This episode of The Go and Send Podcast features Justie Wingfeld, co-founder of Akonda Ministries in Malawi. Justie grew up watching her parents live out their faith, and a family friend's story of missionary sacrifice planted a desire in her heart at a young age to give her whole life for someone to know Jesus.
This episode of The Go and Send Podcast features Justie Wingfeld, co-founder of Akonda Ministries in Malawi. Justie grew up watching her parents live out their faith, and a family friend's story of missionary sacrifice planted a desire in her heart at a young age to give her whole life for someone to know Jesus. She married her husband, Nathan, right out of high school, and the two always assumed missions would come "someday," once their kids were grown.
God had other timing. A trip to Malawi turned into deep friendships, an unexpected calling, and a series of leaps of faith that reshaped their family's entire life -- including one remarkable story of God providing abundantly for a hospital they had no way of funding on their own. It's a story that spans from the ministry they never planned to start, to the way they chose to raise their kids along the way.
Justie shares candid, faith-stretching stories about trusting God with her kids, her finances, and her family's future, along with practical encouragement for anyone wrestling with their own step of faith.
Contact us at goandsend@sonsetsolutions.org
Resources & Links:
00:00 -- Cold Open: "I Want to Love Jesus So Much..."
00:47 -- Meet Justie Wingfeld: Hospital Ministry in Malawi
01:44 -- Malawi: The "Warm Heart of Africa"
02:57 -- A Childhood Shaped by Answered Prayer
03:47 -- Following a Missionary Family's Journey to Mozambique
04:54 -- Tragedy on the Mission Field
06:19 -- The Impact of Jim Elliot and Nate Saint's Story
07:28 -- Growing Up With Missions in the Backyard
08:48 -- Meeting Nathan in the 9th Grade
09:59 -- Marrying Young and Facing the Pushback
11:04 -- Dreaming of Missions "Someday," Choosing Motherhood First
11:44 -- Pursuing Adoption -- and Getting Denied Again and Again
12:27 -- An Unconventional Adoption Opportunity Arrives
14:06 -- Landing in Malawi for the First Time
14:50 -- The Poverty and Joy That Wrecked Them
17:52 -- Meeting Klaus: A Stranger Who Became Family
20:58 -- Small Projects Snowball Into Something Bigger
22:42 – Akonda Ministries Is Born
24:38 -- The Dream of Building a Hospital
27:43 -- Standing Before Government Officials, Committing to Build
28:53 -- Wrestling Over How to Fund the Hospital
30:53 -- A Text From an Old Friend and a Provision She Didn't See Coming
32:31 -- Learning to Fully Trust God With Her Children
34:38 -- A Family Health Crisis Right Before Leaving for Malawi
36:44 -- The Closest She's Ever Felt to the Lord
41:07 -- Selling the House, Building the Hospital, and Full-Time Missions
42:24 -- The School Bus "Coincidence"
44:24 -- A Confirming Test Trip to Malawi With All the Kids
45:07 -- Moving a Family of 10 Into a School Bus
47:56 -- Quitting the Job and Fundraising Full-Time
48:34 -- Her Brother's Role in the Journey
49:14 -- Encouragement for Anyone Facing a Step of Faith
50:44 -- Akonda Ministries Today: Led by Malawians
52:53 -- Serving as a Shelter After a Devastating Cyclone
54:37 -- Launching the Business Training Centers
59:37 -- Churches Becoming Self-Sustaining
1:03:09 -- Books and Resources That Shaped Her Faith
1:05:13 -- Where to Learn More About Akonda Ministries
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