Team Zambia 2014 Day Four

A Blind Man is Saved

One of our evangelism teams was walking in the village and encountered a blind man that was being lead around by a child. The team started witnessing to the man and found him to be very thirsty to hear about The Lord. They shared that trusting in Jesus would mean that Christ would lead you spiritually even as this child has been leading you physically. After explaining exactly what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ this man prayed to receive Jesus as his personal Savior.

Walk, Walk, Walk, Walk

No, I am not complaining about all the walking we are doing here in Africa. These are the words to an awesome children's song we have had the privilege of teaching to kids on several continents. And with 200 African children singing it inside a very small church building it is wonderfully deafening. It's quite the site to see. African children sing with passion...and they dance with passion as well. It must make God smile to see them praising his name with such reckless abandon. We have it on video, you must see it sometime.

The Lost Leading the Lost?

So- one of our evangelism teams today was sharing Jesus hut to hut when we approached three young men ranging in age from probably 17 to 21 years of age. Our interpreter asked if we could share with them and they said yes and quickly brought out the little benches that almost every home has that are only 4 to 6 inches off the ground. We shared Jesus with the boys but in the middle of the presentation realized there were some women who had come up behind us and were listening as well. We asked them to join us and as they came around to the front we went back to catch them up on what we had shared with the boys. At one point, one of the ladies was confused and before we could answer her question one of the boys started explaining what we had taught him with great enthusiasm, almost pleading with her. It was at that moment that I took a step back in my mind and had this thought: "I am pretty sure that this boy is witnessing to this lady about Jesus before he is even saved himself!" In another half hour or so these 7 adults each prayed to receive Jesus as their Lord and savior.

Meet Team Zambia 2014

As I have stated before, this mission team has been extraordinary and it's easy to see with hindsight why God placed each person where He did. We have encountered some twists and turns in each of our areas that could have easily sent some people rolling off the back of the truck but this team has forged ahead faithful to the task.

I thought it might be good to give you just a word about our team. In fact, I thought I would give you one word that I've seen them exhibit while here in Africa.

Krista Tope- CONSISTENCY- Krista has been at Castle Hills since before she was born! She recently spent two years in West Africa with the International Mission Board and is a seasoned missionary. She has not only served as the LC (logistical coordinator) for this trip but she wrote a large part of the gospel presentation we are now using to share Jesus in Africa.

Laura Kincaid- DILIGENT- Back home Laura serves as the LC for the Helping Hand to Christ Witness Training Class. She also serves as a volunteer Pastoral Admin and has been instrumental in putting this trip together. She has been on several international mission trips and is currently undergoing the interview process to become a career missionary for the International Mission Board. 

Anette Messinger- HEALING- Anette is a former Army medic who oozes compassion for people who are sick or injured. It's been heartbreaking for her to see kids like the one she saw on this trip with his foot in a plastic bag inside his shoe because he had a large gash in his foot which is quickly becoming infected. She is strictly forbidden by Zambian law to administer any first aid to a national without government certification so her ministry at that point can only be one of prayer. Please join us in praying for this child. Monday, she will be on a team that will deliver a "Bucket of Love" which is a kit designed to assist AIDS patients to die with dignity. (Side note: in all the hundreds of people I have met in Zambia I have met exactly 1 senior adult. The average life expectancy for a male is 46.

Sandra Bender- MOM- Every great team needs a team mom. Someone who has a nurturing heart that can keep things calm and help everyone feel like it's going to be alright. She has been the mastermind behind our entire Mission VBS and has done a stellar job. She adores kids and will do whatever it takes to make their bible lessons come alive.

Ashlyn Bender- LEADER- Ashlyn has been one of the primary leaders in our Student Ministry for years now. I chose the word leader for two reasons- first, because she has never been a "follower of teen culture" but a leader for her peers. Secondly, she quietly shows by her Christian example how others can follow Jesus. (oh yeah, she's Sandra's daughter and has a proud dad and brother back at Castle Hills.)

Collis Boone- HILARIOUS- This guy keeps things light no matter what's happening around him. He is a part of our Young Married ministry at Castle Hills.  He has a dizzying sense of humor and knows how to make anything, even hard work, fun for all involved. He's the other HEALING person on the trip (He's a Policemen with EMT training) who has made sure that team members are safe and that they get the care they need to keep rolling.

Wayne Flores-STRENGTH- I chose this word not only because Wayne is a really big guy...but because he has inner strength. Through the ups and downs of family and church life he has been there to help guide his family (His wife Kay is our Interim Children's Minister), and our church to follow God's will. He is a well trained evangelist and has helped lead our hut to hut evangelism here in Africa.

Jacob Wuenschel-- KNOWLEDGE- Jacob just knows stuff. A lot of stuff. He is a serious student of God's word and a great teacher in our Young Married Department at Castle Hills. His wife Kim  is the leader for our Preschool ministry at Castle Hills. Jacob is a deacon also and God us using him mightily in evangelism here in Zambia.

Tabitha Thompson- FEARLESS- Now I know that when you look at this petit teenage girl, this may not be the first word you think of but Tabitha is just finishing the 8th grade and she has taken on every challenge we've thrown at her on this trip. This includes serving as a leader in the Music Rotation of our Vacation Bible School which has proven to be challenging when you have children from 1 year old to 12 years old in your class.

Lacey Gee- ENTHUSIASM- Lacey is a part of our Young Professionals Ministry at Castle Hills along with Krista and Laura. Lacey is fairly new to San Antonio and is a Dental Hygienist. The laughter and passion with which Lacey approaches anything she does, has been infectious for our team. She and Ashlyn are kid magnets and quite often during the trip she has had a child attached to each finger as she walks along the village streets sharing Jesus.

Rachael Heard- COMPASSION- Rachael is a speech pathologist in San Antonio and an experienced missionary. Rachel attends Northwest Park Baptist Church in San Antonio. God has given us a passion to reach out to people from other churches and take them as a part of our short term missions teams and this year we were blessed with two members of Northwest Park. Rachel has been invaluable in the planning and in leading our Vacation Bible School. She loves kids and it shows every minute she with them.

Micah Smith- ENERGETIC- Like Rachael, Micah is also from Northwest Park Baptist Church and he's been our energizer bunny this week. He is a sophomore at Northwest Vista College and he has not stopped running and playing with children all week...except to share with them the gospel using the colors found on the Evangelism Futbols we brought with us.