I wanted to post a video of our trip that I made, it shows a bit more about what we did and most of all it shows the people who I fell in love with!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9G0XXG-HwA&feature=channel
It is my last night in England tonight and I don’t plan to sleep. For me there are too many things running through my head, from school, to family to Africa and back to school, my house, work, my future… I feel like I’m engulfed with thoughts as I look forward to tomorrow. The truth is I can’t be the same after this summer, God has changed me. Every so often we get a chance to love, and this summer I had that chance. I failed at times and became self-centered, I even at times forgetting my reason for being here: to serve God. Yet my God, who fills me with such joy and love that I can’t help but praise him, gently guided me back each time. He reminded me that he opened my eyes to see poverty and injustice and gave me the opportunity to do something about it. Before this summer I knew God had given me a heart for Africa, for the poor, for the lonely and broken, yet what I saw more clearly is that he’s given me a voice. Now I see my call is also to not remain silent but to challenge those around me, yes even you, to LIVE for others. I plan to continue writing this blog and I hope that many of you will continue to read it. Going to Liberia and working with EMI this summer has shown me what good can be done with faith and with Love, more than all it has shown me that my God has the power to reach into darkness and bring light.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Sunday, July 11, 2010
My ambition...
Cheerio from across the pond!
I’ve been back for a while and thing are back in full swing. I’m working Monday through Friday in the EMI office here in Colchester working on project drawings, renderings, the funding brochure and whatever else is needed. Please be in prayer for our work as we have what seems like a mountain to climb before August 6th when we leave. I’ve really enjoyed continuing to help out with open door, to be able to interact with the people here in Colchester, people whose lives have been harder than I could imagine. It’s hard to see how broken many of them are, but also amazing to see they still have hope, some more than others, some on a better track than others. I’ve also learned a lot about how mental illness is a really devastating thing, someone who had lived a completely normal life could lose it all and become homeless all because of a simple accident that caused brain damage. God is working here. God is showing me how to love people, people who may always let you down, people who many would say are a lost cause. There is no such thing as a lost cause to Christ and so, no matter their story or their sin (because, let’s be honest we are all sinners), I can only listen love and serve them tea.
AFRICAN DREAM ACADEMY 3d VIDEO. This is a link for a video of the work we’ve done so far, it's an entire view of the site and long term vision. The dream of African Dream Academy is huge, but it is to be built in sustainable phases, first with the housing for orphans and the school. This project is something which would create opportunities for children which simply don’t exist at all in Liberia. African Dream Academy runs off the principle that children in Liberia deserve the same opportunities as children elsewhere. Imagine creating more than just a school out of mud and thatch but creating a school that lasts, where students have their own desk, books and a library to study in, playgrounds, assembly and worship spaces, music rooms, science labs and even a computer lab. Schools like these are few and far between in Africa, and almost never made available for orphans and poorer children yet, with the help of EMI and other donors this school can be a reality.
Since being back there are so many memories and stories I wish I could tell all of you. I’ll start with telling you about something I’ve been learning lately. I want to encourage each of you to live with an ambition. Not the kind of ambition which includes a large paycheck, perfect grades or a better car but, the kind of ambition which offers more than anything you could imagine. In Romans 15 Paul talks about his life’s ambition: to go and tell people about the love of Christ where it has not been known before. His ambition was his joy, even if it ended him in prison, beaten or worse. He literally could not rest in one place, could not help but speak of his passion because he knew so clearly his call: to go. I want all of you to remember that you each have a call to go, it may not be to go across the world but it is still a call to love, to live for more than your own personal gain, to live in a way so opposite than everything the world tells us that people stop and stare. Be one who seeks attention not by the kinds of things you wear, the vocabulary you use, the jokes you can tell or any other empty thing, seek attention for God by the way you love, how you react when you are wronged, how you reach out to the homeless, the mentally ill, the orphan, the depressed, the sick, the broken. How you reach out to one another.
Pray for me as I am feeling a resistance of sorts lately, pray for God to break down barriers
Pray for the EMI staff here in the UK, we have all been tested in different ways this summer, some more than others.
