So, if you thought you were busy today. . . try taking at turn at the Mzuzu Crisis Nursery in Mzuzu, Malawi!

Baby Bridgette and Baby Mphatso were two of the first babies rescued by the Mzuzu Crisis Nursery when it opened in 2006.
Below is another photo of the same two children when they were adopted at six years of age.

Monika, the lady pictured above, was married with children when her husband died. According to Tumbuka tribal tradition, she was obligated to marry her late husband’s brother. She is protected by Malawi law, so when she refused to marry her brother-in-law, her late husband’s relatives came and dismantled her house, tearing off the tin roof and making it uninhabitable. Monika knew God and with tears prayed to Him in her distress.

A pastor in the area heard of her predicament and offered to give her a job working at a pre-school that his church operated. She earned two to five dollars a day, but at least she had some way to feed her children, and she had seen God provide!

Monika was faithful in little, and in 2006 she was offered a job to be a nanny at the Mzuzu Crisis Nursery when it opened. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, so Monika was reticent about changing jobs, especially when this new ministry had no tenure nor testing.

“Madam,” she asked her potential employer, “how do I know this ministry will last?” “I am the only breadwinner for my family, and it is a risk for me if this ministry does not continue.”

“Monika, you have seen God’s hand provide for you before. I cannot tell you what to do. It is up to you to seek God and ask His direction. If you have the faith to work here, we would love to have you as a part of this team, caring for the babies.”

Monika went home and prayed about it. When she returned, she stated that she believed this was something that God had for her. To her amazement, her starting salary was double what she had been earning at the church’s preschool.