By Jaryn Fricke
As the time to leave for Rwanda draws closer, I am getting more and more eager to see what the Lord has in store for this trip and group! This will be my first mission trip overseas, and I am not even the slightest bit nervous about it. Everyone keeps telling me that they are so nervous for my flight with all that is going on with Flight 370’s disappearance, but I know that the Lord has called this group to go to Rwanda and He will make sure we get there and back safely. I thought that I would be more nervous about 24+ hours of travel, but I am at peace with that too! That is how I know this group was called to go to Rwanda! Instead of being anxious and nervous, I’m excited to get out of my comfort zone and learn new things about myself, like whether I can sleep on an airplane or not, haha! This has been in God’s hands the entire time and that’s giving me peace! Amazing!
I keep saying the phrase, “I am so excited”, because I truly am SO, extremely excited to learn about the Rwandan culture, to learn their language, share the love of God with people I meet, and to build lifelong friendships along the way! There is no other way to explain it other than pure excitement.
I have said so many prayers for this trip. One of the outcomes I hope to see while we are there and when we return home is that the Lord will change my heart to be more like His. I want to be transparent with the people I meet and show them how much I care about them, and how much God cares about them. I want them to see and understand that this group isn’t just another mission team that shows up, but we are a mission team that goes to share the love of God and the Good News to those we meet. We are there for support and to help. We are there to serve our Savior and to introduce Him to those who have not yet met Him.
Our Team
God gave his people power and equipped them to go and serve. Ephesians 4:11-12 says, “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and the teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.” That is exactly what we are doing. God is equipping us to go and serve his people and make disciples of all the nations (Matthew 28:19) so that more people will come to know Him and His profound love! I love the verse from 2 Timothy 1:7, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” This verse speaks to me about this trip because so many of us could be fearful going overseas or having such a long flight. Some may even be afraid to preach the word of God because they are a young Christian, but it says right there we don’t need to be afraid because we have a spirit of power, of love, and of a SOUND MIND.
The financial support we’ve received is nothing short of amazing! We’re so grateful for all who have given to this trip! Because you supported us, and keep supporting us, we are able to go and do the things God is calling us to do. I am shocked at how fast our team is meeting our financial goals. Extra funds will go toward projects of New Mercies Ministries.
Last, but definitely not least, please continue to pray over this trip! Financial support is great, and needed, but supporting us in prayer is probably even more important. There are many different things you can pray for. A few I can think of are for the people of Rwanda to continue to heal from the genocide of 1994 and that many would come to know Christ. For safety as our team travels to and from Rwanda. And finally, for the Lord to work in our lives and that this would be a life changing trip!