Fill Us Up, Send Us Out

We concluded our four days of training yesterday with a study on cross-cultural ministry. Today, we will begin putting into practice all that we have learned this week. We have split the 30+ young people who have been trained this week into three different teams, each sent into a different township. My group is heading to Daveyton, where we will be doing ministry in a squatter camp (an informal settlement). Justin and Wes will also be helping lead teams heading into Tsakane and a more rural settlement called Grootvlei. Please pray for our safety as we travel today, as well as for our ministry to the people in these townships. Pray that we would be an encouragement to the local church and that hearts would be moved toward Christ as the Lord works through our group. Thanks for praying!

Update

Just a quick update from South Africa. Thank you to those who prayed for Justin. He was able to see a doctor who gave him a shot (you will have to ask him where! :) and also got him started on some antibiotics. He is already feeling much better today. Besides Justin's minor illness, it is a praise and a blessing that our team has been very healthy so far on this trip. Sickness can often be a distraction from the mission on a trip like this, but we have experienced God's hand of protection from sickness as we had long, tiring days of travel, as well as in our adjustment to a new environment and new kinds of food here in SA.

We just finished our first session this morning called "Triple T" (Telling The Truth). We learned that our own personal testimonies can be a powerful tool in sharing the gospel with others, and we were given time to write out our own testimonies and share them with a group. It has been amazing to watch our students really embrace the community here at J-Life, as well as the teaching. I have seen incredible growth in each one of our students in just the first few days here as they are stretched and challenged outside of their comfort zones. And this is just the beginning. Please pray that God would continue to grow our students into maturity as they are stretched each day.

More Car Trouble

When it was finally time to say goodbye to our beloved village of Chihota, we waited...and waited...and waited. Apparently our taxi driver was operating on African time because he showed up over 4 hours late. But, when he finally arrived all was well, and we took off for Harare...and by we I mean 25 people plus luggage in a 15 passenger van. Again, this is Africa, and that's just how they roll around here.

I kid you not, we got about 3 kilometers down the road when we heard a loud "pop!" Yep, our tire burst. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that cruising with 10 extra people didn't help that tire much. So, we got out to assess the damage, and I asked the taxi driver if he had a spare. His response: "No, this has never happened to me before!" I had to laugh.

So we waited as the taxi driver tried to jack up the van.

It took 45 minutes and a handful of people just to get the tire off.

When they finally got the tire off, one of the guys rolled it back to the nearest town.

Out in the middle of nowhere, and with no spare, I was pretty sure that we were looking at a 4 to 5 hour wait. So I just chilled and played guitar on the side of the road. But, to my shock and delight, within just a couple hours, the tire was patched back up and we were back on the road and headed to Harare. African travel is always an adventure!

Partnering with the Local Church

One of my greatest joys while being involved in missions is the opportunity to partner with the local church. Now, there are times when I run across a church that has its priorities all mixed up. Maybe the pastor is in the church business for his own self-seeking gain, or maybe the church is so denominationally-focused that it refuses to operate in the kingdom of God. But, despite some of the ugliness in church (and let's be honest, no church has everything right), I still believe in the local church.

While doing ministry in Chihota, Zimbabwe, I was so incredibly encouraged by the church that we partnered with there. Two pastors from Harare have been burdened with an incredible love for the people of Chihota. Both pastors are abandoning a considerably more comfortable life in Harare to move into the community of Chihota. And these pastors aren't about taking a position of power or prestige in the community like so many other pastors I've seen in Africa; they truly want to come alongside of the people of Chihota, serve them, and make disciples (who make more disciples, who make more disciples, etc.). Basically, these pastors "get it," and I left that community feeling confident that the seed that was sown through our short-term ministry in Chihota would be reaped in the long-term as these men continue serving the Lord in Chihota.

Teddy and Me with Pastor Jengwa. He may be short in stature, but he's a spiritual giant!

Hanging with Pastor Vambe before the Sunday service.

With one of the elders from the church.

Our group with the entire church body after the service. Can you believe all of those people squeezed into that tiny church building?!

