Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Team Vinke Post 2

There has been a lot happening in this wonderful trip. The wonderful stories that have been written and the changes that have been happening within us are tremendously inspiring to me. I wanted to tell you about my team mates in this post.

Jonathan is one of our two leaders, and he has beem a calm leader to all of us, inspiring us to move forward in our faith. His fluency in Spanish has surely been an aid to us as we struggle to communicate, but my favorite part of Jonathan is that he simply cares deeply about the well being of those he is leading. I'm tremendously thankful to have him on the team.

Our other leader is Jonathan's wife, Aubrey. She has resolved to be driven in this trip, owning the spiritual growth of the team. The first night we met as a team, she introduced a simple system of helping each other grow. The system is telling eachother one challenge accompanied by one encouragement. It isn't complicated, but rather it is simply intentional in helping eachother reach the goals God has given us for this trip. She has been a blessing.

Gerrick is hilarious. His sense of humor is a constant breath of fresh air, not to mention his trtansparent humility. His transperency has been a catalyst for deep discussions to happen.

Anna is one of the more quiet and calm members of the team, especially when compared to Gerrick, but she has been a wonderful team member. She has the gift of kindness and hospitality, which has been a great ministry tool on this trip.

Matthew is a character. Our arrival to any village is met by a bunch of joyful children screaming Matteo! The children simply love Matthew, and his love for them has done much to inspire me to push further in our mission here. He is also a very talented guitar player and singer.

Gena has been a wonderful friend. It has been great to watch her become more acquianted with the city and its inhabitants. Her joyful attitude has been fueling the rest of the team as we spend many exhausting days working with the local churches.

Katie is always fun to be around. Her finely/tuned practical approach to this mission trip has been a means to reach the children here. Her heart for the peopel here has inspired me to try to get to know everyone a little better, although we come into contact with hundreds each day.

If you don't know these people well, you should change that. I am immensely blessed to be part of this team.

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