New Photos Posted!

I've just posted new photos from the last month or so. You can find them in the media section of my website. Enjoy! :)

Lions, Cheetahs, and Crocs... Oh My!

Over the weekend, Dan (my co-leader) and I took the AMT students on a field trip for the day. Africa definitely has some cool ideas for field trips. We wanted the students to understand more about the wildlife and safety measures to look out for here in the bush. The way to accomplish this... throw them into the lions den. Well in this case, Cheetah and Croc den. However, we did see lions, which was amazing.

Our first stop of the Lion park in Mukuni that has just opened. Our guide took us to the lions, where we got a close up view, but seperated by a chain link fence. We also got to view their newest additions to the park, the Caracal cats. The coolest part was when the team was allowed into the Cheetah cage. There's something intimidating when you step into the home of a potientally vicious animal. However, when they start lick you and purring, it's amazing that they are justa large cat... only with paws, nails, and teeth that can tear you to shreds! Cool and scary at the same time.

We traveled from the lion park and entered the world of crocodiles. We were able to see a feeding, as well as learn about how crocs attack, warning signs, etc. The croc farm also has a cool indigenous snake exhibit where we were able to view many snakes (mostly venomous) that are from the area. Many we have living on our base, some I've even had close encounters with.


It was a great day and the students were able to put their knowledge to use that evening with an encounter with a spitting cobra found outside of our toliets here in the base. Gotta love Africa!

Swimming on the Edge

I have these reality check moments where I have to remind myself that "Yes, you live in africa. Yes, you do ministry in rural villages. Yes, you are literally swimming on the edge of the 7th natural wonder of the world." You read this right, friends. Last week Dan (director of AMT) and I took our new amt students to the Victoria Falls. I go almost every month so it's lost some of it's excitement (but not beauty). However, this time of year it the coolest time to go because you can literally walk across the top of the falls. The water drops so low that there are just trickles going over the edge of the gorge. The coolest part is that you can find these pools with waterfalls, which are directly on the edge of the gorge. They make some of the best swimming pools in the world! Here are some photos of our adventure. If you don't know what AMT is, please feel free to read about it here: http://www.overlandmissions.com/AMT/.

Sitting on the edge of the falls

Our team on the edge of the falls












Looking down from the top of the falls.











Swimming at the top of the falls, right on the edge.

AMT has begun!

The students have arrived and orientation is underway. It's always awesome when new people arrive on the base. You can see the potential in them because of their hearts. There's the usual insecurity and nervousness about being so far from home, but you know that as soon as they get past it they will leave here a completely different person. I love seeing the change in people from when they first arrive to when they leave. Not only seeing the change, but being a part of them. My prayer for these next 3 months is that the Lord will impart to me His words and knowledge that I may share them with these young people who are stepping out in faith to serve God. Please pray for these students and I will continue to update you all.

Note: AMT is our Advanced Missions Training course held for 3 months here on the base in Zambia. I will be one of the instructors for this course in September until the end of November.

New Photos Posted

Hi all,

I've just updated the photo section on my website. My next newsletter will be going out soon. If you currently don't receive them, please sign up on the home page of my website.

http://www.laurainmissions.com

Blessings,
Laura

My friend, Todd Mitchell

I think one of the hardest sacrifices as a missionary is being so far apart from friends and family, especially during hard times. It's times like these that remind you just how far from home you truly are.

On Tuesday, a friend of mine passed away. Todd has always been on my list of the cool people I've met. It's not just because he's one of the best drummers I've ever met, but also because of his character. I haven't seen Todd and his family since I left for the missions field, but would sometimes randomly get an email from him checking to make sure I'm still doing okay. You see I first met Todd, his wife Paula, and their boys when I was in college. I had just started playing clarinet on the worship team, and Todd was one of the drummers. It was awesome getting to know him and the team, especially since it was my first time ever being a part of a church , much less on the worship team. Todd and Jason used to tease me a lot about hiding behind my music stand. When our new worship pastor, Mike, came to our church, my role as instrumental turned to vocal. I battled with confidence to sing and there was Todd, encouraging me every step of the way. I still hear his encouraging words everytime I lead worship with our teams here in Africa. They continue to encourage me daily.

Then came the day I told him and Paula that I was going to move to africa and be a full time ministry. I was nervous telling my friends because I was getting mixed reactions from different people in my life. Todd and Paula were so excited about the change God was making in my life. Their friendship means so much to me. Even though Todd is no longer on earth with us, he is where we all long to be... in the physical presence of our Lord. I have to agree with my friends that I bet Jesus is getting some sweet drum set lessons. ;-)

Some Food for Thought...

So my co-leader, Stephen, and I were having a discussion awhile back. Here in Africa, you'll find many beliefs. Many of the people in the rural villages turn to witch doctors for any ind of ailment. When you ask them about what they believe, they will say that they are Christians, but instead of turning first to God for healing, they turn to the witch doctor. It's easy for us to tell them not to turn to their traditional beliefs, but let's look at it from a different perspective. How is it any different then when we first turn to medicines instead of God? How many times do we get headaches and automatically take some pain reliever for it? I can't count the number of times I have. More of us do it then we'd like to admit. It's not very different then those who turn to witch doctors. Yes, the traditional medical practices can actually be more harmful then the ailment, but let's continue to focus on our faith. God is more then capable of healing us, my friends! He's a better healer then any type of medicine or doctor. So this challenge is for you and for me, next time you're feeling any pain or illness, turn first to God. Jesus promises in John 14 that anything we ask in His name, He will do it. When have you ever known God to break a promise? I haven't.