Jason Driver - Adventures In Missions - It's Your World Change It

Leaving for the Trail!

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Today is the day! I am embarking on a journey. The wilderness is calling me and I am finally going to respond. I am about to start the Appalachian Trail today at Springer Mountain, Georgia and I hope to hike thru to Damascus, Virginia. The reason that I am hiking the trail is that I have come off of a really difficult season in my life that has left me a little more beat up and broken than I let on. I have deliberately set aside the next three weeks to seek the Lord, as well as his healing and direction for my life.

The Lord has been stirring my heart and preparing me for this time. He has been convicting me a lot lately with a passage out of the book of Revelation. It is his call to the Church of Sardis:

"I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive, but you are dead. Now wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is at the point of death. Your deeds are far from the sight of God. Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly and turn to me again. Unless you do, I will come upon you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief (Revelation 3:1b-3 NLT)."

I feel like the Lord has been challenging me and stripping me of everything that gave me identity or purpose in order to draw me closer to him. I don't really know how to explain it, but at some point my focus became being a good leader and a man who hears from the Lord. My identity became so wrapped up in it so that I continued to become all puffed up spiritually. This then became the motive that drove me to do a lot of the things that I did. Now, that I have had time to think about it and am allowing myself to be brutally honest; I can see how I got caught up in being a self-promoter. This allowed me to build a great reputation. However, I found that I was doing less and less of what I enjoyed with more and more effort. Now that I have given you this ridiculously long explanation I will finally tie it in to the scripture from Revelation. The charge to me from scripture is to rediscover my faith and even the reasons that I became involved in missions in the first place.

When I first discovered missions; I loved it because it allowed me to glorify the Lord through my skills and abilities. I found myself serving all of the time, often without people even noticing it. I didn't care what people thought of what I was doing and I didn't need any kind of special recognition because I was only out to please the Lord not man.

I am heading to the trail because I want to rediscover whatever it is that allowed me to be a blessing not because it is a good thing to do or it gives me warm fuzzy feelings, but because the Lord has truly blessed me. The least I can do is return it to him. I am excited about what the Lord has for me in this time. I would greatly appreciate your prayers over the next three weeks of my hike. Thank you for your love and support.

Walking it out

Wed, 9 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Wow! It's been nearly five months since my last update and so much has happened. Adventures In Missions allowed me to take a three month sabbatical so that I might have some time to heal and regroup after a difficult season in Kenya. My sabbatical officially ended on August 18. Through that time I grew frustrated because I felt like there was a break in my relationship with the Lord and I couldn't seem to connect with him in the ways that I had in the past. It really shook me up a lot and caused me to question virtually every aspect of my life and faith. I kept crying out to him demanding to know why he hadn't shown me what was next. It really felt like I was trapped in this constant state of feeling lost. Nothing made sense to me and I think I grew so frustrated that I kind of hoped that someone would just tell me what the Lord wanted me to do. That or I was going to start doing something because it was better than nothing.

The first week of August, I flew back up to Ohio from Georgia because I was in a wedding. During this time I was reconnecting with friends and family as well as my home church. It was hard for me, but it was also really good. I met a friend for lunch and basically put everything on the table; sharing all of the things that I was processing through. It wasn't until I shared that I realized how much of these frustrations were bogging me down. However, the real breakthrough happened when I realized that I was frustrated with the Lord because he wasn't giving me any direction for my life, or so I thought. Then it was at that moment that I realized that he had given me direction, but I had not been obedient to it. There were two things that the Lord had been consistently showing me ever since I returned from Kenya at the end of April. The first thing that I felt was that the Lord was calling me to a wilderness experience. After praying about it I felt like that meant that I was supposed to spend a couple of weeks on Appalachian Trail. The second thing that I felt was that the Lord was leading me to close out my time with AIM. This meant that I would no longer be on staff for them. I kept praying about it and those were the only two things that would consistently come up. After I felt like I had confirmation the only thing left to do was walk out each of these things in obedience.

So here I am. My last day with AIM was two weeks ago and I feel such a freedom and peace about it that I don't even know how to explain it. I have spent the last three weeks purchasing gear and studying maps and trail guides. I am preparing to hike the entire Southern portion of the Appalachian Trail which consists of Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee. I have about three weeks and 250 miles of trail to work through my relationship with the Lord and just be his. I don't know what is next for me. All I know is that I am being obedient to what he has shown me and I have to trust that the rest will come. The Lord will give me the next pieces of the puzzle when he feels like I am ready for them. Once I have an actual start date for my hike I will post another blog so that you know when and how to pray for me. Thank you so much for all of your prayers and support they have blessed me more than I can say.

End of Season

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

I am writing an update to share with you that I am rapidly approaching a road of uncertainty. On Sunday, April 19^th, I will close out my time in Kenya, possibly for good. I know that a season of rest awaits me and for that, I am truly grateful. However, I am currently plagued with a wide array of emotions. The majority of which, are how do I end my time in Kenya? What closure do I need? How do I end my time here well? Then of course, the other obvious thing is what's next? Let me start by telling you that I currently don't have any answers to these questions. I have a tremendous peace about this season of my life coming to a close. Also, I am eagerly excited about figuring out what is next for me. I know that the Lord is revealing his steps to me as he prepares me. I know that he is challenging me to step out in trust and in faith in ways that I haven't yet. The Lord is growing me and fathering me into a man who is after his heart. I have been feeling for some time that the Lord is asking more of me now then what I even feel capable of. There are times where I want to "turn tail" and run because I am afraid of what the Lord is going to ask of me, but then he gives me the strength to press on towards his obedience. Then I also realize; what can the Lord ask of me that I have not already given. I have given up safety, security, a seemingly normal life, a career, money, an essentially my own life. Therefore, I have nothing to fear. Ultimately, I continue to arrive at a fuller understanding that I am his beloved. He always takes care of his beloved.

