Faith Adventure Update #3

 

Day 1-2 VLOG

Germany FA 2018|Day 1

Our first full day in Zwickau started and ended with worship and remembering the importance of thanksgiving on Thanksgiving Day in Germany! Even with very little sleep, our intergenerational & multicultural team of 7 from Mariners got to start the day and the whole faith adventure with a special thanksgiving service. The service was hosted on a farm in Mülsen owned by a family that is also leading a small network of life groups that will hopefully be launched as one of Stadtlicht’s church plants next year. Pastor Henry of Stadtlicht reminded and challenged us to think of thanksgiving and thankfulness as a muscle that we need to learn to train like a bodybuilder would.  We also got a tour of the farm, its barns which the owners have transformed into a space for events, as well as the main house which serves as both their home and a restaurant. We got to hear the owner’s passion for using every space for the benefit of the Kingdom as he shared the farms history and his family’s journey to restoring the property while still honoring the wisdom of those who built it in the 1800s.

 

After taking a quick nap break, we went to Stadtlicht’s Sunday night service that’s shaped around their life groups. It’s a hybrid of church service with life/series group discussion AND community BBQ hangout time! Being that it was Thanksgiving Day here in Germany, we got to hear their Men’s Ministry Pastor teach us on the importance of thankfulness and expressing it. It was also a time of reflecting on how God has blessed us with His people that have invested, shaped, and influenced us and what it looks like to reinvest in this church community through honesty, generosity, honor and prayer.

Personally, it was a day of seeing how God loves bringing His people together in community as well as in divine appointments with random conversations. We get to experience a glimpse of heaven in the ways God has brought our team together but also to see our stories somehow intersecting with each other as well as our German family! Sharing communion as small groups and having a time of discussion as part of that allowed us to experience what heaven would be like to simply be and live loved as His sons & daughters. We were blessed to see a picture of what being & living loved looks like by seeing how Pastor Henry loves his kids and how they showed the power of being so loved… and through that, many of us felt loved and were reminded of our heavenly Father’s great love for us, His children!

So thankful and excited for this faith adventure!

Danke schön!

Sero

HSM Haiti 2018 | Day 5

Hey, it’s Katie! I can’t believe our team has already reached the end of the Haiti trip! I have personally enjoyed deepening relationships with the kids of Haiti, my team, and my leaders. Today was our last day serving at Pastor Sam’s orphanage. Going in to today, I was worried because I had a rough day previously and I had yet to make any of the deep connections with the kids as I had hoped. However, I tried my best to go into the day with a renewed hope and energy to hang with the kids.

Before lunch, I was sitting with a girl, Jocelene, who I hadn’t talked to yet. We were simply passing a paper back and forth and drawing little doodles for each other. I was feeling discouraged because I felt like she wasn’t really having fun, but I kept pushing to make her smile and connect with her. She then took the paper from me and wrote, in English, “I am happy because you are my friend” and “I love you”. I thought this was the cutest thing ever!! I asked her how to write those two phrases in Creole. After that, I continued to draw pictures and write words in English for her to translate for me in Creole. I thought this was really cool because the language barrier had been hard to overcome. A little time passed and one of the translators, Elsy, sat with us. I asked her to translate questions for me to get to know Jocelene more. I was able to find out that she loved to sing and jump rope. Even though I couldn’t hold as much of a conversation as I would have liked to with Jocelene, I was happy to learn more about her interests and who she is.

The time I was able to spend with Jocelene increased my hope for the day. Because of this, I was more outgoing with all the other kids, trying my best to seek others with God’s love. I was brought such joy through all the kids I was able to connect with.

Since today was our last time at the orphanage, it was a very emotional goodbye. I had made so many connections and had felt such a deep love for the kids of Haiti as a whole. There were many tears. I felt such a deep loss after hugging the kids and climbing into the bus, not knowing when or even if I would ever see them again. I went into this trip, pleading to feel God’s presence, which I hadn’t felt in such a long time. Although I was sobbing and overcome with emotion on the bus, I felt such a level of comfort I was seeking from God. I was overwhelmed with the feeling that God was sitting with my team and I during our sadness. I knew God was crying with us. I am so grateful for God meeting me in Haiti and providing His comfort I so desperately needed.

