There is no one like you, O Lord, and there is no God but you. And who is like your people Israel – the one nation on earth whose God WENT OUT to redeem a people for himself.’ 1 Chron.17:20-21

In some ways, going out to Mozambique seems like madness. There is certainly no shortage of things to do here in Malawi. The people are very stubborn, returning to the same flood zone every time the water recedes. The roads are passable, but still no treat. There are border obstacles and fees to pay. Dare we pursue God’s heart in the same way he pursued his children, Israel, despite their stubbornness, despite their moaning and complaining? We keep asking the God who gives wisdom to all, to keep us in line with his heart for the people around us.

The flood waters have receded. The Shire River in Malawi and the Zambezi River in Mozambique are now at safe levels and currently not a threat. Even though we are still in rainy season, the rains in southern Malawi have stopped – we’ve been dry for over three weeks now. Better road conditions have allowed us to carry food safely into refugee camps in Malawi and in Mozambique.

These last few weeks have not been easy. On January 30th while attempting to deliver food to refugees, a concrete drift on the main road in Malawi collapsed under one of our hired maize trucks resulting in it being overturned in the river bed. Thankfully no-one was seriously hurt and we salvaged the food before the arrival of the raging flood waters. However, the truck remained. Coordinating food distribution to refugee camps with officials in Mozambique has been challenging. Some officials operate without integrity, leaving us slugging upstream against lies and deceptions. Then, just the other day in Malawi, we had hundreds of greedy thugs follow us into the refugee camp and began forcing their way to the food, overwhelming the eight armed police, and running off with bags of food. Our team defended the food, police shot into the air, while I forced back the looters with the Pinzgauer truck, siren blaring. We are thankful that not one of our team members was hurt and we lost very few bags of maize flour. It was, however, a very discouraging end to the day.
In this season, we have delivered over 120 metric tons of food to 3,640 families (approximately 18,200 people) people in 10 different refugee camps. At every distribution we begin by preaching the Gospel and there are always many who humbly respond and accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. Through observing the conditions of the people we have tried to identify those in more desperate situations and provide extra support when able. These conditions are especially difficult for widows who are trying their best to care for their children and/or their children’s children on their own.

These people in this Mozambique refugee camp have become our friends. They are
hungry to learn more from the Bible and we stop and teach
them whenever we have an opportunity. These people have
also received food.

On our travels, we have made repeated visits to certain refugee camps on the main road and have built good relationships with them. They know us, trust us, and appreciate every opportunity to hear more from the Bible. It is encouraging to visit these camps, where there are established relationships.
Our relief team has been working very hard and long hours. That team includes our drivers, Mary – the one who tracks down the maize for us and organizes the milling, my assistant Peter, several of our pastors, and the commissioners of the ministry here, including myself. We have decided to have a short break. Our team needs rest. We will resume food distribution soon. It is uncertain how long people will remain in the refugee camps, probably another couple of months. Some are replanting but it will be three or four months yet before they will harvest. Houses must be rebuilt. All are encouraging these flood victims to rebuild on higher ground.

At home in Bangula, our family continues to grow. We now have 48 children. Yesterday we brought home a little boy who is very malnourished. He is a character though. Yesterday, he asked Mama Jo why I, Papa Mo, had not studied at school so that I could understand Chichewa. He went to bed last night clean and sleeping on a mattress for the very first time. We are so thankful to be able to bring these children home. Last week, the grandmother of two of our children died. There was absolutely no one to help with a funeral so we looked after it. We were so glad the children were protected from the responsibility for the funeral of their grandmother.

We appreciate your prayers and support in assisting us to love the poorest of the poor who have suffered so much. Please continue helping us help the needy.

With much love, David “Mo” & Joanna Morrison.