Marty: What I Brought Home from Africa

Many of you know that Lisa and I traveled to Kenya earlier this month to join Erin and some of her squad-mates and their parents for a week of ministry there. What a magnificent time we had in such a beautiful country with a great group of people! Lisa's last post inspired me to share what I brought back with me.

First, an impression of the work that God is doing in and through the lives of Erin and her squad-mates on The World Race. This group of young people demonstrates such love, faith, and trust in Jesus! They readily seek His direction when making decisions, and readily give Him credit for all that is done. They unselfishly share His love with the people they meet: caring attention given to a local teenager, friendly conversation with a mom while holding and playing with her baby, fun banter with a safari tour guide, and so on. We have no way of knowing how these young adults have impacted the specific people whom Jesus has sent them to, but it is clear how Jesus has impacted them through those same people.

Second, an impression of the work that God is doing through the missionaries we met and worked with in Maai Mahiu, Kenya. Matt, Kelli, John, Dorcas, Jason, Fred, and Joyce operate a ministry called "61 Project" that reaches out to young people in their community to teach them and share the gospel with them. Matt and Kelli first worked in Kenya while on assignments with Adventures in Mission. They both felt called to return to this area to minister to the youth there.

And finally, an impression of the effectiveness of leaders who have a passion for sharing Jesus' salvation message with as many people as possible, and doing so with intentionality. Our hosts on the trip were a staff member of Adventures in Mission (AIM) and a Board member of AIM. These men love Jesus and love His people! The interest they showed in our adult children, in us, and in the local people they met was authentic and clearly God-led.

In summary, my experience in Africa made it clear to me how each member of the Body of Christ can make such a significant impact for Jesus in the world. All it takes is for us to surrender our will and seek and follow His will. He'll take it from there!

In Christ,

Marty