Dear friends, thank you for your constant support and prayer as I seek to follow Jesus’ call and to bear witness to him among both Muslims and Christians. I led a Learning Journey Team to Palestine and Israel from May 19 to 31 in response to an invitation from Palestinian Christians to “Come and See—Go and Tell.” In the process, we met with no less than 60 people of all backgrounds and faith commitments. We listened to people tell their amazing stories; stories of good and evil, of pain and suffering, but also of healing. We spent time in both Palestine and Israel. We walked in the places Jesus walked, but we focused on the Living Stones, the modern people of the land. The volume of information, the number of stories, the immense pain of the places and people we visited leave us in a place of struggle: how do we make sense of what we learned?
In Matthew 25, Jesus says, “If you do it the least of these, you do it to me.” We went to visit Palestinians, because most are not allowed to travel. In the parable, Jesus commands us to visit those in prison and we understood our going to be in obedience to that command. The living situation of most Palestinians is so restricted, and they are under such great pressure (from the Israeli occupation) that it is akin to being in a giant prison. We met with many people from many different faiths and life situations. We were especially blessed to connect with Palestinian Christ-followers who expressed, in the midst of great difficulties, hope in the resurrection.
Taybeh is a Christian village in Palestine that frequently appears in world news because of violent attacks from Israeli settlers. Our group prayed with Father Bashar by singing, “Lord listen to your people praying.” One tangible outcome of the trip is an agreement to formalize a partnership with Musalaha (Arabic word for reconciliation) to begin sending Christian-Muslim Relations Team interns to serve in Bethlehem for up to three months. Our group called the evening we spent with the Musalaha Muslim-Christian young adults group the highlight of the trip!
“Come & See” is a roughly seven-minute video report of our trip. The film was created for learning journey team members to use when they report back to their home congregations and families about their trip. It’s about our journey, not a comprehensive telling of the situation in Palestine.
Discipling and training other Kingdom workers is an important part of my work. The learning journey team included four young adults between 25 to 29. The days were long and full of traumatic stories and unbearable suffering. We ended each day with a debriefing time where everyone had a chance to share and concluded with prayer.
Not long after returning from Palestine, I led a training session for new EMM long-term workers, new staff and summer program staff. I taught about incarnational ministry, about language and culture learning, and on proximity and presence. We met outdoors under a shade tree. I wore clothing from Senegal and prepared tea on a charcoal fire. At the end I received one of the best compliments ever on my teaching. A man said, “This was the first time I’ve ever experienced where time stood still.”
Mennonite Disaster Service Collaborates with Islamic Relief USA in North Carolina
Over the past six months, I had the privilege of working as a consultant for Mennonite Disaster Service as they partnered with Islamic Relief USA. Islamic Relief initiated the relationship by asking if Mennonite Disaster Service would help them learn how to use volunteers in disaster relief work. My part was to work with MDS leadership as they communicated with their network about this new initiative. Muslims and Christians from both organizations worked together on a bridge-building project in an area ravaged by floods following Hurricane Helene in North Carolina.
