SOVEREIGN
GRACE BAPTIST
MISSION OF MALAWI
PO BOX 60150 BT. 6 BLANTYRE MALAWI
AFRICA
TEL. 265-999-741-007 or
265-888-751140 (mobile)
Missionary / Evangelist: Peter
A. Halliman
Email: phalliman@africa-online.net
/ or brothersinthebush@yahoo.com
Website: sgbm-malawi-africa.com
Date: 22/11/2010
Dear Church, Pastor, and Supporters;
I greet each of you in Jesus’ Name, He who was, is, and forever shall be Amen!
This is Monday evening as I write this report from my home here in Blantyre, Malawi. I have just returned home from a four-day trip into the bush of Mozambique with my wife and our daughter.
I will take some time to share with you all the blessings and joy of the LORD’S work, as well as a different kind of experience for me for many years.
First of all I had needed to make several trips into Mozambique for over a year, but due to the work load and different demands of the work, my home, and a planned trip back to the USA in March of this year I was not able to make these trips and now that time has passed, the patience of the Africans has also endured and their requests cannot be ignored any longer.
I took several days to prepare for this trip as usual, however this time there were several things I needed to do a bit differently simply because of the nature of the trip and the persons travelling with me.
One must work directly with governments and the legalities to fully understand the documentation, which they require, and the labourious tasks, which are required. I started with Immigration Malawi in order to get Mrs. Halliman’s visa status sorted out, as well as Cheyanne our daughter. When we entered Malawi they were given a thirty-day visa pending on my application to the Immigration Dept to sort out their Resident permits.
Here in Malawi one must reside, work and comply with Malawi law for ten years before one is ‘legally’ able to apply for a ‘Resident Permit’. I have complied with this ruling and I have a ‘Resident Permit’ status, meaning that I do not have to apply for a ‘work visa’ when coming and going.
In a week’s time I had all the documentation complied in a file for Mrs. Halliman and our daughter Cheyanne who is seventeen. Once I had this complied I took this in to Immigration and they stamped their passports with a ‘Resident Permit’ which is attached to mine, or falls under mine. What took me ten years to acquire was granted in a weeks time, this is nothing short of a miracle.
When this was in order I went to apply for the Mozambique visas, however I should state that there are different visas for different applications when going into a country. Governments are concerned with your money, and it’s pretty straight up from there.
I was able to apply and receive visas for Sherry and Cheyanne, however my two nephews were not able to go out of Malawi due to the fact that they are waiting on their T.E.P. (Temporary Work Permit) which is only good for two years, and must be applied for by the employer whom they are going to be attached. I have written much about this in past reports therefore I will not be redundant.
I spent the whole day in town with my wife, sorting out business, and during the end of the day we went to the grocery shop to purchase food for the bush, this requires a different kind of shopping and a different kind of planning.
For some who know me will understand that I do not have a particular eating habit, nor am I fussy about what is put on my plate, this particular and isolated gift is a result of years of living with primitive Tribal people who do not have the luxury of camouflaging their food with all sorts of spices, and flavours.
I have in the past, for many years simply eaten what the Natives have and eat, however I now must think of those who are with me that may not have the constitution to withstand such diets.
After much discussion and quality time spent acquiring the menu, which we both felt would suffice for the bush, we checked out and made our way home. It was time for me to dismiss the workers, after which we all ate dinner and then I spent the rest of the evening packing, up the vehicle from 1900 hrs to 0030 hrs. I have packed for so long in preparation for the bush that I just about know when it’s too much and or not enough. I knew that this time would be different as I was packing for two women of which would be their first time into the African bush.
I have always taken my drinking water into the bush here in Africa, of which should never be taken lightly. This time I packed one hundred twenty liters of water, twenty liters of diesel extra, two coolers of food, with cooking ware etc… wash tubs, bathing buckets, two tents, three backpacks, camp stove (gas) amongst other things. Here in Africa the vehicle (MUST) be packed a certain way and everything must be tied, strapped and secured in such a way that there is no guessing to its coming loose.
After a couple hours sleep, I was up and had the family going, we made coffee, and pushed away by 0400 hrs the drive to the border went smoothly as it is all tarred road. We stopped at a place called Luchenza to pick up Edwin (one of our translators) who has been with me for about six years now. He would accompany us in this journey and help with the teaching. We arrived at the border by 0700 hrs, went through the necessary steps to get cleared. I have been doing this for fifteen years here in Africa and there is no way that one can be certain what the exact steps are in the process as they change almost from day to day. You prepare as much as you can and then talk to people who have just come through to get an idea of how far off you may be on your knowledge.