Pray for continued opportunities to share the gospel and encourage the body of Christ while I am here in England. I volunteer with Open Door on Wednesdays, so if you could, remember me on Wednesdays!
-Jess
Romans 15:30,33 "I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf,"... "May the God of peace be with you all. Amen."
Friday, July 2, 2010
As Time Goes By...
A blog I wrote in Casablanca, please read on!
DAY 16 Sunday June 20th 2010
Well here I am at last, sitting in the Casablanca airport, between two worlds missing one and longing for the other. There is no other place that has the ability to break my heart like Africa. I realize now as I leave that my thoughts are constantly turning back, to the poverty, the pollution, the children, the way the sand and sea smells and the way the slums cram together humanity in the most broken way. All I can turn to is Christ, because every good thing I have seen, every moment of hope and joy in this land is clearly because of him. He is the one who gives strength to the woman, threatened by abandonment to rely on more than just the temporary. He is the one who lifts up the hands of the father who feels useless to provide in prayer and who gives him hope. He is the one who gives laughter and smiles to the small child who knows little of life but trash and dirty water. In every instance he is there and gives comfort even if it’s through the help of a stranger.
As you walk through your lives as you live each moment in your comfort I can tell you without a doubt many people here have more than you. They have faith that moves mountains, they have hope that gives them joy, they have trust in something infinitely more fulfilling than material possessions. They hold on to One who is ever constant and good. Should we call them poor? Yes in one sense, but to those who hope in Christ in this land of brokenness it is clear that God has defied all circumstances, entered into their broken lives and made them whole, perfect and joyful despite their condition. What God could do such a thing? What God could make what I thought was hopeless the biggest encouragement my faith has ever seen? What God could make a life I would say is barely worth living the happiest of all? God does more than provide for material possessions, he provides for the heart. As I look at my life I have so much, a family, education, a place to stay and an abundance of food, yet in his wisdom God has planned to give me something greater, a chance to be saved from the fickle life of materialism. There is nothing fulfilling in being the most successful, the most beautiful or the most intellectual, all those things prove empty over time, when we are honest we know that this is true. Yet if you give Christ a chance to show you what life is worth and what putting your trust in him means then come what may, death, poverty, sorrow and pain you can never lose everything because you have a constant, you have a savior from all things who loves you.
Soon I’ll board the plane and leave this continent, soon I’ll be back to a more familiar place, in a land where most people look much like me, yet I hope that you will know that I am changed.
Monday, June 28, 2010
This is a classroom block for African Dream Academy. The roof structure allows for ventilation via the Venturi effect and also shades from the sun directly beating down upon the classroom ceiling. Tall windows provide for natural cross ventilation as well. In the middle as a "breakout space", a space for congregation, outdoor teaching or playing this space will vary in placement along the block. Some blocks will contain a restroom for the students on the end, as is the case in the above rendering. This space allows for the block to maintain its own identity within the school. Each block will have room for 160 students in one grade, there will eventually be one block each for grades K-12. African Dream Academy's vision is to provide a space which will be a step up from the classrooms currently present in Liberia which provide a very poor quality learning environment.Friday, June 25, 2010
The following posts are a sort of blog I kept while in Liberia, they describe a trip that in many ways changed my life. For those of you who don’t have time to read through everything I’ll tell you in short right now what our trip entailed. We were in Liberia for 17 days to help design a plan for African Dream Academy. This plan includes both a school for 2,000 students, Housing for 300 orphans, vocational training, medical facilities, housing, play areas and much more. Our specific focus on this trip was to design in detail the school and orphan housing. I was in charge of drawing up the plans for the classrooms. It was amazing to work together with a team made up of Architects, Civil Engineers, Electrical Engineers, Structural Engineers and more. Not only that but to work together with people who had taken their time and resources to travel half way around the world to help others! The work was hard and we had some setbacks and unexpected turns in the design (as you’ll find below) yet we were able to achieve an amazing amount of progress in the short time we had. The bonds we formed with the people there were amazing. We were able to come alongside the Liberian people more specifically Samuel Enders as a partner to help orphans and vulnerable children gain a high quality education. For me, God worked amazingly in my life and confirmed that my heart will always be with Africa. I felt when I stepped off the plane that, I was home. Please read on if you have time, I wrote these so you could know how much this trip meant and all that was accomplished.
