Finished or just starting?

How do you wrap up a trip like this? I believe it would be a mistake to do so. Instead, I would like to say that we are all challenged to ask God what it is that He would have us do with the experience. Individually, we acknowledge that we have been changed. There will never be a team just like the one assembled for this trip. We all know that we were a part of something very special. We hold this close to our hearts and praise God for allowing us to take part.
The results of this trip will be fleshed out in so many ways: Individuals looking to minister in the little ways, knowing that the little leads to the large; Individuals being bolder in sharing the gospel to a world ready for the message; Individuals quickly praying over every matter, no matter how large or small as they have seen first-hand the working power of prayer; Students making personal life decisions that include global missions as long term options. Yes, it is exciting to know that this trip is not over. It is simply the continuation of God’s working in and through the lives of a blessed group of 14 individuals. So many have contributed to all that took place. For those of you that covered this trip in prayer, THANK YOU! Your prayers made all of the difference. For those of you that gave financially, please know your investment has and will continue to pay off. May God get the glory and honor for all the great and mighty things that took place in Africa. He alone is worthy.

This post written by: Jon Brooks

Safari: As far as the eye can see!

I would like to say so much more, but we are all exhausted from the two game drive, one visit to a Masai village, three huge meals to include a "bush" dinner next to the Mara River (complete with hippos!), more animals than we can count, and a special couple that got engaged tonight during supper Masai style! We will fill in the blanks for you at another time, but for now we are signing off. We have one more game run in the morning at 6:30. We are getting all we can in! Everyone well and doing marvelous. We have more stories to tell than you can imagine. Will see everyone soon. Mr. B

Lions and Tigers and ...

We left the Mission House early this morning in our three safari vehicles, making our way to the Maasai Mara National Reserve. As we made our way, we saw many Maasai tribes people and saw a watering hole that was put there by T.D. Jakes. It was cool for the kids to make the connection. Four hours into the trip we entered the gates to the Mara Reserve and immediately began seeing animals. We saw zebras, giraffes, impalas, wildebeest, to name a few. We got pretty excited knowing that we had an excellent chance of seeing the “big five” of Africa. (Lion, Leopard, Cape Buffalo, Rhino, and Elephant). Our guide made no promises as it is a hit or miss proposition with these animals.
We arrived at the lodge, which is incredible. The lodge is located on a hill overlooking the Rift Valley Plains. A group of Maasai warriors greeted us with traditional dance and pulled us, by hand, into the lobby of the lodge, singing and dancing all the while. Crazy! A river winds through the plain and we sat on our balcony with our students, looking at herds of zebra, tope, giraffe, and hippos splashing in the river bend. We could not wait to go on the game drive. First, we ate lunch. You can imagine what kind of food is at this place! Buffet, and a lot of it. Phenomenal. We waddled back to our rooms and rested until the game drive.
This evening we drove through the plains and got up close and personal with all kind of wild life. We saw elephants, a black rhino, cape buffalo, cheetahs, and more. Then it happened. We came upon a zebra kill. A hyena was feasting and jackals and buzzards were circling. The hyena left and the jackals were pacing nervously and barking at the brush. A leopard emerged from the brush and attempted to drag the left over carcass into the brush. It was large and after a few minutes, the leopard simply gave up and started eating where it was. Where it laid was no more than 20 yards from our vehicles!! The pictures were flying and our group was treated to a rare sight. The guide told us that in his 15 years of doing Safari trips, he had never had a group see so much in only two hours time. We thank God for continued blessings, even in the little things! Our group is blown away and thoroughly enjoying this experience.

This post written by: Kathy and Jon Brooks

Miracles and Blessings

Today was a mixture of ministry and decompression. We went to the pastor’s conference to lend a last minute hand and to say our goodbyes to many that we had ministered with and to. Because of so many of you that had donated towards this trip, our team was able to give enough money to buy the rice for the entire week that fed the 1200+ pastors and conference staff! I presented this gift from Faith Christian School this morning and there was much rejoicing!
Our team is so full of God’s blessing that I have asked the students and adults to share some of their greatest memories of the trip so far. We head off in the morning to go on Safari and we are pumped!! We desperately need the time to process all that has happened in the past 12 days. I ask you to pray as I lead our team to take this experience and answer the “so what?” and “what now?” questions we all are asking. To say that I am proud of each and every team member seems so inadequate. We have experienced the supernatural together and are humbled that we got to be a part. Enjoy the quick peek from each team members perspective.
~Jon Brooks

