June Campaign: Building Bridges, Reaching Nations

*Certain names have been changed for security reasons.

I’m so grateful to be a part of a global family that is eagerly embracing God’s mission in today’s world. Because you play a role in that collaborative effort, I’d like to share a unique example of how we see that happening, and give you an opportunity to join in.

In a recent conversation with Stephen Humber, my Multiply co-worker in the US, we talked about the bridge that God is building between America’s Midwest and Sub-Saharan Africa. In many ways, it’s an unlikely global connection.

“Those two parts of the world seem so far apart,” Stephen said, “but during the past several years God has linked them together in ways that are having a huge impact.”

Several years ago, God called Travis Jost, a young man from Kansas, to move to Sub-Saharan Africa where he would partner with local churches to see the nation of Burundi reached with the love of Jesus. In some ways, it seemed random. But God was up to something. He brought different churches together throughout the Midwest to get behind Travis and to support Multiply’s work in Africa. In the process, many people sensed that God was doing something bigger, creating a connection that would involve many more lives. They envisioned a global bridge.

Some of you have asked me what mission looks like today for the global MB family. This is what it looks like—people coming together, as sending churches, mobilized workers, and national partners, for the purpose of reaching a nation with the Gospel.

Stephen also recalled that, around the time that Travis was mobilized, a relationship was growing between several Midwest churches and a couple named Youssef and Reyna. Youssef was originally from Africa where he grew up as a devout Muslim, but he came to the US to study agri-business and miraculously met Jesus. Eventually, he and his wife Reyna returned to Africa with a strong sense of calling to bring the Gospel to Youssef’s homeland and to introduce his people to the person of Jesus. 

When they returned to Africa, Youssef and Reyna went with the prayer and financial support of a variety of churches in the US Midwest. One of those was an MB church in Enid, Oklahoma. As these churches continued to invest in the work of the Gospel through the faithfulness of Youssef and Reyna, the global bridge was strengthened and the work in Africa flourished. Today, the Gospel is having an impact as God continues to open doors in many peoples’ lives.

Again, I love how God gathered a diverse team of people and churches together in order to collaborate on a specific mission assignment—in this case, for the sake of the Gospel in Youssef’s home country. The bridge that God was building was facilitating more and more traffic for greater mission impact.

In 2016, Enid MB sent a team to visit Youssef and Reyna in order to offer assistance and encouragement.  

“The team from Enid invited a few people from Buhler MB to join them on the trip, including a young man from Kansas named Kai,” Stephen recalled. “For Kai, that trip was a life-changer.”

While in Africa, Kai saw a broader picture of how God could use his practical skills to support Youssef and Reyna’s ministry. The following year, he and his wife, Denisa, made a long-term commitment to serve in Youssef’s homeland. In 2019, the couple was mobilized, and they have been working closely with Youssef and Reyna ever since.   

Stephen also reminded me that Denisa had previously served in Multiply’s Midwest office as a Short-Term Mission Coordinator, mobilizing teams into global mission and facilitating discipleship-in-mission training. Both her and Kai had earlier been a part of the TREK program.

Incidentally, while Kai and Denisa were serving in Africa, the TREK program was moved from BC, Canada, to Kansas. When those leading the program began to discuss possible international assignment locations, Sub-Saharan Africa again came into view.

The bridge was ready for more traffic.

Early in 2021, in the midst of a global pandemic and growing political instability, two TREK teams were mobilized to Sub-Saharan Africa: one team hosted by Travis Jost and his ministry partners, and another team hosted by Kai and Denisa in Youssef’s home country.

Just a few weeks ago, Stephen visited Kai and Denisa in Africa to encourage the ministry partnership and see how the TREK team was doing. He was impressed with the strong connection that was developing between the young adults and their local partners. As the national co-host, Youssef was thrilled and told Stephen how worthwhile he felt it was to invest in the lives of the five TREK participants.

Stephen said, “When I took the five of them aside and asked how many of them could see themselves returning to Africa, all their hands went up!”

Everyone benefits in this scenario as God builds bridges between nations and partnerships are developed for the sake of the Gospel. Not only are the nations introduced to the saving knowledge of Jesus as we live and work on mission together, but the people and churches that are involved in sending workers also receive the gift of revitalized faith and a renewed sense of mission.

To aid in these collaborative efforts, I want to invite you to partner with us by contributing to our campaign goal of $75,000 by the end of June. Your gifts will go toward facilitating even more international partnerships like this one that bring the Gospel to the nations.