FIRST DAY, Friday June 4th
We awoke in the morning to find that our Liberian hosts are ridiculously hospitable. I find it humbling and hard not to want to cook for myself or help clean up after a meal but, as part of what EMI does it’s important that we use our time well and culturally it’s important to accept their service. We had a wonderful breakfast as people involved in the local ministry came in and out. I don’t think I’ll be able to get everyone’s names in right away, assuming I heard them correctly in the first place. I was warned before I came here that Liberian English often doesn’t sound much like English at all… this is very true.
On to more important things. Samuel Enders is the man who runs African Dream Academy. The more I hear about their ministry the more it amazes me. They run bible camps for thousands of kids and share Christ these children. Their desire is to have a more permanent home base. This land will be a sanctuary for learning and a place where children, especially orphans can be taken care of and learn about God. It will be a place where dreams can be conceived and made a reality. I am still amazed that God has blessed me in allowing me to be a part of this ministry, of this dream of Samuel’s. I think all of us are encouraged by it. Despite this encouragement today was also reality check. As we visited the site by dugout canoe we realized this dream will be no small task. The island is a thick jungle, navigable only by the apt machete wielder, not the clumsy Jess Libby in long skirt and rain boots (trust me the long skirt is not my dress of choice). Surveying will be difficult but as the engineers found out today, not impossible. Get several Liberians with machetes and you’ll have a path cleared in the blink of an eye. Praise God we have help. While the rest of the team was surveying Carissa (EMI Architect Long-term Volunteer) Tim (EMI Architect Intern) and I took a canoe ride round the whole island looking for suitable sites for a bridge. The suggested place would still require a very major undertaking as the bridge would have to be over a hundred feet in span. Tonight as we debriefed we talked about some of these challenges and brainstormed a bit… I don’t know what these few weeks will hold but I know that there is an almost inhuman amount of work to be done… good thing we have God!
I wish I could phone home and tell me friends and family all about Liberia, it hasn’t taken my heart long to break for this country. The war lasted so long and put a halt to all things good, everyone is in poverty here… not the kind of poverty where you don’t have a car or you can’t go out to eat as much as you like. The kind where they can’t find work because there are no jobs, the economy is devastated. Good sanitation systems and clean water are rare, clothes are never new and often aren’t fit for wearing, shelter is of the simplest construction to put it nicely (in reality many houses have trash for walls and rusted tin roofs). One of the most profound things I saw was a rock quarry where people sat, breaking down massive boulders by hand into small golf ball sized rocks. Painstaking work that I always envisioned slaves and prisoners would have done… but these people are “free”. That is when I realized poverty is slavery, and we should fight against it as an injustice.
I could write more but it’s time to sleep.
FOURTH DAY, Sunday June 6tb
I met little Sarah, Laura, Benita, and Shirley today, they were all still a little shy around me but I enjoyed sitting with them on a rock as we talked and I attempted to teach them some games. My heart was so alive and living through them, I love these kids so much! What a blessing they are from God… but here, many are seen as an inconvenience. The young ones run around in rags, little ones as young as five carry around their brothers and sisters on their backs. They have rags for clothes and often might be missing half their wardrobe. God, they deserve to be treasured, to be bandaged up when they fall, to be cleaned properly, to be read stories as they drift off to sleep... I can’t judge their parents but, truth is they are probably doing all they can. There is a cultural difference in the value of children here as well.
After Church (which was amazing) we went for lunch at Samuels mothers, my throat closed down slightly after taking a large bite of Cassava Chicken with some serious kick in it. I’ll need to be more careful!
