Servant’s hearts

 

 

 

It’s hard to believe I’ve finally made it to Zimbabwe. It’s been on my heart for over a year now since I last came to Africa. God is very good and I’m excited to be here and be part of our global Celebration family! Pastor Dixon, Ps Mike Pier, and the Zim campus pastors  gave us a wonderful welcome in the Bulawayo airport – what joy we felt as they cheered for us with huge signs and hugged us! The church family here is amazing! The ladies at the team mission house are such servants of God. When we introduced ourselves at our first team meeting each one of the Celebration Zim women told us that they are here to serve us. To serve US! We were all in awe of them. And then we went around the room and said that we were here to serve THEM! It’s just incredible to see such servant’s hearts here.

We’ve only been here in Zim one day yet I feel so at home, as I always do in Africa and on the mission field. I can see that this first Zim mission trip is just going to explode into so many more and the impact is going to be huge. Today we went to the How Mine campus and village to pray with some families that suffer from HIV AIDS. What an honor it was to be welcomed into their homes and pray with them. Pastor Felix from How Mine campus is doing such a great work in this area. Our team got to pray for a young HIV positive boy that was having much trouble breathing. We prayed healing over his lungs and his whole body. We know that our God is a healing God, a God of miracles. And the kids are so happy here in Africa, anyone that has been here knows this- that they just radiant joy. One highlight of my day was a young boy named Brian who loves to dance. He is 12 years old and he danced for us in his home- he is HIV positive. He just laughed and laughed as he danced. God loves these children- not one is ever forgotten. Brian became my buddy for the rest of the morning as we walked around the village and went to the feeding center.

This afternoon we visited Isaiah House which is an orphanage for abandoned babies from 0-3 yrs old. This place is just such a blessing! The workers there take babies into their home that have been given up, thrown away into the bush, left without anyone. At the home the staff pours loves into their lives, helps nourish them physically and gives them a hope for their future. It’s the most beautiful thing. Every baby is so precious there, I didn’t want to leave or put any one of the baby’s down. Thank God for places such as Isaiah House. They are truly being Jesus’ hands and feet- true servants.  

We are about to head to our first Celebration Zim service and we just can’t wait to see what it will be like. I’m expecting that it will feel very much like Celebration, whether it be in Jax or in Zim, or anywhere in the world- we are all one church family- so united, walking out what God has called us to do. Praise God!

God is certainly moving big time in Zimbabwe and in Africa- the light is coming in and shining in what they call the dark continent.

Shannon Routzahn

Back to Africa

The trip started out rough as usual, but we know that this is always good. As in James ch. 1 Count it all joy that we face trials and tribulations. Surprisingly, we went through customs and immigration very smoothly. The area was smaller than a Star Bucks. The food thus far has been absolutely amazing. I will be surprised if i don’t gain weight. The warm hospitality from the host team and the individuals we have met along to way has really showed the love of Bulawayo.  We are preparing evey moment for the next step or opportunity.  The pastors of these Celebration campuses are humble, friendly and open to sharing one anothers culture. Today I had fun hanging out with Pastor Felix in the How Mine campus. Yesterday Pastors Albert and Willie(Zimbabwe) hung out with us and really connected. The feeling so far has felt like we have known each other forever. The Celebration culture is all over the place here. I think it was easier for some of us to get over the Africian culture shock because we had been to this area efore and love is all around. Change is upon us and The Almighty God is moving everywhere.

Robert O

Many locations, one family!

Words can not contain the emotion yesterday when we arrived in Zimbabwe. As we arrived safely I have to say Gods favor was on our team from the beginning.  After we went through customs and entered another door to where we thought Pastor Dixon and Pastor Mike were waiting for us.  To our surprise our church family and staff was there holding up signs and yelling Welcome.  As tears filled my eyes it came to me that this is not just about coming to  help Zimbabwe and minister to all the families but this was to show the unity in our Church.  We are one Church of many locations but with one vision.  To see them as excited to see us and help us was overwhelming.  That evening we had time to spend with some of the staff and just get to know them and to also meet and get settled in the new team house and the staff.  I just have  to say the team house is amazing.  It has such a sense of peace there and we all felt right at home.

Today we hit the ground running with going to the feeding center at How Mine.  The children there were excited to see us and could not get enough of all of us and for those of you that have been on missions trips before they loved our camera’s and wanted to take pictures with them as well as get their picture taken.  Feeding that many children was just an eye opener,  that was just one of 21 centers.

God has his hand in Zimbabwe and with Celebration Church.  We are reaching the lost, the hurting, the orphans, and the families here and we can not contain how our church and spreading the gospel.  I will be sad to leave here but knowing God has his hand in this place puts me at rest.

Shellie

Team has arrived in Zimbabwe!!

Just wanted to let all know that the team has arrived safely in Bulawayo.  A HUGE Celebration Zim crowd was at the airport to welcome our team… the crowd burst into cheers when the team came through the doors, and our team was in tears.  What a beautiful picture of the unity of the Body of Christ, no matter where you are located.  Pastor Mike is saying our team is fired up and the Zim leaders/staff are looking forward to a wonderful groundbreaking week.  More posts to come!