Please take a moment and pray with me for the church in Chihota. God is moving there, but they have many challenges ahead. The kingdom of God is advancing, but they face much opposition, with witchcraft and animism being very prevalent in that area. Pray that God would break through the strongholds that Satan has had in that area for so long!

"Let the little children come to me..."

"Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these." (Luke 18:16)

It was such a blessing to be able to work with the children in Chihota. No matter where I go in the world, I'm always amazed at the energy and excitement that little kids have. They are always quick to smile and laugh, and despite the poverty that many kids--like the little Zimbabwean children--face each day, they always seem to have a resilient spirit that finds joy in even the toughest of circumstances. Here are some of the kids that stole my heart in Chihota.

We took this picture with the kiddos right after the Sunday church service. Unfortunately, I bent down to pick up one of the little guys right as the camera flashed!

We rounded up this group of children for VBS every morning.

Teddy and me with some of the precious little children.

A few of the children that we spent time with every day. The two on the left, Precious (pink shirt) and baby Gracious, were the daughters of our host family.

Teddy sure has a way with children!

I'm not much for changing dirty diapers (maybe someday), but I sure like holding the little guys!

Our Sunday School "class."

I learned a lot from these kids, and it was just a blessing to spend time with them each day. May we never forget to pray that God would protect these children and raise up a generation of young people around the world who are passionately in love with Him!

Ministry in Chihota

Here's what our typical ministry schedule looked like while we were in Chihota:

We began each day with devotions, as well as a time of corporate prayer in which we claimed the community for Jesus.

We then rounded up the kids in the community and essentially ran a VBS for them. We played games, learned a memory verse, taught a fun and interactive lesson, and shared dramas with them. Here, Vusi and I are performing a drama for the kids. We did the whole drama in Shona, the native language of Zimbabwe, and the kids laughed so much when they saw me--a big, white, bearded guy--speaking in Shona.

In the afternoons, we did either door-to-door evangelism or open-air evangelism. In the picture above, we are running an open-air evangelism event in front of a bar in a tiny town near Chihota. I can't say that I think this kind of fly-by evangelism is the most effective form of evangelism, but I will say that God showed up and we saw many people come to know Jesus through the power of His Spirit. It also challenged many of the young people on our team to be bold in sharing their faith for the first time, which I think was an invaluable experience for them. Even more encouraging was that we were able to connect many of the new believers with the church in Chihota, where they will be able to continue forward on their journey of discipleship.

In the evenings, thanks to a generator and some makeshift lighting, we were able to have services in the tiny church building. Each night the church was packed, and we saw the Spirit move. Again, many people came to know Christ or received healing at these services.

We continued sharing the love of Jesus through dramas...

...as well as through personal testimonies.

God was at work in the hearts and lives of many people during our time in Chihota, and He certainly blessed our ministry there! It is a humbling feeling to be used by God!

Challenges in Chihota

As I've mentioned before, there were quite a few challenges to overcome in the village of Chihota. We had no running water, so we had to draw up water from a well. This wouldn't have been too bad, except that the well water was greenish-brown and highly contaminated. After about 2 days, we had run out of all the clean water that our group had brought with us. We tried our best to make it work, boiling the water and bleaching some of it, but it was still quite a problem. I got terribly sick for the second time since I've been in Africa, and I'm fairly certain that it was because of the bad water. Zimbabwe has had widespread cases of Cholera recently, and the more sick I got, the more I started to wonder if that's what I had. Given our remote location, I was praying that it was something significantly less serious. Luckily, dozens of trips to the bush and 6 doses of anti-diarrheal later, and I was feeling much better (sorry for the graphic details)!

The lack of electricity meant cooking all of our food over an open fire.

Ted and Auntie Kathy did a great job cooking some of our meals. However, our menu for the weeks was very limited, and if I don't ever see another plate of soya mince and beans again, I'll be more than okay with that!

Nights were a little less than comfortable, as we slept on the concrete floor of a thatched roof hut. It got a little chilly, too, so Kudzanai and Collins (above) snuggled up together!

