Pastor's Weekly Word

I also encourage you to consider going with us to Malawi on a Friendship Trip. I went a few years ago and can tell you that it is an experience one is unlikely to forget. One question I get about taking a trip like that is, “Why is it important to go there? Wouldn’t it be better if I sent the money I would have spent for a trip?” It’s a good question. Obviously going to Malawi is something that will help you grow in your faith. It will challenge your assumptions about the fairness of life and the disparity that exists in the world. But, perhaps the best reason to go is what it does for the people there. When you go to Malawi, it shows the villagers that we are serious about being in relationship with them. Each new person who goes on a Friendship Trip helps ensure confidence in the people there that VIP is a group who will stay with them. So many groups go on a mission trip to Malawi but never return. VIP is committed to staying, and they need people like us to be part of that commitment. So, it will change you, yes, but more than that, it builds our relationship with the people who live there, and if there is anything God wants most of all, it’s to build relationship. Give it some thought.