I talked with Shirley today, the wife of Wiom who runs Carver Mission, our home here in Liberia. She shared with me and encouraged me so much in my faith. She told me how she met William and how prayer was so much a part of her every decision; she is a woman of faith and a prayer warrior. It was really beautiful to connect on such a deep level with someone who has had such a different life, who has lived with nothing compared to our standards yet to hers, she has been beyond blessed. The generator is going to go off in a few minutes so that’s all for now!
DAY TEN Saturday, June 12th
Many things have happened since I last wrote, it seems that God has been testing this team, seeing if we are really willing to follow his plan and not our own plan. Oh God how wonderful you are! God has used us to come here for his kingdom purposes. When we arrived we were already unsure of what God had for us, last minute plans to focus primarily on African Dream Academy instead of another mission were beautifully confirmed as we came to know and be familiar with the vision of Samuel Enders. God knew all along. Samuel has a great passion and vision for educating the youth of Liberia. The more I see of Liberia the more apparent it is that God has us here because the need is here. It’s been said (and in looking is confirmed) that in most of Monrovia people are literally living off each others trash. The slums never really end they just become more spread out. Once in a while along the road a worn out sign indicates some school started by some mission or another. This land is barely held together by the good will of others, and by the strength and joy of the Liberian people. War tore this country apart and left it with nothing, no power, no electricity, dirt roads with massive holes which turn to lakes in the rain. Every one lives in makeshift houses, construction here is very basic, which makes our design job difficult.
I want to share with you more about the man who has a dream to change Liberia, starting with the education of its most valuable people, the children. Samuel Enders was born the 8th child out of 9 into a poor family, yet things went from bad to worse when his father died. Samuel was two at the time and as he grew up he had to work selling what he could on the streets so he could help his family survive. Through a turn of events that God brought about, Samuel was able to be sponsored by a local missionary to go to school. Although he had gotten a very late start he did two grades a year to catch up. He eventually made it to America to gain a college education. He didn’t rest there, he had a dream to return to Liberia to labor to give kids the opportunity of an education so they could live out their dreams as he did. Samuel told us one of the reasons the war in Liberia was so destructive was because most people were ignorant and easily persuaded to believe whatever the warlords told them. With education Samuel wants to change that so it will never happen again. I can’t explain to you how amazing it is to be here to help Samuel help his people. Tuesday he’s organizing a VBS for us to see, Tuesday is also “The day of the African Child”. I can’t wait.
Once we understood Samuels dream the Architects sat down to discuss specifics. Samuel Enders does not dream small, he wants the best and believes the best can happen for ADA and for God. We have since been designing many different things for Samuels dream. We are doing basic designs for the whole of his dream but really focusing on where it will begin: homes for orphans to live in and a school for them to go to along with other impoverished children in the area. There will also be a multipurpose hall for the VBS camp to run in, food to be served, games to be played and services to be held. I’ve had the opportunity to design the actual school blocks. Four classrooms make up a block with an empty space in a 5 unit block for outdoor class to be held or just for congregation for the grade. Each grade has one module, K-5 in phase one and all the way up to high school as ADA progresses. I’ve been learning so much as we think about classroom space, the size of desks optimal ventilation… etc. James, the lead architect has thought of a way to have a truss supported roof floating above the classroom ceiling by a few feet on a 5 degree slope to allow the hot are to ventilate out of the classroom providing a passively cooled classroom.
One thing that has been so astounding to me is just the lack of infrastructure hear, we have had to be very concerned within the design process with making the buildings as simple as possible. It seems the basic construction is no more than mud brick and tin roof. Variations include bamboo walls, tarps strapped together and trash looped through walls. Really, there is no way that Samuel could achieve his dream without God sending us here. Even now, the work that EMI is doing will be a huge tool that Samuel can use to further fundraise for his dream. Once people see the dream that we have seen I know they will want to support it. This is different than many of the other ministries in this area, Samuel does not want to fence in his school, he doesn’t want to let it fall into ruin or neglect, he is directly connected with the people here and knows Liberia better than many of the NGO’s which come in and try to run things according to their systems. He has a shot at creating the best school Liberia has seen since the war, and doing it for the name of Christ. I get to be a part of that? Wow.