Staying in Chihota for just a few days was enough for me to realize how blessed I am with so many comforts that I take for granted. Can you imagine living without clean water? Turning on a tap and immediately receiving fresh water is not a luxury that most of the world enjoys. Sleeping on a nice, soft bed is not a necessity--it is a luxury. What things have you taken for granted recently? Don't forget to thank God for the blessings He's given you, and don't forget that He's blessed you so that you can bless others!

Team Chihota

After 3 days of ministry training in Harare, we split the Zimbabwean trainees up into three teams, each of which would spend the rest of the week in a rural community, partnering with a local church there and doing practical ministry. My team was sent into the rural community of Chihota. And when I say rural, I mean RURAL! We were literally sent out into the middle of nowhere, to a tiny village with no electricity, no running water, no clean water, and no toilets (not even a hole in the ground!). It was an experience!

Team Chihota, packed into a 15 passenger van and excited about the week of ministry ahead!

Our team after a church service in Chihota.

Reconnecting with Friends

One of the bonuses for being involved in the Zimbabwe STeM was that I got to reconnect with several of my friends who went through the 4-months of J-Life training with me at the beginning of the year. These guys are all top-notch people who impact the world for Christ wherever they go. I am constantly challenged and encouraged by each one them to persevere in my ministry. It was such a blessing to see these guys again!

This is my buddy, Munya Takawira, from Zim. He's been sighted on my blog before--you might remember him as one of my fellow convicts during African Realities. Munya was gracious enough to let Ted and me stay at his home in Harare during the STeM training. It was awesome to see first-hand the ministry that Munya is doing in Harare.

It was also cool to introduce Ted to some of my good friends. Ted got to know Vusi pretty well in Zim, as Vusi led our ministry practical in Chihota. Vusi is one of the most gifted leaders I have ever met, and I'm convinced that he will be one of my life-long friends.

Ted, Auntie Kathy, and me hanging with my good friends from Malawi, Praise and Anthony. Praise was my roommate at J-Life when I first arrived to South Africa. These guys came down from Malawi to join in the Zimbabwe STeM, with the intention of running their own STeM in Malawi later this year.

Ted, Praise, Tara, Me, and our new friend from Zim, Nigel.

Team Zimbabwe

I've mentioned before a little bit about our purpose for going to Zimbabwe, but here are a few more details about what we were up to. In July, J-Life South Africa ran two weeks of training called STeM (Short Term Equipping Missions), in which we trained young people to mobilize and get active in ministry in their own communities and beyond. It is essentially a short-term mission, combined with intensive and practical training in ministry--the goal being to equip and propel young people towards further ministry when they return home.

Well, on the South African STeM, we had a group of young people come down from Zimbabwe to receive the training. Since returning home to Zimbabwe, these young people, joining with J-Life Zimbabwe, planned their very own (and 1st ever) J-Life Zimbabwe STeM. Essentially, our team from South Africa was sent there to assist them in any way they needed. Because Zimbabwe is currently one of the poorest countries in the world, the young people in Zimbabwe were only able to raise $5 each for the week-long training and ministry practical. So, J-Life South Africa provided all the food for the week. We also helped with the training, logistics, transportation, etc. The result was an incredible team effort and a week in which we saw God move in HUGE ways. More on that later...

The J-Life South Africa leaders teaming up with the J-Life Zimbabwe leaders!

We had lots of fun together!

Video Update From Zimbabwe

Again, thanks to everyone who was praying for me while I was in Zimbabwe. It was an incredible trip, and we saw God move in amazing ways as we partnered with other believers there who are steadily advancing God's kingdom. I've also been very blessed to have one of my best friends and fellow member of The Association, Teddy G, with me for over a week now. We arrived back from Zim late Monday night and are still extremely exhausted. You can expect many updates from our trip to be coming soon, but for now enjoy this video update taken at our ministry site in the rural village of Chihota, Zimbabwe!

Latest From Zim

Thanks to all of you who have been praying for me this week. We arrived safely in Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, on Monday morning, although not without difficulty. One of our vehicles broke down near the border into Zim, and we also had to stop and sleep in our vehicles for a few hours on the way up to avoid driving on some treacherous roads at night. So, the trip took about 30 hours, instead of the 20 hours that we had planned, BUT we made it safely. God is good!