Let’s keep them in our prayers… that they will truly be able to be the hands and feet of Jesus to the community and a blessing to our Celebration Zim staff.

It’s going to be an awesome, eternally fruitful 10 days!

–Kassie Fowler

We made it to Africa!

Sanibonani from South Africa.  We have arrived safely in Johannesberg for the night.  We will travel on to Zimbabwe tomorrow!  We are so excited to see Pastor Mike and our Celebration Zimbabwe family.  Stay tuned for updates.

Mindy

…thoughts…

As you walk through streets of poverty you feel the oppression that binds the local community. Home and lives that have been forsaken by the world, left to the wayside on the fare side of the planet…no hope, no passion and only a desire to make it through the day. A day saturated with dirt floors, raw sewage, trash pillows, Tupperware toilets and condoms for children’s toys. Fathers on the streets, mothers on corners turning tricks for a dollar, children looking to anyone who will give them attention, no matter where it comes from. This is Costa Rica. These are the people of God.

 

“…Those who are well have no need of a physician, both those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

 

These are God people! These are who Jesus lived with. The drug addicts, prostitutes, homeless, fatherless and hopeless. He is searching and reaching for his lost children throughout this world. It is not any greater here than in Jacksonville but here more people thirst for the presence of something or someone greater. The pressure of this world and of this culture will do either one of two things; bring you into the darkness of Satan’s grasp or force you to search for something greater than yourself. Sadly the majority of people fall into Satan’s grasp of lying, stealing and death. The generational curses that come from the lies of the Devil are evident everywhere and in every family. It is normal for these people to want more…to want to get out of bondage and slavery. Everyone in there family and friends have lived in this slavery. Don’t get me wrong none of these are different from what we experience in the US. Our slavery is just covered up by the media, pop-culture and the oppression that is the American dream. In these conditions people yearn for hope that is not seen, they yearn for the Holy Spirit to come in and change them and radically change them and give them a miracle. A life changing miracle! That miracle is the only thing that will save them.

 

The people of 6:8 Ministries, Celebration Costa Rica and Missionaries are those people. They come with an open heart to show there is hope in a world that has none, the hope that comes from Jesus.

 

“The son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve others, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:28

 

This verse is the truth of what Jesus is, He is our servant and on this trip we are walking out the footsteps of our Savior. The way that He moved and lived on this earth is how we been lived on this trip. Walking through the streets casting out demons, healing the sick and spreading the gospel, this is how the men and women of Celebration Church and more importantly the sons and daughters of the All Mighty Powerful King Jesus storm the gates of Hell and the Streets of Costa Rica.

 -Stephen Jones-

The Big Gospel Cube is staying in Costa Rica….!

Greeting in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ from Costa Rica!

 Many things had happen since I arrived here.  One thing, I had to learn was to be humble to myself and to listen to the Lord’s instructions for my purpose of being here.  I felt God was telling me something about this big cube that I brought down from Jacksonville, FL.

 I had the opportunity to share the cube to many young children on Sunday morning.  I was amazed how the kids were so very quite and glue to the picture cube that I shared with them.  It was very interesting to see how the kids cope with the cube.  Later after church, the parent and their kids was to meet us at the indoor arena to play some football (soccer) with us.  As I was watching the kids, there were more kids then it was in church that morning. 

 The Lord had told me to give the cube to the pastor and his wife.

The cube had a program in the written Spanish language as well as the English.  This would be a prefect opportunity for them to continue to use the cube for their ministry to the people of Costa Rica and also to the children’s ministry as well.  The pastor wife is also a teacher and this would be a great tool for her too.  She was telling me that she would like to use the cube for the women’s ministry also. 

 I was so happy to hear that and my heart felt at peace knowing that I obeyed God’s instruction to do so.  All of this mission purpose for me being here was to provide a better tool to help their church to grow in understanding the gospel better.  I had the opportunity to be the one to bring the Big Gospel Cube. 

 All praise and glory goes before our Lord!

Dr. Timothy Brown

Sept 4th, 2009 happenings….

