Sierra Leone...at last

A long, long, long day of travel has come to an end. Our DBU travelers have arrived safely at the Hope Center and by now are snoozing away.

I received a text message just after 6:00 pm our time from Dr. O'Brien in the water taxi. How cool! From a form of transportation I would consider so rustic, he was able to send a text message. Technology! What would Abraham have done with a smart phone "back in the day"? (That is a discussion for another day, for sure.)

The last message I received said that Donald Conteh had picked them up from the water taxi and drove the group to the Hope Center. Donald is one of the guys in the photo to the right.

The message from the group stated they were very tired, but happy. Hopefully by now, they are sound asleep. No big activities are planned for Saturday so they will have time to get acclimated to their surroundings. I am hoping for a photo to come our way - but may have to wait until they return for that.

Peter's dad sent me a link about the Hope Center, so I am including it here - in case you would like to know more about the place that is hosting our group.
http://restorehopeproject.org/hope_center.html

Take care and I will update as I hear.

London and waiting...

God is amazing! Even in the very "little things" He is faithful to honor our requests. I overslept a bit this morning and when I awoke, I tried to figure out the time difference between Dallas and London and was afraid I had missed a text message from the group.

No text - but I did have an email from Dr. O'Brien - all safe and sound in London.They have a brief layover in London. Everyone is doing well. Dr. O'Brien says, "I sense a little tiredness in the group, but all are in good spirits. They are such a great group."

They have about a 7 hour flight ahead and then a few more hours before we get to the Hope Center for the night. Dr. O'Brien says, "God has given us safe and predictable travel, which is good. Please pray for stamina and continued joy."

It is early afternoon for them as we are just starting our day and they have a tiring afternoon ahead of them. Please lift Dr. O'Brien, Fred, Peter, Cami, Becca and Kerry up throughout the day and they press on toward Sierra Leone. May the love of Christ radiate from their faces and actions.

On their way

Our travelers are on their way! Here is a photo I snapped at the airport. It isn't very good. I was parked in the taxi loading zone and I felt anxious about being parked there. Anyway - they were all very exicited about finally getting their trip underway.

I received messages from Dr. O'Brien and they are loading the plane in Chicago and will on their way to London soon. They all enjoyed their time in the Chicago airport and I know they are having a good time getting to know one another better. This group will share a wonderful experience with one another that will bond them for always.

The travelers are looking forward to a good meal - well, at least a meal. Hopefully they will all be able to sleep some on this flight. When they arrive in London, there will be plane changes, luggage to move and more waiting before boarding for the final leg into Freetown. They should arrive in Freetown at 7:30 PM (2:30 Dallas time, Friday).

I am praying for rest and calm bellies as they continue on their way.

In less than 30 hours!

The travel portion of our group's journey is just 30 hours from now. Thank you, dear reader, for praying for Dr. O'Brien, Becca, Cami, Kerry, Fred and Peter. As they are preparing to have an impact on people in Sierra Leone, God is preparing to have an impact on them.

This group was on my heart this morning as I read 1 Peter 2:9 "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." We are God's chosen generation - chosen to proclaim His praises.

I am truly humbled by this group. They are following God's leading into Sierra Leone. I tend to be one of those people content in my "own backyard," but that is truly not how God wants us to be. I am blessed to be praying alongside you for these travelers.

Blessings to you!
Kel

Hope and a Future

Several months ago, one of the professors came by the office and said, "Hey, Kelly, I have this great opportunity to go to Sierra Leone. They have some folks in need of business skills and I think this may be a great chance to take some of our students there." After, I said the polite, "Oh, that is great! I can't wait to hear about your trip," and he went on his way, I had to "google" Sierra Leone. I was pretty sure he was talking about Africa, but I was not sure.

I know you are glad to know that I was right, it is in Africa. (You know, sometimes you do have to just look this stuff up!) Sierra Leone is a small country in on the west coast of Africa about 3 times the size of the Metroplex, but with about the same number of people.

So, low and behold, he went and returned and was very encouraged by the people he met there. He wanted to help people provide for themselve and their families. The people he met in Sierra Leone became attached to his heart.

Dr. O'Brien definitely has a heart for people - that is what all of the students say. I hear this over and over from students in his classes past and present. We began praying for an opportunity to take students to Sierra Leone so that they could experience first hand, people struggling for their very survival, but with hope and a future.

Hope and a future...sound familiar DBU friends? Our focal verse at DBU comes from Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Does God mean this verse just for those of us on the hill? Absolutely not! He plans for us all. He hopes for us all. In the Metroplex and in Sierra Leone.

Months of prayer, weeks of planning, days of frenzy and hours of preparation are leading Dr. O'Brien and a group of five students (Becca, Cami, Kerry, Fred and Peter) to go to a place on the other side of the world and see how God is working amongst the people of Sierra Leone. They will work with women finishing some job training to develop business plans to help them understand how to use the skills they have learned to provide for themselves and their families.

The DBU group will stay at the Hope Center

For me, I will only go as far as the airport when I drop them off on Thursday. My task will be a simple one, one I will undertake joyfully. First, I will be a diligent prayer warrior, for health and safety during their travel. Second, I will be the bearer of news. Dr. O'Brien plans to send me text messages as he can and I will relate them to "the list" (Cami is compiling this). My hope is that the blog format will be an effective and efficient means of communication.

If you are reading this blog, will you please pray for God's blessing on the people of Sierra Leone. Pray for health, safe travel and open hearts for Dr. O'Brien and our DBU students as well.