Days in Msilitza...

We have spent the last 3 days in Msilitza village.  It is Children of the Nation's first village partnership program in Malawi and there are over 500 children who are part of the program.  

We were so excited to be able to paint the preschool classroom - instead of dingy, dirty yellow, it is now red, green, blue and yellow...and also has letters, numbers and shapes on the wall.  We also painted the widows' room and the kitchen as well (the kitchen is where COTN workers prepare 2 meals a day for those children.)

The other part of the team spent the days updating the sponsorship photos for the children.   "Tsekalela!" was heard over and over and over ("smile!")

On Friday morning, we were the surprise guests at morning devotions for the high school students.  We arrived to watch and join them, and found ourselves in the front row being asked to present the devotion.  It was a good lesson for us that giving devotion to God verbally should never be a task or something we fear...it should probably come more easily to us than it actually does.   We are going to practice!!   Especially since the head master said, "Okay, well next week then" :)

Overall, we are just loving the kids here.  We felt a little like celebrities driving through the village - the kids come running up to the bus, waving and yelling "Azungu BYE!" (Azungu is their word for white-person).  All of the COTN kids just want to be near us - to hold our hands, teach us clapping games, get their picture taken.  We had to remind ourselves that getting work done is NOT the point of being here.  Letting these kids know they are loved and valued is. 

Tomorrow we head to church in the morning and then travel 2 hours north to spend a few days in Chiwengo village where the COTN children live in the children's homes.

You can pray for us as we have the chance to present at a local school about motivation, goals, sexual purity, peer pressure, etc. on Monday and Tuesday.  We are nervous but thrilled with that opportunity. 

Thanks so much for thinking of and praying for us.