Background
Where to Next?
My dream for Love Missions is to eventually coordinate teams of College and University students from a variety of backgrounds and bring them all together in the heart of Africa. These teams will get involved with building projects, kid’s ministry, and local evangelism. Each mission trip would provide team members opportunities to build a stronger relationship with God, make lots of new friends and gain an unforgettable experience of a mission trip beyond borders. These missions will enable many students to engage in the motto of Love Missions: Volunteer. Experience. Grow.
The second aspect of Love Missions will grow over time as the volunteer teams help build the site within a compound. Eventually Love Missions will comprise of a school, clinic, and an orphanage. The school will begin as a primary school and possibly expand into a secondary school as time passes. It would be staffed by long-term volunteers for periods of six or twelve months or even longer. My aim is to provide cheap education, if not free, that will be delivered with a high quality. The clinic will operate similar to a doctor’s surgery and hopefully will be staffed by one or two doctors and a few nurses. The last project of the three to be put in place will be an orphanage. This will primarily be for those who have been orphaned due to the HIV/AIDS endemic which is still a huge issue across Africa. The idea for the orphanage would be to have some houseparents run it and look after the children. A cook would be employed to prepare meals for the extra large ‘family’.
Obviously, each of these projects will take time to reach their final stages and each will need significant funding and sponsorship. However, one of the benefits of recruiting students from multiple universities is that each will be have a separate fundraising base. As funds are donated, expansion will be possible and more people educated and cared for. I know my dreams are big, but there is no point aiming low when God is on your side. With God all things are possible!
One of my favourite Bible texts is from Paul in Philippians, “There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears”—Phil 1:6, The Message. This verse says a lot to me personally. It is a promise to me that in this work that I plan to start for Him, He will stick by my side until everything is complete.
Project Fourteen
I am still waiting for God to share with me which country Love Missions should start in, but there’s no rush. I’m hoping to kickstart the project with the first trip taking place in 2014. This is a proposal at the moment and the dates are subject to change. The idea is to take a team of teachers and nurses back to Africa for four to five months. The goal is to establish some relationships with the people in the area, establish an ideal location for the projects future, and get some of the experiences on film to make some promotional videos.
The teachers would volunteer at a school in the chosen country for a few months and the nurses would work at a local clinic during the same period of time. This has the potential to be crazy with some of the patients that may come in, but it would be an invaluable learning experience. A long term evangelistic campaign may be included with some theology majors / seminary students leading out.
Included in the trip will be a week or two to see more of the country. There are many national parks and other places to see that we won’t have had the time to visit on previous weekends. Africa has so many places that are well worth a visit.
After this trip I hope to be able to have some solid plans for starting the fly, build, and reach trips and sourcing the team members from around the world.