401 decisions to follow Christ
A student from Sheryl's Orphan Preschool 200 patients served in hospitals26 Bibles given out500kg of donations distributed596 sermons preached172 Children fedInfinite children held and touched5,253 children taught5 Mosques prayed for2 Hindu temples prayed for150 FOCUS on the Family school kits assembled4 churches started285 prisoners reachedInfinite hands shaken
Numbers. They don’t matter, but they really do matter at the same time.
Dear family and friends,
Bwana asifiwe (praise God in Swahili)! The above data is what my team and I
accomplished this summer on the Kenya Global Project – this is what we all
accomplished. You were right there with us because of all the support you have
given me. “But in fact
God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them
to be.
If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body“(1
Corinthians 12:18-19.) As a family of Christ, acting as one, you were
sending and I was going. These parts are both equally important in the story of
the Kingdom of God. Thank you for doing your part because His Kingdom
was grown, my team was strengthened, and lives were changed. The above data was
the work of God that we could see with our eyes, but I am confident that God is
using those “seeds” to grow a harvest that we cannot see. What a beautiful God.
After meeting my team in Houston, TX, we traveled to Nairobi, Kenya for a week of orientation: learning about the culture, language, and how to cope with culture shock. Then the whole team was partnered up (as a leader I helped make the decisions on placements) and sent all over Kenya for individual ministry assignments for 3 weeks. I was partnered with two other students (from Arizona and Montana) and sent to Port Victoria on Lake Victoria where we stayed with Mama Rosemary, our host and guide. There, my teammates and I helped at Sheryl’s Orphans Preschool, went door-to-door to share the Gospel, and met/encouraged many people at the church and all around the village. The poverty of the area is overwhelmingly high. While I was there, I saw many children chased away from local schools because they did not have money to pay school fees. It is also an area infected the most with HIV/AIDs and malaria. The children (ages 3-7) at Sheryl’s school only had their elderly grandparents as guardians and many were infected with HIV. Because the school doesn’t collect fees from the orphans, Mama Rosemary is constantly taking in donations to buy food for the feeding program. During our stay, we saw her faith in action and I was constantly in awe of her trust in God to provide. I witnessed many of her prayers being answered and I was fortunate enough to share in her joy! Mama not only runs the school, she is also a mother to many other people in the village. She is a great inspiration to me and I am beyond blessed to have her in my life. I learned a lot from Mama about trust, giving generously, and having assurance in my Father: God will provide.
Not only did my whole team accomplish many small tasks, the Lord also did countless things within my teammates and within me as we were being trained in international missions in Nairobi (after our 3 week assignments). I really enjoyed guiding the students as they rustled with the culture and with questions, and the community that I was a part of was a huge blessing to me personally. God poured His love upon me all summer; blessing me with reunions with friends, blessing me with new friends, affirmation, and confirmation that I am certainly obeying Christ in going to Uganda this fall.
Kenya 2013 showed me the joy that comes with saying "yes" to Jesus' promptings. He has lavished His love upon me and that made me fall in love with my God more and more. Whether I deserve it or not, He blessed me abundantly by allowing me to go to Kenya and be in a place I love dearly; by allowing me to find the end of my heart's strings in the ebony faces of children and orphans.
Thank you for allowing me to say “yes” to this trip. Thank you for allowing me to reunite with my dear friends in Kenya and to make new ones. Thank you for supporting me to disciple students as their lives were being changed and their perspectives altered. Thank you for praying that God’s work would be done in Port Victoria. Thank you for sending me to Kenya where I was constantly affirmed that I am obeying God’s call in going to Uganda to teach, to touch the lives of children. Thank you for praying that God would use me and the team for His glory; He did.
After meeting my team in Houston, TX, we traveled to Nairobi, Kenya for a week of orientation: learning about the culture, language, and how to cope with culture shock. Then the whole team was partnered up (as a leader I helped make the decisions on placements) and sent all over Kenya for individual ministry assignments for 3 weeks. I was partnered with two other students (from Arizona and Montana) and sent to Port Victoria on Lake Victoria where we stayed with Mama Rosemary, our host and guide. There, my teammates and I helped at Sheryl’s Orphans Preschool, went door-to-door to share the Gospel, and met/encouraged many people at the church and all around the village. The poverty of the area is overwhelmingly high. While I was there, I saw many children chased away from local schools because they did not have money to pay school fees. It is also an area infected the most with HIV/AIDs and malaria. The children (ages 3-7) at Sheryl’s school only had their elderly grandparents as guardians and many were infected with HIV. Because the school doesn’t collect fees from the orphans, Mama Rosemary is constantly taking in donations to buy food for the feeding program. During our stay, we saw her faith in action and I was constantly in awe of her trust in God to provide. I witnessed many of her prayers being answered and I was fortunate enough to share in her joy! Mama not only runs the school, she is also a mother to many other people in the village. She is a great inspiration to me and I am beyond blessed to have her in my life. I learned a lot from Mama about trust, giving generously, and having assurance in my Father: God will provide.
Not only did my whole team accomplish many small tasks, the Lord also did countless things within my teammates and within me as we were being trained in international missions in Nairobi (after our 3 week assignments). I really enjoyed guiding the students as they rustled with the culture and with questions, and the community that I was a part of was a huge blessing to me personally. God poured His love upon me all summer; blessing me with reunions with friends, blessing me with new friends, affirmation, and confirmation that I am certainly obeying Christ in going to Uganda this fall.
Kenya 2013 showed me the joy that comes with saying "yes" to Jesus' promptings. He has lavished His love upon me and that made me fall in love with my God more and more. Whether I deserve it or not, He blessed me abundantly by allowing me to go to Kenya and be in a place I love dearly; by allowing me to find the end of my heart's strings in the ebony faces of children and orphans.
Thank you for allowing me to say “yes” to this trip. Thank you for allowing me to reunite with my dear friends in Kenya and to make new ones. Thank you for supporting me to disciple students as their lives were being changed and their perspectives altered. Thank you for praying that God’s work would be done in Port Victoria. Thank you for sending me to Kenya where I was constantly affirmed that I am obeying God’s call in going to Uganda to teach, to touch the lives of children. Thank you for praying that God would use me and the team for His glory; He did.
Mungu akubariki (God bless you),
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| Glavin and I |
A quick note about my
trip to Uganda (October 2013 to August 2014):
If
you would like to continue supporting me while I am getting ready to leave for
Uganda with Africa Inland Mission, please contact me. The deadline for my
funding is August 22nd. It is coming up fast and I still need a certain
percentage of monthly donors.
The website to donate is http://www.aimint.org/usa/; just type in Barnett, Melissa. Even
if you have questions or want more information, I would love to hear from you!
Missy Barnett
mdbarn89@gmail.com
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| Kenya Global Project 2013 |
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| Young boys playing on the boats as they wait to fish with their fathers (Lake Victoria) |
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| Recess time at Sheryl's school |
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| Little Vanessa |
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| Mama Rosemary |
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