DAY 12, Tuesday June 14th
Well, as it turns out, the challenges I talked about with the site God knew about all along and set before our path to guide us to a greater need, a different path. After surveying the land and finding almost half of it was unusable swamp we were able to save Samuel from buying the rest. Also in search to find a better way to access the site than building a massive bridge we were led into a more rural place. That was when God showed Samuel hundreds and hundreds of people isolated and living without clean water, paved roads or medical help. Hundreds of children as well without a school for miles. Once Samuel talked with the elders and chiefs their enthusiasm to give him land for the school was another confirmation that God had led him to where he needed to be. All this to say, we thought we knew what we were doing but God had a better more perfect plan. The previous site, although beautiful was difficult to get to due to the water, it also was close to several other ministries and although the need was still great, God showed us a greater need. So now we design for a more notional and adaptable site, we’ll see how it goes!
DAY 14, Thursday June 17th 2010
Little time tonight but we did the presentation, what an amazing response and blessing! Everyone seemed so excited for this dream. To be able to show them our work and play the video with the 3d model really gave them hope that this project can become a reality. All for now!
FIRST DAY, Friday June 4th
We awoke in the morning to find that our Liberian hosts are ridiculously hospitable. I find it humbling and hard not to want to cook for myself or help clean up after a meal but, as part of what EMI does it’s important that we use our time well and culturally it’s important to accept their service. We had a wonderful breakfast as people involved in the local ministry came in and out. I don’t think I’ll be able to get everyone’s names in right away, assuming I heard them correctly in the first place. I was warned before I came here that Liberian English often doesn’t sound much like English at all… this is very true.
On to more important things. Samuel Enders is the man who runs African Dream Academy. The more I hear about their ministry the more it amazes me. They run bible camps for thousands of kids and share Christ these children. Their desire is to have a more permanent home base. This land will be a sanctuary for learning and a place where children, especially orphans can be taken care of and learn about God. It will be a place where dreams can be conceived and made a reality. I am still amazed that God has blessed me in allowing me to be a part of this ministry, of this dream of Samuel’s. I think all of us are encouraged by it. Despite this encouragement today was also reality check. As we visited the site by dugout canoe we realized this dream will be no small task. The island is a thick jungle, navigable only by the apt machete wielder, not the clumsy Jess Libby in long skirt and rain boots (trust me the long skirt is not my dress of choice). Surveying will be difficult but as the engineers found out today, not impossible. Get several Liberians with machetes and you’ll have a path cleared in the blink of an eye. Praise God we have help. While the rest of the team was surveying Carissa (EMI Architect Long-term Volunteer) Tim (EMI Architect Intern) and I took a canoe ride round the whole island looking for suitable sites for a bridge. The suggested place would still require a very major undertaking as the bridge would have to be over a hundred feet in span. Tonight as we debriefed we talked about some of these challenges and brainstormed a bit… I don’t know what these few weeks will hold but I know that there is an almost inhuman amount of work to be done… good thing we have God!
I wish I could phone home and tell me friends and family all about Liberia, it hasn’t taken my heart long to break for this country. The war lasted so long and put a halt to all things good, everyone is in poverty here… not the kind of poverty where you don’t have a car or you can’t go out to eat as much as you like. The kind where they can’t find work because there are no jobs, the economy is devastated. Good sanitation systems and clean water are rare, clothes are never new and often aren’t fit for wearing, shelter is of the simplest construction to put it nicely (in reality many houses have trash for walls and rusted tin roofs). One of the most profound things I saw was a rock quarry where people sat, breaking down massive boulders by hand into small golf ball sized rocks. Painstaking work that I always envisioned slaves and prisoners would have done… but these people are “free”. That is when I realized poverty is slavery, and we should fight against it as an injustice.
I could write more but it’s time to sleep.