The past few days we have been training some young people in disciplemaking youth ministry and preparing them for the upcoming short-term mission. Tomorrow morning, we will traveling into squatter camp slum communities to continue spreading the Gospel to those who have never heard. Please pray for the 40+ young people from Zimbabwe who will join us in this ministry. Many of them are very nervous, as this is their first short-term missions experience. They are an incredible group of young people, and I have felt very blessed to connect with many of them. I believe that God wants to use them to advance His kingdom in mighty ways this week. Please pray that God would work!

Blessings from Zimbabwe,

Adam

STeM: Part 3

Relationships

One of the best parts about short-term missions are the relationships that are built within the community where you are ministering. I was able to really connect with a young guy from Mozambique named Manuel. I met Manuel, or M'Easy as he likes to be called, at a park where he was dominating some other guys in basketball. We connected through basketball and quickly became friends. Manuel then began to hang out with our group daily, coming to our youth services at the church, working at an orphanage with us, and really digging into ministry with us. One of my highlights of the trip was the relationship that I was able to build with Manuel over just a few days, and it has been great to stay connected with him since we left the community. I'm hoping to head back to Joburg again soon to hang out with M'Easy and keep up the friendship that has been started.

Adrienne, M'Easy, and me chillin' at an orphanage in Berea.

I was also lucky enough to make a "little friend" while I was in Berea. Meet my little buddy, M'Pho!

Namibia

I'll be leaving tonight on a short-term mission to Namibia with a group from my home church here in South Africa, Acts Family Church. For those of you unfamiliar with African geography, Namibia is located on the northwest border of South Africa. We will be spending a lot of time working with children in orphanages and schools while we are there. We will also be connecting with and encouraging the J-Life leaders in Namibia. Please be in prayer for our 20+ hour drive today and tomorrow, as well as for the ministry that God has prepared for us to do during our week in Namibia. Thanks so much for your prayer and support!

STeM: Part 2

My roles during STeM were three-fold: 1) I assembled a band and led the times of corporate worship for the trainees; 2) Adrienne and I taught several worship workshops throughout the training; and 3) Adrienne and I led a team into inner-city JoBurg for a five-day ministry practical.

Ministry Practical

My group was placed to work alongside a local church in Berea, near the infamous Hillbrow area, one of the roughest neighborhoods in JoBurg. We stepped out on faith, expecting to be used by God and expecting great things from God.

So we hit the streets of JoBurg, trained and ready to take advantage of any ministry opportunities God put in our path. And God had big plans for us that week!

It was a school holiday that week, and we found the local parks filled with kids. We played games for hours with the kids, performed dramas, and ultimately shared the Good News of Jesus with them. What an opportunity to share God's love!

What I also discovered shortly into the mission was that we had a professional dancer in our midst! Seriously, Tawanda is the best hip-hop dancer I have ever seen. He coaches the top ranked dance crew back in his home country of Zimbabwe. Not only that, but he loves Jesus and he loves kids! So, we put him to work in the parks, teaching dances to young people as we blared hip-hop music from our boom-box. Here, Tawanda (front right) is teaching some local kids how to bust some moves.

Overall, it was a great week with a great team! We had such a diverse team, each with unique gifts and talents that God used for His glory! One young teenager, Wesley (back row, 2nd from left in the above picture), received Christ during the STeM training. Just a few days later, during our mission, he led another young person to Christ! In follow-up since STeM, I've discovered that Wesley has become an incredible servant and leader in his youth group back home. It's amazing what God can do in one young life who is passionate and sold out for Him!

This leaves me pondering a few questions...

• What if we empowered young people to use their gifts for the kingdom?

• What if we encouraged young people to live missionally in their communities--their schools, on their sports teams, in their families?

• What if we truly believed in young people?