One of my favorite memories from the trip was when I got to love on the kids from the village and orphanages. I love getting to share the love of Christ with kids, especially from Africa. The Lord really touched my heart toward those children. I wanted to take every one of them home with me.
~Lauren Shawver

While in Matuu, Grayson and I were sitting by the window in the church and our hair was being caressed by children while we listened to the sermon. I turned around and this little tike ling caught my eye right away. She leaned in and said “I’m ready to go with you now.” That definitely shows how much these kids hunger for the love only God can give. Being here and seeing the realness and simple faith the people put in Christ is amazingly refreshing. Also I got to snuggle up close and personal to a giraffe…. Lovely.
~Brittney

On Sunday, we went to three different churches, and the last church was in one of the smallest buildings that I have seen in my entire life. We had no idea how we were going to do the skit in such a small space, but we did it anyways. At the very end of the service, Mr. Brooks did an altar call, and about seven people accepted Christ into their hearts. One of those people was the pastor’s nephew whom they had been praying for fifteen years. The pastor got up and said that it was because of the skit that his nephew accepted Christ, and I just stood there thinking if we hadn’t done the skit then that man wouldn’t have become a Christian…WOW!
~Mackensie

God has had his hand all over this trip, and it has been evident every day. Today, for instance, several pastors from Congo approached Pastor Chola about needing money to travel back home. They spent everything they had to get to the conference and believed that God would provide. He told them that God would have to provide because they simply did not have it in the conference budget to help. Our team did not know the plight of the Congo pastors but had heard at the beginning of the week that some of the pastors would come and not have the money to return home. They were that desperate for training. Right before we left the conference for the last time, we decided that we would take a love offering to help any pastors that needed help to get home. We did not count the money or even think much about it. But the amount our team gave matched the amount needed, to the shilling, of the entire group of pastors from the Congo. TO THE SHILLING!! God is so cool in working out the details. Ah, it was exciting!!
~Sarah

This man named Fred came on our trip to Kitui. He owns an orphanage that he started when he was only 19. Some of us were instantly drawn to Fred because of his love for God that just pours out through his smile and actions. Saturday, we actually got to visit his orphanage, and it was the cleanest one I have seen while we’ve been here. All of the boys were respectful young gentlemen that were extremely eager to help. It was awesome to see how Fred’s love for God blessed 45 or so kids.
~Carla

I have enjoyed the relationships we have made on this trip. The people we’ve been with every day seem like family, and the people we’ve only spent a few hours with have found a special place in our hearts. They have all been so friendly and welcoming, they are people we will never forget. Also, it has been incredible to see immediate fruits of our labor. Never in my life have I seen anything like this. It is clear God wanted us here at this specific time. God is so faithful and so good. There are no words I can find to describe how amazing it is to see Him work in such a mighty way.
~ Kristen

If I tried to describe the experiences we’ve had over the past 11 days I would probably cry (we have all spontaneously burst into tears several times today saying goodbye to our new friends), so I’m going to tell you about what God has done in my life during this trip. There have been so many situations where He has been more faithful to us than we even thought possible. He continues to provide for us, and to use us as vessels to provide for others in miraculous ways. I have heard God more clearly these past two weeks than I have in my entire life. He has given me the purpose and direction that I have been asking for 2 years- but He did it in His time & in His own way- which is a million times better than any plan I could ever make for myself.
~ Grayson

The greatest thing that has impacted me on this trip was being on the worship team at the pastor’s conference. Singing on the worship team made me stretch beyond my comfort zone. I not only learned to worship with confidence (because I don’t like singing in front of people), but I finally truly grasped what “the heart of worship” was. It’s not just singing, it’s deeper than that; it’s letting your spirit worship the Lord for who He is and what He’s done. That type of worship transcends all language barriers. It’s a phenomenal experience to worship in a different language where, even though you don’t know the words, you know the message. I’ve learned the heart of worship.
~Jordan

I like the scenery! I also like people!
~Dexter

I really liked soaking up the culture by watching people in their day to day lives. When everyone is sleeping in the bus I look out the window. Ummm so….. ya.
~Ben Stricklin

Today was rough, to some extent, saying goodbye to family. I was blessed by the wife of one of the conference speakers when she spoke to me about our team. She said that in all the years that she and her husband have been coming to these conferences they have seen many groups come to help. She said that our kids impressed her more than any other group because of the sheer amount of hard work they put in, all that they had accomplished and their hearts for missions and service. It made me cry to hear that someone else was seeing what I already knew – we have a great group of world changers at Faith!
~Stephanie

