Today’s blog is written by Brandi Kirby, who just came back from a REACH mission trip. She shares her experience in the Philippines with her fellow teammates and how God is working and doing amazing things there!
At 38, I thought to myself, there has to be more to my walk with the Lord than leading a small group and serving at church on Sundays. I had a deep stirring in my heart to want more of Jesus, to know Him deeper and to serve Him greater. So, I took a step in faith and headed to the Philippines to serve with my church.
God showed me more on this trip. I gained brothers and sisters in Christ. I saw God’s greatness through instantly answered prayers. I learned to love deeper than I ever knew I could. I experienced love with no boundaries and I learned our ministry shouldn’t either. This mission trip changed my life.
We helped construct a church in a village that was a day’s walk from the main road – so thankful for our vehicle! There were so many children and adults and not many spoke English. We laughed, played and worked alongside them. One night, during our two nights stay, we shared the Jesus Film Project in their native language. I witnessed the power of praying in the name of the Lord in faith, and my request was answered instantly. There were wild dogs in the village that hadn’t bark during the video until the most important part. We paused the video where Jesus was lifted on the cross so the village pastor began to give a message, but we couldn’t hear because of the dogs. They barked like crazy as if they had a purpose, so I prayed fiercely. The dogs were silenced! I was later asked by one of my team members if I noticed what happened with the dogs because he was praying too! A few villagers were saved that evening.
A few days later, we took the film to another village. I witnessed many being saved that night. The movie was paused at the same moment, their pastor preached a powerful message – I heard and felt passion in his tone – then I experienced the most exhilarating feeling. I heard them repeating in unison a prayer in their language. I knew with every fiber of my heart what had just happened. We were told that MANY had accepted Christ into their hearts that night!
Throughout the week, we participated in worship that caused my heart to swell from the sweet children’s voices praising the Lord. We had devotional time and shared our testimonies of faith with children who were like sponges wanting to hear hope and gain wisdom. We connected despite the language barrier through love. Our team grew together through our serving, encouraging and sharing with each other. The last day of our trip a sister & fellow teammate conquered her own internal battle. She shared her testimony for the very first time with the children of the school. She is no longer a slave to that fear which prevented her from declaring God’s victory in her life. We serve an awesome God!
Do you feel God stirring up your heart for more like Brandi? For more information about our upcoming REACH mission trips visit http://thepointva.com/reachcountries/.