Unfortunately, I think we often believe, whether consciously or not, that young believers have been given a mini-version of the Holy Spirit. But the fact is, that's just NOT BIBLICAL! I don't believe, as many will say, that the youth are the church of tomorrow--they are the church of TODAY! I've seen too many young people act out on faith and do great things for God to believe otherwise. Be encouraged, God is raising up a generation of world changers!

STeM (Short Term Equipping Missions): Part 1

In my experience, there are two distinctly different kinds of short-term missions experiences. There are those experiences that train, equip, and challenge students greatly in their Christian walks and in how they view the world, and there are those missions experiences that offer great emotional moments, without much real evidence of life change in students. I mean, most of us probably know someone who has been on a short-term mission, come back home, and literally never been the same, their lives radically caught on fire for Christ. Honestly, my current life path is a direct result of a work God began in my life during a short-term mission to Ecuador in the summer of 2002. At the same time, we can probably all identify students who have been on a short-term mission, come home, and immediately reverted back to their old lifestyles. My friend and former professor, Terry Linhart, offers some incredible insight into this phenomenon in this article. The point is, simply doing short-term missions is not a guaranteed factor in life change.

Most of my July was spent doing short-term missions work. J-Life hosted a training event called "STeM," which stands for "Short Term Equipping Missions." You'll probably notice immediately, even from the name, that there is a specific focus in what we are trying to accomplish. At J-Life, it is never our goal to run a one-time program that leaves students and young leaders going home with not much more than a bunch of warm fuzzies inside. Here, short-term missions is done differently, and I've learned a lot from J-Life's STeM model.

What does it look like?

Well, we ran two STeMs this July. Both teams, each with about 60 young leaders, came to Camp Eden at separate times for 4 days of intense training on short-term missions. Throughout this training, they were coached in the purpose of the mission, as well as essentially trained and equipped on how to run their own short-term mission back with their youth groups. Throughout the training, it was made clear that one had not officially completed the STeM training until they had run their own short-term mission back in their communities.

After four days of training, the groups were sent out into several communities for five days of short-term missions work. This was the practical part of the training, as they had to put into practice what they had learned over the course of the training. Finally, the teams all came back to Camp Eden for a day of reflection and debriefing of the mission.

What's so great about this model?

The thing I like about this model is that in no way does it assume consumption on the part of the young Christian leader. Throughout the training, there is no loop hole to allow a student to think that the mission is about having a great one-time experience, where ministering to "the least of these" can simply be checked off a list and then forgotten. Essential to the training is the idea of a missional lifestyle, and each young trainee is called out to lead others in their own communities in such missional living.

Results?

The results really speak for themselves. I just received word from one of the STeM trainees who recently passed the training on to her youth and led them on a mission to Swaziland. Later this month, I will be heading to Zimbabwe to assist some of the STeM trainees from Zim with their own STeM in their home community in Harare. By investing in 120 leaders for two weeks during STeM, it appears that the missional lifestyle and the importance of leading others in missions has taken root. There will surely be many more stories like these to come throughout the year.

And in fact, there is much more that I have to share about STeM, but for now I'll leave you with a few pictures.

STeM was a great time of connecting with old friends like Lance, Shegz, Christian, and Justin...

...and also a great time to make LOTS of new friends!!!

¡La Clase de Español!

One thing I love about St. Mark is that we are a church that is passionate about world missions (kinda makes sense, as we are a Missionary church). Each summer it seems that we are sending teams all around the globe to minister. Many of the countries where we have been ministering or supporting missionaries are Spanish speaking (i.e. Ecuador, Paraguay, Mexico); unfortunately, most members of our missions teams who minister in these countries each summer know little to none of the Spanish language. For those of you who are familiar with short-term mission trips, you know that the language barrier can be frustrating and difficult to overcome in the short time a mission team has in that different culture.

THE PROBLEM: People need to learn Spanish!

About a year ago, I became aware of the desire for many of our mission team members to begin to learn Spanish. Although I would consider myself far from fluent, I did study Spanish for 5 years in high school and college and have spent a decent amount of time overseas in Spanish speaking cultures. So, when I heard of this need, I got excited about the opportunity of helping out in any way I could. However, for a number of reasons last year, this project got put on the back burner.

