Bill and Wanda’s Incredible Journey

This is the first time we have met anyone that shares Bill’s Birthday, but we have done so, here at Redcliffe College. Mvula January Mvula (born in August - long story for another time). Mvula comes from Malawi, a long thin country in Eastern Africa. We interviewed him for our Blog, so you too could know more about Africa - a big big place that’s much more than just about famines and dictators.

Mvula turns out to have an accountancy background, like Bill again. For quite a number of years, as an accountant, Mvula was the supplies manager for a large equipment importer in Malawi, dealing with the importation and deployment of large machinery. As a Christian, he wanted to help the people of his country. So after a while, he left his prestigious job and became a church pastor in the Malawian “River of Life Evangelical Church”. Never heard of it? Not surprising, for there are many national initiated churches that are quite Pentecostal in style (though quite straightforward in their beliefs).

In 1998, Mvula became the Malawian National Director of “The Navigators”, an international organisation that helps Christian leaders in discipleship. In his team were men and women from all over Malawi, each with their own language, as well as Americans and British (divided by a common language - as they say). In 2006, after 10 years with Navigators, eight of which were as National Director, Mvula felt God directing him to leave. After a short trip to USA, he came to Redcliffe College to pursue further studies in his MA.

What next? After leaving Redcliffe College, he and his wife will be going to Mozambique to train and mentor church leaders who live in the deep countryside. This is a tough assignment, and there is a great need for others to come to lead the people in their faith, and be points of stability in times of change and crisis. He described to me an initial visit he made to Mozambique. He turned up and found very large numbers of pastors had travelled long distances by foot or bicycle to hear him and others speak. The pastors listened very carefully and asked intelligent questions: these pastors wanted to really know and understand what God was saying in scripture.

The days when mission partners travelled from “The West” to “The Rest” have been over for many years. Here is an example “everywhere” to “everywhere”, in this case - Africa to Africa.

In our next posting, Mvula tells us about getting to know those people who will become our new neighbours - in Africa.