This season of my life has been the most difficult that I have ever walked in. I have faced more emotions and discouragements then I ever have. It seemed like one thing after another kept battering against me weighing me down. Thankfully, the Lord used this to teach me so much. I don't think I have ever had a season of such intense growth and understanding as this one. The Lord used this time to remind me that I am his; that my entire identity can be summed up in that, "I am his." I certainly feel comfortable saying that my leadership has never been challenged as much as it was during this season of life. I learned a lot about perseverance in this time. There were so many days when I found myself asking, "Is it even worth trying anymore." I had to weekly fight off the temptation to become disengaged altogether and just drift through my time here. Every day, I had to tell myself that God has called me here for this time and this season so I need to soldier through whatever comes my way. He certainly did not call me to complacency or apathy. It pleases me to say that the Lord gave me strength and fresh perspectives each and every day to flourish even in the midst of turmoil. The Lord spoke to me very clear about this. He told me that my responsibility is to grow wherever he plants me. In a way, I guess that I could summarize my time in Kenya by that. The Lord planted me in the desert and challenged me to figure out how to grow. I am so grateful for this because I did! I'm also very grateful for those that encouraged me or lifted me up in prayer because I certainly would not have made it through this time without you.

I wanted to close out this update with a few prayer requests.

Pray that I can end my time in Kenya well.

Pray for safe travels for the team and me as we leave Sunday night.

Pray for wisdom and discernment as I try to figure out what is next.

Pray that the Lord will show me what it means to have a season of rest.

Pray for my heart, as it still needs more healing.

Thank you again for making all of this possible and for allowing me to walk out my relationship with the Lord in front of all of you.

What I Have Learned

Sat, 21 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

I just wanted to update you all and let you know how I am doing. I know that their have been a few people that have been worrying about me after I shared my hardships. So I will try to let everyone know where I am at and what the Lord is doing in me during this time.

However, before I dive into that I want to take a short tangent and share some other things that have been on my heart. I have received a few comments from people expressing a concern for how open I am in my blog posts. I feel very strongly about living my life out in front of others in transparency. I do this because I don't want people to put me on a pedestal and I want them to know that there is nothing special about me. More importantly, I want them to know that I have an obtainable walk with the Lord, not something fake or seemingly perfect. It is exactly what the Apostle Paul said repeatedly, "He is made perfect in my weakness." I want people to know that I do struggle and the Lord always comes to my rescue. I share these things so that others may have hope and so that the Lord may use my words to encourage and edify whoever reads my posts. In short my blogs are a ministry in themselves and the Lord has used them on numerous occasions.

Now that that is out of the way, I'll move on to how I am really doing. Over the course of the last week the Lord has been overwhelming me with his love. It has been so hard for me because it washes over me in such an abundance that I don't even know how to process it., let alone try an explain it to others. He keeps telling me how much he loves me and how good it is to see me move out from under all of this hurt. He tells me that I am his beloved and I am finally allowing myself to be okay with that. I have committed myself to just rest in his presence on a daily basis. I have never known such a mutual trust before. I can look back and see how the Lord walked me through every difficult situation and used each of them to discipline me or heal me from past hurts. More importantly, he showed me that I needed to fight and that I needed to deal with some stuff in my own life. The Lord showed me that taking care of myself wasn't optional. The strangest part about this whole deal is that somehow in the midst of all of this chaos, I found my true identity. I am Christ's. I am his beloved and he always takes care of his beloved. He castes out all anxiety and all fear so that I can be clothed in his peace in order to walk in his freedom. It is so good. I am actually at a better place in my life now than I was before my mother passed away.

I'm excited about closing out my time in Kenya and not knowing what's next. All I know currently, is that I fly back into Georgia on April 20th and then after that I am not sure. I am going to take a three month sabbatical and really focus on my walk with the Lord and further emotional healing. It is so hard for me to even communicate to you the freedom that I feel in my life knowing that I can go a hundred different directions. I trust that as I am ready the Lord will make it abundantly clear where he wants me to go next and what that will look like. As I follow the Lord into this season of establishment (part of what he is calling me to next) I will keep all of you updated and will again gladly share my heart with you. I feel that he is preparing me for some big changes in my life and I am not sure what they are, but never-the-less, I am still excited about it. The Lord is so good. He has taken all of these painful situations and taught me so much out of them. Only God can bring healing through painful circumstances.

Please pray for me to finish up my time in Kenya well.

Pray for direction for me as I return to Georgia

Pray for perspective as I continue to be stretched and strengthened in the Lord.

Pray for an increase in faith as I feel like the Lord has placed things on my heart that are rather difficult for me to even know how to be obedient to.

Pray that the Lord will show me how to get good closure on this season of my life so that I can be free to dive into the next one.

My time for testing

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

I have been through so much in the last couple months that I don't even know how to update all of you as to what has been going on in my life. I'm just going to list what the last two months have looked like for me and I will skimp on the detail where necessary.

I went from dating to being engaged, back to dating, and then before I knew what was happening I became single again, all in about a time frame of three weeks. As luck would have it, the final conversation took place a week before the next team that I am leading, arrived.

Then I rented a house for the team (which has 25 people total) only to have the owner back out 5 hours before the team landed. So with the help of a friend, found some furnished apartments to rent by the day, until I found something else. The lady we rented them from was crazy and threatened to call the police on two different occasions to come and manage the team (because we were trying to move our things out to another place). She was also convinced that we were trying to sneak out with out paying. In the process of all of that, she got me so worked up that I slammed the van door only to have the side window shatter all over me. After if was all said an done she cost the team several hundred extra dollars because of not telling us key information about how to move out, but told us how much everyone enjoyed us and that we were welcome back anytime, which will never happen again.

So I found a place and we moved in, which has been great. However, a couple of days later I took the van to get the window fixed which was a cheap and easy $20. Then as I was driving away from the glass place I entered into traffic, where I was robbed. They stole my backpack off the seat next to me during a nice little diversion game. I lost my camera, about $500 of team money, my favorite Bible, and my leatherman multi-tool. I chased them down an alley, but they had too much of a head start and I lost them (think really bad chase scene out of a movie).

The next weekend I am at the store buying supplies for the team at 6:30 a.m. and I get a phone call that one of my guys is having a seizure and coughing up blood. So I abandon the checkout counter race home to find that it is still going on. We pick up is 300 lb plus body of dead weight and rush down the stairs to put him in the van. I raced across town to the Nairobi Hospital fearing that at any moment he may die. We get him inside and they start checking vitals and we are rattling off his past medical history (long story). They then tell me that they need $10,000 deposit to admit him to the ICU. I argued with them until I finally gave up and called some friends at a Missions hospital and had them bring an ambulance and transfer him. He spent 4 days in the ICU before being discharged and then a week later we sent him back to Canada.