After getting cleared with Immigration, I had to clear Customs, of which there is a ruling that a vehicle registered within Malawi will be granted temporary export, of which you have to pay for this permit (about twenty dollars), you must specify how many days the vehicle is being exported and through what border it will be re-imported. There is also a restriction on the amount of Malawi Kwacha (local currency) that one can take out, which means if you don’t change what amount you will need then you may face serious issues without any funds to operate as most places here in Africa that are under developed will know nothing of a c.c.
We were cleared through the Malawi border, Immigration, Customs, and Police and then we were to clear the Mozambique border. With Portuguese being the National language of Mozambique most of the government officers speak the national language and very little to no English so it’s a real challenge to communicate with the officers. The way that I handle this is I speak Chichewa as they can also speak this being posted at the border of Malawi.
We managed to get through Immigration and then I had to sort out Customs and this is always an issue as the currency is different between Mozambique and Malawi. If I change enough Malawi Kwacha for the Mozambique meticas and you don’t use it all then you either have to keep it till the next trip or else you simply have dead funds when you return to Malawi.
I normally do not change but just enough for some kind of emergency; I always have extra fuel and food etc… emergency packs for survival, medication etc… this knowledge has accrued over years of living in the bush, and has facilitated many situations.
As with every country there is an exit of the country you are in and an entry into the one you intend to enter, the process includes much documentation and must be filed in order. Some of the documentation required is as follows:
With these documents in order then the passing through the borders usually goes smoothly.
After almost an hour and a half we were through the borders and on our way to where we were scheduled to go. The tarmac road ended quickly and we found ourselves on a dirt road, which we would travel for the next eight hours. As we set in for the long hard journey, enduring is the proper measure that I would use, there is nothing one can do to change the situation, and there isn’t any other way to get there but to drive on these roads.
I have driven over them many times over the years and it all comes out about the same. There are certain spots which I have chosen to make stops along the way, simply to get out and stretch ones legs a bit, or to relieve oneself (in the bush) but this is always a challenge with the heavy human population travelling along the main dirt roads.
Bye and bye we managed to reach a certain market where I stopped to pick up Pastor Matewe, whom is from Mozambique, he has travelled with me to many places before in previous years and has a real heart for the LORD’S work. There was a new group whom wanted us to come visit them and they too had come to that market to speak with me regarding the timetable etc… I told them that it would be on Monday morning before we could come to visit with them and they gladly accepted. There was another young pastor, Charles Bazooka who has been with our work for the past five years and remained faithful, he too would accompany us on this journey.
At 1500 hrs we arrived at our destination, where Bro. Yona (Jonah) pastors. This man is a gentle, kind, and compassionate man, pastor and it bleeds out among the people whom he pastors.
We got settled, and before long I, Edwin, Charles, and Matewe set up camp. The two tents were pitched, and then the kitchen area was set up. We cooked our dinner before dark so that we could eat and clean up before the night hours. Its difficult enough in the daylight hours and to add the darkness of the night it simply makes it harder to do domestic chores.
It had been a long day for me; I had only managed to get a couple hours of sleep the night before and had driven nearly twelve hours of hard driving so I was ready for bed by 20:00 hrs
The sky breaks dawn here at 0415 hrs and is light by 0430 hrs, so I am up early in the bush as well, not because I am off running but because people in the village rise early and start the days chores etc… Therefore if you do not rise early then by the time you rise late and want to take a bath there will be a number of people who have gathered to watch, as this is the biggest thing going on in their village.
All the other years that I have been going to the bush, I have always been alone and so this time I have two ‘white females’ see.
Edwin and I got the bath water going so that the girls could take their bath first and then we ours, after we had our baths we got breakfast going which is different for most folks who have never had to cook in the bush. I was engaged in some meetings with the pastors and some of the men of the church, whilst my wife and Cheyanne took the chore of cooking breakfast. We had our breakfast and then we needed to take down camp and pack up the vehicle, for after church we were to depart to go to another destination.
It took almost two hrs to break down camp, pack and then get ready for church. The heat of the day had already climbed to
108 dgs, the church house was quite full and with a building packed full of people with all that body heat the inside temp was more then what most would feel comfortable with. I preached for about an hour on “What a N.T. Church is” there is a lot of confusion around the world with a lot of ‘Christians’ about what a true N.T. church is. The rubbish which is taught and the struggle to un-teach people sometimes seems a burden more then one is able to bear.
We had a wonderful service with the people and then we were ready to move on to the next destination. With one of the tyres almost flat we had to change it before pushing off. This done we set off onto a bush road and drove for the next two and a half hours where no vehicle has travelled before. The people here when asked how far or road conditions they will always answer its only about two kilometers and five min or thereabouts.
They will not reveal the truth, as they feel you (whomever you are) will become discouraged and will not make the journey. I just cannot get them to understand that a vehicle is NOT a bicycle and the path MUST be wide enough to accommodate a vehicle, and it is proper for me to know the distance as I calculate everything on numbers, fuel, distance, time etc… That being said, the road was nothing more then a bicycle trail and in some cases we had to cut away branches, to allow the vehicle to clear passage.
