Here is a blog that is written by my new teammate Erin Winget about our new team Remnant. Erin Winget is an intellegent woman of God, who has an amazing gift of leadership and gift of discernment which can bring the team to a new level.
A lot of things have changed this debrief including our teams! We were aware that there would probably be changes for our teams because squad leaders must be appointed from within the squad so that our current squad leader, Allison, who has been on the race before, could phase out and the squad can become more self-reliant. The whole process is intentional and with our spiritual growth in mind so even though thinking about the idea of changing teams was a little intimidating, our whole squad was aware that our leaders weren't just picking names out of a hat, they were consciously placing us where we could grow. So allow me to introduce my new team!
TEAM REMNANT
remnant |ˈremnənt|
noun
a small remaining quantity of something.
• a piece of cloth or carpeting left when the greater part has been used or sold.
• a surviving trace : a remnant of the past.
• Christian Theology a small minority of people who will remain faithful to God and so be saved (in allusion to biblical prophecies concerning Israel).
adjective [ attrib. ]
remaining : remnant strands of hair.
ORIGIN Middle English : contraction of obsolete remenant, from Old French, from remenoir, remanoir ‘remain.'
NEIL BRUINSMA: Our fearless leader. Formerly of team Dunamis, Neil is a strong man of God who is sensitive to the Spirit and willing to face any challenge with a steady persistence.
DENNIS HO: My logistics partner in crime! Dennis is a gifted man that will shepherd our team well. He has so much wisdom and knowledge to share.
BEV RHOADES: Bev and I were close from the beginning of training camp and both had a feeling that we'd end up together eventually. She has a great prophetic calling on her life that God is refining and purifying.
CARLY FARVER: Carly is a woman of God with a powerful gift of intercession and a strong voice for her generation. I am so excited to see how God is going to use her in the next seven months!
JESSICA MCVEY: Jess is one of my former teammates and I am so excited that I get to continue my relationship with her as a teammate. She has strong discernment and a passion for Scripture. God has truly written His Word on her heart.
MICHELLE MCDONALD: Michelle is another one of my former teammates. She is strongly gifted in the prophetic and the more she walks in it the more she comes alive. She also hears God's voice strongly in her artwork and God has gifted her with a relational heart that seeks the lost.
I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am to be a part of Team Remnant. No doubt God has great things ahead for us. Please pray for us as we get to know eachother, learn more about our team identity and seek God's face as a body.
After 4 months of amazing life with the Dunamis family, our squad had a team shuffle in our last debrief. Two of my teammates, Sara and Brenda, have move to another team. My brother Ben has move to a new team with a new role as the team leader. The other teammates, Carly, Bev, and Neil, are still on my team, but it is not the same as the Dunamis era has come to an end. I miss Sara, Brenda, and Ben dearly.
First of all, I want to apologize to all who has followed me on my blog, especially to all the moms of Dunamis. For the past few months, I have been hiding from everyone because I have been trying to balance my race life from traveling around the world, living in a community life, doing ministry plus, and finding time the process what has been happening. I also have to admit, I was a bit lazy on my part as well to do any blogging. I apologize to all.
Right now, I'm doing well and ready to get back into blogging mode and write out some blogs again.
I'm currently in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, doing ministries in an area called Mbagala. People in this community are usually squatters and 95% of the residents are Islam in faith. Please continue to pray for us.
I have been carrying a yellow ribbon with me for months now. It is to remember and symbolize the people that are lost and are affected by the earthquake in Sichuan, China. I can still remember the photographs of the pains and lost on the internet. The horrible disaster that took lives away from families. Houses are now a pile of rebel. Dreams have been shattered.
Knowing I will be going to China in November, I was hoping to be able to go visit the epicenter or the temporary housing area where the victims are living. Even though that didn't happened, I did get some encouraging news about the rebuild and recoveries happening in the area. Furthermore, I heard The Message of Hope is spreading and Homes are forming rapidly within the areas. Praise the Lord.
Every lament will need to end in order for hope to return. For myself, I have finally let go of my yellow ribbon because it is time to pray for joy to return to Sichuan.
As I stepped off the plane and placed my first foot into
Hong Kong, there was an uneasy feeling. This feeling was weird because I'm finally back to my place of birth,
yet I didn't feel like I'm back home. Last time I was in Hong Kong was 12 years ago. Since then, everything has changed. Buildings are taller and newer, MRT system is
more advance, and even the airport is on its own island now. My world is being collided by the past and
the present.