Then a week after that we had some complications with someone on the team and them not being a good fit, as well as non-compliant, and had to send them home. It shocked the team and they personally attacked me and my co-leader for about an hour straight. Although some of the things said were hurtful and disappointing to me, I still had a peace that it was the right thing to do. I also looked for pieces of truth in what they were saying so that I could own up to any of my short-coming or improve my involvement with them thus far. Please pray for us as we try and figure out what it means for us to be a team and wrestle through our emotions. Please pray that the Lord shows us how to move on from here.

Over the last two months with everything that I have walked through I have been clinging to one quote and that is, "Situations don't create your Spirit, they reveal it." These things have made me press into the Lord more than ever. He has absolutely met me every step of the way. Even better than that, he has brought healing and freedom from past struggles in the midst of all of this. More importantly I am finally fighting for myself and I am facing things head on as they come (My biggest problem was that I would spend myself fighting for everyone else and then have nothing left to fight off my own struggles or temptation). I leave you with part of a chorus of one of my favorite songs, "I dare you to tell me to walk through fire. I dare you to." I certainly feel like I have.

Thank you so much for all of your love, prayers, and support. I could not do this without all of you.

Bring Restoration

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT

I know my last update sounded bleak and heavy. I felt I should update you on how I am doing. I am still wrestling through things, but not as much. I have had to let go of some more things in my life, ones that were especially close to me and therefor hard to give up. I'm hurt and I am wounded from a lot of things hitting at once. However the great news is that I don't have to stay there. Even now, the Lord has been healing my heart and speaking to me about the things that I have given up. He has taught me how to trust him and taught me even more about his perfect timing. It has been so good for me because I have experienced way more hope than what I expected. The Lord has been really giving me a positive outlook on life and I trust that whatever he has for me is better than what I could have imagined. I'm also trusting that if he wants to work in my heart and allow me to have some of those things back into my life, then he will. If he thinks that they are not good for me than he will offer me something better. I have seen the pages that I have authored on my own and I have asked the Lord to go back and rewrite them because his plans for me are so much better.

Also, AIM is sending a friend of mine (Joe Rogers) from the office to minister to me in this time. I am looking forward to praying through everything and seeing what is emotion and what is the Lord's plans for me. I am also looking forward to a time of healing and self-discovery because I desire to be restored by the Lord. Please pray for Joe and I as we meet together to sort things out. Pray for discernment and wisdom as we discuss some deep hurts.

I feel good about taking a backseat and letting my co-leaders take more of a leadership role with the team and just being more of a set-up behind the scenes guy. The Lord has also showed me that he is going to use them to bring more healing and restoration to me so that I can leave here at a good place. I'm really excited to see what the next three months looks like.

Please pray for a house for the team in Nairobi. they arrive tomorrow night and the one I had fell through.

Please pray that my time with Joe will be both fun and fruitful.

Pray for my heart and mind as I still have some confusion about where my life is heading.

Pray for Dawn as she is still finding her place in Thailand.

Pray for wisdom and discernment as she seeks out what the Lord would have her be involved in.

Pray for them as they try to help start and look for business opportunities so that the women can support themselves.

Pray that as the Lord is breaking Dawn's heart for the people, that he would also protect her from taking on burdens or situations that she was not meant to carry.

Restless times in Kenya

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT

It has been a long time since I have updated all of you as to the craziness that is my life. I'm actually in a really difficult place right now. Everything that I have ever cared about or held onto seems to be up for grabs or uncertain. In the past few weeks, I have become very restless with ministry, missions, and even Kenya. All of the things that I have been so certain of in the past are now being brought into question. It feels like everything that I have ever been passionate about or sure of could now becoming to a close. This may sound confusing, so I will try to lay some of it out as best as possible. I have been working with AIM for almost nine years. I love it and have learned so much from it. I have been working with them in Kenya, off and on for three years now and that has been good as well. However, I am at a point in my life where I am not sure how much longer I will be in Kenya. There is a team that arrives on January 28^th and they leave April 20^th, that I am leading. This could potentially be the last team that I lead and maybe even my last trip for AIM, or my last time in Kenya. I really don't know.

The most important thing to me right now is my relationship with the Lord. Whatever he wants for me, then that is what I want as well. In the past, I have found that when it is time for me to move onto something else, the Lord makes me restless almost to the point of not being able to stand where I am at any longer. It is a difficult time and it tells me that there is a major transition that is about to take place in my life. Well friends that is where I am at right now. I'm in Kenya, I'm about to lead a three month team, and I'm as uncomfortable here as I have ever been. I know that the Lord will lead me through this process and I know that everything will be fine. However, I have no idea what is next, or where my life is heading for sure. So everything that I have known to be true or good, or even found identity or security in, may soon be gone from my life in a matter of months. How do you reconcile or wade through all of that? Where do you even begin? My only choice right now is to trust the Lord and wait for things to play out to see where I land. However, I am very much still human so it is not easy for me to just sit around, or even let go of things. I will probably fight and wrestle with every last thing until things are finally settled. Then I will probably look back and wish that I processed through it differently.

I want to be very clear in saying that I don't have any plans to leave AIM, Kenya, or my call to missions. All that I know right now is that I am very restless and I feel like the Lord is trying to prepare me to move towards a major transition, but I don't know what that is yet. So because of that I have to put all my cards on the table and see which ones I'm left holding. These are all very difficult things for me to walk though. However, I know that whatever else awaits me is better and worth all of the questioning and transitioning, that I am currently going through. Lord, whatever you have for me, whatever is waiting even if the road to get there is difficult, I choose to receive it from you. Lord, I trust you with my life and I trust that you will do with it what you will. Thank you, Lord that you love me enough, not to leave me where I am.

*Please, pray for me that the Lord would continue to give me wisdom and guidance as I walk this out.

*Pray for an abundance of love, grace, and endurance as I lead this next team.

*Pray for Dawn as she leaves for Thailand on Wednesday morning, and pray for our relationship, as we won't be able to communicate as easy or frequently.

In The Mountains

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Sorry that I haven't updated in awhile. I have been out of contact with the "Real World." We have been working in Eburru, which is a remote mountain village, since November 12^th. I'm in Nairobi for two more days and then I travel back up there to finish up on Sunday with the team. I wish I could paint you an accurate portrayal of how beautiful it is in Eburru. Imagine living in huts, in a small village on the side of a mountain that is just shy of 10,000 ft above sea level. Then you have the view of the entire Rift Valley and Lake Naivasha below you. We have electricity about five hours a night when we run the generator and we are cooking for about twenty people either over a small gas stove or over a charcoal stove. Our showers look like outhouses and they are essentially a 20 gallon bucket placed on the roof with a shower head plumbed into the bottom. I know most of you are probably thinking, "Man! Better you than me." I promise you though, once you see it with your own eyes its breathtaking. It renews my perspective on the Lord and allows me to worship him through his creation.

