Last weekend we attended Missions Fest in Vancouver. We left camp Thursday morning and experienced Vancouver a little first. On Thursday we Tandem Biking down the Stanley Park sea walk. It was beautiful! We even stopped part way and had a sand sculpture contest on the beach (in January).
On Friday morning we went to Granville Island and checked out the markets and all the little shops. After lunch we headed over to Missions Fest. We were there Friday and all day Saturday. This was an amazing event. I was overwhelmed by the many booths present and all the seminars to choose from. Missions is huge. God has placed a burden and passion in people's hearts for a specific country, ministry or injustice around the world. It is amazing to see how each organization is targeting something specific but they are working together for the greater good of preaching the gospel to the lost souls in this world.
I went to one seminar about everyday evangelism. I really enjoyed this seminar. The speaker was informative and passionate about the topic. One thing that stuck out was the idea of taking every opportunity you have. So often we wait for the perfect opportunity to share the gospel but everyday God gives us many chances, whether big or small, to do his work here on earth. We need to obey and seize each opportunity; we never know what God will do with what might seem so small of an act.
We recently finished another class. This last week we had 'Perspectives in Missions'. Our professor had been a missionary kid in Congo and also went back in his adult years. So he had lots of experience and knowledge on the topic of missions. I really enjoyed this class. We learned about why we do missions, different aspects of missions and things we may encounter in missions.
I leave on Tuesday for Mexico. I am extremely excited but also unsure of what to expect. I know God has placed me on the Mexico team for a reason and I cannot wait to see what He is going to do through me and through the team as a whole.
I am excited about experiencing a new culture. To have my eyes opened to what life is like in a different part of the world. I am looking forward to connecting with and worshipping with believers in a different culture. As part of this trip I have the opportunity to lead a children's event in a community called Nueva Mexico. This is super exciting
I also know that this cultural barrier may create challenges. In class we talked about the challenges of cross-cultural missions and how easy it is for miscommunication to occur. Something that may seem normal and acceptable in Canada may be completely disrespectful or unthought of in a different culture (or vice versa). Already our leaders have informed us a bit about what the culture is like. But I pray that God will help me to be observant and aware of what is happening around me.
Thank you for your continued prayers.
Sabrina Thiessen
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