Project Director Manuel Kamnkhwani

Early Saturday morning we loaded up and headed for Lizulu. We met up with Scott VanDyken at the turnoff to Nkhoma to exchange greetings and paperwork. After some very potent coffee at the Dedza Pottery Works, we arrived in Lizulu. We missed the turn at first because of the crowded market, but we’re glad Manuel knew the way. In Lizulu, we met with Everton Kamangire (Director of Lizulu Orphan Care) Kamangire. He introduced us to a female chief with whom we discussed business. While lunch was prepared we walked the grounds. The women here travel two kilometers to get water for their families in jars on their heads. The borewell project, an effort to drill a local well funded by Word & Deed, is progressing slowly due to the many veins of granite in the subsoil.

Everton keeps meticulous records of the work done here; his attention to detail shows up in other areas of the project as well. The children are clean and well-disciplined. He also has good people working with him. He makes it a point to involve the local authorities in the activities, keeping them informed and inviting them to the business meetings. The chiefs value this cooperation because it enables them to participate in the decision-making which affects their people.

Ladies prepare a meal for a group of orphans

Four feeding centers in this area feed 490 children. Not having a central feeding station makes sense mainly because of the topography and the difficulty of getting around during the rainy season. The trails become impassible to vehicles during the rainy season, and in some areas, even walking becomes a challenge. The number of children fed varies monthly: some move from the area, and some die, which is all too common. Medical care is rudimentary, but the center has a working relationship with Nkhoma Hospital. Everton’s little Nissan pickup truck doubles as an ambulance sometimes, but again, in the rainy season, a sick person might be several hours away from any type of medical help.

As every farmer knows, crop yields depend on rainfall. This year in Malawi the rain came late: some of the seed did not germinate and had to be replanted, using up valuable feed stocks. The margin for those uncertainties is razor thin in Malawi. In these rural areas everything depends on the maize crop; it is the staple of life. When the seed corn is eaten in order to survive, disaster is not far behind. It is difficult for us to understand that, with all the bounty we enjoy, but in Malawi this fact colors a person’s whole life.

Students at the Lizulu Orphan Care Project in Malawi

Everton does an outstanding job of managing this project. He is first a teacher and a Christian. He has a heart for the people here and it shows. He discussed education issues with us, citing the example of a young man who contacted him recently. This young man was raised in the feeding program, and received a basic education from a Christian perspective. This young man moved through the education system and is now a police officer. As the result of the love and care shown him he was able to perceive that his father had lived irresponsibly and he determined to do better. Everton underscores the fact that spiritual growth is seen in moral behavior and that hopelessness is alleviated.

Everton tells us that there are more “success” stories like this – they are what encourage him to keep going. He is thankful to God for changed lives and attributes it all to Him. This story also encourages us and we also express our thankfulness to God to be a small part of this work.

The educational system in Malawi is based on the British system. After elementary education, students take exams and move up to the next appropriate level, which a number of students from this area have done. Potential leaders come from these schools. The CCAP (Christian Church Africa Presbyterian) supports a number of these students with scholarships and other support. It is hoped that these students become active in the church and in the type of work we undertake. We have met a number of these young men and they are indeed starting to have an impact. Some have been able to study in the USA and there are a number doing so at this time.

As many of you are aware, there is an extremely high incidence of HIV/AIDS in Africa. One major effort initiated by the CCAP to help control this problem, using trained young men, is the Behavior Change Program (BCP). This Bible-based program is supported wholeheartedly by Word & Deed. The program, aimed at teens and young adults, has been taught to youth from all 141 presbyteries in the Nkoma Synod. It is also offered in the four feeding centers and is open to everyone who comes. Results are being noted but there are no clear statistics and a follow-up study needs to be done. Everton tells us that some of the orphans are HIV-positive since it is often transmitted at birth. Left untreated, these orphans face a grim future.

In our 2008 visit, we were impressed by Everton’s dedication, and our observations were also confirmed this time. Everton needs the encouragement of your prayers. He is completely dedicated to the work and asks little in return. The story of the young man warmed our hearts and it should yours as well. You see, there is hope when the Gospel is presented along with a bowl of rice and beans or nsima (corn porridge).