This is the camp we are currently staying at in Eburru.

What are we doing in Eburru? What does the ministry look like? Primarily we have been working with Pastor Steve Njanga, who felt led to plant a church in Eburru, after a Real-Life team was doing ministry in that location. We have been doing VBS five to six days a week, as well as helping to lead small groups. Last weekend we were able to take the youth from the church and partner with another village's youth group to put on a Youth Conference. Through this time, we taught sessions on Christian Commitment, Dating, Abstinence, and then split the guys and girls up so that we could better answer some of their questions. It was a powerful time, and probably one of the favorites of the team. However, for three of my girls, their highlight would be getting to assist in the birth of a little girl at the Clinic that Pastor Steve's wife started.

Things have been going well for me, but I have been having a lot of trouble with fatigue and I have spent hundreds of dollars on tests and haven't found anything except for me having worms (again.) However, that shouldn't affect me like this. I would love to be lifted up in your prayers as I have a lot of logistics to undergo in the next few weeks.

Team leaves December 6^TH

I leave on December 8^th to fly to Atlanta and then the next day I hop a plane to Ohio

On December 12^th, my dad and his wife, Kathy, are driving me to Kansas City so that they can meet Dawn.

Then on December 14^th, Dawn and I are driving from Kansas City to Texas, so that I can meet her family and friends and spend Christmas with them.

Finally, I fly back to Kenya on December 27^th to lead a two week medical team.

Canceled ministry brings restoration

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT

I know it's been awhile since I last updated all of you. The days and weeks have melted away and so much has happened that it is hard sometimes for me to know where to begin. However, I really need to tell you about today. This morning, the Lord did a powerful work in my team. There are twelve students on my team plus six staff. They are a great bunch of students and have been an absolute joy to lead. The team has amazing potential and I have been seeing the Lord bring more and more of that out of them. The last two weeks have been a challenge for us because all or most of us have been sick with colds, flu, bronchitis, and fatigue, as well as a few minor injuries. All of this together, has taken a toll on the team causing them to be somewhat discouraged.

This morning started out like any other morning. We were all getting ready to go out into Kibera slums for morning ministries and it started pouring rain. The rain looked like it was settling in for awhile so we decided to cancel the ministry that we had planned. The other leaders and I started praying and felt convicted about us not having any quality times of corporate prayer. I specifically felt a need to pray over one another and ask the Lord to show us how to pray for each other. It was a powerful time of prayer and worship. I saw the Lord touch some deep pains that were hanging onto students hearts. I saw the Lord free some of the students from lies that the enemy held over them. The Lord was restoring us and cleansing us from all of the junk that was weighing us down. I even seen a couple of students breakdown completely, when I've never seen any emotion in them before. The whole team started praying and prophesying (speaking God's truth) over one another. It was powerful and it was so freeing. This went on for about two and a half hours. Layer after layer, wall after wall just began to peel off of each of these students. We are just now beginning to experience the power of living in a Christ-centered community. I think all of us walked away from that time with tears in our eyes, encouragement in our hearts and a genuine love and respect for one another. The best part about it is that it wasn't about anything that we did. The Lord set aside this day so that we might be encouraged and the Holy Spirit did all of the redemptive work. Man! The Lord is so good to us! Thanks for all of your love, support, and encouragement.

Webuye Summary

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT

I am very far behind in the whole process of updating you and for that, I am sorry. Life has this amazing way of passing bye before you even realize it. Our team made it back from Webuye safely. We had a great time and saw the Lord do some great things. We had over two hundred pastors attend all three days of the conference and over four hundred that came for at least one of the three days. The youth conference went great as well. There were several hundred students that attended at least one of the two day youth conference. We saw about thirty or forty make a commitment for the Lord after one of the team's dramas. I never expected it. I got up and explained the drama and then gave an alter call and all of these people started coming forward and we prayed for all of them. It was powerful and my team went out and prayed with every student that came forward. The great part about it is that it was nothing that I did. It was all of the Lord's doing he used the drama to speak to their hearts and I just explained out what the Lord does for each of us and why I trust him. One thing is for certain, when we finally left Webuye; we were all exhausted.

Imagine this Church in the Heat of the day with over two hundred people in it, HOT!!!!

Playing with the children was without a doubt our favorite part of the conference and it also had the most profound effect on the Pastors at the conference because they often times don't see value in ministering to children.

Prayer and Praise

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Hi everyone, this is Dawn. I just wanted to let you all know that the team made it safely to Webuye (that's the praise), and they found out that they are doing nightly revival services in addition to everything else mentioned in the previous blog. Please be praying for strength and energy for them!

Thanks for all your prayers - you guys are such a blessing!

Webuye

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT

For the next ten days my team and I will be traveling to a place called Webuye. This is something I have been talking about and preparing for with both local pastors and my home church for a long time now - I'm really excited about this trip and excited to see what the Lord is going to do over the next ten days. The trip to Webuye is an eight to ten hour trip, depending on the road conditions. Today is a travel day - we leave early this morning and will arrive sometime this evening. Here is a quick overview of what we'll be doing during our time there:

Friday - Saturday: Youth Conference

Sunday - Tuesday: Visiting local churches and doing some prison ministry

Wednesday - Friday: Pastors' Conference

Saturday - Travel home

Youth Conference: Friday and Saturday we will be helping to facilitate a youth conference that we are expecting somewhere between 500 - 600 youth to come to. It will be a full two days - we will go from 8am - 5pm each day - doing some teaching from the Alpha curriculum (http://www.alphausa.org/), sharing testimonies, and performing Drimes (dramas set to music). For those of you who haven't heard of the Alpha Course before, it's a great teaching tool that helps the non-believer and committed Christian alike to go back to the basics and explore the foundations of the Christian faith.

Pastors' Conference: Wednesday - Friday we will be helping with a conference for pastors from several different countries including Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. We are expecting about 400 pastors to come. I will be doing some of the teaching - again we using the Alpha curriculum. Please pray for boldness, wisdom and discernment in sharing with these pastors. Pray that they would be challenged. Pray that they would be encouraged to be "surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses." Pray that the Spirit would move in power and minister to those who have dedicate their lives to serving Him by constantly pouring themselves out for others.