We arrived in the afternoon around 1500 hrs, I talked with the men and told them that it would be too late for us to have church and then drive out in the dark to our next destination, which meant that we would make camp here.
First of all we conducted churches, I preached on “Hearts set on fire for the LORD” with the thought in mind that most of God’s people have a form of burning zeal but few of God’s people actually have their hearts burning for HIM.
After services we started to pitch our tents but the rains started and we waited thinking that it would cease, wrong… we ended up setting up the tents with the vehicle lighting and in the rain. This does not make good camping when your tent becomes wet as you try to set it up in the rain.
It is what it is and there is no use in belly aching about it, we had camp set up in thirty min and then we started dinner. After we had finished eating and cleaned up we went to bed being late that day around 2300 hrs.
It rained all that night and the next morning we rose early to start the packing for our next trip to another destination.
At 0600 hrs we were in a position to start our journey, the road conditions coming in and the rains that night caused some concern about our getting out. Several of the men from that group went with us part of the way out where there was a swamp area in case we became stuck.
The ground was not as wet as we had anticipated and I was able to get the vehicle through that area without any hiccups. For the next two hours we drove through the bush on a road, which is mostly designed for bicycles. There were a couple places, which needed a repair on the bridge before w crossed. I have learned to carry my axe and machete as I have had to use them and this time also they were profitable.
We finally arrived at the destination where we were going and didn’t take time to set up camp at time of arrival as the people had been waiting since morning hours. We held services which lasted at least an hour and a half, this time the church is where Bro. Charles Bazooka is pastor. I preached on “The Great White Throne Judgment”
I believe this message needs to be preached more and more especially in the last days of which we are living.
Right after services we set up camp and started cooking something to eat as we had not eaten anything in the morning hours. As the meal was being cooked I took that time to address business with the men of the church. This is a fair exercise as it takes time for me to come and visit these churches, therefore due to the time, distance and opportunity I will take my time with the people to discuss any problems, business etc… which they may have question about, and usually there are more topics then time.
After we ate a late lunch we proceeded to visit another church, which has been with us for some time now, and they have experienced problems with the pastor and needed advise as to what to do.
We all loaded up in the vehicle and drove for another thirty minutes to where this church is located. It was late in the afternoon and most of the members had been waiting all day to speak with me, they, thinking I was not coming (though I had sent a message that I was) most of them had departed from the meeting house and gone back to their homes. As we approached the church building we met some of the members and they sent a message again to others to come back. We arrived and waited for the people to arrive. By the time a crowd of people arrived it was almost dark, however we stayed and I discussed with them their problems and what I believed the biblical answer would be to this issue.
The problem was and is, their pastor had deserted his wife with a small baby, and went to another village to take another wife; (This is about the time now that I will resort to Scripture and reference this problem to what Moses had to deal with in his day). Many of our Baptist brethren have never had to deal with “Tribal customs / practices” and only (know) what is done in “developed countries”. I might add that the world does not revolve around “America” though many think that it does.
In (De 24:1) ¶ When a man taketh a wife, and marrieth her, then it shall be, if she find no favor in his eyes, because he hath found some unseemly thing in her, that he shall write her a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house.
Please take note of the following words in the
(Hebrew) - k@riythuwth ker-ee-thooth'
From 3772; a cutting (of the matrimonial bond), i.e. divorce: --divorce (-ment).
Understand the meaning of this word and note that in the Hebrew it has its own meaning.
The next word in this exercise is (send) as in to send away, or to send out. (shalach shaw-lakh')
a primitive root; to send away, for, or out (in a great variety of applications):--X any wise, appoint, bring (on the way), cast (away, out), conduct, X earnestly, forsake, give (up), grow long, lay, leave, let depart (down, go, loose), push away, put (away, forth, in, out), reach forth, send (away, forth, out), set, shoot (forth, out), sow, spread, stretch forth (out).
Please Note: In Hebrew the word for (divorce) ed, ment) is not the same word for (send), away, out), they are two different words. The H.S. DID NOT make a mistake.
When one studies the History of the East, and how the men of Israel would marry, take wives etc… it is much different then what we know today, mostly the women were very young in age, and mostly they didn’t have much say in the matter.
This is not new to me having grown up in PNG and now living in Africa, most of the time the marriages are, have been, and customarily arranged.
I said all that to say this, again when a man of Israel found some thing in his wife he didn’t like, (perhaps she salted his food too much, or had foul breath, or some blemish that he did not like etc… the senseless reasons were many but many times these were used and he would simply (send his wife away, chase her out of the house, dismiss her from his home etc… this being said, she was still his wife (legally, lawfully, and biblically). Now the problem at hand was, and is still, that she was still his wife! He would many times (and so today) go out and find another woman to take as his wife, and this new one would enter his house and occupy the place of the 1st wife. Now he legally has two wives, as he never gave a (Bill of Divorcement).
