Good news in the face of adversity (February Prayer Letter)
Malawi has been in the headlines once again following tropical storm Ana. Thousands of households are currently displaced, floods have destroyed crops and livelihoods, and, tragically, 48 people have died. The scale of the destruction is great, but its patterns are familiar to Malawians and are played out on a smaller scale week to week […]
Time is marching on (December Prayer Letter)
Where did a year go? Where did three years go, for that matter? It’s almost a year since we returned to Malawi following our COVID furlough and over three years since I came to Malawi to start work and prepare for the family move to Mzuzu. Yet, time has marched on relentlessly. The activities that […]
When the walls fall (September Prayer Letter)
The brick wall around our house has succumbed to heavy rains and has become something of an allegory for our current season. For the second time this year, a section has fallen, revealing a lack of firm foundations. Brick fences, as they are known here, are a common sight in urban areas. They are often […]
For the love of flags
Amid the harrowing images emerging from Afghanistan this week are stories of people demonstrating against the removal of the Afghan flag. Lives were lost in Jalalabad earlier this week and people are returning to the streets today on what should be a celebration of independence day. Over the last few years, the sight of flags […]
People to People Podcast
We recently had the chance to join the People to People podcast which explores the link between Scotland and Malawi. It’s a really great series and we’d recommend you check it out from the start. We’re on “People and Possibilities”, the final episode.
Climate change is real life in Malawi
Climate change is high on the agenda this year with Glasgow hosting the COP26. And there we have it, one sentence in and we already have an acronym and a conference. It seems the conversation around climate change has become burdened by the political dialogue that is meant to address it and shrouded by the […]
Prayer Letter: April 2021
It is good to be writing to you from Mzuzu again. When we last wrote, we were completing our self-isolation after travelling from the UK. At that time, Malawi also experienced a second wave of COVID-19 cases that was much larger than the first. Hospitals began to fill up, and oxygen supplies started to run […]
Splendid Isolation?
We returned to Malawi last week, escaping the UK on lockdown day. We’ve arrived back as the country is experiencing a rise in coronavirus cases which is being attributed to the South African variant. Essential Travel In a journey that was full of hurdles that could have seen us returning to Edinburgh, we’re thankful that […]
Kirkintilloch Baptist Church
It was nice but strange to be back at Kirkintilloch Baptist Church on Sunday (6th September) – there was nobody there! Jacqueline and I each had time to share an update on what life has looked like over the last year or so in Malawi and the girls were excited to be on the television. […]
Prayer Letter: July 2020
Greetings from Edinburgh! I hope this belated update finds you well as lockdown begins to ease. It’s been a while since our last Partner Plan letter, and a lot has happened in that time. Let me bring you back up to speed. Our planned deputation visit for April and May was cancelled when UK restrictions […]