How incredible this trip has turned out. A perfectly placed team put in three weeks of ministry inside of twelve days. They were well prepared, hard working, and without complaints. These students have done exceedingly well in harsh environments. It has been a pleasure to get to know one of the best student pastors around. Jon Brooks came to Africa to serve, not to be served. He used every possible moment to be a teachable moment for the students. He challenged them to read God’s word, exhorting them to receive a fresh word from God. He would check on their well being, encourage them to journal and even pushed when it was necessary. This has been an incredible trip. Faith has been greatly represented by these well-prepared young Christian leaders and lead by one of the best youth leaders that I’ve known.
~Dirk

This has been a life changing experience not only for the students, but as well for the adults. I have seen miracles, worship represented as I believe it will be in Heaven, students listening to the voice of God, and adults doing whatever necessary to help. One memory that stands out is of Mackensie and I sitting together on the front row of the high school service on Sunday. Jon asked us to bow our heads while he asked those to raise their hands if they wanted to be saved. He then challenged students who were serious about their decision to stand. Mackensie and I were holding hands and praying like crazy. As we prayed, we could hear the students standing one by crying behind us. It was so overwhelming all I could do was pray and cry. We also have many funny memories. I will never forget the reaction of the girls when they saw the first “long chase” that we would be using for 3 days. Of course, it is only funny now. Your prayers have empowered us in every situation. God is so amazing and I thank you guys for being our prayer warriors.
~Kathy

1200 +

I can’t even begin to describe the kind of overwhelming experience today has been, serving the pastors of Kenya. We have been preparing for the bookstore, where pastors can receive Bibles, reference materials and inspirational books that have been donated by Christians back home in the States. Yesterday we put in the work and today we began reaping the reward. I was so nervous once we arrived at the center because I didn’t really have a good idea what to expect, but felt confident that we were prepared. Before the bookstores opened, though, we helped distribute new concordances to the senior pastors who are at the conference for the first time this year. Helping pastors learn how to use this invaluable resource that will change their sermons and reach their congregation on a completely different level was humbling. I had the opportunity of helping several pastors and their wives with using the Greek and Hebrew portion, which until today I didn’t even know how to use!
After the session with the concordances I was stopped by a young woman named Eunice who asked me for help. At first I thought that she needed information about something at the conference, but she was sharing with me about a need she has. She is an orphan who is in school, but is concerned about where her school fees will come from. I had the opportunity to encourage her and pray for her, and felt that the Lord is already supplying that need because orphans are close to His heart.
I am right now trying to think of how to explain what I’ve been feeling for the past three days about the bookstore. I ended up in charge of it, which is a daunting task considering the shear number of pastors that have to cycle through in three days time. I found out today that there is in excess of 1200 pastors at this conference, which is a record number for this event. Yesterday, when we were setting up and putting out the Bibles and books I couldn’t help feeling like the little boy with the sack lunch saying, “Lord, this is what we have. Please take it and multiply it to supply your people.” So much prayer has covered these books, but what’s crazy is that it’s not about the books at all, but about the ripples of impacts that will circle out from Rongai, Kenya to the surrounding areas, countries, Africa and eventually the world. Needless to say, I’ve been nervous about the bookstore and its success.
At the end of the second morning session the announcement was made to the pastors about the bookstore, and then they were released. There was suddenly a crowd of pastors running, literally running, for the two tents. The pastors cycled through the tents ten at a time. I was very impressed with Ben, Lauren, Grayson and Carla and the wonderful way in which they helped the pastors find materials that were more tailored to their needs. Barnes and Noble had nothing on us today! In the two sessions that the bookstore was open today we helped over 300 pastors with selecting materials to bless their ministries. Once the last pastor had gone through this afternoon and we restocked the shelves and tables, I looked very skeptically at what we had and the number of pastors yet to receive anything and prayed again that the Lord would multiply to meet the need. I’m looking forward to seeing the Lord’s miracle.
Jordan, Brittney, and Grayson served on the praise and worship team for the conference. What a thrill it is to see our Faith students serving in this way. They have worked hard to learn songs in Swahili. Jordan led the entire assembly in one of the worship songs and I thought I was going to jump out of my skin! During tonight’s service the kids had the opportunity to perform their skit for all the pastors. The reaction from these pastors was just incredible, including the one pastor who was “pulling” at Brittney right along with Jesus (Jordan). It was a sight to behold and the noise in the tent when Jesus (Jordan) fought against all those sins and the devil so that Brittney could be free was deafening. Pastors actually came out of their chairs! Pastor Chola met us at dinner and said that he already had several pastors asking for the website so that they could use the skit as well in their church and in outreach.
We are already dreading saying goodbye on Saturday to our brothers and sisters here in Kenya. Our time here has been too short and our hearts are so full already. God is doing great things here in Kenya in His church and it has been incredible to have even a little part in what He is doing.

