Life in Africa. All 4 Months.

As I’m beginning my 10th month on the race in Romania, I’ve been reflecting my time I spent in Africa.

When I first applied for the World Race, I was originally on another route similar to the one I am on now. The only continent missing was Africa. I am so happy the Lord made it clear to me to push back my launch date and to change my route.

Since my childhood years, I’ve assumed God would bring me to Africa one day. The route change was meant to be! God meant for me to be in Africa this year for 4 months as it was the longest our squad has stayed in one continent.

In order, between the months of June and September, we have traveled and ministered to Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, and Ethiopia.

During the 4 months, our squad, my team, and myself have faced many challenges in which we have overcome. One struggle many of us faced were some illnesses that we’ve have picked up along the way. I think this was one of our toughest struggles to face. Though it may have been hard to face, we knew that God as our strength and comforter would carry us through. And He did! When one person from a team falls sick, it can affect the whole team through emotions or how to work in Ministry. Everyone’s health is doing a lot better and we’re currently preparing ourselves for the Camino hike in Portugal/Spain.

But by the Grace of God, through dependency on Him, it gave us room to grow. It had allowed us to step up and try things that we’ve never tried before or even thought to try. As a team, we practiced a lot of risk taking or being humble for each other. When one fell sick, one would always step in.

The goals I had for myself in the beginning of the race were to have no fear of man, to fearlessly share the gospel, grow in evangelism, and to encourage my teammates to seek God deeper. Looking back on my time in Africa with World Race, I can’t express enough in words how much my prayers and intentionality to grow have been extraordinarily met. I’ve grown in ways that I had not expect to. God is Able (Eph 3:20).

Things God has done in each country:

Rwanda: a month of learning dependency on the Father.

-I had to let my pride down of figuring things out for myself, where I wasn’t including God to help me. God was showing me that he was more than just my Father, but showing me He wanted me to rely on Him for strength of things I knew I couldn’t accomplish on my own. I had to learn to trust Him with preparing sermons/testimonies and knowing that it was to be preached to a group of people.

New firsts for me: Preached. Taught English and Math. House visit Evangelism. Dedicated a baby. Hosted a crusade. We danced with a famous Rwandan Gospel singer. Learned and sang a worship song in KinRwanda (Break every chain). Ate Chapati every morning!

Salvations: over 300

Verse of the month: 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 “…My grace is all you need. My power work best in weakness. So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

 

Uganda (ATL): a month of choice.

-I had a choice to choose into ATL, community, and intimacy with the Father.

-I did listening prayer for other teams, and friends.

-Jesus gave me a vision, inviting me into stillness and it was my choice to seek that.

-I also practiced doing Sabbath once a week.

New firsts for me: Chose to develop relationships with clinic staff as our ATL assignment. Watched the whole series of The Lord of the Rings with my team. Avocado salad! Did listening prayer for a friend at home. 4 Sabbath rests in one month! And watched the United States Women win the World Cup! And Fished on the Nile!

  

Salvations: 1

Verse: 1 Corinthians 10:24 “Don’t be concerned for your own good but for the good of others.”

Kenya: a month of courage and seeing God’s goodness.

-Got to find and stay in God’s stillness where He revealed deeper depts of His love for me.

-Blessed with a lot of team bonding in Northern Kenya.

-Sometimes being an international missionary is not the safest, but the Lord has provided perfect timing, protection, peace and courage to do what He has called us to.

-We brought the gospel to unreached people groups. It was an hour drive through a sandy, dry desert in the middle of nowhere. This was a small passion the Lord planted on my heart 3 years ago.

-During our last week, we held a children’s summer camp at our WYAM base. 100 kids came and over 50 children received Jesus in their hearts.

New firsts for me:  Shared the gospel and prayed with 4 Muslim women. Driving through untouched desert roads to share the gospel with an unreached tribe in a conflict zone. Preached the Word of God to children fearlessly and confidently. Ate goat meat. Played spoons. Drove through an African Safari! And dropped a whole new pack of baby wipes down the latrine. (toilets in Africa are usually a hole in the ground).

Salvations: Northern Kenya- 4, Niarobi- over 50 children

Verse of the Month: Psalm 62:5-8 “Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken. My victory and honor come from God alone. He is my refuge, a rock where no enemy can reach me. O my people, trust in him at all times. Pour out your heart to him, for God is our refuge.”

   

Ethiopia: a month of love, being present and vision casting

-Though I was sick (Typhoid, Typhus, and intestinal infection), missing out on ministry was no option for me. I wanted to be there, to learn, be present, and pour into other lives.

-At Children’s Heaven we danced and played games with the girls. We also participated in sharing only English conversations purposely for their English class.

-At HopEthiopia, we were introduced to their reforestation program though it rained too often for us to participate. We did grass cutting, and VBS with the children. It was nice to be in community with 4 teams of our squad in one place.

-Our host did a leadership teaching with us about casting vision and lining up our dreams with God’s will. This was super helpful for me to analyze and narrow down to what I can see myself doing with passion for God’s Kingdom. The Lord has been revealing a lot to me over the last month, reminding me of my growth, the giftings he has given me, the passion I have for equipping His church (discipleship), and evangelizing (reaching the unchurched).

-Written down some short and long term life visions.

-We did a house visit where an 11 year old boy had scabies, his mom has TB and the sister has a gifting to sing. Our squad got to help the boy out with injections, replaced clothing, beds, and sheets. We asked the boy the first visit if he has ever heard God speak. He said no. We prayed that he would. But over the week, he said God spoke to him twice at night “Jesus is Lord.” Hallelujah!

– Oh and I found a care package from home of Johnson’s Popcorn sitting on my bed!

New Firsts for me:  I shared a testimony of God’s Goodness to most of my squad. Grass cutting in the mud with a sickle. My squad mate and I spent the 2012 Ethiopian New Year with the House moms and had tradition coffee and bread with them. I participated in a Beauty for Ashes women’s event with my squad. Ate Injera and Shiro!! Played Phase 10 with squad mates! Taught some English slang and then learned Amharic slang.

Verse of the Month: Habakkuk 2:2-3 “…write my answer plainly on tablets, so that a runner can carry the correct message to others. This vision is for a future time. It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled. If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed.

psalm 92:10 “But you have made me as strong as a wild ox. You have anointed me with the finest oil.”

If there is one word to sum up the experience of Africa, it would be glorious. Everything written above is to be Glorified to God! Everything! Hallelujah!!