Vision is Power

I am in awe that we only have three more days here in beautiful Mombasa. I do not even know where to begin when describing this trip. Being that this is my third time to Kenya and being the leader of this trip, I have had a different experience than my team members. Most of the time I am behind the scenes figuring out plans for the days to come and organizing the next thing on our list of "to do's". I have been amazed at how much the Lord has grown me over the years, and how he keeps working in me not only through the experiences I get through mission work, but also through the members on my team.

Today was a lot of shopping, we took the team down to Fort Jesus and I got to see Victor and his wife (who I met in 2009 and got to spend time with them last year as well). They see me as their daughter, so it is always a pleasure to see another set of parents! I enjoyed watching the team "bargain" and basically shopped till they dropped, so just so everyone knows, you will be getting great gifts! Every member had their list out and were checking off family and friends names as they bought their gifts. Of course, Elyse found a new habit of loving African goods, so she kept coming back for more. Let's just say this morning was eventful.

After Fort Jesus, we went to the beach so everyone could soak up more of the sun! Some of us went shopping some more, while others played soccer with the Kenyans. Then for dinner, we enjoyed some hamburgers with the team, Chris, Lisa and the Windell Family. I am truly blessed to be around such amazing people and it has been a delight to learn more and more about one another each day. This is a family that will not be forgotten and we will all forever be connected.

Today, Allison gave her testimony to the team and she did a beautiful job. She is a wonderful young lady and the Lord is doing amazing things in her life. She has great faith and the Lord shines through her and I cannot wait to see what the Lord has planned for her future. Also, with everyone else on the team, I cannot wait to see our future's and be able to watch one another grow stronger in Christ.

As the leader of this team, I have gotten a different perspective. I have gotten all the questions and the late night Skype calls. I have seen the letters from family members discouraging my team members not to go on this mission trip, and then I have seen the anonymous donations come in that made individuals fall to their knees and cry to the Lord, "thank you".  I have been a part of 11 individuals lives and have gotten to walk beside them the past 9 months training them and preparing their hearts for these two weeks. So now with three days left I am beginning to finally sit and reflect. The Lord is doing great things in all of our lives, but it is now time to go back home and share that with everyone we see.

I shared a devotion yesterday morning from Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 and it talks about "two are better than one" I shared how accountability is very important and when we leave here we need to realize that we need to help one another stay strong in Christ. That is my prayer for this team, that this is not a mission trip, but that this is a trip will forever change every individual's heart. I pray that when they go home, they will not fall back into old habits, but turn their eyes to the Lord and want to make a difference in this world. I pray that the Lord rocks their world and and that everyday they yearn for the Lord even more. And I pray that they do not make prayer a ritual of everyday, but they realize that prayer is a life of a christian.

I will leave you with one more thing. On saturday when we were walking through the dirt trails of south coast, I was with Elyse and Austin and we ran into a couple men and sat down to tell them about Christ. They were already Christians, so Elyse gave her testimony and then they shared theirs and one thing that the man said really hit home with me. He said, "remember vision is power, but power is not vision."

So, I pray that the 11 wonderful individuals on my team, Rachel, Cayla, Jaylyn, Stephanie, Austin, Matthew, Allison, Tyler, Whitney, Elyse, and Kaylene strive for the Lord's vision in their lives. I pray that they do not lose sight of what the Lord wants for them, but they stand strong in that vision because with vision, the Lord will provide a path to walk and with vision the Lord will do powerful and mighty things in each one of their lives.

I love every one of them dearly and have truly been touched by my team and the hospitality of Chris, Lisa and the Windells.

In Him,
Jenny ("kiongozi": leader)