A missionary recently asked me; "What is your favorite thing about being here"?
My answer is seeing and working with all the missionaries that come to help. It is amazing seeing the Lord's work in action. He works through so many people in so many different ways. Each has their own special gift to give. And some don't even know what their gift is until it is unveiled. Each person leaves their mark, in people, in the children, in each other, in a building that they may have constructed or repaired. There are so many things a person can do.
We all were recently encouraged to see Melissa here from the BWO team. She was here in a wheel chair, with team members making accommodations for her to make it a little easier to get around. The rough terrain up here is not ADA compliant. The construction team came up with a way for her to use the toilet. Now the toilets here can make the strongest person gasp, but that was not a challenge for Melissa. She had children around her all the time, praying with them and showing them her bible and one day just showing the kids her little toes. Melissa is just so real and just loves life. She brought joy to everyone. And then you see her under the water tower with a pick helping to dig, she fit in there better than anyone else. What an inspiration to the children. What an inspiration to me!
In April we had about ten teens with their leaders here from Franklin Christian Academy from Tennessee who built six bathing areas. What a spiritually grounded group. They found time to build with bricks and mortar and then play with the kids. It is so great to see this young energetic enthusiasm for the Lord. They were up for all the challenges that came. They were here to serve and that's what they did. The leadership was superb!
In June, we had about 60 with Believers World Outreach, headquartered in Oklahoma, but from all over the USA. They came with a Medical Team, Evangelism Team, a Construction Team and a Children's Center Team. Wow! Amazing seeing a large group, so organized and Spiritually grounded! They practiced leadership faithfully and obediently. The things you throw at these teams are just no big deal for them. Because they all had Jesus in their heart. Challenges were welcome, hard work was expected by them, and they didn't know how to complain about anything. You need some holes dug and you hear "OK, where and how many do you need"! You need the medical team to see a whole bunch of kids in one day, "OK bring them on!" You need a team to pray or teach the kids and they are there. Even one day the Children's Center Team joined the Construction Team to help them get through their list. They left us with one more bonus... Lauren Chavez is staying on until August to help us with our Child Sponsorship Program. Praise the Lord, God bless Lauren, what a way to spend your summer break from the University!
Later in June the Texas team of about 12 came. Now they specialize in VBS and what a job they do! I loved seeing how they work with the kids teaching them praise and worship songs. Not just songs but pantomime sign language songs. The kids knew them all in no time and they really loved it. This group was with these kids all the time especially in the evening they would spend time with a different family every night doing worship and praise. They were staying on the mountain without any of the hotel amenities. In the day time they were helping in the classrooms. This group was so Spiritually grounded and they knew their purpose here. What did they leave behind? Well, besides all the great songs and love , they left us with Sara Perchan to be a teacher here for one year to teach a primary class. What a blessing she is, she gave up a home and a life in the USA to come here where there is no electricity, barely running water and definitely no hot water, and no salary, to work with kids! Raise your hand if you have Jesus in your heart!
Presently we have two groups from Livingstone of Holland here working at both Children's Centers in Kissagazi and Kyabazala working on construction projects. They are constructing dining buildings and classrooms. We are going to be blessed by a second set of teams in a few weeks.
We are looking forward to hosting a team from Israel in August. This will be their first visit to Jireh Ministries. We are looking forward to adding another nation and Mission Partner to our roster.
You may have noticed one common thread to a successful mission team. It is so important for a team to be Spiritually Grounded! Because one of my favorite things about "my favorite things" is, being with them at their evening worship time. This is where you hear how God has worked in peoples hearts and real stories that are making permanent changes in peoples lives!
God bless the missionaries! We thank all of the team members for a job well done.
Jim Fruehan
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