God Is Doing Something
Hey friends, This month has been interesting because it’s the month of Ramadan and many of our Muslim friends and neighbors are practicing Ramadan. For those of you who may not be familiar with Ramadan, it is one of the five pillars of Islam and a time when Muslims fast from both food and water from sunrise to sunset. When Ramadan begins and ends depends on the position of the moon. This year Ramadan falls from about May 5th-June 4th. The reasons why our neighbors practice Ramadan are numerous and range from wanting to please Allah to doing it because everyone else is. This is first time I’ve… Read more >>
Speaking Volumes (Even Without Saying A Word)
Hi Friends, This last month I had a chance to spend time with some of my Rohingya refugee friends by going to one of their friend’s homes for dinner. Here’s how it happened and what I learned: I was on my way to visit a Rohingya friend who I make a point to see every week. As I was approaching her house, I realized two of my other Rohingya friends were also there. They excitedly told me they were going to another friend’s house for a party, and without skipping a beat they asked me to go with them. Sporadic invitations like these aren’t uncommon with our refugee friends, so I decided to join… Read more >>
From The Other Side Of The Table
Hey Friends! A special opportunity I had this month was going to my college Biola University and representing GoTEN with my fellow teammate at Biola’s Missions Conference. I was so grateful to go back because many significant moments that eventually led me to GoTEN happened at Biola. Missions Conference was also one of my most favorite times, so it was really cool to be there and share about a ministry I love so much with students and faculty. As me and my teammate were at our ministry booth talking with people, I often got asked, “What’s it like to be on the other side of Missions Conference… Read more >>
Take A Breath
Sometimes in ministry it’s tricky to remove yourself from work in order to recharge. This is especially the case for our ministry team because where we work is also the apartment complex we live in. The needs of our refugee friends and the logistics of ministry constantly surround us, and it can often feel like we are on-call 24/7. Therefore, it takes a lot of discipline for us to separate ourselves from our work and recharge physically, mentally, and spiritually. Often it requires us to leave 19 Apartments for a few hours and go somewhere else to rest or do something else not related to our… Read more >>