Sept 4th, 2009- The day started out at    3:30am in Orlando. With very little sleep and with exhaustion kicking in, we had to strap up all of our gear and  hop on a flight to Atlanta which was not soo bad. After a 2 hour layover in Atlanta we finally started on our way to Costa. Once we landed in Costa everyones attitudes changed from tired and exhausted to strengthened and determined. We landed with a purpose, to go and spread the Lord’s word. The minute we got to the 6:8 ministries house the Lord openned my eyes and showed me the basis of what the church should be. Nothing fancy, just a place of pure worship. No pews, no band, no fancy tv screens, just awesome people of God learning and worshipping the Lord in one place that has been stripped down of what we Americans are use to. As we went out into the village, immediately we saw the need for Jesus. Since this was my first time doing anything like this I started to try to prepare myself physically,
 mentally, and spiritually. As we went through the town of Juan Pablo, I was introduced to so many things that l had heard about but have never actually experienced, for instance, the poverty and the brokenness. This made me think of how blessed I was but at the same time how spoiled and unappreciative of certain things I was. The whole time going from house to house I kept seeing the love of Christ and I didn’t realize it but one of the guys on the trip said “This is what Jesus did, He went amongst the people and loved them and told them the good news”. The love I saw in the kids faces when we did as little as give them a piece of gum was the same love I saw in our team when we went out to different houses and prayed for different needs. The same God that is in the US is the same God that is in Costa Rica and He has shown us that time after time. I am so thankful to be part of a team that the Lord has hand picked to do His work here in Alajuelita. All
 the Glory, Honor, and Praise be to God our Father.

The first day in Costa Rica…

Today was the first day in costa, I was a little scared on the plane but it is ok cuz it was just a bit to fast and a bit to high for me. But everything went fine on the plane ride here. When we first got here we came into where we r going to be staying and we prayed and then had sandwitches. After that we met everyone here and then got ready to do a prayer walk we first stoped at the new celebration church that it two doors down from where we r staying. We took a look around there and took some pics and it was awesome! Then we started down the streets. Our first stop was at a mans house that was very sick and did not have the money for a new bed and his old one has been wearing bed sores into his lower back. But a few weeks ago the church donated money to him and his family to get him a new bed and meds. We went from there to a lady’s house that had two kids and making everything she could to sell to get money to feed her family and the church has been doing everything to help her and one of the things is that have been paying her house payment for over a year now and that is awesome. After that we went to a very poor part of alajuelita, some of the houses were as small as one room and whole familys would live in there and the house was made out of plywood and sheet metal and most of the houses was not concrete floors they were dirt floors. The first hut/ house we stoped at had a fam of 3 kids and one was about 6 and had some kind of disorder and we prayed over him and his fam. Then we went down a few doors andstoped at one of the kids houses that is being sponsered by one of the ppl on the trip. After we prayed for him we went a few more doors down to a small family with two kids and they rent one room about ten by eight feet in size and they have been coming to church and stuff and we prayed over them and thAt the father can get some work because he has been out of work for a while. So we r going to let him come do some work with us at the church and we are going to pay him to try to help him out. The whole time we were there, there was two men that rent out the room for the family they were in there two room house that sits right behind the family and no one at the church has ever talked to them and one of the ppl in 6:8 saw them and went into his house to ask him if he need anything or how he was doing and the two men broke down and was asking us for prayer like crazy! It was so amazing. One of them said that they knew the bible from front to back but has let the devil into his life for a very long time. He has been on the streets for over 7 years. So we prayed super hard for the two men. After that we went and prayed over a new born baby boy that has been born into this kind of life. Then we left there but did not have time to go anywere else because it started to get dark and they told us that we can’t be out past dark. So we went home and had dinner and then went into the chapple for worship and to hear the preacher speak. We had a little group thing after that with just the team and we talked about the day and then we went to bed after an amazing day! God has blessed me in so many was it is unbelievable! I will forever be changed!

Justin Pilkinton

Third times a charm….

This is my third time in a 12 month period coming to Costa Rica. I really get blown away and wrecked by God each time I come so I guess that’s why I keep coming back for more. As soon as we arrived here in Costa Rica it started raining. I was tired from the plane ride and really didn’t want to go on a prayer walk. Of course we did because we are not going to let satan discourage us from going and praying for whoever God had for us to pray for. As we went through the small village of Juan Pablo we saw a kid named Jeremy. Jeremy has Cerebral Palsy. As he ran down his rickety stairs when he saw us with a huge grin on his face, my heart filled with overwhelming compassion for him. I was asked to pray over him and the Holy Spirit just took over. As I got done the Holy Spirit told me to wrap my arms around him and kiss him on the cheek. It was like God letting him know through me that he was unconditionally loved. As we walked through Juan Pablo the Holy Spirit was so strong. We went and prayed for a family that goes to Celebration Costa Rica that is struggling with addictions. As we are there two men came from the back of the small house and we started praying for them. As we started praying for one of the men he hit his knees and started weeping and crying out to God. As we stood in this mans house with dirt floors I realized that this man hadn’t felt a touch from God in so long, God used us to bring that to him as well as hope for the future and his salvation.

This whole trip has been one amazing moment after another. We got to work on Celebration Costa Rica with some renovations needed to expand the church with a feeding ministry. To be the hands and the start of what God is doing in that ministry is truly amazing. I feel so honored that I got to be a part of that.

Today I have the privilege to share my testimony with the church. I look forward to see how God is going to move and use His amazing restoring power to speak to the local Tico’s who may be struggling with the same sin that almost destroyed me. Again I’m so grateful that I was able to go on this trip and let God use me in the way that He has. God is so Great! Blessings from Costa Rica!!

 

Jason Vail 9/6/2009

8:50 a.m.