Saturday, May 24, 2014

Post Election Update

Dear Friends and Family,

Malawi had its historic Tripartite Election on Tuesday. For the most part, the process went quite well. There were some irregularities at some polling centers and and funny business right before the elections. However, all in all they have been called credible and valid by both Malawian elections observers and international elections monitors. There was a bit of a panic in the country today when the sitting President tried to annul this past week's votes and hold new elections in 90 days which she said she would not take part in. The Malawi high court ruled against her in this matter and the votes are still being counted and will move towards finalization soon.

There have already been some ugly political results of this election and their could be much more. Pray that the heads of the political parties will act with prudence and wisdom and encourage their followers to do so too. Also pray for the people of Malawi. They are angry over the arrogance of their politicians with regard to the Cash Gate scandal that stole hundreds of billions of Kwacha from the government and there have been no significant prosecutions. There is very little medicine in the public hospitals. The police have not been paid for awhile and on and on and on. The common people are continuing to be squeezed. Pray that a new government will be installed soon and that there will not be any violence from the losing parties.

Also, please pray for our family. We are in the closing weeks of our time here. There is so much to do and so many things and people to say good-bye to. We are feeling quite overwhelmed with the process of leaving. Brian still does not yet have a job offer for once we get home. He is in different stages of the process with quite a few schools, but nothing certain yet. On many days he is ok with that, but on others it is very hard for him. Pray for the kids. This HAS been their home and the closer we get to leaving the more they realize it!

We are so thankful for all of the love and support we have been shown since we made the decision to come to Malawi. We could not have come or stayed without your prayers and sacrificial giving!

Grace and Peace,

Brian and Scharlie

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Election Day Update and Prayer Requests

Dear Friends and Family,

This week, 20 May, is the TRIPARTITE Election for Malawi. This is a rare election cycle in that EVERY elected official in the country--local, regional and national--is up for election on Tuesday. There is a tense atmosphere in the country. Rumors are flying all over the place regarding what will or won't happen depending on who wins. There is a mild security concern for how things will go on Election Day, but the main reason we have declared a school holiday that day is so that our Malawian staff and families can get out to vote without any difficulties. If there is going to be a serious security concern, it will be in the days following Election Day when the votes are certified and a winner is declared. It is highly likely that the winner may only get 25-30% of the vote, which means that most people will have wanted someone else to win. As we experienced in the riots of 2011, the overwhelming majority of Malawians are very peaceful and do not want any kind of violent response, even to oppression or injustice. However, there is a growing movement in that direction among some of the younger urban Malawians.

Please pray for Godly men and women to be elected and to govern in the best interest of ALL Malawians.

Please pray for a peaceful Election Day, certification period and transition if new leadership is elected.

Please pray for the Church in Malawi to lead the way in showing what is a proper and Godly response to the outcome of the election.

Please pray for the Carlisles. We are OVERWHELMED and so tired, but God is blessing us so abundantly! We just sent 5 boxes with some friends, Matt and Rachel Floreen,  who are going on furlough and did not need all of their space! What a huge blessing. Many others have already helped with taking a box or two here and a suitcase there! There are a number of good leads on work for Brian, but no offers yet. We need patience and more trust. We also need to be loving our kids hard during this crazy period of the closing of our time here.

Please pray for Samuel on his seventh birthday tomorrow! We can hardly believe that our barely three year old that we came here with is now a big brother and  seven years old! Pray for the work of the Holy Spirit in Samuel's life.

We hope to get a "proper" communication out soon, but as Scharlie just told me, "that may never happen!"

Thank you for praying!

Grace and Peace,

Brian, Scharlie, Gwen, Samuel and Nathan

Update on Dani Jenson

I could not be more excited to report to you that Dani Jenson is out of the ICU and walking up and down stairs! It is very possible that she will fly home with her mother and sisters at the end of this coming week! What a blessing! God has been so faithful to Dani, her family and friends, and the rest of the ABC community during this time!