2008 Woodie Awards
Summer mission teams report experiences
Inga Locke
Issue date: 8/31/07 Section: In the Spotlight
"Something I learned was the power of God," said senior Brittne Thompson. "There were times we were frustrated with the language barrier, but even though we could not verbally communicate, Christ was so powerful he was able to work through us. This was apparent when some of the Bedouin men approached our translator and said that there was something different about our group from other tourists."
The team also worked with the Bedouin children doing a children's ministry.
The fourth team went to Khabarousk, Russia from May 23 until June 6. This was a team of six led by Steven Strauch. The team went into universities to lead discussions on the differences between Russia and America, creating a platform to invite the students to an English club in the evenings.
"The point of these [discussions] was to get to know the students on a more personal level and as they were getting to know us, share about Jesus," said sophomore Sara Weldy.
At the English club the group was able to lead discussions about Christ as well as discuss the racism against Chinese in Russia. The groups used the comparison of the Hispanic population in the United States to the Chinese population in Russia. Many Russians were learning English to learn Chinese in order to become translators.
"One guy named Misha attached himself to me. We were walking around town one day and I wanted to bring up God in our conversation. I had been praying about it the whole time but was unsuccessful," said senior Matt Parrott. "He later pulled me to the side and asked me 'I wonder what happens when you die.' That led into a long conversation about Christianity."
The fifth opportunity was in Eastern Turkey and led by Walt Tredway. This was a smaller team of only five members. This mission lasted from June 1 to June 11. The purpose of the trip was to distribute literature and gifts among cities in Eastern Turkey.
"While we were in the East, we would walk around town in the morning, meeting people and engaging people in dialogue through our translators," said SBU graduate Whitney Prewitt. "This trip was amazing to me because I have never before seen prayer answered in such vivid ways".
The team also worked with the Bedouin children doing a children's ministry.
The fourth team went to Khabarousk, Russia from May 23 until June 6. This was a team of six led by Steven Strauch. The team went into universities to lead discussions on the differences between Russia and America, creating a platform to invite the students to an English club in the evenings.
"The point of these [discussions] was to get to know the students on a more personal level and as they were getting to know us, share about Jesus," said sophomore Sara Weldy.
At the English club the group was able to lead discussions about Christ as well as discuss the racism against Chinese in Russia. The groups used the comparison of the Hispanic population in the United States to the Chinese population in Russia. Many Russians were learning English to learn Chinese in order to become translators.
"One guy named Misha attached himself to me. We were walking around town one day and I wanted to bring up God in our conversation. I had been praying about it the whole time but was unsuccessful," said senior Matt Parrott. "He later pulled me to the side and asked me 'I wonder what happens when you die.' That led into a long conversation about Christianity."
The fifth opportunity was in Eastern Turkey and led by Walt Tredway. This was a smaller team of only five members. This mission lasted from June 1 to June 11. The purpose of the trip was to distribute literature and gifts among cities in Eastern Turkey.
"While we were in the East, we would walk around town in the morning, meeting people and engaging people in dialogue through our translators," said SBU graduate Whitney Prewitt. "This trip was amazing to me because I have never before seen prayer answered in such vivid ways".
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