Tuesday was, officially, a day of rest. We set to work writing up our last post, slept in and explored Blantyre. While our students attempted to catch up on work from home, most of the team headed across the road to the Synod HQ and were given a tour of the site.
This historical Presbyterian mission station was an inspiring sight, and an encouraging one in our present work. It was established by Henry Henderson in 1876, and became a place of refuge for local people hunted by the slave trade. Duff McDonald and David Scott were sent from Scotland to strengthen the work, opening sites also at Domasi and Zomba, and St Michael and All Angels church was built in 1891 by local labour and 800,000 local bricks. This church stood right in the way of the slave trade route, a theological statement for freedom, dignity and faith. The modern-day Blantyre Synod, descended from this mission, is now made up of 1.6m professing Christians.
Craig asked us if it would be possible to visit Leonard and bring him to Mwaiwathu Hospital for a thorough medical examination and a proper diagnosis - only possible if the hospital sees he is with someone able to pay for his medical fees. By God's providence, Wednesday morning Hui wasn't scheduled for any ministry and was able to bring Leonard to the hospital together with Soyoung and Miles.
After being seen by a doctor at the emergency, he was instructed to get a blood test and CT scan in the other departments in the same hospital, which was very impressive. Leonard was prescribed with some antibiotics and referred to see a specialist on Friday. As we couldn't accompany him due to our weekend Bible distribution at Thyolo Presbytery, Hui made an appointment for him and gave him the consultation fee. He was very thankful to God for this "ministry of mercy" (as John described). Praise God for the kindness of Craig who responded to Leonard's plight, and reminded Hui of the story of the Good Samaritan who loved his neighbour and made sure he was okay and reimbursed me all the medical expenses of around 400,000 Kwacha (~$400). Please pray for Leonard's recovery so he can start working again and take care of his wife, sons and extended family. May God also bless Craig and his ministry to Orbus.
https://mbm.pcv.org.au/4-mid-week-mayhem/
