There are many people in Malawi who long for a Bible for their family. Sometimes the only time they get to hear from the Bible is when it is read in a church service, and even then, the church might not have one full Bible.
This can be hard for people in Northern Ireland to understand when they think of the pew Bibles in many of their churches. Not to mention the Bibles in drawers and on shelves in homes. Yet for a vast number of people, the cost of a Bible puts a personal copy out of their reach.
Amad’s Family
Amad is an elderly man. He and his wife Lucy attend a local church and are surrounded by what seems like an endless extended family, all living closely together.
Amad’s family received a Bible and have been putting it to great use. When a Bible Society team went to visit Amad recently, he shared that over 20 people in his family are using the Bible and that they really needed more! It was very clear that one Bible is touching many. Amad spoke of 4 other families near-by who have shared this experience of receiving a Bible that is being shared among many.
“How can you teach when you don’t have the material? The assistance that I am getting from this Bible is changing many people’s lives”, shared Amad.
Pastor Tingo Wende
Pastor Tingo has served God faithfully for many years in a small church with just 8 families. Before the Bible Society gave him a new Bible, his old ragged, worn-out Bible was the only copy that the whole church had! And that copy only ran from Genesis 42 through to 1 Corinthians – the rest of the pages were missing.
Pastor Tingo showed the Bible Society team his old Bible, covered in lots of notes. He was thrilled with the new ‘Family Engagement Pack’. Now he can read and teach from the whole Bible. Pastor Tingo’s church is falling down but they are not worried about that – they can make bricks and build a church themselves. What they want the most is Bibles!
The gratitude that Amad and Pastor Tingo have is heartfelt and huge. Yet they long for more Bibles for their families and churches. One Bible to share is much better than no Bible, or a Bible with missing chunks, but more copies would be better still.
Family Focus
The Bible Society of Malawi have teamed up with Scripture Union to bring the Bible to families and help them engage with God’s message to them.
By working closely with church leaders in different regions, families in particular need have been identified. These families are encouraged to commit to reading and talking about the Bible together. If the family are willing to commit to engaging with God’s Word, they are given a ‘Family Engagement Pack’ and are encouraged through their local church.
Family units come in all shapes and sizes. From the elderly pastor who lives alone, leading a church family, to the extended family of 20 people who all live together. Whatever way the family looks, the difference that this simple project has been making is remarkable.
Your gift can bring the Bible to more people
Just £8 will place a Bible with a family or even with a church! This covers the cost of a local language Bible or children’s Bible.
A donation of £30 covers the full cost of placing a ‘Family Engagement Pack’. That is a Family Bible, a Children’s Bible, a Reading Guide and the cost of transport, staff etc.
Amad stated that the Bible he received was changing many people’s lives.