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We’ve lived abroad now for over 5 years, and it is quite amazing how much one can learn in such a short period of time.  We are getting ready to attend a Resiliency Conference, designed to give us: space to process, an environment that will foster mutual sharing and learning, and to give us tools to work toward resiliency in our cross-cultural context.  We have experienced our fair share of struggles and conflict already in this short period of time of serving abroad, but I love the journey of growth God has us on.  I’ve seen how God continues to work in us not with the purpose of stopping with us, but in order to enable us to serve out of what is our healthiest place.  On this idea of resiliency, recently I was reflecting on a part of a final paper I turned in for my most recent Ordination class, which was, to have true empathy means moving from being a “taker” to being a “giver”.  I hope learning how to be resilient, helps me continue to learn how to move from being a taker to a giver, from surviving to thriving.   In the beginning, I was under culture stress as I learned to navigate the new system around me.  I recently saw “culture stress” defined this way: getting your needs met in new ways.  The hard part of culture stress is that we are creatures of habit.  We’ve learned to get our needs met in certain ways, in…
Source: Another's world from Scotts – Eurasia

Prayer Mobilization Line June 17, 2015 Jonathan Phillips is a missionary serving in Romania. Join him in praying for these requests: Pray for pastors, church planters, and lay leaders in the Church of the Nazarene in Romania as they balance ministry and theological studies with family and work responsibilities. This summer, a volunteer will be working to develop a carpentry shop as part of
Source: June Missionary Prayer Focus from Romania

Our month of June has been fun, busy and filled with great ministry. Meet Susan Morrill and Abigail Hancock; two vibrant and enthusiastic university students from Olivet Nazarene University (ONU) who are interning with us during the month of June. Originally, they were part of a team of 11 from ONU, who ministered in the capital city of DRC, Kinshasa, for two weeks before coming to Lubumbashi. Now, they are over halfway through 4 weeks of ministry with us.Susan and Abi have been such a blessing, not just to our family, but to everyone they have encountered in Congo. They have taught English as a Second Language courses and led children’s ministry workshops. But, each Wednesday, they have been helping us start a Children’s Day with Les Semeurs, Church of the Nazarene, which has been meeting at our house since last July. Gavin and I have felt led from the Lord to begin children’s ministry training across the DRC for quite some time. And, where better to begin than in our own neighborhood, in our own backyard? Through games, songs, Bible stories and teaching of scripture, we see seeds being planted in some, while others are growing in what they already know. Matthew 18, verses 3 & 4 remind us that Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the…
Source: Blessings Through Volunteers from Fothergill – Africa