The problems in Africa are many and in our western eyes insurmountable, yet there is hope. This message of hope is also preached in the churches. Rev. Vasco Kachipapa, one of the authors of the BCP, preached on Deuteronomy 8. As it was with Israel in the desert, so it is with us. There were many mountains on Israel’s way – Israel had to be taught to trust, and to trust that God provides. We also must learn to trust, again and again, until we too reach Canaan. This is our only hope and it is the only hope for our brothers and sisters in Malawi. Thank you all for allowing us to serve.

A typical Malawian market place

Harry Kooistra is Secretary of Word & Deed USA and is an elder at the Caledonia United Reformed Church in Michigan, USA.

Blantyre Girls' Home update

Blantyre Girls Home is a new project located in Namiyango, Blantyre which was started in February, 2010, after the preceding project Bangwe House of Hope came to an end because of administrative problems.

Two of the Girls

On request of the Blantyre Department of Social welfare, Rev. Dr. Erwin van der Meer was asked to start a new rehabilitation centre to take care of those vulnerable girls who had been left without support when the former project closed. Rev. Dr. Erwin van der Meer who is a missionary from the Netherlands and a development consultant is also the W&D treasurer in Malawi. With the support of his mission Stichting Afrika Zending from the Netherlands and with the financial support of Word and Deed North America Blantyre Girls Home was established.

Some of the girls playing games

The project is run under the administrative supervision of a local board and under the spiritual supervision of a local church. Currently there are 12 girls in the Blantyre Girls Home aged 14 to 21 of which most have been involved in prostitution to make ends meet. Others come from homes where they have been subject to severe abuse. The vision of the centre is to provide a safe house, a place of healing and a place where the girls get an opportunity to change their lifestyle and make a new start in life.

Making Crafts

Besides the 12 girls in the home there are also 11 girls in a home based care programme, most of whom have been in rehabilitation before and are now assisted in the process of re-integrating in society. As the project is run from a Bible-believing Christian perspective many of the girls become Christians in the process including some from a Muslim or traditional religious background. According to recent research done by a Belgian psychology student the girls find a lot of strength and comfort in their new found faith.

Director Frank Phiri

The current director is Mr. Frank Phiri who has been doing an exceptional job. Recently the home celebrated its official opening after formal registration was completed and the project has been receiving lots of positive media attention in the newspapers and on television. Not only is the project considered to be a model project by the Blantyre department of social welfare but they have also arranged for the further training of girls home personnel in social work with a South African university at the cost of the Malawi government. It is our dream that more centres can be started in all of Malawi’s major cities as child and teenage prostitution is a big and growing problem in Malawi.

Slums near the home

Malawi: Yoswa Women's School

Chitenges, Chalk, and the Catechism

By Caroline VanDyken

On Tuesday afternoons, I follow a winding path down to a small village set within the larger village of Nkhoma Mission. At the path’s end are the homes and gardens of the seminary students of Josophat Mwale Theological Institute, named to honor one of Malawi's first ministers. The seminary is located on the other side of Nkhoma, but here, surrounded by small, red-bricked homes, stands a second education building: Yoswa Women's School. This is the training center for the wives of the future pastors and the school where I have been teaching a class on the Heidelberg Catechism since last October.

There are currently 21 women enrolled in Yoswa Women's School, whose mandate is to prepare the wives of the seminary students to be godly examples, teachers, and leaders in the communities their husbands are called to. They are equipped through a variety of classes: theology, counseling, home management, sewing, and cooking. Most of the women are mothers of young children and the location of the school within the village makes it possible for them to attend classes while their children play outside. Babies come along to class, asleep in chitenges (large, colorful pieces of fabric) tied to their mothers' backs. At the end of three years of training, the women will graduate alongside their husbands.

