Malawi Trip Recap - Andrew Johnson

“Pure Joy”
 
How do I even begin to put into words one of the greatest experiences of my life! This blog can not and will not even begin to crack the surface of the experience I had in my 3 weeks in Malawi. I want to start by thanking God for allowing me to participate in this mission trip as well as Drew Boe, The Rafiki Foundation, and all of the sponsors and teams that made this trip possible for myself and 20 other individuals, your generosity is greatly appreciated. Also to my boss and the NY Jets organization for working with me and allowing me the time to participate fully in this opportunity. I must start out by saying what an eye opening experience this trip was in so many ways. The amount of growth spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically is unmeasurable. There was not a single day that our group was not blessed with some type of memory that we will cherish forever, whether it be a song, story, or conversation with one of our 98 kids, or a moment at dinner with one of the full time missionaries. There was never a dull moment at Rafiki Malawi, God was continually working through us and through the staff and children there. I wouldn’t be telling the truth if I said it was all sunshine and rainbows, there were tough days mentally for me as I missed family or friends back in the states, but through prayer and encouragement from scripture and even the lessons we taught the kids, I was able to “Nail it & Press On” as Kelly taught the kids in AIA principle 3”Wholly Sweat, Wholly Surrender”. I mean this when I say it, I thank God for the best group of people to go on a MOAM trip EVER!!!!(JK…Lol, I’m sure the other groups were alright too.) I have never been surrounded by such strong people centered in the word of our Holy, holy, holy  God and in the spirit than I was with our team leader Mariah Jackson, Kelly Norfleet, & Don Roundtree. From day one we meshed and it seemed like we had known each other forever. I want you 3 to know that I am your friend and brother in Christ forever and if there’s ever anything you need I’m just a call away! Together we were able to spread God’s word and make a positive impact in many of those children’s lives! Some days we questioned if the kids were receiving the messages we were trying to send to them but I think the greatest confirmation from God was when one of them decided to accept Jesus Christ as his Lord and savior. He opened up to me and told me that he had never stepped out in faith and made the declaration of being saved, so together with our group we prayed with him as we went through Romans 10:9 with him as he accepted Christ into his life. This I can say is by far the GREATEST moment of my life! To know that we helped guide someone on the path to God’s kingdom is definitely the greatest feeling I have ever had. As our final days approached we were blessed by so many cards and songs from the kids it really made us feel loved and special to know that they had enjoyed our short time together, and by reading the cards I could see that they had truly grasped the things we had taught them.  Fast forward to our departure from Malawi and we really got a test of how to incorporate the things we spent the last 3 weeks teaching the children into our own lives and current situation. Through our travels with delays, missed flights and lost luggage, we really had to stick true to the principles of dealing with difficult situations and surrendering ourselves to God’s plan and as James  1:2-3 says, “Consider it pure Joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” In the end it all worked out, and we even got to spend one more day with each other albeit in an Ethiopian airport lol. In the end I must close with saying that this experience really made me appreciate all that I have been blessed with in my life. I have been blessed to always have all that I needed and most of what I wanted and I may have taken that for granted over the years but I can now truly see what opportunities we have just by being born in the country we belong to. However, I never thought I’d meet some of the richest people in the world on this trip, and each one of them lives in the Rafiki village. They are rich in spirit and in the glory they will receive in God’s Kingdom. I pray that God continues to watch over them and all who work to teach and nurture them and that he may shower them in his blessings for years to come!


Your brother in Christ,
Andrew Johnson
To God Be The Glory
 
To God Be the Glory! 

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