Tea Time and Testimonies

**Please note names have been changed and faces covered**

My time in North Africa has been a whirlwind to say the least! As a Squad Leader, my role focuses on our 5 teams that make up all of M Squad. Our teams are spread out across the country working with international churches or point people around their area. Many of our teams do not of “pre-set” ministry, meaning they are simply living out the motto, “Life is ministry, ministry is life.” They engage with locals, make new friends, love and serve others, and speak boldly about their faith as the Lord opens doors (and He always does!). For many on the team, this is a new experience … to not be told what to do, but rather ask God to highlight people, places, opportunities and then go and be obedient to what Holy Spirit leads. It’s wild!

I have spent time with 3 different teams this past month and a half! Here are some snapshots into what God has been doing in them and how He is using them here in North Africa.

Meet JoyRiders!

When we first arrived to this team, I was introduced to their point person in the area: Abdul and his family. The generosity and hospitality from Abdul reminding me of Christ. They didn’t have much, but they gave so willingly to us. And within this Shame/Honor culture, they were honoring us with what they had! And in turn, our acceptance of that honor brought honor to them.

God stirred up so much within the team in those first couples weeks. It was pretty clear after being with them for a few days, that this was a creative group of people. Sol and I encouraged them to invite God into their creativity. How can we worship and give praise to Him through our ideas, passions, and creations? That lead us to do painting nights, poetry slams, song writing—all with worship in mind. (**COMING SOON** a blog of a few of my poems from this month!)

TESTIMONY: On our third day with the team, Sol and I had just finished having a quick meeting when we walked over to grab a water bottle from a local store/shack stand. We struck up conversation with the local owner and his woman employee. Through google translate we were able to say a couple things, and then he and Sol exchanged WhatsApp numbers (an app that most people outside the US use to message). The next day we came back to his shop for a ice cream treat, and he asked us if we wanted to have tea with him. “Sure! When?” And he invited us to come back in 30 minutes for tea. And this is how a friendship with his entire family began.

At our tea time, we found out that his employee who was helping his was not his wife, but his sister. And that both of them run this shop. He offered us bread with cheese and roasted almonds with our tea. And my heart was full.

Knowing that we were only going to be with this team for another week, I brought the women of the team back the next day to speak to the sister. She and I had struck up a tight friendship. After meeting the women of our team, she invited us to go to the hammam with her and get henna after, a total girls day! There are so many stories that I could tell about how God opened the doors to connect and true friendship here. After Sol and I left, JoyRiders continued pouring into this family and went on trips with them as well as planned more tea times.

In the Muslim culture, someone generally needs to hear the gospel 7 times before they turn towards Christ. Everyday we meet people that are somewhere on that spectrum. Maybe they have never heard of christianity before, maybe they have heard some. But every act of love and every spoken word of Truth has the power to cause someone to shift their gaze.

With this special family, I pray blessing over their business, I pray that God will supernaturally speak to them in their language, I pray that more followers of Christ will come into their path, I pray for our time with them to be thought of often and that they will equate our love to Christ’s.

Meet Peace!

This is a powerhouse team. We joined them right in the middle of a ton of moving pieces, and they welcomed me and Soloman in with grace, excitement, and hospitality. These all women’s team hit the ground running at the beginning of the month and had made friends with several local women. They meet women at coffee houses, malls, and Pizza Hut. Not lying, Pizza Hut was one of the biggest ministries grounds for this team! They also had a few women who were wanting to grow in hearing God’s voice, so they would on faith days were they ask God to highlight someone and then engage with them and see what Holy Spirit does.

Soloman and I were able to speak God’s truth and His promises over them during our time. We created space for Christian community and helped the team see each other as trustworthy and valued.

TESTIMONY: This team had already connected with an international church in the area, and from church met a missionary couple working here who were trying to establish a homeschool program for other international children. Several of our teammates would go once or twice a week to help them with homeschooling. One evening the couple invited us into their home for dinner. We laughed, ate, played with their children, and ended the night by asking them if we could pray over them.

We took turns and prayed bold prayers over this family: the couple, the kids, the homeschool programs, their dreams, desires, etc. While praying for them, I got a picture from God of an arched, stone gateway for this couple. That they were a gateway for others, within this culture and without. That their presence would allow people to pass through and enter a new place with new revelation. As I wrapped up praying, the couple looked up a me and told me that their supporter newsletter that they send out is called The Gateway. Thanks God for that confirmation!

Meet Redeemed!

Wow, I have only been around this team for a short amount of time, but dang, God has been using them in very unique and specific ways. Redeemed connected with another international church in a different area and was able to hear from the church leadership and ask them what they felt like the congregation needed. The leadership came back with three areas: women’s ministry, professional development, and studying scripture. These girls sought the Lord, and said, “Yea, we can do that!” Every week of the month, they hosted a professionalism class that taught the basics of resume prep, interviews, etc., as well as a course devoted to teaching people how to study the Bible. They also starting planning a women’s retreat called Beauty for Ashes (Isaiah 61:1-3) for the end of the month.

TESTIMONY: I joined up with this team during the women’s retreat. I was able to spend the second day of the retreat with them and the women who signed up to attend. I was blown away. I felt the Lord’s presence is every activity and space that was created. Check out the video below!

Prayer Needs:
-We have a Debrief coming up! The whole squad will gather together and our leadership will facilitate sessions, debriefings, and moments of connection for the squad. Please pray for the God will show up within the space and do what only He can do!
-Pray that I continue to give up control and allow the love of the Father’s to be my driving force
-Pray for the friendships we have made here in North Africa
-Pray for our next country Cyprus

 

Thanks for sticking with me, dear reader.

Here’s looking at you, kid.