Last Mother’s Day weekend, eleven courageous members of Pendleton Christian Church left the security of their small town in central Indiana to minister to the children of Epworth Park, a ravaged community in the country of Zimbabwe.
The dream began in April, 2007 when the Kuyasa Kids, an ambassador children’s choir from Horizon, conducted a concert at the church on its annual tour of the United States. That Sunday, 64 kids from Epworth Park were sponsored.
Soon, a number of those who had sponsored children decided to travel to Zimbabwe to meet them.
Over the next year, the group raised their financial support, prayed, fasted, packed their bags, and said their goodbyes.
“The missions team,” Connie Cookman said, “allowed the whole church to join in their ministry by providing supplies for the children in Epworth and establishing prayer partnerships and financial support.”
The team had planned on ministering to 500 Epworth Park children in a Vacation Bible School format. However, that number soon swelled to 2,000 children and 400 women.
And everyone on the trip succeeded in meeting their sponsored children.
Shirley Leonard, a group member said, “Meeting my own sponsored children Collins and Panashe filled my heart with love and compassion….Their smiles and hugs made the trip worthwhile.”
Joy Rotell, another member of the team, stated, “Meeting Pamela and being able to hug and love on her was the second greatest moment of my life; the first was adopting my son.”
The Pendleton Christian team grew close together while in Zimbabwe, and their stories and experiences have strengthened the entire church.
If you would like your church to sponsor a GO Team trip to Africa, contact Doug Ehrgott, Horizon’s Global Team Builder, by calling (765) 778-1016.
You and your entire church will be blessed if you do. Just ask the members of the Pendleton Christian Church!