Love,

Katie

Hey, it’s Christian! This is our last day serving in Haiti and it was pretty emotional. This whole trip has changed my life. I have made friends, memories and grown spiritually. This final day was sad because we had to say goodbye to the kids, but it was perfect to get closure and know the kids are in good hands.

First off I would like to say to that Pastor Sam is a fantastic man and truly is an example of a man strong in his faith. He provides for kids in Haiti every single day. We visited three different locations and they were all truly amazing. For my personally, the people of Haiti have been so welcoming and excited to share their stories. The greatest part about the trip is of course the kids. They are so cute. They make you feel so special when they just walk up to you and hold your hand without a clue of who you are.

Every day has been a treat but the today has been the most impactful. I am currently a little sick and I was nervous to talk to the kids because I did not want to get them sick. I hadn’t really put myself out there until right after lunch. I saw a boy sitting by himself and I heard God whisper to me, “Go.” My natural response was “No” but eventually I went to go talk to him. He was a shy boy like me so the conversation did not start off super easy. I eventually found out he spoke a little english and it took off from there. We talked about soccer, food, and other general things. Later in the conversation I asked him if he read the Bible and explained he only did when he remembered to. I told him how important reading the Bible is and I was basically because of my faith. He looked at me and said, “you are a good man.” I was blown away.

This whole trip has been truly life changing, but today was super impactful. I heard God speak to me and it was so refreshing. I made a buddy and connected with a young boy. Even with the language barrier, I put myself out there and exited my comfort zone. Because of my experience today, my life has been changed for the better. It was extremely emotional at the very end but I am so grateful and at peace with what God has done in Haiti.

Love,

Christian

Hey y’all my name is Allie and I am so excited to share a little bit of my story with you guys here in Haiti. This trip has been an incredible experience and I can’t believe today was our last day. Pastor Sam is doing such incredible things here in Haiti and I am so impressed by all that he has done for the community of Haiti and the orphans he looks after.

Yesterday I got to experience a church service at the orphanage and it was breathtaking to see how the community comes together to praise Jesus so freely and purely. During the worship part of service I was sitting next to my two buddies I had made throughout the week and both of them weren’t really singing, but just tapping on the bench in front of them. I started to tap along to the beat with them and it eventually made its way into playing the air drums on the back of the bench all together. The two boys got so into it and started singing and dancing and jumping around to the music and it was so cool to see how freely they were able to worship together. Looking around at the people around me I noticed that every single person was worshiping exactly like that and at that moment I felt such an overwhelming amount of joy and awe for the community of Haiti.

Despite their circumstances they are all so strong in their faith and they love so recklessly. They dive in head first to the people around them and don’t look back. And it is because of this reckless love that the kids in the orphanage are able to feel so deeply even in the short amount of time that we are there. I was luckily able to make a connection with two kids from the get go and having to say goodbye to them today was heart breaking. To see the kids crying and giving me hugs goodbye was just a reminder of how much love they have for the people they meet. They love so deeply and fully and that is something us here in the United States have yet to learn. We have so much to learn from the people of Haiti. So so much. And although having to say goodbye was hard I was filled with this sense of peace. This trip filled my heart with such a passion for these people and others like them and for the first time I felt as if God was saying “yes. you finally understand.”

God has so much in store for this country and its people, and I am so excited to be apart of it.

Love,

Allie

HSM Haiti 2018 | Day 4

Hey everyone! This is Sophie! I’m so excited to be in Haiti for the first time and to get to share some of my experiences with all of you! Today, we went to a church an hour and a half away from our hotel. I could not be more happy we made the drive. I was able to connect with this young girl named Vanesca. I made her a Rainbow Loom bracelet, and she drew me a picture and taught me how to say lion and mask in Creole! At the beginning of the day, I was sitting with three girls, and I had my arms around each of them. They all pointed to my wrists and they ended up giving me their rubber bands that they had on their wrists. I almost began weeping in the church. An old woman saw this action, and we caught each others’ eyes and she gave me such a bright smile. In this moment, I felt God’s love shining through the language barrier between the kids and me.