Many of the classes are taught by Mrs. Agnes Chimkhoka, headmistress of Yoswa, widow of an Nkhoma pastor, and my faithful translator. I have become particularly grateful for her excellent English skills on the afternoons that she is absent and one of the students must take her place. Blank or confused expressions tell me my message is not being communicated. The education level of these women varies widely, from post-secondary degrees to others who did not finish elementary school. Their English skills generally correlate with their level of education and some understand virtually no English. And although my ability to say hello, goodbye, and a few other phrases is greatly appreciated by Malawians, that ability is the extent of my Chichewa. Agnes' proficiency at grasping my meaning in English and passing it on clearly to the students in Chichewa is a gift from the Lord to each one of us in the classroom.

It is an exciting challenge bringing the truths of Scripture through the structure of the Heidelberg Catechism in a way that is relevant and comprehensible to this group of African women. I have found using illustrations, object lessons, and stories in my lessons to be particularly meaningful for them. Many of the ladies have few experiences beyond their lives in small rural villages and I must always remember this when I'm teaching. As I was planning for one lesson, I thought I could explain the idea of our obedience to God's law resulting in joy and blessing by using the example of a train that only functions well when it travels as it was designed to: on its track. I was pleased with the analogy until I realized that many of my students have never seen a train!

Agnes Chimkhoka, headmistress of Yoswa

I make liberal use of the classroom's chalkboard and my limited drawing skills to illustrate various truths. A bridge labeled “Jesus” over a large chasm labeled “sin” shows how Christ our mediator makes it possible for God's people to be united with Him again. A simple sketch of some waves and two stick people, one drowning and the other lying dead on the bottom of “Lake Malawi” induces some giggles, but hopefully also increases my students' understanding of why salvation involves being born again. We are not able to call for help and reach out a hand to grasp our Savior. We are like the man dead on the bottom of the sea, unable to do anything to save himself. Our salvation is completely the work of Jesus Christ. And what a joy for this teacher to watch as a simple drawing or story causes eyes to light up with understanding and then to hear the questions the women eagerly ask, searching for more truth.

There have also been opportunities to try to bridge the gap between the white teacher and the black students; to show them that the msungus (white people) are perhaps not as different from them as they think and to help me understand them a little better. A lesson on the image of God in man teaches that for all mankind, rich or poor, educated or illiterate, powerful or weak, our true value and significance lies in our being made in the image of our Creator. A story from my life, used to illustrate a point, is always received with rapt attention. I hope these personal examples help the women understand that I, too, struggle with sin, pain, and unanswered questions. We begin and end each lesson with prayer and I am touched by their requests for rain, a good harvest, God's blessing on their school. These women have so little materially, but many of them are beautiful examples of contentedness in the richness of relationships with family and friends and thankfulness for the countless benefits they possess in Jesus Christ.

The women of Yoswa School will soon be promoted to positions of honor in the communities their husbands serve. Malawians give much esteem and distinction to their leaders, which will provide these women with a special opportunity to teach and influence their neighbors. May the Lord use Yoswa School to build its students up, imparting new skills, knowledge, and wisdom. And may each woman be equipped to share the deep comfort she knows in being not her own, but belonging to her faithful Savior Jesus Christ.

Caroline Van Dyken is volunteering in Malawi with her husband Scott and children. They are members of Trinity Orthodox Reformed Church, in St. Catharines, Ontario. They will be returning home, God willing, this summer. The Yoswa Women’s school is not funded by Word & Deed.

New Building: True Friends Rejoice

Community members at the opening ceremony with the multi-purpose orphan building in the background.

By Heidi Pronk

The air was electric with excitement. The sight that greeted us reminded us of the Bible story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem amid children singing “Hosannas.” Both sides of the dirt drive were lined with children waving leafy branches and singing. Some were so excited, they hopped from foot to foot as we drove in. Many children had been there all day and their enthusiasm was both palpable and infectious. It was impossible not to smile.


What was the occasion? We were arriving in Chinchethe for the official opening of the True Friends Orphan Care multi-purpose building. Generously funded by two businesses in western Canada and after two years of diligence, they finally had a beautiful building and a reason for rejoicing. Our visit was short-lived that day as we stopped just to drop off some food and to use the bathroom. (North American-friendly rest stops are scarce in Malawi.)

