Jahswel & Cheyenne Mpagaja Newsletter (Winter 2026)

Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is our only source of peace and comfort in this life.

WITH HEAVY HEARTS

In mid-October, our family flew up to my parents’ house in PA for a week so that Jahswel could help my dad renovate their kitchen. They worked day and night installing a dishwasher, garbage disposal, new stovetop oven, new hardwood countertop, and sink, leaving my mom with a functioning kitchen before my dad had to get back on the road delivering loads in his semi-truck. I dropped him off at his truck on Thursday, October 16th, unaware that would be the last time I hugged my dad goodbye. On Saturday, October 18th, 2025, Timothy Robert Freeman unexpectedly went to be with the Lord. Unbeknownst to us, he had an enlarged heart and died peacefully in his sleep parked at a Flying J gas station in Illinois. 

Even as I write those words, it still feels unbelievable. Amid this devastating news, I am finding many, many things to be thankful for. My dad was instrumental in setting me on the path to serving the Lord in missions. He felt it was a requirement of his parenting to send us kids on Teen Missions teams, having been on three teams himself back in the 80s. That is where my passion for missions began. He was proud of me for following the Lord’s leading for my life. When I met Jahswel in Malawi, he wasn’t as sure as I was that I should marry him. I trusted the Lord to give my dad the same peace He had given me, and I knew once my dad met Jahswel, he would love him just as everyone else does. And from the moment we moved to the U.S. three years ago, Jahswel talked to my dad more than I did! They became best friends; always going places together, working on vehicles or doing odd projects around the house, texting each other when they were apart, and always had a game of Words With Friends going on between them. It was the greatest blessing to me to see their relationship blossom over the last few years. And of course, to see how much he loved being a grandpa to his five grandsons. 

Although I will miss my dad for the rest of my life, and I am still processing this unfathomable loss in my life, I consider myself immeasurably blessed to have had a loving, God-fearing, hilarious, hardworking, caring father for the 30 years that I had him. And he is now with Jesus, where he longed to be. 

“Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways! You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house, your children will be like olive shoots around your table. Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord.” Psalm 12:1-4

GROWING BY TWO FEET

We feel blessed by God to share that we are expecting baby #3 due in September! We are over the moon to meet this precious little blessing. Please pray for a healthy pregnancy for mama and baby. 

JAHSWEL’S HARD AT WORK

Jahswel has been working for a couple months to trim over 200 of the palm trees around the Teen Missions’ base. When the wind blows, there are hundreds of palm fronds that fall to the ground because the trees were overgrown. So he has been using the manlift and a chainsaw to do the job. Please pray for him as he operates different vehicles and machinery on a daily basis. 

OUR HOPES FOR THE FUTURE

Because our baby is due to come in September, we will not be leading a summer team this year. We will stay home to hold down the fort and support the teams that will be going out.

In February, it is our hope to start the citizenship process for Jahswel. Being a green card holder, he is only allowed to spend six months out of the US each calendar year. With that limitation, and our calling to serve the Lord in missions overseas, we feel that gaining his citizenship will allow us to live overseas long-term to fulfill our calling in ministry, while also being able to come to the US for visits.  Please pray for us in this tedious process!

As we are awaiting that, we are praying for the opportunity to visit Malawi at the end of this year. It has been nearly three years since we’ve moved to the US, and we are due for a visit to our home in Malawi. Please pray for the Lord to direct our steps, and to provide the means for this to happen in His timing. 

Thank you for all your prayers for us. It has been a difficult season for our family as we grieve, but also a joyous one as we look forward to welcoming this baby into our family. We trust in the Lord our God, the One who gives and takes away. We commit our ways to Him, as He is our sole purpose in this life. Let us press on faithfully to fulfill the Great Commission with every day that He gives us. 

“Only one life, a few brief years, Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears; Each with its days I must fulfill, living for self or in His will; Only one life, ‘twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.” 

C. T. Studd

Blessings in Jesus’ name,

Jahswel & Cheyenne