We prayed we would survive

Aug 2, 2023

- April Palmbos with Rachael Lofgren

I am Ester from the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 1997 as a teenager, I had to flee my homeland due to violence in my village. I came to Dzaleka refugee camp in Malawi to survive. There I met and married my husband Joseph. In 2013 we moved to the capital city of Lilongwe and opened a clothing shop. The work was hard, but we were supporting ourselves and contributing to the economy of Malawi. This made us proud. It gave us back some of our dignity. And it gave us hope that we could give our children, Olivier and Emmy, a better future. In the city, our children had the opportunity to attend school. Every morning I thanked God for this gift.

Our entire life was here.

Joseph and I didn't overthink the government directive given last year. It said that all refugees living in urban and rural areas in Malawi must return to Dzaleka camp before April 15th of 2023. Dzaleka is 25 miles away from the capital. But we had spent an entire decade in the city; our entire life was there. There was nothing for us if we returned to the camp except despair and starvation. So, we went about our lives as usual and prayed for peace.

Sudden Violence!

The Wednesday morning of May 17,2023, started like any other in our bustling city. Joseph opened the shop, and I sent ten-year-old Olivier and eight-year-old Emmy to school. None of us expected the sudden violence and looting that broke out against refugees like us. In one dizzying afternoon, our family's future was ripped away.

I do not feel brave...

Friday, two days later, we were homeless and staying in the corner of a large reception tent in Dzalaka refugee camp. Our family was given only ten feet of usable space. A tarp served as a curtain separating us from dozens of other desperate people. At night Emmy cried herself to sleep in my arms because she was hungry and afraid. I whispered to her that we must stay brave. But I did not feel brave. I constantly thought of the lack of food, water, and proper sanitation. I thought of the future we no longer had. And I felt despair. I wondered if God had forgotten us.

Our Biggest Hope

Saturday morning, an old friend of Joseph's visited us in the reception tent. He is one of the refugee pastors in the camp. He brought us much-needed hygiene items like soap, then sat and listened to our stories and fears. Afterward, he prayed with us and promised their church would do all it could to help us. They too knew what it was to feel hopeless. We knew they did not have much more than us. Their tangible generosity was a gift. But it meant the most to know we were not alone here. That someone saw our family. Without this, it would be impossible to find hope. Someday, we may find the courage to start again. But these days, we just pray we will survive. That is our biggest hope.

Let's pray for refugees in Malawi.

This story is true and based on first-hand accounts. To protect the safety of the refugees involved in these events, we have created "Ester" as a fictional narrator to tell the story.

20% of the world's refugees are hosted by the world's poorest or least-resourced countries. Malawi is among them. This creates additional tensions for Malawi as it hosts these uprooted people and yet does not have the capacity to integrate them all.

Pray for the country of Malawi for wisdom and resources to host the people it has opened its borders to.

Pray for the churches in Dzaleka refugee camp as they do what they can to help new arrivals this summer - people like Ester and her family.

Pray for those like Ester who have lost everything all over again, that God would give them hope and a future and provide for their daily needs.

CLICK HERE to learn more about our work In Dzalaka refugee camp.