We returned early the next morning for the festivities and the same enthusiastic reception as the previous day. There were women who had been cooking since daybreak and others who had been rehearsing their native dance performances for hours. We were ushered into the small office where we were served tea and biscuits as we awaited the arrival of the other “dignitaries.” Those dignitaries included the head of the Local Social Welfare office, the local police commissioner, two pastors, an assortment of village chiefs and traditional authorities, a truckload of children from one of the more distant orphan care centers, and dozens of children, caregivers, and church members. It was truly a festive occasion.



After the many greetings and introductions, Ernest Banda, the administrator of True Friends Orphan Care, stepped aside and allowed the children to perform.

They sang, danced, recited Scripture verses, and performed a drama (the latter occurring amid much giggling.) After this part of the program concluded, the Social Welfare Officer stepped forward to cut the blue ribbon that was strung across the door of the building. Bernie Pennings held the ribbon, the official held the scissors, and within seconds there was a full court press to get inside the new facility. Several hundred people crowded through the doors and settled in where we were treated to numerous speeches from the project administrators, caregivers, pastors, local officials, and beneficiaries. It was an exhausting morning but one filled with thanksgiving and joy.

What was so remarkable was the amount of fanfare that accompanied a rather plain building. However, one does not need to spend much time in Malawi to understand why it is such a big deal for a building like this one to be completed. Everywhere you travel in Malawi, the landscape is dotted with unfinished structures. In some cases, foreign organizations started a project but ran out of funds or motivation. In other cases, the indigenous people themselves started a project but were cheated by a contractor, did not properly fire the bricks, or just ran out of money. A completed building of this magnitude is definitely a cause for celebration.

The purpose of the new structure is to serve as a community center of sorts. It will be open to the public for civic meetings, celebrations, educational opportunities, and of course, it will serve the orphans as a gathering place, a classroom, a recreational facility, and a symbol of hope. In a place where there are so many children who suffer from poor nutrition, personal loss, family hardship and lack of educational opportunity, True Friends Orphan Care is making a difference in the lives of children one at a time. The staff members are committed not just to the physical well-being of the orphans, but to their spiritual well-being also. Ernest’s wife Alice requested daily devotional material for the children and for herself because, as she so aptly put it, “It tells me that God’s Word is for me, for everyday.”

True Friends is now meeting the basic needs of 300 orphans and is planning to add another 50 by the beginning of next year through the Basic Sponsorship Program. This enables them to provide meals, clothing, agricultural inputs (such as hoes and cassava cuttings), basic medical treatment, secondary school fees, and biblical training to these children. In many ways, 350 children is just the tip of the iceberg, but God is not limited by our failures or our funds. We pray that He would multiply the efforts of those like Ernest, Alice and Maggie at True Friends Orphan Care to the glory of His Name.

Heidi Pronk is the Executive Director for Word & Deed USA. She traveled to Malawi this summer with Bernie & Ina Pennings to visit the Word & Deed projects there.

Reaching Millions By Ministry

Teaching Homiletics in Malawi: By Rev. Christo Heiberg

Word & Deed is looking for one or more churches to sponsor the vital Logos Ministries project in Malawi. See project description in the box accompanying this article.

During the month of June I was privileged to visit Malawi for the purpose of training the reformed pastors of that warm and lovely African country. I was told that roughly 120 pastors of the Nkhoma Synod of the CCAP (The Church of Central Africa, Presbyterian) have up to a million members under their spiritual care! These pastors share the ministry of God’s Word on Sundays along with several of their local elders, since every congregation consists not only of a central (and very modest) church building, but also of several prayer houses. Thousands of church members come to hear God’s Word and worship Him on the Lord’s Day, but only after a long walk through the African veld – often on bare feet!Pastor Heiberg(middle row far right), Manuel Kamnkhwani(middle of front row) and some of the CCAP pastors who attended the seminars.