A few other ways you can be praying for us:

Safety as we travel today and Saturday
Discerning spirits, unity and peace as we walk into some pretty heavy spiritual warfare
Witchcraft is widely accepted and practiced there - pray that the things of the enemy would be brought into the light and any power associated with it would be broken in Jesus' name - pray that people would recognize and turn to Jesus as the true Healer.

As always, thanks for your love, support and prayers.

Didn't See This Coming

Sun, 21 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT

So as you can tell from my new profile picture, I met this amazing girl. Her name is Dawn Delaney. She is absolutely gorgeous and I love being with her. I have liked her ever since April, but every time I prayed about it the Lord told me to wait. So I waited and waited and finally about two and a half weeks before I left for Kenya, the Lord allowed me to share my feelings with her. I promise you I was not at all graceful in doing so. Anyone that knows me can imagine how awkward I made that. However, she is such an amazing girl that she didn't let it bother her at all. I was even more blown away to find that she had the same feelings for me and the Lord had told her to wait for me and trust what the Lord was doing in my life. I have never in my life found someone before that I just want to be with all the time, and we have so much in common that I still have trouble believing it at times. Most importantly, she loves the Lord and has a huge heart and call to missions. We challenge each other almost on a daily basis. The only complication we are facing is that I am in Kenya and she is in Kansas City. However, it gets more complicated because as of January, she will be in Thailand, working to rescue girls out of the sex trade. So, we are left trying to figure this thing out between us and this is definitely brand new for both of us. I know that the Lord is in this and he is bringing us together. It's just that as of now, we can't see how that is going to happen and we won't see each other for at least eight months. The Lord is good though and some friends bought us webcams so that we can video chat with each other twice a week.

Please, pray for us as we pursue the Lord and each other. This time apart will be good, but it will also be difficult. Pray that the Lord will continue to speak and confirm a unified vision in us. I promise you there will be more blogs along the lines of this because the Lord is teaching me a ton right now about love and his perfect love for us. Also, I want to apologize to all of the people who are finding out about our relationship this way. I mean you no disrespect, it's just that all of this happened so quick and then I left the country.

Please be praying for us and as always I love and appreciate you all!

Contact Information

Sat, 13 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Mailing Address:

Jason Driver

BOX 21347

Nairobi, Kenya 00505

(Make sure that you send it air mail or I will never see it.)

I have Skype so if anyone uses that my user name is "driverinkenya"

My cell phone # in Kenya is 011254727879974

When I am in and around Nairobi I have great contact with the outside world, but when I travel up country you can forget about it. However, I will keep you posted on these travel dates so that you can be praying.

Thanks again and love you all.

I'm finally here

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT

I am so pleased to tell all of you that I am finally here. I'm in Kenya, after two long years an immense struggles. Thank you all so much for your support and encouragement. I literally could not have done this without you.

I arrived at 9:00 last night. We (Denise, Michelle, and I) were exhausted. We also discovered that British Airways decided not to load two of our bags and that they could wait for tomorrows plane. We then went outside to discover that the battery on our van was dead because it was driven to the airport with a bad alternator. So I had to work on the van before we could even leave. However, here is the fun part, my tools were in the bag that did not show up. So we push started the van and I drove it back with almost no lights (think driving late at night and seeing about six feet in front of you)welcome to Kenya. So, I learned last night that the Lord truly does have a great sense of humor and that I still have some rough edges that need chiseled off. Well that's all for now. I promise that I will do a better job keeping up with my blogs now. Love you all and thanks again.

In Transit

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT

I am finally going to Kenya! I leave today and will be in transit for about 24 hours. I can't believe it's finally time to go - I have been waiting for this day for two years.

Thank you all so much for your continued love and support. I am really excited to share with you all that I now have 100% of my support raised! The Lord is so good! Thank you for the role you have played in that - whether it was continued prayer support, conversations we had that encouraged me, or obedience to giving to me financially as the Lord directed. I can't tell you how much I appreciate each one of you and how grateful I am to have you in my life.

I am so excited about what the Lord has in store for this next season of my life in Kenya. I will be sure to keep you all posted so that you can continue to pray for me and be encouraged by what the Lord is doing.

Kenya Bound

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT

It has been awhile since I updated you and for that, I am truly sorry. So much has gone on in my life, I don't even know how to explain it let alone to put it into words. I finally purchased my ticket for Kenya last week. This alone has brought upon me a full gambit of emotions. For starters, this has been something that has been two years in the making and its finally coming to fruition. However, in order for me to go, that means that I also have to leave people and things that I care dearly about, behind.

This has been an incredible season for me in Georgia. I have been walking in community with some great people who have loved and challenged me to live out my faith in greater amounts. It also has been a time for me to heal from past hurts and process through things that I normally wouldn't have time too. Maybe I should be describing my time in Georgia as a time of preparation. The Lord had me in Georgia to refine me and build me up to send me out. I can honestly say that somehow in my time here I feel adequate to go out and lead the next generation into a kingdom lifestyle. This time has been such a blessing to me and because of that, it is going to be tremendously hard for me to leave Georgia.

Here are the highlights of what's going on in my life.

Labor Day Weekend I am driving back to Ohio for a final visit

September 1^st - 3^rd Kenya staff meet together in Georgia

September 3^rd - 8^th Help train leaders for our fall trips

September 8^th - 10^th Train my Kenya team

September 10^th - 11^th Travel to Kenya ahead of the team for set-up

September 15^th - December 6^th Lead Real-Life team

December 6^th - 25^th Help set-up ministry opportunities for the World Race

December 27^th - January 10^th Lead a short-term adult trip

January 22^nd - April 22^nd Lead Real-Life team

April 30^th -? Return to the States for a much needed break.

What Are You Willing To Give Up For Me?

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT

As I walk out my life with others and in front of many, the Lord has been teaching me a lot about what it means to be a leader. It has been a slow and painstaking process as I have many rough edges that the Lord has had to chisel off through circumstances or people. I have learned many lessons most of which have come through failure or pain. However, there has been just as many, if not more opportunities for joy. Through all of this, the Lord has plagued me with the question that I can never seem to escape, what are you willing to give up for me? It seems that every time I step out and follow the Lord to lead a new team, he asks me to give something up. I struggle through it and I fight it at times, but the end result is always the same, another piece of me dies.

