Mission Report — July 2005

SOVEREIGN GRACE BAPTIST
MISSION OF MALAWI
PO BOX 60150 BT. 6 BLANTYRE MALAWI AFRICA
TEL. 265-620-472-(hm) / 265-9-946-261 or 265-9-320-881 (mobile)
Missionary / Evangelist: Peter A. Halliman

Date: 03/07/05

TO: ALL THE SAINTS OF GOD

I greet each of you in Jesus’ Name, which is above every name, the only name whereby men are saved, Amen! He who was, is, and forever shall be Amen!

It has been some time since I have prepared an official report on the work here in Africa; it is neither by design nor purpose for the duration of time, simply that I have had my plate loaded with the work load. I ask that each of you pray that the LORD would continue to give me strength and energy for the field of service here. I will try to bring you up to date on work as it is.

When I arrived back to the mission station from the States, I found most things in order; however I was short on some security dogs which had been poisoned. This is a constant battle and the only way to over come it is simply to be here. Security is a constant threat and I try to be as civil about it as possible, believing what I do about the LORD’S Sovereignty, and at the same time trying to engage in human responsibility.

It took some time to get things up and running again as it always does when I am away for any length of time. I was also trying to get the school organized for the pastors to come in for lessons. As I have stated in the past, the work load here for the school is far different then what most men, and or churches have experienced, in as much as, if you (whoever you is) do not organize things and see to it that they are done or carried out, most likely they will never get done. Allow me to elaborate, all the cooking for the pastors, which they are fed three meals a day (sourced and supplied by the mission) these meals are cooked over open fires, which means that firewood must be sourced. This brings me to my next point, here in Malawi one can find and purchase firewood in two different ways, (i) like most folks do, you can go down the main road with you vehicle and purchase firewood being sold alongside the road by local people. This is the easiest and most logical way of purchasing firewood, (ii). The second way is for one to draft a letter from their firm, as in our case, I draft a letter with the Mission letter head, directed to the Forestry Dept. making an application for purchase of firewood, stating the reasons etc… you can either post it which may take weeks to receive and even more weeks to get a return answer, or you can personally hand deliver the letter and hopefully get a response the same week. Then once you have the permission grated you may follow up by driving to one of the allocated lots where the Forestry Dept. grows trees specifically for the purpose of selling to whom ever. When you arrive, you will discuss the number of trees and size that you want cut for firewood. The job will be allocated to workers and you will be given a day to return to collect the firewood. If all of this goes well maybe a week will expire and then you wood will be ready. It is cut in two meter lengths and stacked in one cubic meter units as this is the way it is sold. The day you go to collect, if you know the system then you will be ok, if not, you will find that the logs will have to be loaded by you or else you will have to hire local people to load for you. If you are on a budget as I am, I many times cannot afford to do this so I take my own workers and me we load the wood. You will also have to pay for the trees which you bought, you will be given a legal receipt and off you go. Now allow me to explain which way I normally follow and why, I always try to follow the legal and right way thought it’s harder.

I used to purchase from the local people, it was easier, cheaper, and seemed to help the local economy. However, what they don’t tell you is when you come to the road blocks; the Police will detain your vehicle and ask for your documents from the Forestry Dept. Of course you won’t have any because you purchased off the local people. You don’t have any receipts or proof that you have actually bought any of it, which means, if some Policeman wants to make it tough on you and they can, they may claim you illegally obtained the firewood. What will be your answer? And how will you prove that you did indeed purchase it? With no proof, the firewood is confiscated and you are charged a fine as well. It doesn’t take long before you begin to get the picture when you see vehicles in front of you and behind you also loaded with firewood as you were and when they pass through the gate there is an exchange of corruption to its highest level, “the bribe”. As it has been said and so it is here, “In Africa everything is negotiable”! I must tell you I do follow the long procedure, it is frustrating, more expensive in some ways, but it is legal and Right! I want to share some thoughts with you the reader and you may come to your own conclusion as to the nature of what is both biblical and right for Christians to do.