As I walked around the city, I felt very strange. I was surrounded with all Chinese people. I
was able to use zero word of English everywhere I go. Everything was so strange. The strangest part was I once view Hong Kong
as the Pearl of the East has now faded away.
Sitting on the Star Ferry to go across Victoria Harbour was
amazing. The skyline view of Hong Kong
at night was breathtaking. But deep in
my heart, I felt sad. I felt this
spectacular view is masking the true identity of the city. Behind the tall amazing buildings lies a concrete
forest. This forest is filled with brokenness and emptiness.
People in the forest need Christ.
After some time of reflection, I finally realized this
uneasy strange feeling is from the Lord. This is because for the first time I'm coming into Hong Kong not as
Chinese, not as Canadian, but as a citizen of Kingdom.
One of my main ministry projects in Philippines is the
Tunnel Project. The Tunnel Project is a
shortcut pathway which the children use to go to school from the children's
home.
This path is filled with garbage, broken glasses, and
manure. The smell is awful. In rainy days, the path will be a mud slide
and soils will be eradicated, making it very difficult for people to walk in. This
path is also home to some squatter families and it is one of their main roads
to get around.
Team Karis, with the help of Team Dunamis and many others,
decided to build a concrete path in the Tunnel. Day by day, we started to clear out the garbage, made the path wider,
cut out the tall plants and grass to make it brighter, and smoothed out the
road so there will be not potholes. At
the end, we poured down the concrete a bucket at a time. By the grace and the power of God, we finished
the project in 5 days.
We pray as the people and children are walking along
this pathway, God will be with them to protect them and keep them safe in
morning or at night.
Praise God for the Tunnel!
Please see the video about the Tunnel Project by Team Karis
Jeff Long is an incredible man of God who following His
heart by moving his entire family to serve the orphans and street kids in
Philippines. His ministry, Kids
International Ministry (K.I.M), gives life to the next generation by showing
them the love of Christ in a safe and healthy environment.
New Faith Family Children's Home which was established in 2005, is
currently serving over 30 children in their facilities. Their age goes from toddlers to
teenagers. I have the opportunity to
serve the children there and each and every one of them is an amazing
child. They are filled with energy and
joy. Their smiles are so infectious that
it's hard to get mad at them (sometimes).
I have no doubt in my mind these children will grow up in to
amazing men and women of God. They are
the hope of the nation.
I have been in the Philippines for over a week now, but it
still hasn't sunk in The World Race has started. Maybe the contacts we have here treating us
so well that I didn't feel home sick or I have been preparing for this moment for
so long that I'm glad it is finally happening.
My ministry this month is to serve the people here in
Cuatro, Manila. Cuatro is a community of
roughly 800 families with 700 of them is squatters. Squatters are people who inhabit on a property
that doesn't belong to them. That means
they are constantly living with a fear of being force out by the land owners.
In the midst of this surrounding,
you can find beauty on the smile of the street kids running around the streets,
the ladies who are greeting us every day as we are passing by, or the gentlemen
who gives us a friendly help when we are in need.
Please help me by praying for God's love to be poured out
onto this community as we are staying here for the month. Blessings.
It is truly God's blessings to have
provided me with all the financial support that I needed. As of beginning
of September, I have raised $13700 + $1200 (pledged) + $2300
(Gifts) = $17200. This means I have REACHED my GOAL of $16500!!
Thank You all for your support!
Current Status
First of all, I want to apologies
for not updating on my current status for awhile. It has been very hectic
for me of the last few weeks before my launch. My parent's house (while I
have been living in) is sold and I moved all my stuff into storage. At
the end, everything ended in a good note and I'm ready for the coming year to
be the hands and feet for Christ. I'm currently staying at LAX right now
with my teammates waiting for our flight to Philippines. I'll continue to
update once I get there.
Prayer Request
-Praise for my parent's house is sold
before my departure
-Praise for all the people that show
their hospitality to me over the last few months
-Pray for safety and protection as my
teammates and I are travelling to our first destination, Philippines.
Thank you all for your prayers!
Pictures of the Month
Boyz of Chattahoochee - Deet,Me,Reet,Kidd Family in Alpharetta
Rett,Kelly,Anita,Me,Richard,Deet,Kreusten (missing Chip and Mike)