In the past I have given up comfort, money, my truck, security, and a since of entitlement. All of these things I have given up to follow the Lord to wherever it is that we are going. This season of my life has been very different for me because I have been learning that the students, more often than not, just need to see someone walk out their faiths and be "ordinary radicals." They want something that is real, that they can taste, touch, and see. The students that I work with are sick and tired of people pretending that things are okay, when clearly they are not. They are not dumb; they've seen their parents, friends, and churches put on this mask that says everything is fine, when clearly it isn't. So how do you reach students like this? How do you even begin to connect with them? Well, one thing is for sure, you have to be transparent, and vulnerable with them, otherwise they will know right away that you are putting on a front. They will then lose respect for you and write you off. When taking all of this into consideration I now have changed my approach to these students. I am upfront with them. I put all of my baggage on the table, all of my struggles, fears, and anxieties, and I say, "here, does this help anyone?" Then I give them an invitation to walk out their life with me as we try to figure out how to walk with the Lord.

Back to my original question, what are you willing to give up for me? This last team that I led to the Amazon had a lot of broken and hurting students, with some deep hurts. Because of the hurt that they were carrying around, the Lord challenged me to go deeper in order to reach them. The Lord was challenging me to go to a place that was previously off limits. He wanted me to share about personal insecurities that I have never shared before. I wrestled with it and eventually was obedient. When I shared about all of the insecurities that I had about my self- image and how that has affected me; I had no idea how they would respond. The Lord used those painful embarrassing insecurities to break through and bring healing to these students. For once in their lives, they were seeing someone walk out brokenness in front of them and they followed suit. They realized that they were not alone, and that it is okay to be a mess and to be broken; that they could come to Jesus, just as they are. Immediately they became open to sharing with us leaders so that we can help them sort through things. We prayed with several students and saw the Lord do a powerful amount of healing and restoration.

I am willing to give up whatever I need to in order to be close to the Lord and follow after him. If that means that I need to share things about my life that are not easy or are embarrassing in order to help someone else along then I will do it. Even now, I am sacrificing things that are not easy for me. I had to give up my apartment before I left for the Amazon, so I have been staying with friends and will continue to move from house to house from week to week until I leave for Kenya the first week of September. So to summarize this long update I will leave you with two points.

1) I am called to be his!

2) I am called to give up everything to follow him!

I Survived the Amazon

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Hey all, I had an amazing trip to Peru. I am still processing through it. It was a great trip and I had great students. It was difficult at times and I also realized how much expectations that I had for the trip. We had a crazy schedule that seemed to change daily and I was surprised to find that most of our ministry involved vbs and church services every single night. The people were not very open or receptive as what I expected and that made it difficult because I had to keep twenty-six people and myself encouraged. However, during the last week of the trip we saw the Lord break open and do some great things. One of the highlights for me was when I did a baptism service in the river for my team. I talked to them about baptism and what it meant and brought them many of the popular theologies on baptism and then presented them with scripture and shared my views on it. In all we baptized nine students and Shaun, one of my co-leaders. It was a powerful service and it impacted a lot of the students. It was also the first baptism service that I had ever done so that what was pretty exciting and special for me.

Well, I am currently trying to adjust back to life in the states and life without an army of students depending on you and all of the responsibilities that go along with it. I am really tired and for once in my life, I have found myself with a lack of words. I'm having trouble putting words to my experiences and even what I'm processing through. So please just pray for me to have some healthy processing and more importantly an amazing amount of rest.

Two month overview

Sat, 7 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT

I have a crazy schedule for the next two months and I could really use your prayers, especially for endurance.

*This Sunday afternoon I take the interns away for debriefing (a time to process through their year)Then I get back from that on Tuesday.

*Sometime in the next four days, I have to move out of my apartment.

*Wednesday, June 11^th, I begin leader training for my trip to Peru.

*Saturday, June 14^th, I have 26 high school students that I will be training that will make up my Peru team.

*Thursday, June 19^th, We fly out for Peru

*We will be gone for one month and will be returning to Georgia on Monday, July 14^th.

*Then I come back and figure out where I'm going to live and I'm in the states until September when I return to Kenya.

So please, pray for me during these next two months, as I will be on the go non-stop. I need the Lord to take care of me and keep me full of his spirit and his strength so that I can endure.

Back in Georgia

Fri, 23 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

I wanted to let you all know that I made it back to Georgia safely. I arrived Wednesday afternoon. My body is worn out and in need of rest, but any of you that know me know that this is my least favorite thing to do. It was a great trip and definitely the most exhaustive and emotionally taxing trip that i have done in quite awhile. Also, I want you to know that because of the nature of this trip I am still processing through it and will be for awhile. i will post updates about Kenya in the next couple of weeks as I evaluate or sort things out in my head. So watch for more updates and as always i love you all and thanks for standing behind me.

More Kenya

Fri, 23 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

First off, I'm sorry that my last update was so heavy. I wanted to paint an accurate picture both of what I'm seeing and feeling. Honestly, this has been a really difficult week for Scott, Denise, and me. Our friends in Kenya have witnessed things that they can't even put words to or just don't want to because of the horror.

It has been very difficult for some as they have lost their small shops that provided for them or because food prices shot way up. So if they could barely afford food everyday for their families imagine then what it would look like if the food prices doubled or tripled and they are still earning the same or less than they were before. We even had some of our partners in the ministry call a meeting with us only to tell us that we need to pay them money as a means of keeping unity in the body of Christ. Scott and I walked away from the meeting feeling beat-up and downright extorted. However, Scott was able to meet with this pastor the next day and clarify everything. We have since been able to reconcile our differences and see just how desperate things have become in the slums.

This trip was also difficult for me because my body would not adjust to the time change. Every night regardless of what time I went to bed, I could expect to be awake by 2:30 a.m. So sometimes, that meant that I got two hours of sleep and other times I might get lucky and get four. On the plus side, I had a lot of time to think through things, pray, and spend time with the Lord. However, the downside is that in the middle of the day I would be exhausted to the point that on several occasions I would fall asleep wherever we were. The last day was the most difficult for me because we were completely slammed with an agenda literally, until we left that night for the airport. I was so exhausted that I couldn't sit in one place for more than five minutes or I would fall asleep and did. All of this together just made me frustrated, every night I would beg the Lord to help me find sleep but it never seemed to come.

Refugee Camp in Naivasha, Kenya 5,000-6,000 people

Processing through destruction

Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

I'm sitting at a table in a mall food court in Kenya and I managed to grab some random wireless internet signal so here I am trying to figure out what to say about my time in Kenya thus far. It's hard for me to even begin to process or reconcile in my mind both what I have seen and what I have heard. I have had many opportunities to just sit and listen to my friends. I can sense that they are still trying to put words to the things that they have witnessed months ago.

