I never cease to be amazed by God’s goodness and faithfulness in my life. This missions trip was so different for me than many of the others due to two big things. Frist, my mom and sister were able to accompany me on this trip, and second I was able to shadow and learn the team operations coordinator role. Looking back to who I was when I took my very first trip with MMO in January of 2023, I would’ve never imagined that in March of 2024 I would be taking my mom and sister with me on a trip and be training to take a leadership position on the trips the Lord allows me to take in the future. A big prayer I had before going on this trip was that our bags and medical supplies would all come in and that the Lord would sustain me physically since I am still recovering from ACL surgery. I told my family and friends that if all our supplies and bags came it would be the very first trip I have traveled with MMO that they would have come in on time. God graciously answered my prayer with a swift entrance into Kenya with all 51 team member’s bags and medical bags intact and accounted for.

I specifically had the opportunity to train for the team operations coordinator role during our trip. I was in charge of triage as well as a resource person for any questions or problems that would arise in the clinic as a whole. I was humbled with the reminder of how important teamwork is while also convicted to make sure that the tasks and flow of clinic never deviated from the priority --- people and their need to hear/see Jesus as their Savior. We were blessed to partner with Mount Kenya Baptist Church during our trip. It was a blessing to worship together in song and Bible reading on Sunday as well as partner with church members throughout the week to spread the gospel to people from all over the Nanyuki and Nairobi area. Many people came to the clinic from far away and waited for hours just to be seen by one of our providers or be fitted for a pair of glasses. The patience and desperation of many of the people is always so convicting to me as I am temped daily to become impatient or ungrateful. When faced with people who have so little and yet are content, I am always reminded of how abundantly blessed and spoiled I am.

The Lord gave me several opportunities during this trip to see Him at work. I will share just a few of those scenarios below. Day 1 of clinic I was reminded that God hears our simple prayers. One of our team members is a women's health NP and she had specifically prayed to see more female than male patients. The Lord loudly answered her prayers by sending an entire women's health mobile clinic truck. She was able to perform pap smears, cancer screenings, and ultrasounds to countless women in need. Day 2 of clinic God’s faithfulness was displayed as He allowed us to help a severely dehrydrated man to be rushed to the local hospital in enough time to save his life. He showed up to us vomitting with a blood pressure of 60/40 and within two days he was home with his family living a normal life. Day 3 of clinic the Lord allowed me to use my nursing skills to help triage and lab while the lines got backed up. Finally, day 4 of clinic the Lord answered my heart’s desire of connecting with patients through blowing bubbles with the little children while the adults stood by and laughed at all of our antics.

The Lord allowed our team of 51 to see 2,375 patients in one week and touch that many souls with the love and joy of Jesus Christ. The Lord allowed me to see and feel His strength flow through me as I was physically weak and yet He sustained me daily. Finally, the Lord graciously answered so many of my heart’s desires and prayers. Doing medical missions and sharing that experience with family and fellow believers has been a life-long dream that the Lord has graciously allowed me to live out thanks to my job, generous people, and awesome organizations such as Upward Twist. I cannot thank people enough for the prayers, encouragement, and financial support that has allowed me to be the hands and feet of Jesus to hundreds across the globe as well as right here in America. I hope you all enjoy some of the pictures below that will put faces to some of these real people, with real feelings, and real souls that you all graciously impacted in Nanyuki, Kenya. As they say in Swahili “asante sana” (Thank you very much)!