Meet Megan of Team Kenya!

So in continuing to introduce you to my team, I thought I would also interview other people involved with the MO5 mission.  We have teams going to Arizona, Mexico, Nairobi, Kenya and Southeast Asia, as well as my team's trip to Prague.  Here is where I asked a good friend of mine (we are in a wonderful small group of women together at church) to tell me about her experience with preparing for her trip!


Yonna: Tell me a bit about yourself: Who are you? What do you do? How did you come to be a member of Mountain Christian Church?

Megan, MO5 Team Green: Kenya

Megan: My name is Megan! I originally started going to Mountain when I was seven years old, but stopped going when I was 15. Then returned last year (2011).  I am a faithful member of the Women's Mentoring Group at Mountain (Yonna note: and we LOVE her presence!~)

Y:  Have you ever been on a missions trip before?
M: I have not been on a missions trip before, or even an airplane!!!

Y: WOW!  Not even an airplane?  What a leap of faith you're taking...especially with a plane ride that can last up to 14 hours...you are one brave little sister!  So in knowing that, what made you want to go on a missions trip, and how did you decide on Kenya, of all places?
M: Well, when I heard about Mountain On 5, I thought "wow, I really want to be apart of that".  I had some friends that when to Kenya last summer with the church, who came back with amazing, life changing, faith building and challenging stories.  Last summer I thought that there was no way could I go to Africa on a missions trip.  But when I found out about MO5, I prayed (a lot!) about it, because I knew I wanted to go on one of the trips, but I didn't know which one. After much prayer, I kept hearing God call to me, Kenya, Kenya, KENYA!

Y: I know how that is!  I prayed lots myself, and it's amazing the way God let's you know exactly what His will is. So, what was your application process like?
M: It took me a while to fill out the application form...
Y: I KNOW!  It was 12 pages long!
M: RIGHT!  I was so nervous and unsure if I was even ready to do it.  And then I turned it in. About two weeks later, I got a call from church asking me to come in for an interview. I met with 3 church members that I had never met before and had to tell them my strengths and weaknesses, describe my faith, and explain why I wanted to go... I was so nervous!  But after it was over, I thought to myself  "Wow, that went so well".  Three days later, I got an email saying "Welcome aboard M05!"


Y: AMEN!  I know all of those feelings all too well.  Being nervous, interviewing with people I didn't know, sharing testimony...its all enough to make you anxious!  I know I'm glad to have gotten that part over with already!  So, now that you've made the team, tell me about this trip...what are you expecting?  What are you hoping to come away with?
M:  I am looking forward to seeing God in ways I cant even imagine. I'm sure I will see how real and how powerful God is. I have been told that the people of Nairobi, Kenya are filled with so much hope and faithfulness to  our God, and  I want to see and experience that. I've also been blessed to be a blessing to those people who are living without the light of God.  I cannot wait to connect with God's people, experience a completely different culture, and grow significantly as a woman of God.

Y: Oh Megan, Amen!
M:   I am going to the Marthare Valley in Nairobi, Kenya.  These beautiful people live in substandard conditions - the area is severely stricken with an outstanding amount of poverty.  They are starving for food and starving for God. I cannot wait to share the good news with them!!!

Y:  I appreciate your heart so much...wanting to go and do and be the Hands and Feet of Him in Africa...I can't wait to get back and hear the stories of your time of service (and find out how those plane rides turned out for you!).  Is there anything else you'd like to add for our readers?
M:   I just want to ask them to continue to pray for all of the MO5 teams: Arizona, Mexico, Southeast Asia, Czech Republic and Kenya!

Y: Thanks so much Megan, for sharing you heart with us!

If you are interested in supporting our teams, please pray for us by name, or click the link at the top left of the page to donate.  Anything you can do will be GREATLY appreciated!

Meet The Team: Becci

Here is an opportunity to meet the rest of Team Red: Czech Republic for the MO5 Short Term Missions Project.  I'm sure there will be others, so stay tuned for them!

First up is my prayer partner, travel partner, and partner in silliness, super-preparing and 'crime', (lol) Becci!

Who are you, and where are you from? 

I'm Becci and I'm from Levittown, NY.  I'm currently a full time graphic design/ photojournalism student. 

 

Who are you at home?  