I have heard to quotes from several people that cut me to the core. So much so, that I am still rolling them over in my mind. The first being, "it was awfully bad here in January and February, you could not go out of your homes, no stores were open to buy food." That quote in itself was hard for me to imagine, but then I heard this one, "Not even animals would do these kinds of things to one another." Repeatedly, I heard stories of people having to flee their homes because one day their neighbors woke up to decide to rob them or kill them, maybe even burn their house to the ground. These neighbors would have had children that played together and even went to the same school and yet they saw this time of uprising as a perfect time to benefit from what their neighbors had. Scott and I walked through some local markets that had been burned down to the ground and we saw several blocks in the slums that had been burnt to the ground as well, but had already been rebuilt. We also walked into a large church in the slums that had the roof burnt off of it. We went inside of it to find out what the story was. It appears a band of thieves went to steal the generator from the church. They found it full of gasoline so they poured it all over the wall of the church and lit it on fire.

The hard part for everyone is that you can't really explain what went on here. You can't rationalize it. It certainly doesn't make any sense. The hard thing is that things have settled down and people are being told, "It is over. Return to your homes." However, if you had to flee your home because your neighbor burnt it to the ground, or because a band of thieves hacked your husband to pieces with machetes, how do you move on from that? How do you return to your home when you know that your neighbor is using your furniture or watching your television in his house?

I know that I have painted you a very ugly dark picture of Kenya right now, but I will not leave you there. Although I see and feel a tremendous amount of hurt; I still see hope. Scott and I have seen many places that were rebuilt, or somewhere in the reconstruction process. In one area where several blocks were torched, now new shops stand in their place. In January-February, Toi Market in Kibera slums was a total loss. Mobs of people were seen running through to grab anything they could get their hands on and then it was burnt to the ground. Today, Scott and walked through and were surprised to see that the whole market was almost completely rebuilt. People are trying to move on and figure out how to go about everyday life. One approach towards moving on that surprised me was a friend that said, "All we can do is pray to God and ask him to forgive us for what we have done in Kenya."

So here is where I'm at right now in trying to process through things. I know that my God is a God of redemption and that he will redeem these things in Kenya. He will bring hope and he will take care of his children.

I'm in Kenya

Wed, 14 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

I just wanted to let you all know that I arrived safely last night in Kenya. I will be here for a week and will be traveling around a lot. Please pray for us (Scott, Denise, and I) as we will be going non-stop. We are trying to check in with all of our host contacts and make sure things are going well. We are also trying to figure out housing logistics for both staff and our teams coming in. I will be the lone guy staff here in Kenya so we are trying to also figure out what to do with me as far as housing. We need the Lord to open up some doors for us and we need a ton of wisdom as we sort things out. I will try to post a more detailed update in the days to come. thanks again.

I'm Blessed

Fri, 9 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Last weekend I flew back to Ohio for a time of sharing in a "Coffee House" format. I was a bit nervous going home, as I always am. Home can be a great place at times and then there are the times that you just want to leave shortly after you arrived. There are also all the expectations that are placed on you to visit people making sure that everyone gets quality time with you. It can be overwhelming at times and someone is always left out. Well, my time in Ohio was probably the best I have had yet.

It was hard to go home because of the agenda that I had to stick to, as I wanted to make my final push to get all of my support raised. What I did not expect, was how the Lord was going to use this time at home to restore me. I walked away from this time feeling truly blessed. The Lord took care of all my needs for example: I had an ear infection when I arrived in Ohio and my doctor treated me for no cost; then I was out of contact lenses and my Aunt gave me a six months supply. I even felt like my relationship with my dad was better than it has been in a longtime. I tried to make time for him as opposed to keeping myself busy and avoiding him. The thing that continues to blow me away when I think about it is that before I left Georgia, the Lord was showing me that he wanted to restore my relationship with my dad. Then to fly back to Ohio and actually see that starting to happen just floored me.

The "Coffee House" at my church went way better than what I expected. I had about 75-80 people attend it. We had a powerful time of worship and the Lord was definitely present. I poured out my heart in front of everyone. My best friend, Casey, then closed out the night by having everyone come forward to lay hands on me and pray. It was such a powerful time of prayer I did not want it to end. For the next two days, I met with several people and I now have $315 a month pledged (nearly half of that was given Sunday night). I am shooting for $400 a month, so this leaves me $85 short. However, I am confident that the Lord will rise up people to partner with me for the remaining amount. Please continue to pray for this and to pray for God's providence over my student loans because I still really believe that the Lord is going to take those from me.

Thank you so much for all of the Love and the Support that you give me. It makes it so much easier for me knowing there are so many people who stand behind me. You have blessed me so much that I can't help but share that blessing with others. I love you all and appreciate you more than my words can even convey.

Supporter Coffee House

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

You are invited:

I am having a time of sharing that is open to everyone. It will include coffee and desserts. I want to use this time to thank the many people who stand behind me, making all of this possible, and to give an update of what the Lord is doing in me and through me.

The Coffee House will be held at Pleasant-View Missionary Church
5231 Gettysburg-Pitsburg Road Greenville, OH 45331 on Sunday, May 4, 2008. It will be held from 7 p.m. to whenever. I would love for all of you to be there if it is at all possible. If you have any questions or you know for sure that you are coming then please r.s.v.p. me so that I can plan accordingly. Please email me at driver.jason@gmail.com or call my cell 574-210-1856. Thank you so much for being a part of my life. I can't wait to see all of you.

Taking the Time to Love Others

Wed, 9 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

I have so much going on in my life right now that I don't even know where to begin. This past week I have been preparing our facilities for training camp season. There was a ton of things to do such as, clean and fill huge water tanks (maybe 2000 gallons), have driveway and parking lot graveled, set up our huge meeting tent (think circus tent), and basically fix anything that we need that may have broken since last time we had training camp. While all of this is going on, I also had to attend a leadership training to prepare me to lead my trip to the Amazon Jungles of Peru. I have been busy, but I do want to try and take the time to catch all of you up on what the Lord is doing in my life.