We returned to the hotel later, and we prepared for going to church at the Glory Glory Orphanage. Once we arrived, I reconnected with a young girl named Donise, who I had met the previous day and formed a bond with. She held my hand and directed me to a seat closer towards the front, and we immediately began singing. This was by far one of the most unforgettable moments of this trip. Even though the songs were in Creole, everyone sang together and we all clapped and danced. God was so so present in this moment. My heart was overwhelmed with joy and the Holy Spirit. I cannot wait to make more memories at the orphanage and to bond with more of the kids! I am absolutely in love with this place, and I can’t wait to tell you all about it when we get home!

XO- Sophie

This is my first time in Haiti. This has been an amazing experience and I encourage you all to take a step towards what God is calling you to. SO, today we visited a church that was about an hour away in a place that was absolutely demolished by the (). The church was built out of random materials and scraps that were found because they don’t have enough resources to build another church. When we were almost there we were on a large hill and the bus stopped and they said that we had to walk from here because the road was too steep for the bus to handle, Oh yeah did I mention it was raining the worst I have ever seen in my life. So we got to the church soaking wet. All the kids were so happy to see us. Then me and my friend Troy-C decided that we wanted to play soccer with the kids in the rain. So we asked one of the translators if there was a soccer field to play on and he said no. About half an hour later Pastor Sam said that there was a field just near by the church. So, me and Troy-C went looking for the field in the rain. After a while we realized that there was no field and we went inside and played with the kids. Later that day one of my peers Cassidy said that I needed to come outside and there was Pastor Sam and 5 other adults with machettis cutting down tall grass moving logs and rock and they built goals. I think that this was so cool because he made the field just so we could play soccer with the kids. There are two things that were important from this story the first was that: There are people all around the world in weird places that God wants to reach and he is going to use you reach them. Second is that this people love us soooo much that they will get on there hands and knees for an entire hour just to play soccer for half a day. Well that’s all for now.

Da boi, Brady

Hi everyone, this is Cassidy! It’s day 4 of Haiti and today was such an amazing experience. We were all woken up at 6am by the sound of pouring rain, many of us were so confused and thought that it was the non-existent AC, but then we quickly realized and ran outside to soak it all in. The thunder was so loud and the thunderstorm all together was just so fun. For the day we bussed an hour and a half away to a new church that we had never been to before. It was so amazing to see the street markets and the culture of Haiti while we drove up the mountain, to one of the villages destroyed by Hurricane Matthew. When we got to the church we worshiped but with drums and tamberines. It was the most breathtaking experience, seeing all the people in the community really softened my heart. Some of the children that we saw hadn’t eaten in days and were in so much pain, but they happily laughed and played with us. A lot of the children and families that we saw actually didn’t go to church, but they heard that Pastor Sam was coming, so they decided to go. Pastor Sam fed every single child and adult that came to the church today. Every single one. That really opened my eyes to how much he does for Haiti, not only the orphanage, but the whole entire community.

Tonight, we went back to Glory Glory Orphanage for church and worship, I got to see all of the orphans that we met yesterday and also all of the families that were around the area. Worshipping with all the kids was so rewarding and we were showered with love and hugs and kisses. The worship was so interactive and hearing prayer in Creole was so fun. In Haiti they refer to God as PaPa, and hearing it just warmed my heart so much. I just love hearing the language. The message was in Creole but Nissa, the little girl sitting next to me would flip to the verses he was on in my bible so I could read along and I appreciated that so much. During worship I jumped around so much that I was sweating on my face, but Nissa wiped my face for me. She has one of the kindest hearts I have ever seen and she just met me yesterday. I love how much trust these kids give us even though they don’t know us and we don’t speak the language. I can’t wait to see them tomorrow and tell you guys all about it when I get back home.