Not too long ago I was in the States and I had the honour to preach for a certain church (supporting church), and in my message I had used an illustration of one of my experiences here in Africa to make a point, the reference was about, I was forced to spend three days at a border simply because I did not cave in to “tipping an officer”. It was a long time after that visit, and message, that it was brought to my attention that some folks in that church could not understand why I would go through that needless suffering at that border when I could have just “paid off the officer” and got through the same day. This will bring me to my next point, when I came to Africa in 1996, I made a stand that I was “not for sale” perhaps you have heard it said that “every man has his price” well there are some men who just don’t sell out no matter what the cost” I can give you a lot of times in my life and ministry where it would have been far easier and as a person more convenient to just “pay off the officer” but is that what we Baptist are about, is that really the Christian way? The fact is once you become a “payer” you always “pay” and everyone will find out, and everyone will get something out of you along the way”. The LORD has given me the grace and ability to keep to this post, and LORD willing I will not surrender that conviction. I want you the reader to read, (Rom.12:17) and tell me what that verse means, perhaps there are some Greek scholars who understand the Greek better then I do and can educate me as to the rendering of this verse. What about where Paul wrote in 2Cor.8:21; and in 1Cor.4:2 – how am I to be a good steward of what the LORD has put in my care if I am committing dubious acts, how can the LORD trust me, and how will the people trust me, and moreover what will my answer be to God when I stand before him and give an account of how I handled the funds, mission work and what examples I taught the people to follow. God has said “don’t follow a multitude to do evil” (Ex.23:2) I don’t understand how or why this would have even been questioned.

In order to cancel any confusion allows me to go on record by saying this, I made that stand when I came here, and I still stand by that conviction. My church knows about this and I have tried to convey all that goes on both in the work as well as my life. Should there be any supporter or individual who has a problem with this you may either call me personally, email, or by post and discuss this further. If anyone is asking me to change my position on this matter, the answer is I am not, God help me!

I said all that to say this, yes it is a lot of work, and it is discouraging, and there are set backs, delays, but you know what so to were there in the life of Christ and the early Christians, so what makes us exempt today?

As I was saying, I followed the legal procedure to organize for the firewood to be used in during the Bible school. I needed to organize for an announcement to be put on one of the radio stations which, is broadcast through out Malawi and some parts of Mozambique. It is expensive but it is less expensive then to physically send a messenger to each district or to drive myself, besides I don’t usually have free time like that, therefore the announcements. I booked for five days for the announcement to go out, as I have learned over time that two or three days only will result in many of the pastors not receiving the message. During this time I was also busy trying to finish constructing the dogs kennel as I had been using the school house to house them for feeding and containing them while the boys would work within the compound, that is while I was in the USA for the time frame that I was. Now that I was back and the school was being started I needed to get things in order. I needed the truck to transport “off-cuts” which I use for the construction of the dog’s pen as well as I needed to make a suitable shed for the cooking of the food and housing of the cooking utensils. I was also trying to prepare for Bro. Gordon Wiegold, a member of my church who would be coming to spend a month with me to help teach in the school. I sent Bro. Joe to one of the local markets with Eric (one of the translators) to look for and purchase a locally made bed for Bro. Gordon, when that was accomplished he needed to go to a wholesale warehouse to purchase a foam mattress (which is the only kind you get in Malawi). That was an experience for Joe to tell in his own words.

The days were passing by quickly and time never seems to be enough in the work here. We start most of our days by four a.m. and usually retire by ten or so at night.

