Goodbyes and God’s Grace: Our Final Season in Malawi

I’ve been seeing familiar things a little differently these last few weeks. Seeing the spontaneity of dance among the children at school open days, recognising the wide community of friends we have, taking in the eclectic names of roadside coffin shops, and, this morning, feeling that cool wind that comes ahead of the rain sitting on our back porch. I suppose the difference is we know we’re going to miss them.

We always knew we were sojourners in Malawi. We signed up for three years and now, seven years later, we’re preparing to say goodbye. God willing, we’ll be back in Scotland in March 2026 and we look forward to connecting with many of you during a final deputation programme.

All the cliches are true – we’ve learned more, been changed more, gained more than we might consider ourselves to have given to others. And there’s time for that. But, for now, we’re acutely aware of our dependence on God as we navigate through the next few months:

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. – 2 Corinthians 9:8

I met with colleagues in Lilongwe last week to discuss what “making the most” of my remaining time might look like. It was encouraging to see that some projects were well developed and ready to hand over, like the direction of the tree nursery in Northern Malawi. Also, a number of the congregations that received micro-grants for tree planting have done great work, and we’re hoping to support them to scale up their efforts while offering support to another tranche of congregations.

Over the last year, I’ve worked on the Emerging Leaders Programme to turn it into a workbook format so it can be used for self-paced learning or be easily taught by others. If time allows, I’ll deliver three more workshops in the remaining weeks before our return to Scotland.

I recently visited Zomba Theological University, where work on the postgraduate centre has been disrupted by the contractor’s unreasonable demands for additional budget. Helping my fellow committee members find a way forward for the project and dispute settlement is a priority. But it’s apparent that I won’t see this project through to completion as I had once hoped.

But time is limited. We have to accept, as the Apostle Paul did, that it may be our responsibility to plant while God has someone else in mind to water, and that it will ultimately be God who gives the growth. A humbling, but important lesson.

It’s 30° right now, but there are signs of the festive season. We’re in an Advent series at church. There’s tinsel and Christmas music in the supermarket. And, last week, we attended the school production of Dickens’ Christmas Carol – where Eilidh was the Ghost of Christmas Past.

Morven celebrated her 8th birthday in November, and Eilidh her 12th just last week. They’ve taken the news of our return to Scotland very well. Though we know there are bumps and tears to come, we’re looking forward to another Christmas in Malawi and the chance to squeeze in more memories.

So, what’s ahead? In April 2026, I’ll take up the role of Director of Programmes at the Scottish Bible Society. We’re excited for what comes next and are grateful for a clear sense of God’s guidance. But obedience doesn’t get put on hold because there’s another opportunity around the corner. We see so many opportunities to testify to God’s faithfulness as our time in Malawi draws to a close.

We pray that you, too, can testify to God’s faithfulness in 2025 and hold some excitement for His plans in 2026.

Gary, Jacqueline, Eilidh, Morven and Caitlin