Then, this past summer, I traveled with a team to South America, where we spent the majority of our time in Paraguay. During this trip, I saw first-hand the need and desire for this group of people with a heart for missions to learn Spanish. I knew the problem (see above), and God laid this simple solution on my heart:

THE SOLUTION: Start a Spanish class!

Duh. Why didn't I think of that?!

Well, it took a little effort to get off the ground, but last night was week 7 of La Clase de Espanol! We meet every Monday night for about an hour and a half, and we have been having a blast. I teach alongside Diane "Dino" Matteson, our office manager here at St. Mark and a very proficient Spanish speaker herself. Our class consists mostly of a couple families, with parents and their children learning the language together. They have taken incredible strides in the past couple months, and I'm so proud of them! Here are a few things I love about teaching this class:

1. The people. I love spending time with this group! They all have great hearts for Jesus and for the world!
2. Practicing my language skills. It gives me a chance to keep up with the Spanish language (previously I had been neglecting my Spanish studies for a couple years). Also, I've found that learning a new language and teaching a new language are two very different things. I have had to focus much harder to understand how to best teach others a new language.
3. The excitement of watching others learn. Last night, I sat with a group of 5 children as they asked questions in Spanish and answered them in complete Spanish sentences! Wow!
4. The focus on missions. This group doesn't simply want to learn another language for the sake of learning another language--they want to learn another language so that they can minister to others!
5. The focus on prayer for the nations. Each week, I've been wearing a different soccer jersey from countries around the world, and then we spend time at the end of class praying for that country. I have the kids show me on a map where the country is located, we spend some time identifying the needs of that country, and then we pray for them. So far we have asked God to reign in Ecuador, Paraguay, India, Brazil, Mexico, and China. I was touched last night to hear an eight year old girl pray that Christians in China would be able to go to church and that the pastors there would be let out of jail. God heard those prayers!

God is definitely doing great things here at St. Mark, and He is raising up a people with His heartbeat for the nations! Amen!

Highlights From Paraguay

Some highlights from my recent mission trip to Paraguay:

• Spending a day touring Buenos Aires, Argentina
• Spending time in Villarrica with the kids at Alyssa's school
• Spending the night in a Paraguayan host home with Lucas and his family
• Being reminded of my love for the Spanish language (and foreign languages in general) and getting numerous chances to practice speaking Spanish
• Teaching the kids at the church in Villarrica how to play futbol americano (and then running around for the next few hours as the kids tried to tackle me!)
• Enjoying a worship service with the believers in Kapi'i (the Gospel just reached this rural village about a year ago)
• Uniting our hearts in worship and fellowship with the SIM missionaries at the retreat
• Late night talks and royal rumble wrestling matches with the MKs
• Horseback riding outside of San Bernardino
• Hanging out with a really cool team from St. Mark
• Staying overnight in Brazil and seeing the Itaipu Dam (one of the seven wonders of the modern world) and the Iguacu Falls

Some highlights since coming home:

• Soft toilet paper
• Being able to flush my toilet paper
• Hot showers
• Water pressure
• Pizza
• Regular bowel movements (TMI, I know...)

Stay tuned...I'll be sharing some sweet pics from my trip soon!

¡Vamos a Paraguay!

Heading off to Paraguay tomorrow with a team from the church. We will be helping to lead a conference for the SIM Missionaries serving in Paraguay. Half of our team will be providing VBS for the MKs there, while the other half of the team will be leading the worship services for the missionaries. Danielle and I have been working extremely hard to prepare hours upon hours of meaningful worship experiences for the missionaries. The goal is that they will leave the conference refreshed and renewed in their spirits so that they can continue the difficult work they are doing to reach the world for Christ. Please pray for our ministry there over the next two weeks. I will be keeping you all posted on what God is doing while we are down there in Paraguay here.

Lessons in Short-Term Missions (India Part 2)

The Research

My first short-term mission trip was to Ecuador in the summer of 2002, in between my junior and senior year of high school. Interestingly enough, my future youth ministry prof. and close friend, Terry Linhart, came along with our team on that trip to do some on-sight research on the effectiveness of short-term missions for his doctoral studies.  A book and several published articles later, Terry has put together some cutting-edge research on the topic.

