Zimbabwe Trip Update - May 29, 2011

As I wrote in my last post, the team gathered together here in St. Louis this weekend and had a very good planning day on Saturday.  Team members who didn't know each other had a chance to meet, hear each other's stories and heart for Africa.  It was very helpful having Craig and Teresa Pippel present to explain the larger vision of Vital Connections.  Rebecca and I having gone before "get it", but both Nathan and Lori expressed a deep gratitude for their clarification of purpose and vision.  The whole team seemed to engage the upcoming trip a step or two more intently as a result of our time together.  I am excited for this team and also for what we believe God will accomplish.

We closed out our evening with an extended time of prayer and that was a great close to the day.  It was great to pray and fellowship with Craig, Teresa, and Rebecca whom I have interacted with very little since we moved from Grand Rapids to Michigan.  They were so generous to sacrifice the time and expense to come and ensure our team was ready and commissioned for the August trip.

We still have some details to finalize so we would appreciate your prayers for the team:

• Preparing the messages for our youth leaders conference
• Planning the agendas and curriculum for our two days at an orphanage and feeding center
• That God would bring the right people in Zim to our gatherings and that He would speak into their hearts in a powerful way