FOURTH DAY, Sunday June 6tb
I met little Sarah, Laura, Benita, and Shirley today, they were all still a little shy around me but I enjoyed sitting with them on a rock as we talked and I attempted to teach them some games. My heart was so alive and living through them, I love these kids so much! What a blessing they are from God… but here, many are seen as an inconvenience. The young ones run around in rags, little ones as young as five carry around their brothers and sisters on their backs. They have rags for clothes and often might be missing half their wardrobe. God, they deserve to be treasured, to be bandaged up when they fall, to be cleaned properly, to be read stories as they drift off to sleep... I can’t judge their parents but, truth is they are probably doing all they can. There is a cultural difference in the value of children here as well.
After Church (which was amazing) we went for lunch at Samuels mothers, my throat closed down slightly after taking a large bite of Cassava Chicken with some serious kick in it. I’ll need to be more careful!
I talked with Shirley today, the wife of Wiom who runs Carver Mission, our home here in Liberia. She shared with me and encouraged me so much in my faith. She told me how she met William and how prayer was so much a part of her every decision; she is a woman of faith and a prayer warrior. It was really beautiful to connect on such a deep level with someone who has had such a different life, who has lived with nothing compared to our standards yet to hers, she has been beyond blessed. The generator is going to go off in a few minutes so that’s all for now!
DAY TEN Saturday, June 12th
Many things have happened since I last wrote, it seems that God has been testing this team, seeing if we are really willing to follow his plan and not our own plan. Oh God how wonderful you are! God has used us to come here for his kingdom purposes. When we arrived we were already unsure of what God had for us, last minute plans to focus primarily on African Dream Academy instead of another mission were beautifully confirmed as we came to know and be familiar with the vision of Samuel Enders. God knew all along. Samuel has a great passion and vision for educating the youth of Liberia. The more I see of Liberia the more apparent it is that God has us here because the need is here. It’s been said (and in looking is confirmed) that in most of Monrovia people are literally living off each others trash. The slums never really end they just become more spread out. Once in a while along the road a worn out sign indicates some school started by some mission or another. This land is barely held together by the good will of others, and by the strength and joy of the Liberian people. War tore this country apart and left it with nothing, no power, no electricity, dirt roads with massive holes which turn to lakes in the rain. Every one lives in makeshift houses, construction here is very basic, which makes our design job difficult.
I want to share with you more about the man who has a dream to change Liberia, starting with the education of its most valuable people, the children. Samuel Enders was born the 8th child out of 9 into a poor family, yet things went from bad to worse when his father died. Samuel was two at the time and as he grew up he had to work selling what he could on the streets so he could help his family survive. Through a turn of events that God brought about, Samuel was able to be sponsored by a local missionary to go to school. Although he had gotten a very late start he did two grades a year to catch up. He eventually made it to America to gain a college education. He didn’t rest there, he had a dream to return to Liberia to labor to give kids the opportunity of an education so they could live out their dreams as he did. Samuel told us one of the reasons the war in Liberia was so destructive was because most people were ignorant and easily persuaded to believe whatever the warlords told them. With education Samuel wants to change that so it will never happen again. I can’t explain to you how amazing it is to be here to help Samuel help his people. Tuesday he’s organizing a VBS for us to see, Tuesday is also “The day of the African Child”. I can’t wait.
Once we understood Samuels dream the Architects sat down to discuss specifics. Samuel Enders does not dream small, he wants the best and believes the best can happen for ADA and for God. We have since been designing many different things for Samuels dream. We are doing basic designs for the whole of his dream but really focusing on where it will begin: homes for orphans to live in and a school for them to go to along with other impoverished children in the area. There will also be a multipurpose hall for the VBS camp to run in, food to be served, games to be played and services to be held. I’ve had the opportunity to design the actual school blocks. Four classrooms make up a block with an empty space in a 5 unit block for outdoor class to be held or just for congregation for the grade. Each grade has one module, K-5 in phase one and all the way up to high school as ADA progresses. I’ve been learning so much as we think about classroom space, the size of desks optimal ventilation… etc. James, the lead architect has thought of a way to have a truss supported roof floating above the classroom ceiling by a few feet on a 5 degree slope to allow the hot are to ventilate out of the classroom providing a passively cooled classroom.