Au Revoir, Cassidy Tung ❤

HSM Haiti 2018 | Day 3

You know when you finally get home from a long vacation, set your stuff down and finally take a deep breath? That’s how I’ve felt being back in Haiti, finally being back to the place that changed me and that I love so wholeheartedly. A year ago I was blessed to come to this country and leave with a calling and a new passion from God. Ever since I’ve left Haiti and it’s people, I have felt called to return and being back feels like it was in the plan the whole time. Being back so much has changed in the best possible way, the kids at Glory Glory have grown and the community has been filled with even more joy than I could’ve ever imagined.

Although, this change has also been difficult to adjust to. Before the trip I prepared myself that everything I knew from last year was going to be different, but being back and experiencing that change was so much more overwhelming than expected. God is showing me to be present in the change and stay curious to what God has before me, rather than focusing on just the change that comes with hardship. Being reminded that our God is a personal God and His hopes are always revealed in the new. I cannot wait to futher step into the new that He has already planned for me and the team itself!

( & P.S. mom, I’m doing great!)

with so much love, Emily

For weeks leading up to this trip, I was in constant expectation for how the encounter between the girls I met previously would play out. For the past year all I had been doing was revealing my encounter with them to those around me, and then to have the opportunity to see them again filled me up with so much joy. However, all my expectations had seemingly burned to ashes and crumbled at my feet, because the encounter I had envisioned did not play out the way I intended it. Unlike last year, the kids were not greeting us from the church, and they were not waiting to grab our hands. So I had to walk over and find the girls I knew myself. Yet even as we met, one girl, Chedeline, seemed inappropriately distant. Even as I tried to talk to her, it seemed as if she didn’t know me or she didn’t like me anymore. This devastated me, even though it was something in the back of my mind that had haunted me leading up to the trip. Still, I knew I was going to love her and seek her out to show my deep love for her and express the way she meant to me.

Through this process I knew that she wasn’t happy at the moment. While she was living in an orphanage alone, her entire family was living in Porto Prince. Not only did she miss them terribly, she said, but she felt extremely lonely without having her family with her. After what she told me, she left, but not too long after returned with note. In summary it described how much I met to her and how blessed she felt by God because I was in her life. In that moment I wanted to cry and truly realized the power and timing of God. While Chedeline running up and hugging me was my perfect vision, an even better one came from God. God’s perfect vision came with a lot of vulnerability, way more happiness, and a whole lot of healing.

Once again I am simply amazed by the ways God has been able to flip my perception and reassure me the power of His majesty. I don’t know everything, and God is in control. I just needed a little reminding.

Love, Bryant

Today was a day of excitement and anticipation. Today was our first day at the Glory Glory Orphanage. Leading up to this trip, I had heard the amazing works God had done in the lives of the previous year’s students and I was so enthusastic to see what God had in store for me at the orphanage today. Although there was so much joy and excitement, I also felt a sense of anxiety and doubt creeping into my mind. What if I was not changed? What if I did not experience that sense of holy goodness?

As I stepped into the Glory Glory Center this morning, I felt a sense of calmness and ease. I felt His presence reminding myself to not be expectant. Expectations would only close my mind to what He had for me and turn my focus towards my selfish desires. The day was filled with smiles, dancing, games, and an amazing joy. As I took a moment to myself at the center, I saw a clarity within my story. About two years ago, my twevle year old brother had passed away from an incurable brain tumor. I never fully understood why God chose not to heal my brother, why God had placed this death in my family’s life, and ultimately what His plan was for me. Today, I truly saw such a Godly beauty overflowing this center. These orphans live with a tragic loss each and every day but continue to pursue life with hope. They do not let their loss consume themselves, but they live everyday with a strength. I took this moment to imagine myself coming on this adventure to Haiti as myself from three years ago, a time before my brother was diagnosed and had passed, and how it would have been a different experience. Without a loss, I would have never been capable of seeing the beautiful strength of each individual child. I would have been overwhelmed with the amount of poverty and only felt a sense of pity towards the children. Years after my brother’s passing, God still continues to use my grief and pain and frustration in His amazin plan. As a human-being, I know we will never be able to understand God’s timing and plan for me because He is just so so great. His plan for me has just begun and I cannot wait to continue this lifetime of a journey.