I'm an army wife (not like the show), 'mama' to a very cute, but very destructive corgi pup, and avid adventurer. 

How long have you been a Christian?  

I have been a Christian all my life (raised in a christian home) but I made the decision to give my life to The Lord and was baptized when I was approximately 11 years old.

 

What small groups are you involved in at Mountain? 

I am involved with the Mountain Riders, the motorcycle ministry and small group at mountain.

 

Is this your first mission trip?  If not, where else have you gone, and when? 

This is not my first mission trip. I have also been to Kentucky, West Virginia and Reynosa, Mexico.

 

What made you decide to take this trip to the Czech Republic? 

 I have felt God calling me to go on another mission trip for years, but it was tough to find the time and the means since I was in the military.  I originally thought I was going on the trip to Southeast Asia but  during my interview, it was thought I would be more well suited for the Czech trip. 

 

How are you feeling about the trip as of today?  

I am absolutely psyched for this trip!  It really feels like God handpicked this team, and He really has a plan for us. 

 

What are some of your worries about the trip?  

Hmmm, worries?  No, I really don't have too many and the ones I do have are mostly irrational. 

 

What are you hoping to see/do while we are there? 

I'm really hoping to building a lasting relationship with not only the Czech People, but also the Mudrik family. I certainly want to see Prague too; I hear it's absolutely gorgeous. 

 

Do you have anything you'd like to add?  

I'm not sure what to add...I'm just really excited. :)

So there we have it!  The beginning of the interviews with Team Red.  I am excited to have Becci on the team, since she and I share so many things, and are growing in our relationship.

Just a note, our team of 10 has dropped,and we are now a team of 9.  One of the members felt that now is not the right time for them, and I am sad to see them go.  We are still a small team, however, I know that we will still make a HUGE impact on the Prague community, in His name!!

Once again, we are asking for your support.  Through prayer or financial assistance, we are grateful for any help you are willing to give.  Please click the link at the top left of the page to offer your support.  We thank you for the support that you have already shown by reading this blog, and would love to know you were here...please comment below, and let us know!

Let's get to work!

Last night, we had our first Team Red meeting.  A couple of folks were missing, but it was a great time anyway, especially since it was Pi Day (3/14, get it?  I thought it was funny), and Sherrill brought in an AMAZING Caramel Apple pie in to share.  Now, you may not know this, but anything Caramel, and Apple has got my vote...so I made sure to express my fondness of that amazing masterpiece to Sherrill!

*Sidenote:  Because I was in a hurry to get out of the meeting last night, I forgot to ask our new members for permission to use their names in this blog.  Forgive me, please.  I will try to do so at our next meeting.

Anyway, we did a couple of things last night, all of them exciting in some way or another:

~We found out who our Prayer/Travel partners would be, mine being Becci!  I know that I was fired up about this, since she and I have been chatting back and forth, giving advice and tips, and building a friendship.  I look forward to sharing some of her insight, since she has LOTS more travel experience that I do (she's backpacked Europe already...how cool!)...not to mention, some of the other Team Red members already know what the 'trouble' will be, lol! (It's all in good fun though!)

~We then made a prayer bead reminder, so that when we see each bead, it represents a team member, and we can remember to pray for that person specifically.

~We wrote down our biggest worry/fears for the trip, shared it with our partner, and prayed for them.  Mine was not being able to keep in contact with my kiddios, and not sleeping well.  God seems to know exactly what he's doing, because Becci has a phone that can be used worldwide, and is equipped with Skype as well, so I will be able to keep up with the kids while I'm gone.  As for the sleeplessness, once again, it seems I have the perfect partner, because she said she'd be willing to walk the fields in the middle of the night with me, if needbe!  (BTW: Becci's was pretty funny, she said I'd laugh at hers, which I did...but it is something that I know we can handle!)

~We then had a brief devotional as to why we were called to be missionaries.  Basically, it all stems from the Abrahamic Covenant, found in Genesis 12:1-3.  We are blessed, to be a blessing; we are to go to countries around the world and bless those who are in the dark in His name....  There are SO MANY things I want to say about this right now, but can't...but not to worry, I am sure that will be another blog for another day!

