Emmanuel is proud to support the missionary work of Rachel VanGent who serves in Zambia, Africa as a head teacher at The Esther School.  Their mission is:

to provide a holistic, Christian education  that develops the passion and skills students need to become servant leaders in the Kingdom of God.

 

 

 

In June 2017 a group of Emmanuel staff and members visited the school to help run a camp for the students.  Another group will be returning to help the school in March of this year.

 

This post is the third of a series of stories we will share about the June 2017 trip. Perhaps in these words and pictures you will find yourself considering a call to join us in the upcoming March trip.  If finances are a barrier, some assistance may be available. For more information please email hello@emmanuelto.org to get connected, or talk with Dan VanGent or Carol O’Keefe directly. Additionally, we will be collecting gently used shoes and clothing to bring on the trip so please start looking though your closets!

Check out the other posts in the series:

“Why Go to Zambia” by Debbie Barber
“Exploring Purpose in Zambia” by Kate Paulis
“God Has Given Me a Love For Africa” by Carol O’Keefe

“Why I am Going to Zambia” by Danny Chulack

 

 

I am so excited to have the opportunity to join a team visiting the Esther School in March.

 

After our pastor Craig initially brought it up to me, and I talked to other people going on the trip, I started to seriously consider going. When I made up my mind, though, I began to think through exactly why I wanted to go in the first place. Was it because I wanted to travel to Africa? Was it because I could fulfill a requirement for school? I really wanted to make sure I wasn’t going for the wrong reasons.

 

I started thinking back to the first time I became aware of the Esther school.

 

I was in high school, and I came to hear Rachel Van Gent speak about what was happening at a school she worked at in rural Zambia. I don’t remember exactly what I knew about the school going into the night (I wasn’t sure if I could even place Zambia on a map), but I remember being amazed by Rachel’s commitment to serving Jesus in Zambia by loving her students well. Since then I would continue to see updates from Rachel’s blog, and hear about the school from her parents, Tina and Dan, of course. I’ve been aware of the school for a few years now, so it’s strange to think I’ll actually be visiting it.

 

I recently met up with some friends of mine and told them about how I was planning on going to Zambia in March.

 

They were both immediately confused and perplexed, which is understandable as I told them I would be traveling to Africa without any other context. But as I continued to explain why I was going, I quickly realized my explanation didn’t make anything clearer. I sensed they both had a certain understanding of what a “short-term mission trip” was, and it was anything but positive. Even though I tried to explain the difference between good and bad mission trips, and how this trip was going to be different, I’m not sure they were convinced.

 

I completely understand their sentiment.

 

As someone who has gone on several short term trips while growing up in this church, I have seen both the good and the bad with visiting people for a short time.

 

Most of the time we would try to really help the community we were visiting, but we often questioned whether or not we were actually just being a burden. Almost every time I can think of where we were questionable in our actions, it was because we didn’t listen to what our hosts actually needed, or there was some sort of miscommunication.

 

Yet, when we humbly asked our hosts what they wanted us to help with, and listened well, it was a beneficial trip for everyone involved.

 

When we go to Mexico with the youth group, we volunteer at an orphanage for people who are differently abled. We help cook in the kitchen, participate in manual labor, and care for the people who live there.

 

We don’t assume that we know better than the people who live there, and instead seek to listen, learn, and grow from the guidance of our hosts.

 

Every time we’ve gone to this orphanage in particular, it has been an incredibly formative time for our group.

 

All of this influenced my attitude about the Zambia trip.

 

As someone belonging to a church that has a relationship with the Esther School, I personally want to go to learn how we can better serve the school and the community there. For me, I really am hoping to be someone who listens to the teachers & students I meet. I want to be attentive to the actual needs of the community, rather than assuming I know what’s best. Most of all I want to be able to come home afterward and share with the rest of Emmanuel how we can better serve the Esther School from right here in Thousand Oaks.