Emsworth United Presbyterian Church Malawi Missions

MALAWI

Since 1991 Pittsburgh Presbytery and the Synod of Blantyre of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian have been involved in a partnership which has linked congregations in Pittsburgh with congregations in central and southern Malawi. Every other year a group of missionaries from Pittsburgh travel to Malawi to learn from and encourage our brothers and sisters in that country.

Malawi is a developing landlocked nation, located (10) ten degrees below the equator in Eastern South Central Africa. Slightly smaller than Pennsylvania, it was a British colony from 1891 until 1964 when it became an independent nation. From 1964 until 1994 it was ruled by a dictator, whose cruelty was unrivaled; the demise of the dictator was followed by multiparty elections under a provisional constitution in 1994.

Malawi ranks among the worlds least developed countries in the world, its economy is predominately agricultural with 90% of the population living in rural areas.

The population is close to 11 million, 800,000 people are infected by AIDS, 70,000 have died from the infection, there are 1 million children orphaned by AIDS. The infant mortality rate is 119 deaths per 1000 live births, in addition to AIDS, Malaria is epidemic. Life expectancy at birth is 35 years.

Despite all of Malawi’s problems, she is known as “THE WARM HEART OF AFRICA.”

Links to sites about Malawi:

Click here for PHOTO GALLERY of Malawi Mission by Clyde Williams

Clyde Williams' Personal Account - MY MISSION IN MALAWI

Over the years 7 members of Emsworth U.P. Church have traveled as missionaries to Malawi. In June 2003, I had the opportunity to be part of the Pittsburgh Mission and would like to share some of my impressions of that trip.

I feel every Missionary to Malawi has a story to tell, each with a different story. I traveled with 23 other missionaries, and the stories of the other 23 are not the same as mine. The Holy Spirit has, in His Wisdom placed each of us in a particular place at a particular time. Some of us were sent to witness the fine and great work the presbytery is doing at the Domasi and Mulanje missions and also to testify about the working partnership with the Blantyre Synod. I was not sent for that reason.

For the past ten years or so, I felt God’s call to Malawi, but I resisted. I resisted because I had questions. Questions such as “What could I do, what good am I, a man of limited resource? Why send me, I did not want to be sent just to be a tourist? Malawi orphans

But in 2003 the resistance gave way to trust. I trusted God’s call, and again in His Wisdom, He led me to one of the poorest places on Earth...Ndirande, Malawi. I was not a tourist, I did not see Malawi through a glass darkly, I saw it then and see it still very clearly.

I see it through the eyes of children orphaned by AIDS. I see it in the hearts of a Pastor and Session whose church has no roof, no windows, few walls, and dirt floors. I see it in the hands of the teacher who snapped the few pencils I gave her in half so twice as many of the 250 students in her class could share. I see it in the tattered well worn lesson book that sits on the dirty cement floor encircled by six children who share. I see it through the voices of a people who have nothing and yet praise God in all things. (God is Good; God is Good all the time.)

I see my time in Malawi as both a blessing and a curse, a blessing because it has allowed me to witness the Holy Spirit of God at work in a Jesus filled people. A curse because, now that I see, I can’t turn away.

I see the churches of the partnership not merely as an extension of the partnership with Blantyre Synod, but as individual sisters of the partnered Pittsburgh congregations. I see our sisters without clothes. I see our sisters hungry. I see our sisters’ worship on dirt floors in bare feet.

Aids Orphans
I see Ndirande C.C.A.P. as Emsworth’s sister. I see all of us in Emsworth bringing hope. I see myself committed. I see myself returning to Malawi. I still question, but now my question is... “If I see and do nothing, what good am I?”

-- Clyde Williams

Aids Orphans

Emsworth United Presbyterian Church
73 Hiland Avenue, Emsworth, Pennsylvania 15202. (412-766-4238)