On March 30, I went to the Atlanta Airport to pick up Scott Nelson (my boss). His flight didn't get in until after 10 p.m. I was running low on gas in my car when I left my apartment, but I am stubborn and was determined to find a cheaper price for gas. So I end driving an hour and have to get off the interstate one exit before the airport to purchase gas for at least ten cents more per gallon (lesson learned). Anyways, while I was pumping gas a homeless guy came up to me and tried to get money from me. I told him I didn't have any cash on me (which was true)but, I told him that I would love to buy him some food inside since I had to pay with my debit card. I asked him what kind of sandwich he wanted to which he responded, "Ham and cheese." Then I asked him what his favorite drink was to which responded, "a Yoo-hoo(brand of chocolate milk)." I then said, "man, I would love to buy you a Yoo-hoo."

I went inside and bought him two ham and cheese sandwiches and a Yoo-hoo. I brought them out and gave them to him. When He took them from me I saw the shame in his eyes as he lowered his head and turned to walk away. I immediately called him back. I asked him to stay to talk to me until I finished pumping gas. I learned that his name is Willie Hill. He is thirty-nine was just recently released from prison, and is currently sleeping in the local cemetery. I looked at him and I told him the following: Your life matters to me, you have worth, your life does have meaning and purpose even if you don't know what that is right now, I don't look at you any different and I certainly don't think that I am better then you. I believe that the Lord has a plan for your life and I pray that right now someone would take a chance on you and give you a job because I know that you are worth it. I know that I said a whole bunch more of these things because the Lord was just breaking my heart for Willie Hill. I told him how much Jesus Christ loves him and how much he has a plan for Willie's life. I ended our time by giving him a giant hug and told him that I loved him and that he has witnessed the Love of Christ today. Willie just stared at me with sorrow filled eyes and I can see how the words and the love of Christ were cutting to the core of his very existence. I have no idea what has happened to Willie Hill or what the Lord will do with that, but I do know this, he encountered Jesus that night and he is forever changed because of that.

So what has the Lord been teaching me through these times? He has been teaching me that he doesn't need my words. Matter of fact, he has grown rather tired of my words and me talking about my faith. It is time for action, me telling them about the love of Christ means nothing, unless I'm willing to take the time and the vulnerability to truly show them. I know that I showed Willie Hill the Love of Jesus Christ and I am so pleased that the Lord gave me the opportunity.

Back from The Bronx

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT

I wanted to start by telling you all how deeply I appreciated your prayers for our trip to New York. We had a long sixteen hour drive with seven adults slammed into a Dodge Caravan (minivan). I was really concerned with the unity of my team especially with the long uncomfortable travel. However, they made the most of it and had a great time laughing about how little room there was. We had a great time in The Bronx, partnering with Harve and Robyn Bowman. Honestly, I was a little concerned taking my team there because they can be pretty negative at times and I didn't want to burden Harve and Robyn with that. My team genuinely blew me away. They served every chance they got, and they really took care of one another. I had the privilege and joy of watching the Lord use each of these students in ways that they never expected.

Highlights from Ministry in the Bronx:

*Watching my team tutor k-5^th graders at an after school program

*Attending "Holy Hood," youth church in the Bronx

*Watching Caleb give a heartfelt testimony and seeing the power of the Lord in his words. (I was in tears the whole time)

*Preparing and serving a meal at The Living Room (homeless shelter) and then sitting down and eating the meal with them. (I think some of them thought that I was actually homeless)

*Catching up with dear friends that I have not seen for a really long time

The rest of our time in New York was spent touring the city and just being together in our little community. It was good for our team to laugh and play together, this was an area that we have been lacking. So thanks again so much for all of your prayers they were definitely needed and felt.

Left to right: Seth, Ashley Hall, Em, Ashley King, Becca, Me, and Caleb; we are standing in front of the graffiti that is painted on the walls of the "Holy Hood" youth church.

This is our group in front of the house that we stayed in along with Harve and Robyn and some others

The Next Few Puzzle Pieces

Wed, 12 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Hey my beloved friends and family, I just wanted to give you some updates on my life. Tomorrow morning, at 5 a.m., I am taking the interns to The Bronx, for five days. Please, pray for our time as we will be partaking in some really intense street ministry. Also, there is a possibility that we will be able to gain access to an AIDS treatment center. Please pray that the doors would open into this place for us. There has never been a team allowed in the AIDS center yet. We quite possibly could be paving the way for future teams to partner with them and who knows what the Lord will do with this, but we need your prayers.

In May, I might be going to Kenya with my boss, Scott, for eight days to check and see if it is safe enough to start sending teams in again. Kenya has been in complete turmoil since the beginning of the year when there were questions of the legitimacy of their presidential election. So far, I have heard that there have been about 600,000 people displaced from all of the strife. Adventures In Missions has been working to try and send money to Pastors for relief, if you are interested in hearing more about our involvement please check out this link, http://kenya.myadventures.org/

June 14, I am leading a trip to Peru, into the Amazon Jungle for one month. After that, I don't know what's next. In fact, when I return from Peru, I will no longer have a place to live in Gainesville. I am praying what to do about this because I really don't want to move back to Ohio for two months. Then in September, I have two options on my plate for what's next. Option one, I can go help lead a really intense 3 month training session in Nicaragua. It is called "The Awakening," it is a 3 month training and discipleship program where students are torn down and rebuilt with a firm foundation on Christ. I feel like this would be great training and experience for me and I would most likely return to Kenya in January if I took part in the "Awakening." Then there is the second option, where I would return to Kenya and lead a 3 month trip there, and then most likely just stay there. I am more than willing to do either one of these options. However, the deciding factor is how many students sign up for each program. Whatever program has the greatest need, will probably be the one I end up leading, so please pray for this.

One last thing, my transmission went out on my car and I am just updating you that I tore it out last weekend and replaced it with a used transmission out in the parking lot of the AIM office. Now, it is better than ever, thanks so much for all of your prayers

Super Quick Update

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT

So I got a new phone and in the process of transferring the numbers over to it, some how they all got erased. I lost about fifty or so numbers and am trying to get them all back. If you are reading this and you have my number, then please feel free to call me so that I can have your number.

As I reported to you earlier my transmission was on its way out. I am proud to say that I finally drove it to its death. I prayed it into the parking lot at Adventures In Missions this morning and now it won't move at all (nothing but grinding). Tomorrow, I get the luxury of going transmission shopping.

One final request, if you all can be praying for my team and for our organization in general. We have been undergoing some spiritual attacks and we are struggling through some things, but the Lord is teaching us all a ton through it. I love and appreciate you all.