One thing that has been so astounding to me is just the lack of infrastructure hear, we have had to be very concerned within the design process with making the buildings as simple as possible. It seems the basic construction is no more than mud brick and tin roof. Variations include bamboo walls, tarps strapped together and trash looped through walls. Really, there is no way that Samuel could achieve his dream without God sending us here. Even now, the work that EMI is doing will be a huge tool that Samuel can use to further fundraise for his dream. Once people see the dream that we have seen I know they will want to support it. This is different than many of the other ministries in this area, Samuel does not want to fence in his school, he doesn’t want to let it fall into ruin or neglect, he is directly connected with the people here and knows Liberia better than many of the NGO’s which come in and try to run things according to their systems. He has a shot at creating the best school Liberia has seen since the war, and doing it for the name of Christ. I get to be a part of that? Wow.
DAY 12, Tuesday June 14th
Well, as it turns out, the challenges I talked about with the site God knew about all along and set before our path to guide us to a greater need, a different path. After surveying the land and finding almost half of it was unusable swamp we were able to save Samuel from buying the rest. Also in search to find a better way to access the site than building a massive bridge we were led into a more rural place. That was when God showed Samuel hundreds and hundreds of people isolated and living without clean water, paved roads or medical help. Hundreds of children as well without a school for miles. Once Samuel talked with the elders and chiefs their enthusiasm to give him land for the school was another confirmation that God had led him to where he needed to be. All this to say, we thought we knew what we were doing but God had a better more perfect plan. The previous site, although beautiful was difficult to get to due to the water, it also was close to several other ministries and although the need was still great, God showed us a greater need. So now we design for a more notional and adaptable site, we’ll see how it goes!
DAY 14, Thursday June 17th 2010
Little time tonight but we did the presentation, what an amazing response and blessing! Everyone seemed so excited for this dream. To be able to show them our work and play the video with the 3d model really gave them hope that this project can become a reality. All for now!
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Off to Liberia!
Well, I don’t have much time to write as it is late and I am still packing up for Liberia tomorrow but God has done some pretty amazing things this last week and, needless to say I’ve been learning a lot about trusting in HIS plan not MY plan.
As it happens, ABC Liberia is undergoing some conflict with ABC International (which we did not know about until recently) and although we know that ABC still needs our help, we felt God saying that it would be better to postpone the ABC Project till these issues are resolved. Don't panic though, the amazing part is that this does not at all cause any problems with what we want to accomplish in Liberia. Our amazing God had ready for us a project with African Dream Academy (a project which we were going to visit for a short 3 day survey anyway) where we would be doing essentially the same thing only a few miles away with a group which has been wanting and needing our help for a long time. God has prepared for us a path in advance that none of us knew we would take! I encourage all of you to visit http://www.africandreamacademy.org/welcome.html for more information about ADA and the work that God has been doing through ADA, it’s pretty exciting stuff.
This past week I’ve been looking into Liberia and found out a lot more its history, struggles and current conditions. Liberia has not had it easy due to a civil war starting 20 years ago and only ending a few years ago. As a result 75% of people remain illiterate and there is almost no infrastructure. The work that we will be doing is desperately needed, the opportunities created by this school will be immeasurable. Liberia has a heart to succeed and God has appointed us to give them the tools! Oh how wonderful it is to be a part of what God is doing!
So tomorrow we embark, I doubt I’ll be able to update much but I’ll keep an account while I’m gone so I can give all of you the details of the next 17 days. Please, please, please remember us in your prayers, and remember to PRAISE God for all he has done already.
-Jess
Prayer requests:
Safety in travel
Ability to work in rainy conditions, against sickness and fatigue
An extra measure of energy and strength to accomplish as much as possible as quickly as possible
To spread the love of Christ to each person we connect with, giving glory to God in everything we do
For me personally, that I would seek to serve everyone around me, I would seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit in each of my interactions.
Continued support: I am currently at 5,000 and still need 1,000
Thursday, May 27, 2010
The work begins...
1 Corinthians 3:13
Each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.
Each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.