Blessings, Claire

HSM Haiti 2018 | Day 2

Hey howdy hey, it’s Hannah! I’m so glad I have the chance to not only go to Haiti but be able to write about my experiences. Leading up to this week has been hard for me, as my family is moving to Texas. The days before the trip were spent saying goodbye to my house and all my closest friends, resulting in a great deal of sadness. My first night was spent in sleepless anxiety over whether I might ever have the consistency in my life that I once had.

The first day, however, quickly swept all that anxiety away. Today we had the chance to put on a VBS for a church in Charlotte and do street evangelism in the neighborhood. The bus ride quickly shook all of us awake, and when we came into the neighborhood all the local kids chased the bus, and ran up to meet us when we arrived. I was amazed by the amount of unconditional love and trust they gave us, grabbing our hands and walking with us during our evangelism and in one instance even having a little girl go up to me and kiss my cheek.

What was even more amazing to me, though, was walking from house to house (with some of the village kids in tow) doing street evangelism. First of all, walking between crops and past farm animals and over log bridges was all in all a beautiful and fun experience, but even better were the people we talked too. Not once did they turn us away, and they gave us their full attention the entire duration, and even though we were talking through a translator, they acted like we were the only one talking.

But there was one specific home we visited that impacted me more than the others. The last house I visited was owned by a tall, pretty lady who had this certain air about her. As I finished sharing my story of leaving my home and trusting in God to guide me through it, she, with complete and utter certainty, told me that God always will have a plan for us, and while I knew this to be true, the confidence with how she said it shook me to my core. All my lingering anxiety melted away as the lady I was sharing my confidence in God with shared with me hers, and for the rest of the night this moment has been lingering in my mind.

Thank you for taking the time out of your night to let me share this with you! This experience was the first of many I hope to encounter this week, and writing it down feels good!

Have a nice night!

– Hannah Sommers

Hey everyone! My name is Zach and I am so excited to tell you my experience from today in Haiti. This is my first time in Haiti and while that is very exciting, it is also very nerve racking as I do not know everything that will happen and I have some doubts about how or if I will be useful here. Today many of my doubts have gone away in my first real experience of Haiti.

We went to a local church today and got to put on a small VBS for the children there. Before we had even arrived at the church, I already was feeling very excited as some children who were coming to the church waved to us and ran to our bus with joyful greetings. It was amazing to see how welcoming these kids were to us as we were arriving. Once we got there we started playing some games and spending time with the kids there. I was a little shy at first and did not really approach the kids who were there. Eventually one of the kids came up to me and pulled me away to play soccer. It was so cool to not only see again how welcoming and loving these children were, but also to see how God provided an opportunity to do something bold despite my fears and doubts. From there I really felt like I was able to connect with these kids, through playing games, giving numerous piggy back rides, having them take my phone and take pictures, and even just sitting with them and being close to them. God was able to break down all barriers between us.

I also got to have another eye opening experience when we did street evangelism. This was also something I was very nervous about. I didn’t know what to say or if they even accept what I was saying. When I spoke to one of these people, he was so accepting of my story and I got to here his story about his walk with Christ. It was crazy to see how God is present everywhere and can be present in anyone. This broke down another barrier as I saw that no matter how different we are, no matter what language we speak, and no matter where we live, we are all connected under God.

All in all, I have had a great experience so far in Haiti. Despite my doubts, God has used me and is continuing to use me in this community. I am hoping to bring the welcoming and accepting atmosphere of Haiti back to Irvine and learn how to connect with people despite any fears and doubts I may have.

