Let the Journey Begin!

I am super excited to finally be able to use my skills and passion to serve God overseas! Returning to work with small farmers in Africa has been a dream of mine for a long time, and is finally becoming a reality.

This spring I was accepted to serve

for two years in the Central African Republic (CAR) with Reach Global. The CAR is a fairly large country just north of the two Congos. It has

experienced frequent periods of political unrest since the l950’s, when it was a French colony. As a result, little has been done to address the basic needs of ordinary people, leaving them in extreme poverty. The BBC reported on this awhile back, but not much has changed since http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8476107.stm

While I am in the CAR, I will be based at an experimental farm run by long term missionary, Roy Danforth, and his Central African staff. Their agricultural station, Gamboula, offers hope to rural Central Africans in many ways. New plants and ideas developed there are innovative and far reaching, having the potential to improve the lives of many; ie. the introduction of new varieties of fruit bearing and multi-use agro-forestry trees, more nutritious crops for humans and animals, along with systems of using ground covers to replenish soils in existing fields. Research involving sustainable animal husbandry also has the potential to jump-start struggling communities. I will have the opportunity to be a part of this ground-breaking work as I learn about doing agriculture missions in Central Africa.

            Along with agricultural work, the Gamboula team shares their faith with those with whom they come into contact. It is not only about feeding people, by improving their physical lives, but by helping to fulfill their spiritual needs as well. My hope is that God’s blessings will become more real to the community I work with through both the skills that I have to offer and God’s Word that we can explore together.

          In the New Testament, Paul repeatedly asks for prayer, petitioning for his and his team’s safety, and that God would use him to clearly speak the truth. I have seen the power of prayer, and know how effective it is, even when people are half a world away. Having prayer warriors fighting on behalf of missionaries is a critical part of ministry for those going as well as those staying.
          I would love to share my story with you, and it would be great to have people praying for me as I start going down this road God has led me to. Pleas pray that God would give me strength as I finish up my internship this month. That God would be preparing me for working in CAR, and that he would provide the financial support I need to raze before my projected departure in January.