However, these elders’ qualifications and skills at bringing the Gospel are very basic, if not lacking altogether. That puts a huge burden on the ministers, who have to keep encouraging their brothers. Resources like books are hard to come by, and ministers’ conferences like the one I was leading, a rarity. Furthermore, while the average pastor may be quite conversant in English, the majority of their members and elders are basically only proficient in their local Chichewa language. This is what makes Word & Deed’s involvement with Logos Ministries, in the ongoing in-service training of pastors, so vital and strategic for the future of Christ’s church in Malawi.
Pastors came from all over the central Malawian countryside and the capital Lilongwe for a one-week course in homiletics (homiletics – the art of preaching). I was told that we were very blessed that so many men took the pains to travel to the mission village of Nkhoma – mostly by bus or minibus taxi. It’s not uncommon for a Malawian pastor to have two to three funerals per week – and a funeral in Africa takes quite a while, as some us know from experience. Nevertheless, I taught a basic course in homiletics for two weeks, to two groups of pastors. Each group consisted of about 25 participants. The first group also included four theological students, since the venue of our seminar was the Joseph Mwale Institute, home of the Nkhoma Synod’s theological training.

Rev. Christo Heiberg teaching one group of CCAP pastors.

Each of the courses began with a formal opening on the Monday night led by the president of Logos Ministries, a few speeches (including one by myself) and announcements regarding arrangements for the week’s proceedings. Each group chose its own ‘president’ (to be their liaison with me), a secretary and a timekeeper with a little bell (to announce the start or end of each session). I must admit that I was quite impressed by the punctuality of our African brethren!


From Tuesday through Thursday I led three sessions per day (two in the morning and one at night) with lots of time allocated for questions and discussion. In these nine lectures I first focused on the theological underpinnings of a reformed view of preaching, before entering into more practical aspects of making sermons. In this latter part (covering more than half of the course) I gratefully made use of Stuart Olyott’s little gem, Preaching Pure and Simple, as my textbook. Each pastor also received a copy of this book (courtesy of my home congregation in Sheffield), for which the brothers were deeply grateful. My last session dealt with the power of the Spirit in preaching and proved to be a highlight to us all.


From all the questions and discussions, I could tell how hungry and thankful these brothers were for this opportunity of learning and fellowship. Question topics ranged from the making of sermons and other spiritual matters to political and social issues facing Malawian society and the church in general. Quite a few sensitive issues present among the Nkhoma Synod churches in particular sparked openhearted and brotherly discussions. The pastors seemed eager to lead their churches in a godly and Biblical way, maintaining the focus on our Lord Jesus, crucified and risen, and on the necessity of the work of His life-giving Spirit in our lives and churches. Many stories were also told about of the rapid growth of Christianity in neighboring Mozambique, and to a lesser extent in Zambia. A few brothers also lamented in private the mayhem and misery caused by President Mugabe in Zimbabwe.
Of great concern to these pastors were also the growing influence of Islam in political circles, a resurgence of paganism and witchcraft, the destructive influence of human rights on moral values in general, and the growing impact of the decadent Western media, through its films and the internet. The latter two issues in particular were seen as a threat to the very fabric of a socially conservative and peaceful Malawian society. It is interesting to note that the whole political concept of “democracy” is by no means viewed with sympathy among these men, but rather with great suspicion, as it is perceived to be the vehicle that carries all of the above-mentioned permissive influences into their society.
In the faint electric light of the African night at the Joseph Mwale Institute, each week’s seminar was closed with a “formal” ceremony on the Thursday night. Each participant received a certificate from the General Secretary of the Nkhoma Synod, under the joyful applause of all the others. Thus came to an end an event that will not be easily forgotten by either these dear humble African pastors, or by their fellow-African facilitator, now living in beautiful Canada. (Unfortunately, we miss the southern cross in the nightly sky!) The God of heaven was present among us in a truly tangible way, renewing us by His Spirit and binding us together with bonds in Christ that will last unto eternity.

Rev. Christo Heiberg grew up in South Africa and is the pastor of the Zion United Reformed Church of Sheffield, Ontario.