Once again, a group of 10 of us made our way to Malawi, travelling around the country, meeting people, sharing the Gospel and seeing God at work. There is something very familiar about the way we travel in Malawi. In Acts chapters 13 through 18, we read about Paul, Silas, Barnabas and Timothy travelling from town to town — preaching the Gospel, seeing people healed, people receiving the Holy Spirit and new churches being established.

Our trip felt a little like that. We were single-minded, resourceful and ready to adapt. Plans were made, but we quickly learned that the Lord often had other plans! The morning at Lake Malawi, it was early — 6:15am — on the shore of beautiful Lake Malawi.

Phil, John and I were sitting around an outdoor table, watching the sunrise and enjoying the quiet of the morning. A man named Saul came over to us. The evening before, we had prayed with Saul that he would receive the Holy Spirit. Now he had returned early in the morning because he wanted to pray again.

So we prayed. And we prayed for a while. Nothing seemed to be happening. Then, suddenly, Saul said: “People are sinking!” We looked out towards the lake. The water was unsettled, with big waves rolling in. Out on the lake, a fishing boat had capsized and three fishermen were in the water.

We immediately jumped up from the table and ran towards the shore. The fishermen were struggling through the waves, trying to recover their boat, oars and buckets. We did whatever we could to help and eventually dragged the boat back onto the shore. Thankfully, everyone was okay.

We returned to our table, probably wondering what on earth would happen next! Then came Akim. A man named Akim approached us. He worked at the place where we were staying. The night before, Akim had been baptised and had received the Holy Spirit. Before starting work that morning, he had come back to pray with us.

So once again, we gathered together and prayed. Akim then went off to work. And then Saul returned. By now, Saul had managed to hang his wet pants — soaked from helping with the boat rescue — over a tree to dry. Unfortunately, he was left wearing a pair of shorts borrowed from John!

But Saul had one thing on his mind. He wanted to pray again. So we prayed. And this time, Saul received the Holy Spirit and began speaking in tongues. I looked at him and said: “We will baptise you now.” Perfect.

Except for one small problem. Saul went to retrieve his wet pants so he could be baptised in them. But when he returned… Someone had taken his pants! So there we were — early morning, on the shores of Lake Malawi, after rescuing three fishermen from a capsized boat, and now trying to work out how to baptise Saul when his pants had disappeared! The solution? He was baptised in John’s shorts. We gave Saul a new pair of pants afterwards, and he headed home a very happy man. This is Malawi, and somehow, this story sums up Malawi perfectly. Forget the carefully structured plans. Forget convention. Forget worrying about whether everything happens exactly the way you expected.

You simply live in the moment, adapt to what is happening and do the best you can. We preach the Gospel kindly and respectfully. We don’t force ourselves on people. We meet people where they are, and they respond. Sometimes the plan is to pray. Sometimes the plan becomes rescuing fishermen. Sometimes the plan is baptising someone in borrowed shorts!

But through it all, we trust that it is the Lord’s work — and He blesses it. Our Malawi trip was once again full of unexpected moments, wonderful people, laughter, challenges and opportunities to see God at work. And perhaps that’s the greatest lesson from Malawi: Be ready. Be willing. Be flexible. Because you never quite know what the next five minutes will bring.