This post written by: Stephanie Sloane (Organizer Extroardinare)

Birds eye view

Today was a nice and normal day. We got up at 8:30 to get on the bus off to the C.M.M. center. On the way there we listened to music on headphones and talked. Once we got there I got to climb the water tower and take some video and pictures. After that we all got set up for the pastor’s conference. 1000 pastors are going to show up for this. Registration was a killer today. Every single pastor got here at the same time and the number pouring in only grew! All the pastors came from all over Kenya. Most were so desperate to get here they came without knowing how to get back. Most everything today went smoothly. Everyone worked together very well and we registered a little over 800 today. We expect another 300 + to register in the morning. At 5pm the service started. The place was so packed that there was several rows of chairs lining the outside! We ended of the day by eating at a restaurant called Java Hut.
I love mom and dad!

This post written by: Dexter Cheneweth (Senior)

Side note: They have asked our group to do their drama tomorrow night for the entire conference. It will be amazing to see 1000+ pastors get to their feet and shout at the end of the drama. This drama is truly anointed and our students have done so well in sharing it.

God is mighty to save!

(This post is written by a student after one of the most amazing ministry days I have ever been a part of! Our team met and prayed last night, reading scripture and singing together. We prepared our hearts for what we knew would be a challenging day, but never dreamed that God would move in the way He did. Wow! This day will be most difficult to capture with a simple blog entry. Just know that the Faith team is being used in mighty ways by The mighty God! -- Jon)

Hi from Africa! I am truly amazed at what the Lord is doing on this trip! Today was absolutely wonderful! We went to the Hospital Hill Secondary High School to minister in their Sunday morning chapel. This is an optional service, but the chapel was packed with over 450 students. We sang some praise and worship songs in English and in Swahili. Then, we performed our powerful skit and they were receptive to the message that the skit conveyed. Jordan and Mr. Brooks tied the skit together and many people accepted Christ as their personal Lord and savior. We did not get an exact number but we conservatively estimate at least 70 responded to a very clear and difficult invitation to get saved. I liked that school because it was evident that the kids were so happy and they were genuine about their decision to commit their lives to Christ.
After the school, we went to a small church in the slums called God’s Everlasting Ministries, led by pastor Meshack. The people there didn’t let the harsh living conditions determine their attitude and their relationship with their Maker. They were very joyful and praised the Lord for what they had and for giving them the church where the Staats’ family had provided building materials. I got the opportunity to share what Jesus has done in my life when I gave my testimony. It was refreshing just to be able to tell the people that the Lord has been there for me in the happy times and sad times and that he has given me so much joy and strength even in times of hardship and trouble. The Lord moved in mighty ways and spoke through Mr. Brooks and many more people were saved as a result of the Holy Spirit touching hearts. We left the church in awe of how big God is.
After lunch we got the opportunity to go to some individual homes and encourage them and pray for their needs. It was an eye-opening experience to see how these people live and how they are still trusting God to meet their needs everyday when they have so little. We ended the afternoon with a crusade at Hosanna International Gospel Ministries, led by pastor Gerishon. At least 5 more people gave their lives to Christ. One of these was the nephew of the pastor who had decided to come to see “the visitors”, but ended up watching our skit and accepting Christ. (pictured in red shirt) The thing that was so amazing was that his wife had been praying for him for fifteen years to be saved. Needless to say, there was much rejoicing! Another neat story was of a ten year old boy that accepted Christ. He had just been released from the hospital that day, after a one year admittance! (He had been hit by a truck.) When responding to the invitation his arm was raised but was hurting him so much that Mrs. Brooks stood by him and helped him keep it up. In all, we believe over 100 people were saved just today as a result of the ministry here in Africa!!
Once we left the church we went to the Matheney’s to swim and have a time of fellowship and prayer. So much happened today! We serve a BIG God who loves to move through his people to touch lives. I hope everyone is doing well in the U.S. We continue to look forward to more of what God has planned for this trip.

This post written by: Lauren Shawver (Joyful Senior)