(photos: Some fishing boats; Peter looking sweaty and messy and cute)I was picking up some of the clutter of our living when I heard a “ho-di” (the local way of asking entrance) at our open front door. I welcomed the man past the overturned chair that was blocking the door (preventing Peter from crawling outside). As the initial greetings left my mouth I finally recognized him, “Mwandzani”, our old friend.
He was much skinnier than when I had last seen him but still the same big smile. Tom greeted him with a prolonged big hug. It was a happy day. Mwandzani had finally been let out of prison.
It started around nine months ago—Peter was little more than a newborn and Mwandzani was summoned to the courts. He was scared and we didn’t know whether it was religiously motivated or whether he had broken a law or both. Multiple times he was asked to come back to the courts without being seen and without being told what it was all about. Then one night his mother warned him that they were going to come for him.
He was picked up by police and put in the island prison. He has been there the past eight and a half months. He was never officially charged with a crime, though reportedly he was going to be charged with theft.
Tom and the guys saw him every week when they went to teach English at the prison. They tried to encourage him but he was often sick and lost a lot of weight. He saw other men bribe their way out of prison after a few months. At the same time, a lot of his fellow prisoners were asking questions—questions about life, and truth, and meaning, and Mwanzani was able to share with many of them, and many of them were listening. Then the day before yesterday he was let out. He said he couldn’t sleep the first night because he was so excited and it didn’t feel real. Had they actually let him out?
We welcomed him to our lunch table but his stomach was still bothering him after months in the prison’s poor sanitation. He sat with us while we ate and then he prayed with Tom and went on his way. A joyful smile on his face.
PRAYERS ANSWERED
We’ve settled back into life on the islands well. We’re all pretty much over our colds. Kathryn made it safely to the UK. Tom started teaching a new class and it looks like it will be a fun group (professional people). Mwandzani is out of prison.
PRAYERS REQUESTED
Pray that the dubbing project would continue to go well and finish quickly. Pray for the two short-term ladies who will be joining us on March 15 from Canada (they will be with us until August). Pray for a family that is just arriving to work long-term on the smallest island (they arrive to their new home on Friday). Grace has been having some tummy 
troubles—pray for her healing. The island in a gas shortage—pray for a resolution.