We’ve been getting to know each other as a team this past week and after sharing dinner a few nights ago we shared testimonies, a highlight of the trip so far. It was amazing to see how God has brought each of us together to EMI. I know that this summer will be a time to learn, to listen to God’s calling on my life and to learn from what he has to teach me. Please pray for me!
On to a more unfortunate matter; I’ve fallen pretty ill since Saturday after lunch, I’ve stayed up in my room sleeping most of the time without much energy to eat for a few days. I must have caught a nasty bug of some sorts with all that crazy travel (for those of you who didn't read my previous post after flying out of O’hare we had to turn back for a medical emergency before we arrived in Charlotte where we were stranded for three days due to the Volcano in order to finally fly to philly to Paris then round to London). So yesterday was my first day of work since I couldn’t go in for the first couple.
The English really REALLY love there tea… it seems cliché but it is absolutely true. It’s not uncommon to walk through a door and almost directly be handed a cup of tea, I had roughly 5 cups on one of my first days here! I had the opportunity to serve in a ministry called Open Door which “sells” tea and coffee for 10 p (about 15 cents). You all should have seen me trying to make change with all of the confusing coins that the UK uses, it's ridiculous! They all have the same old lady on them! How am I to tell the difference? Anyway, it’s an amazing ministry where people often homeless or impaired in some way can come and sit almost all day if they like and drink tea. I loved talking to the people and being able to serve them alongside the others I was working with. My mission this summer is more than just to build a school in Liberia but to bless and encourage others around me in such a way that brings glory to God wherever I go. Open door operates 3 days a week providing food and tea and coffee at prices that homeless people can afford! What a great idea! This is what church should look like.
That’s all for now, sorry about the inconsistency of my writing things have been a whirlwind but I finally am starting to feel at home here in Colchester! I hope to go to London this Saturday and have a look round’. Right then, cheerio.
-J
My lovely room in ColchesterMonday, May 17, 2010
“I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.” Psalm 4:5
Summer has begun, and has surprised me at every turn. I finished my last final around 9 PM on Friday and quickly packed up and left for home the next morning. I loved seeing my family and spending some time together before leaving for England. Upon arrival in O’Hare everything went smoothly and I watched as Chicago disappeared from view. However, only 15 minutes into the flight a flight attendant informed us of a medical emergency, calling for doctor on board to help if possible. I’d seen this sort of thing in movies and immediately began to pray I was amazed to see three different bibles open up just within my row! The captain decided to turn the plain around so the man could be attended to by paramedics. I still don’t know what happened to him or how he is doing now but please keep him in your prayers. After this we stayed on the plane and took off once more, it became apparent I would miss my connecting flight to London. Once I got off the plane I heard from the other intern Tim, who was also in Charlotte that the London flight had been delayed then cancelled due to the ash cloud from the volcano Eyjafjallajokull. At this point God kept our spirits high even though we pointlessly waited in a line for 3 hours only to be told the airport would not book anymore flights that night. During this time however by making some calls we found out the next flight available to England was ten days away, not taking that for an answer we explored other options, eventually finding a flight from Charlotte to Philly on Wednesday and then a flight from Philly to Paris followed by a flight from Paris to London. US Airways has not been able to pay for our rooms here or the flight from Paris to London so it’s been tough to stomach some of the extra costs but God has provided for me so much so far and I know he will continue to do so! If you are still able to contribute in any way to my trip I encourage you to do so.
So, here I am in a hotel room near the Charlotte airport, catching up on sleep and continuing to pray that we can actually make it to England! I realize now that God knew this would happen, he also knew how stressful it would be leaving immediately after finals and so, I believe he’s given me this time to prepare my heart for this summer, to pray and read the word and praise him for his faithfulness in my life! I’ve had moments of discouragement and I am missing home but I know that I am not alone, my comfort and strength is with me! That is why Psalm 4:5 has been on my heart today: “I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.”
Last but not least I need your prayers, taking three different flights to get to England will be a pretty complicated matter and so please be in prayer for no delays or baggage mix ups as well as smooth sailing through customs in both France and England.
-J
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