^ Zach Lyons

Hey guys! It’s Isabella, this is my first trip to Haiti and as soon as I found out HSM was going to take a few students I was thrilled. When I found out I was one of the students who would be going I was even more thrilled but started to doubt if I could bring anything to the table. Our first day serving we visited the church in Charlotte and connected with the children there with VBS. As soon as we arrived we were welcomed by adorable children ready to hug and hold hands. It never ceases to amaze me what God can do when we open ourselves up to a new community with nothing but a desire to love God and learn from each other. After VBS we split into groups for street evangelism, I was asked if I wanted to go first when we went to someone’s home to ask what their life with God is like and share a part of how we came to know him. It’s nerve racking to put yourself out there to a stranger and ask them something so personal but I was surprised with how accepting the community was. It was nerve racking but also cool knowing that God had prepared me for this, I had previously shared my testimony in my life group and in HSM. I met a woman who had been loving Jesus for eight years now! I shared a part of my story with her and how I found God in a lonely time, I was so thankful she was happy to share her story with me as well. She shared how after a series of bad decisions she found God and when she did she didn’t feel as lonely anymore, she told me how she loved God because she didn’t have anyone else, just him. We got down on our knees and layed our heads on the floor, I put my arm around her and we prayed, we didn’t speak much but we began to bawl, although I’m sure our experiences were much different and at different extents we had such a strong connection in our similar experiences with loneliness. The translators and children surrounding us weren’t sure why we cried so much and afterwards were so kind in trying to comfort me, I explained I was overwhelmed in God’s presence in that moment and in connecting with the woman I met. I always overthink about what I’m about to say or things I have said and this really opened my eyes and reminded me that it’s all about what’s in your heart, God will take care of it from there. It was beautiful looking back on that throughout the day as we walked to different homes and embraced this new culture surrounding us. My heart is so full right now and it’s only the first day!! I’m so happy to share this with y’all, thank you so much for reading along.

– With MUCH love, Isabella.

HSM Haiti 2018 | Day 1

I had a lot of firsts today! My first time at LAX, my first time on a red eye flight, my first time flying more than 2 hours, and my first time flying out of the country. I experienced a new culture today. Saw new faces and grew closer with people on the team that I haven’t gotten the chance to meet up until now. I saw the beautiful turquoise water driving by the beaches on Haiti that were surrounded by the huge green hills. I tasted all the foods at dinner tonight that were foreign to my American pallet and I LOVED THEM!

Going into all of these new things I expected I would be so nervous of how it all would turn out- if I would be able to stay full of energy, positivity, and excitement for this new adventure. New things often scare me because I am the kind of person to fall in to habits and rituals that make things easier and comfortable but instead of filling me with anxiety as I expected, I was filled with zeal for this new adventure and found myself jumping into all the things this culture has to offer.

This trip is no doubt going to offer challenges this week, whether it’s with people, myself, or even the food, but I am reminded time and time again that God will always be bigger than my fears. He will always show up and comfort me, and offer me new perspectives so I can fully lean into what He’s called me to do. I cannot wait to see more of Haiti and its people and to rediscover the truths God tells us over and over. Stepping out of your comfort zone offers risk taking, but also growth that you can’t get anywhere else, and I am so ready to take in this opportunity with everything I can give.

Love,

Izzy Murphy

This is my second time going to Haiti and I was super duper stoked to be chosen to go on this amazing faith adventure. The flight to Miami was a little rough. I only got a couple of hours of sleep but we landed and luckily there was a Starbucks nearby. We hopped on our connecting flight and flew to Haiti. I watched Daddy’s Home 2 on my way to Haiti and had a good laugh. Once we landed, I was instantly hit with the warm humid air and it was rather refreshing. We grab our bags, grouped together, went through customs, and then went outside to look for pastor Sam, but he found us and greeted us with a smile and a good welcome. He said our bus would be here momentarily. In the meantime we talked with the translators, played some fun games, and even taught some of the Haitian translators how to play some of the games we were playing. Once the bus arrived, we loaded our bags into the bus and started our journey to the hotel. Personally, I tried to sleep most of the way since I barely got any sleep on the flight up. But for the moments I was up, I was able to see this new world and the amazing scenery. Before I knew it, we were at the hotel. I unpacked my bag, jumped into the pool, had some amazing dinner, and then debriefed with the Haiti team. I am so happy to be on this amazing trip with so many amazing students and leaders.