One of my primary concerns was the truck which was not in operation when I returned simply because when I had departed for the States I had parked it with no brakes in operation. On my last trip out with it the brakes had went out and I had not the time to investigate the problem before I departed, so that is how it was when I returned. In between jobs, I had the truck jacked up, on stands and all wheels off trying to determine the brake issue. I ended up taking off the master-cylinder finding it had no brake fluid, since the braking system is a two-part (primary air, with hydraulic override) there was a reason why the brake fluid was spent, I just needed to find that reason. I came to the determination that the Master cylinder itself was faulty and took it off and apart, I reckoned that if I could fit a re-pair kit, (O-rings, gaskets etc…) it should work again. This led me to contact my pastor, obtain the parts from the USA, and have the package sent by courier service. When this was known and put into effect I then got on with other jobs and simply waited for them to arrive. To cut a long story short, the parts were sent FedEx, made the usual journey into South Africa and arrived in Blantyre in a week’s time, however for another full week the package was detained by the courier service simply because they claimed they could not find my residence. I would not have found this out had I not done the chasing up of where the package was (thank the LORD for communications). Be that as it may, such is life here in Africa. I obtained the parts and completed my job on the truck, fitting the repair kit, and refitting the master-cylinder. When I went to purchase Dot 5 brake-fluid I found that none could be found or bought here in this country. They only use Dot 4 for the trucks here, (this part is for the mechanics reading this report) there is a reason we use Dot 5 in heavy equipment and trucks simply because the viscosity in Dot 5 is much heavier then in Dot 4 and will withstand the tremendous pressure under braking conditions with heavy loads. Well, again this is Africa and I suppose that the safety of vehicles, people as well as other things is not that important. What matters here is do the job as cheaply as you can.

It took almost a weeks work on the truck before I discovered another problem, the brake liners were worn and were not holding. This involved another week’s work of removing them and having them re-bonded. After much toil and labour the truck was back on the road and operating like new again.

I again was busy organizing for the food, I had some kind of idea of how many pastors would attend, but then again one never really knows because life here in Africa is on a day to day basis. I tried to prepare for as many as I thought would come and then go from there.

I didn’t realize it but time had quickly passed and the day for Bro. Gordon’s arrival was upon us, I was in the middle of a job welding when I realized that Gordon would arrive in a couple hours. I shut down my job to clean up a bit change clothes and took the motorbike to the airport with one of my workers. Since I do not have an operating vehicle other then the truck this was the only other alternative. I was waiting in the arrival lounge when Bro. Gordon walked through, he looked like he had just been put through a clothes washer and was put on fast spin. I expect the last thing that he needed to see was a motorbike as means of transport to the house. His two suitcases were chucked into a taxi and the worker I brought along rode with the taxi driver to escort him to the house. I told the driver I would go on ahead which I did. We arrived at the house and then the taxi arrived we got the baggage out and sent the taxi off and then I took a moment to introduce Gordon to the workers that I have employed here, then showed him to his room to get settled in. He needed to take a shower and after he refreshed a bit, I told him I had to take one of my workers out to their village which would take me a couple hours. I gave him the option to either come along or rest a bit, he chose to come along. Since Bro. Gordon has been on motorbikes before I didn’t feel like I needed to teach him, only that I did go over the safety hazards here in Africa, what to watch out for and so on. We got geared up and we pulled out the gate. I took the lead with Dixon on the back of my bike, and Gordon not far behind. It was not long before we were out of town and on a fairly new road that had recently been paved so it was nice compared to a lot of tarmac roads here in Malawi. Soon the tarmac played out and it was dirt all the way, unlike a lot of countries, the dirt roads here in Africa contain a lot of sand content and in the dry season there is a hardened surface about four inches with the dust, dirt, and sand loosely lying on top which, makes a very difficult surface to negotiate with a bike.

The trip was made with no hazards and we accomplished what we set out to do, and we were on our way back, however it turned dark about half way home. For someone who has never lived in Africa or driven on these kinds of roads, in the daytime it is challenging but at night it will test every talent and skill you have in order to stay alive. We did manage to arrive home safe and in one piece. The following day which was Sunday, I was scheduled to go into Mozambique a place where I had tried three different times to reach but had been hindered by our great enemy Satan.

Allow me to digress a moment about the work in Mozambique. Ever since I was invited into Mozambique by the brethren there and I started making efforts to go there, I have been opposed on every side; I have done battle with Satan almost constant when trying to prepare to go into Mozambique. This place where I was scheduled to go, I had been turned back by the Customs (Mozambique side) who wanted tipped off, that date failed, another time I was supposed to go but had no money for fuel, another time I was scheduled to go but had vehicle problems. Sunday morning we were up by four am got my motorbike loaded in the truck and we set off that morning for Luchenza. Bro. Joe and Gordon would preach at the church there in Luchenza where Bro. Dinala Chipala is pastor. I would carry on into Mozambique as planned. We had our breakfast and set off for the journey, after some time we arrived at the church, where we off loaded the motorbike. I and the pastor took off to the border in order for me to get my passport stamped both for the exit of Malawi and entry of Mozambique. I must explain that this border was in the opposite direction where I needed to go however; it was the only border where I could get the official stamps. What should have been a short process turned into a long process and to cut a long story short, I was detained by the chief Immigration Officer at the border. I could have done what most people do, “tipped him off” and nothing would have been said or done. But I am convinced that this is not the Christian way to do things so being the way that I am I was detained on the grounds that I did not have a valid work permit. This now will lead me into explaining some details.