~Next up was a update from the Mudrik family (EXCITING!).  Our trip leaders, Liz and Sherrill had a Skype session with Marek and Elaine, and got to find out some great information.  My mind was put a bit more at ease in finding out that we would not be camping out under the stars, but rather in a hostel.  I am no stranger to hostels, and look forward to hanging out in the one that will be chosen for us.  They Mudrik's are still building on the retreat center, and will need lots of help with that, which we will be doing...but also, we will be engaging with local college-aged people who are interested in speaking English...so basically, we will get to talk to them (ABOUT ANYTHING!) all day while doing our work.  YAY!  Also, we will be worshiping, singing, praying and whatever else they want us to do while there. 

~We also worked on scheduling our meetings, setting up a Skype session for the whole team and the Mudrik family, learning the language, and fundraising....

...which leads me to fundraising here.  Dear reader, I humbly ask that if you are at all moved to support our team efforts to spread the light of Jesus in the Czech Republic, I invite you to click the link at the top left of the page, and give as you may.  At this point, every person on our team is behind in fundraising, but not due to a lack of effort.  We are all very prayerful that we will reach our goal amounts, but as of yet, we do not even have enough to begin reserving plane tickets.  Any amount will do, no matter how small, and we are grateful for every cent.  If you are unable to give financially, then please support us in prayer.  I thank you in advance.

So now that we know what some of the plans are, everyone is eager and ready to get to work!  I am in the process of planning interviews with my teammates, and will be posting them here.  If you are interested in asking any questions about the teammates, please leave them in the comment boxes below, and I will be sure to ask.

In the meantime, keep praying, and stay excited!

From the beginning...

I guess I should begin at the beginning (duh) of how I got onto the team going to Europe.


My church has a Glocal (Global and Local) outreach ministry that is serious about serving the needs of others around the world.  They have been charged with making sure that those who are sent to serve do so with a pure heart.  Afterall, the purpose of these short term missions (STM) trips are to serve!


Once I had it in my head that going on an STM trip was something I wanted to do, I seriously prayed about it.  This is a huge deal, and I didn't want to go into it blindly.  I talked to others who had gone on trips about their experiences, and they were real with me.  "Not everyone can do it", "When you know  you're called to go, you WILL know" were some of the things they told me.  There was even one woman who told me"while it sounds great, that just isn't something that's on my hear to do".  Clearly, this has been on my heart for years, but it was never the right time.


Well, the Glocal team was pushing a new thing, called MO5. This stands for Mountain (my church) on 5 different continents/regions of the world.  There are needs that need to be served everywhere in the world, and we are planning to send 5 teams out at the same time.  Teams will be going to Mexico (North America), Arizona (USA, North America), Mathare Valley in Nairobi, Kenya (Africa), Southeast Asia (exact location is not being made public, for the safety of the team), and Prague, Czech Republic (Europe), which is where I will be going.


Of course, when I finally felt the call to go on a missions trip, I just knew I'd be going to Kenya...but clearly, God had other plans for me.  I'll talk more about that in a later blog...


So I filled out the extensive (12 pages!) application, prayed and turned it in.  I had gone to an informational session to hear about the different works that would be done on the trips, and had scheduled my interview.  These trips are pretty popular, and we even have some people who a veteran STM servants, which is why interviews are needed.  The ministry staff wants to make sure that the people who are sent on these trips know that this isn't a vacation; that they are spiritually ready for the task; that those who go on the trips know what they are getting into and can handle the stresses that come along with being a missionary.


So I prayed and prayed...and asked for prayers, and had my impatient and anxious moments...and then i finally got my notice.  I was accepted onto the team!


Now I am sending out e-mails, drafting a letter to send out snail mail with an insert to describe my trip to supporters and praying, still, to be prepared for this trip.  Net week, I will be attending the Glocal Ministry's monthly meeting, to hear what they have been up to, and what plans I can help out with.  I don't yet know who else is on my team with me, but I have met our leader (I had no idea at the time, but she was one of my 3 interviewers!).  All of the teams meet together at the end of the month for a big celebration, and then we will begin team building on a monthly basis.  Just before we leave, we will be meeting more and more often, to learn personalities and conflict resolution styles, etc.


I look forward to these next 5 and a half months, and cannot wait to embark on this journey.  Glad to have you along for the ride!