Love,

Luke Venzlaff

Coming into this trip, I knew it was going to be a step out of my comfort zone. I was nervous about being in a place that was foreign to me. Although when I arrived my feelings of anxiety were gone and I felt content with where I was. Things are so different here. It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before.  The streets are full of people carrying what look to be very heavy things on their head. Along with crazy drivers that are not afraid to honk and honk again to get you to move. Trash is scattered everywhere and the buildings look like they would crumble down with one gust of wind, yet this country is so uniquely beautiful. I’m so looking forward to interacting even more with the people of Haiti as the rest of the trip unfolds.

Love,

Christy Beutel

Day 2: Uni-tea

January 22, 2018,

Our second day in the beautiful land of Sri Lanka, so far so good. Everyone seems to be craving tea time. They say the tea in Sri Lanka is the best in the whole world! I’m not sure if that’s because of the decadent flavors of the tea or the swaying of souls as we exchange kind words and laugh until our bellies ache. The Holy Spirit has blended this team together very well! From singing and dancing to washing plates after meals, the peace continues to abound. This morning, after a not too spicy breakfast, we piled into vans and ventured out to a farm owned by our partner church, Kithu Sevana. While on the way to the farm, we stopped at a local church plant which Is a branch of the main church, Kithu Sevana. We met the staff of the church and some of the many children that they nurture.  I was amazed by how many children are cared for compared to the amount of people on staff. Despite the amount of work needed to be done while overseeing children, the team joins together with one mission in mind, build unity in the community.

After visiting the church, we all hopped back in our designated vans and continued on our journey to the farm. We arrived to welcoming outstretched leaves from coconut trees and smiling faces of the friendly. Not only does the peace abound, but banana trees, what else did we see? Flowers with no bees, plenty of butterflies. Chicken coops with freshly laid eggs, carefully laid on straw beds. It’s amazing how faith as small as a mustard seed, could not only move mountains, but produce fruit as far as the eye can see. At least that’s what Pastor Adrian believes. the farm was purchased with the currency of faith. Faith in God to provide all the means necessary to fund and cultivate the farm. It is by this same faith that the land is multiplying and filled with abundance. On our way back to the campsite, we stopped for some freshly cracked king coconuts. The water was absolutely divine, maybe that’s where the name came from! We arrived at the campsite safely, put our belongings down, and began looking for opportunities to help set up for the upcoming pastor’s conference. There are many volunteers here from other countries and different parts of Sri Lanka. We arrived from the farm late into the afternoon, so most of the work was finished, which allowed for time to rest. Or time for more uni-tea.

-Ejieke N. Chukwumerije

 

Day 1: Arriving in Sri Lanka

We arrived at the hotel a little after 2am from flying for 20 some hours. Exhausted but expected, we went to bed as soon as we were able to check-in. We knew waiting ahead of us would be a day full of treasures from our Heavenly Father. We are anticipating this trip to be filled with fun, lessons learned and faith challenged, as we surrender to each day that God has for us. We hope to see a glimpse of heaven and the beauty of Sri Lanka and its people through this faith adventure with our partners, our Sri Lankan family, the De Vissers.

After a yummy breakfast with a great view of the Indian Ocean, we head to Kithu Sevana church service, which was given in 3 languages. Filled with a notification for the revival of the nation, the 3 hour long service (which didn’t feel like 3 hours) was a great time of praise & worship, congregational prayer, word of God, and communion. The time of prayer after Pastor Adrian’s sermon on revival was a great convicting reminder for us all to be desperately seeking God for the revival of our nation through prayers.

After lunch, we made our journey to the campsite, “the farm”; it has a conference center, missiological center, children’s home, pastors retirement village…etc. The tour was given by none other than Pastor Adrian, as he shared with us the great miracles of God’s provisions and protection.

And then there was tea time. One of the BEST teas for sure!! Recipe: Sri Lankan tea, milk, some sugar and lots and lots of our dear Aunty Ophelia’s (Pastor Adrian’s wife) love. To end the night, after tea time and dinner with great fellowship with Kenyans and local pastors & church staff, we debriefed with great anticipation and a unified desire to see “His Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.”

-Sero