In his article "If We Send Them, They Will Grow...Maybe," published in The Journal of Student Ministries, Linhart, along with co-researchers Kara Powell, Dave Livermore, and Brad Griffin make  the bold statement that Short-Term Mission Trips (STMs) do not necessarily guarantee life change for the students who participate. They identify five components of effective STMs, namely:

1. Focus--helping students prepare emotionally, spiritually, mentally, and relationally.

2. Action-Reflection--helping students accurately interpret their experiences.

3. Support-Feedback--assisting students in their learning as it takes place.

4. Debrief--reflecting on the experiences of the trip as the students prepare to return home.

5. Learning Transfer--helping students make what they learned on the STM a part of their daily lives back home.

The research here suggests that a STM experience in and of itself will not necessarily provide long-term change in the lives of students. This think tank of researchers concludes that as leaders we must be very thoughtful in how we approach STMs and in how we encourage students to process everything that they are experiencing.  I couldn't agree more.

My Experiences

Going into my trip to India, I didn't really think about it as a STM experience.  In fact, I really didn't have much time to think about anything going into this trip.  I joined the India team merely 3 weeks before we left.  Therefore, my preparation for the trip was very much a blur.  Because of this, I probably skipped more than one or two of these five components to effective STM experiences.  Now, I certainly wouldn't suggest doing that, but as I have looked back and reflected on the trip (my attempt at learning transfer), I have come to the conclusion that it was probably my most impacting overseas experience.  More so than the week I spent in Ecuador, or in Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, or even the 3 months I spent in China!  At first, this conclusion puzzled me...why did India impact me so much more than any of the other trips I had experienced?  

The answer...relationships.

I made more meaningful relationships with the native people on this trip than I ever had before on any trip.  In 9 days, I made more connections with Indian people than I had in 3 months with the Chinese people!  One of my prayers going into this trip was that I would be clothed with the love of Christ.  It's hard to explain, but in a supernatural way I was able to love those people with a love that I myself had never known and had certainly never been able to express to others.  And in the same way, I felt that love returned back to me from so many of the Indian people that I met.

As I assess STMs and the experiences I have had, I have come to the conclusion that one of the greatest gifts we can give to students on STMs is an opportunity to intertwine their hearts with the hearts of people from all around the world.  Students definitely go into these trips prepared to give a piece of their hearts to someone. Unfortunately, often times we as leaders don't give them opportunities to love on the native people, so they end up throwing their hearts at the cutest guy or girl on their team (can you say mission trip hook-up?).  It happens all the time.  What a waste of a trip and an opportunity to experience the diversity of the Kingdom of God.  I am convinced, though, that if students are given the opportunities to connect with people from other countries on STMs, they will leave forever changed by the relationships they have built.

I leave you with a few pictures of the life-changing relationships I built while in India.

This is Jhumki.  She's 5 years old.  She stole my heart on this trip. 

The short guy on my right is Ibrahim.  He's currently working in Bhutan, one of the most closed countries to the Gospel in the world.  He risks his life every day for the sake of Christ.  I received an email from him today saying that he's praying for me and my ministry here. Wow...humbling...

 This is Sreejan.  He's about my  age, and he's a stud cricket player.  Sreejan lives in Orissa, an Indian province where the demonic strongholds of Hinduism are very evident through acts of human sacrifice (often babies or teens) to "the gods of the soils," and where churches are burned and Christians are often killed for their faith.  Sreejan has a heart of gold, and he's truly searching for what God would have him do with his life.  I suggested that he might be well fit for vocational ministry, to which Sreejan replied, "I could never pursue ministry for the Lord unless God Himself calls me to it."  I wonder how many fewer pastors we'd have in the U.S. if we all had such strong conviction about God's calling as Sreejan did!!!

These are my guys--Rahul, Bunty, George, Vishal, Johnson, and Pratik!  I love these guys!!!

That's all for now.  Much, much more to come!