This is what God hates, then and now!
No, divorce is never good, and always for some reason of sin on one party or both, however God never said that He (hated divorce) as some preachers advocate),
Note: (Mal 2:16) For I hate putting away, saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, and him that covereth his garment with violence, saith Jehovah of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously.
The words (putting away) is not the (Hebrew word) for (divorce) and it means to chase out, send away, put out, away from – meaning, - when a man just wanted to take another woman for a wife and he got tired of the first one, he would simply put her out, send her away, or simply (chase her from his house) this becoming common among the Eastern peoples then and now, the LORD [allowed] a legal writing of a [bill of divorcement] for one reason to protect the [woman] in those days. She was not (American) and did not live in the 21st century where she could go file a claim, or injection against her husband. She mostly depended on the marriage, (home life) for her support and lively hood).
Enough said about that, those who choose to believe differently regarding the marriage/divorce/remarriage issue will be hard put to change the Hebrew and Greek meaning of the words (divorce, and put send away/ put away)
In (De 24:2) And when she is departed out of his house, she may go and be another man's wife. Did the H.S. make a mistake here; did God really say that the woman divorced (one who had a legal Bill or Divorcement) could legally and Biblically become another man’s [wife]?
I have went to great length in this short report to share with you, this is the same exact issue which I have dealt with in the past, and needed to address in this meeting with the church.
I went over the exact Scriptures among some others Mt. 5, Mt. 19, and the qualifications of a Bishop, which Paul laid out to Timothy.
This pastor whom we are speaking about, in fact did not give a bill of divorcement, in fact he just simply sent her away and took another wife, much life the Jewish men were also doing. His wife was there at the meeting and customarily there is nothing she can do to rectify the problem, she has remained faithful to the LORD, her vows, and the church. He has been removed as pastor and excluded. The church asked me what were they to do should he come back and want to be a member. I informed them that God only allows one woman (wife) for one man (husband).
I do believe there are biblical grounds for divorce and remarriage, if you read this report and you disagree with me, then we will simply have to disagree.
The ending of the story… unless one of his wives commits adultery, fornication then he will remain with two wives unless he gives a bill of divorcement to one. It is not a good story, nor a good ending, however I did advise the church that most likely he would not return due to pure shame, and the church needed to move on in its life. I advised the young pastor Charles Bazooka to assist this church in services etc… until the LORD provided them with a pastor, of course the church would have to vote for this and be willing for this to take place, of which they were.
The meeting ended and it was already dark so we drove back to our camp in the night and settled in for the evening. It being nearly 20:00 hrs and having had a long an full day I decided to call it an evening and go to bed.
The night passed quickly and at 0400 hrs I was up getting coffee going and making way for camp to be packed up for the day. I had the girls up by 0500 hrs and as we packed up the vehicle, which took a bit over an hour, we had to change a tyre as one of the rear tyres went flat. These taken care of we said our good byes and were on our way towards the last mission point.
After two hours of driving we arrived at a location, which is far back in the bush. The people were gathered there and after a few min of rest we started the services. I preached on Acts. 2: 37 – “What shall we do” the Gospel was preached that day, and if the H.S. used the WORD to prick anyone’s heart then the answer to Vs. 37 is found in Vs. 38 – Repent and be baptized!
Services were concluded after an hour of preaching, we were given a chicken for lunch so being late in the day and with the time table to reach the border in a good time, we did not eat lunch there but departed for our journey home.
As the miles fell behind us the time also drew on, bye and bye we reached the border where we went through the same process all over again. The exiting of a country is not as detailed as entering, simply because all the entry paper work has already been performed and they simply collect the copies of what documents are needed by their office.
We have reentered Malawi and are now on a Tarmac road, at least for the next hour and half we are through with the dust, corrugated roads, pot holes etc… and for awhile it seems to be a joy to ride on a two lane tarred road, even if you are competing for your lane with people, animals, and other vehicles.
We arrived home around 1830 hrs and once home I started unpacking with my two nephews as the girls went for bathing. In time I too took my bath and yes it did feel good, and yes it was nice to switch on a light switch, and yes it was nice to sit at a proper table and eat out of a plate with (cold water to drink).It was nice to go to a proper toilet and it was nice to sleep in my own bed.
It costs to preach the Gospel, and NO, it really isn’t free at all, It cost Christ HIS life, it cost those who preach it, and it will cost you if you (LIVE the Gospel).However, it is a joy and an Honour to be chosen by Jehovah to preach the Gospel of [Christ], IT is HIS Gospel, and God’s Power according to Paul in Rom. 1: 16.
May our LORD richly bless each of you in your service to HIM, and smile upon the work of your hands.
In His Name,
Missionary Peter Halliman