Farming God's Way with Pastor Dickson
1. Tell us about yourself and your family.
I’m Dickson Shuwali. I live in Malawi and am married with one wife and four children; that's two boys and two girls. I was born in a family of twelve. My dad had two wives, and my mother was the first wife. I'm the second born and the only son of my mother. I was raised in a very poor family, very rural community, where life was so, so tough throughout different stages of my upbringing.
My father was just a normal subsistence farmer, and was not producing enough for the family. There was a time when I ran away and stayed with my grandparents. Little did I knew that life would be even tougher, to the point where I was eating one meal every second day. That was so hard. It's easier when I say it now, but when I was going through it, it was actually so hard.
Later, some well-wishers sponsored my school fees to high school. When I finished high school, my late pastor, Lloyd Chizenga, sent me to Bible school. After that, in 2006, I started pastoring a church. That was also how I met and then married my wife, Tia. Together we have been pastoring this church up until now.
2. When did you first hear about Jesus?
I heard about Jesus when I was very young. I accepted Him as the Lord and personal Saviour of my life when I was 17 years old. It has been quite an exciting journey after that.
3. How did you first hear about Farming God's Way?
I first heard about Farming God's Way in 2004. In 2006, I was invited to help a South African called Grant Dryden to teach Farming God's Way with translation. In that meeting, something struck my heart. When I saw the passion of Grant, how he was presenting the material in his heart for the poor, I fell in love with Farming God's Way and wanted to give it a try.
The first year I did Farming God's Way we were hit by a dry spell. Where I come from in the valley in Malawi, a dry spell is quite something. We have been hit almost every year with extremes, either drought or floods. Even so, that first year I got five bags of maize. The second year I got 45 bags. Then the third year I got 54 bags, and the fourth year I got 69 bags! It was incredible. The journey has been even more exciting since then.
4. How has Farming God's Way changed you?
It’s amazing to see, that the guy getting 69 bags of maize is the same guy who used to eat one meal every second day, going to school with an empty stomach, dressing poor… and now through Farming God's Way, the Lord has blessed me beyond my expectation.
That night after counting my bags, I could not sleep, I felt I'm not going to live long. At that very moment, the Lord spoke to me. He said, “Dickson, see, you are the same guy who had no food on the table, and now you have got 69 bags. Consider sharing this message with others, who don't have food on their table.” So, I told Grant and he started teaching me to become a trainer.
Soon after I was accredited as a trainer, then a national trainer, and now a country coordinator. I’m also sitting as a global stewardship team member. Farming God's Way has radically changed my life. Since starting this method, I have never needed to buy a grain of maize for consumption. Also, I'm able to send my kids to good schools, I'm able to support the church, and I'm even supporting the orphans. The Lord has done so much.
5. How are you involved with the Marenje people?
Just last year, Helen van der Walt from Wycliffe South Africa got in touch with me, looking for a trainer to help a community in Mozambique. She then linked me with the team in Milange who wanted to learn more about Farming God's Way.
In November 2025 I went and did the training. Although the training was late in the season, people were excited to learn and to use Farming God’s Way. Thank God, when I went back to do the follow-up in February 2026, I was super excited to see the growth of crops and the adoption rate. Even though it was the first year of hearing about Farming God's Way, they were invested.
6. What are your hopes for the future?
I'm very optimistic that if they continue with this same pace, passion and hunger, that this community and area will never be the same again. They've got good soils, but they will be depleted if they don't use it well. This new method is good for the soil. Also, other soils which have been depleted can now be replenished and become good soil as well. The land can be conserved if they do Farming God's Way.
I'm so optimistic that in the near future they will be harvesting bumper yields, and that their families will be changed. It's my prayer that, even during my lifetime, I will see the Marenje people producing more than they need, so that they can sell and generate income for their families and for the generations to come.