My work permit was originally granted in 1996 and subsequently it is renewed every two years by Immigration. There have been two times in the nine years that I have been here which Immigration has messed up on the paper work, sending it to the wrong address which would result in me starting all over in the application, documentation etc… Before I departed last year, I went to Immigration to report that I would be out of the country for about two or three months and during that time my work permit would expire. I explained the problems I had had in previous years and told them I did not want the same again and asked them for advice on what to do. I was advised to make the applications in advance submit them with the necessary documentation and pay the fee which I complied with. They told me that as long as I kept the “official receipt” from immigration this would prove to any office that the application had been received and simply was going through the process. I did this, departed the country no problem with immigration, then coming back, again no problem with immigration. Now that I am trying to get into Mozambique there is suddenly a problem. This officer at the border told me that if I crossed the border exiting Malawi to just keep going and not to come back. I might add that this officer was still on a drunk and was not willing to entertain any explanation. I waited as he phoned the minister for “home affairs” and also the Immigration Head Quarters here in Blantyre to obtain information on my status as a missionary here in Malawi. To cut a long story short, the LORD moves the Kings heart and he did so this time as well. You see the wonderful thing about being patient and waiting upon the LORD is that you get to see the power of God come alive in the lives of men. You experience the reality of God’s Sovereignty in and over the affairs of governments, rulers, and people. This is not possible when you take the “cheap” way out and do things the way of the world. After it was all said and done, I was granted permission to travel into Mozambique, but the real blessing was I was given a letter from the Officer in Charge there at the border to take back to Blantyre within two days back to Headquarters to obtain my work permit. We rode back to the church, I explained to Bro. Joe and Gordon my situation and then there were four of us who set off on bikes to Mozambique. We cycled for twenty miles before coming to the border which was a river, we were ferried across in a dug out canoe and then we set off again for another ten miles before reaching the place. There must have been an hundred fifty people gathered and waiting. There was such an expression of joy and jubilance manifested when we arrived. We soon assembled and I preached for about an hour and a half. Afterwards I met with the men of the church and they expressed their desire to be baptized and be organized into a N.T. Church. I told them I would have to make another date and come again for some teaching on lessons. They always want a date so this again commits me. I did make a date and as of yet that date has not come around but will during the month of July.

After the services, we were fed a meal, and then we started our journey back, I made it back to where Bro. Joe and Gordon were and it was four pm. We got loaded and took off for the border for me to get my passport stamped again for the exit of Mozambique and re-entry of Malawi. We arrived just in time for the Malawi border but the Mozambique border was already closed. I had no option but to come back to Blantyre.

The following morning, being Monday I went into town with Bro. Gordon to Immigration and presented the letter I was given yesterday. This caused some disturbance among some of the officers and the telephones began to ring, I was sent from one office to another until I ended up with the senior officer. I was then told that I needed to bring supporting documents proving that the mission was registered, my qualifications as a minister etc… I was supposed to return that afternoon. We came back to the house had lunch and prayer over the matter, and went back into town. I was not certain what would happen but again God over rules in the lives of men. When I walked back into the office where I was that morning, the officer did not even ask me for my documents, nor explained anything, except that he handed me an envelope that contained my work permit and said everything was in order. Just like that, I was out of his office and went to the counter where they would now stamp my passport with the “work permit” and that is the end of that story. I will have another report forth coming on the last few weeks of the work.

Until then may the LORD bless each of you and keep you in the center of his will.

In His Mercy,

Peter A. Halliman

Missionary