Introduction

On the hot summer day of April 13th, our youths traveled for more than three hours traversing the landscape of Nepal all the way from Kathmandu to Kurintar, Darechok, Chitwan and others joined from Dhulikhel, Thali, and Banasthali. All of us were exhausted and tired physically and mentally so our hosts prepared a hot lunch for all of us (the lunch consisted of fish, rice, dal, and achar). As our bellies were filled now it was time for spiritual enrichment. So, we had a great time of worship that helped us to forget our tiresome journey to the venue. Our preacher for the day was Brother Sandy. He spoke on the title “Our Identity in Christ”, in which he explained our identity in Christ. After that, we all were separated into four groups: Team Abraham, Team David, Team Joseph, and Team Daniel. After that, we had snack time which consisted of chat-pate (puff rice mixed with boiled potato, spices, lemon, salt, etc.) With that, we had been given a mission to conduct a play/ skit on the basis of our team’s name. After that, the time for dinner had finally arrived. For dinner, we had a large bonfire as well as barbeque chicken, buff, and pork. As well as a fire dance party. After that, we said our goodnight and headed in for the night.

Day 2

On day two, early in the morning, we woke up to an hour of self-reading the bible and self-reflecting and after that, we had two hours of recreation which included football, volleyball, and badminton. After that, we had our second session, in which the owner of the resort Pastor Andrew Lama, delivered the preaching. He preached about how we must have the super important 3Ds (which are dedication, devotion, and discipline) in our life as Christian youths. To help us use the 3Ds practically the four teams Abraham, David, Joseph, and Daniel went head to head with each other in three different games which needed the teams to have coordination, speed, strength, and spirit. In the end, team Abraham won three of the four categories, including the play or skit.

Closing Ceremony:

After games were played, we had the last session with lots of exciting gifts and votes of thanks to all. And the final keynote with challenges and remarks was given by EFC Nepal Chairperson Rev. Dhan Bahadur Thapa (Amen). All four teams turned clockwise raising hands towards another team, we prayed for each other, for our churches, youths, and our nation as well. Then we had our lunch and farewell prayer and left for our buses and returned to our homes.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the physical journey was tough, and the spiritual journey was even tougher but thanks to the pastors and preachers we were able to get the tools to conquer the challenges that may come in our life. In the end, we got more than we hoped for. We are thankful and grateful to all the organizers, prayer partners, and supporters.

If you would like to support the ministry of EFC-Nepal, you can:

• Give online aquí. Please make sure to select “Ministry Partner: EFC Nepal”.
• Give by credit card over the phone at 303-421-8100.
• Mail a check marked with EFC-Nepal designation to EFM, PO Box 771139, Wichita, KS 67277.

The post EFC-Nepal Youth Camp Report first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

Happy New Year from Ireland!

I can’t believe it’s been over four months since I last wrote. As I ended 2022 here in Ireland, I reflected on the new opportunities given to me and the unexpected blessings. I am happy to have an amazing church family at Church of the Nazarene Greystones. I am happy to have colleagues whom I call friends that I work with each day. I am happy to have a warm and safe home to retreat to each day. I am happy to have each of you coming alongside me in prayer and other generous offerings. Here are some fun new things that happened in the last few months.

Since I arrived in Ireland, I have been working from my attic office in my house. After we moved our rapidly growing children’s ministry into some bigger portable classrooms, I was able to move into the old nursery room. All three of us on staff, Luke, Tim, and I, are working in the same building now! A big part of my job as administrative pastor is facility management and it was getting harder to manage that facility from my attic. Also, it is so nice for all three of us to be together in the building each day as we lead the church body.

At the beginning of September, I traveled up north to Dundalk, finally! A student from one of my APU short-term teams was visiting Ireland and made a stop in Dundalk to visit the church we worked with. I got to go up for the weekend and reconnect with old friends in Dundalk. We had a group of Michiganders come from Luke’s home church to bless us in early October. They helped us move into those portable classrooms by building an enormous amount of Ikea furniture for us. It was so fun to have Americans here, it made me miss all of my own Americans. My first non-family visitors, Cathy and Aaron Yue, came at the end of September. We have been blessed to have some new community groups using our building beginning in the fall. It’s a blast to share our resources with the community. Part of my ministry is facilitating these outside groups and it is a pleasure to welcome all different kinds of groups into our home.

Dani, Molly, Grace, and Lorraine in Dundalk

Molly and Cathy Yue at the Ivy in Dublin

Molly and a dozen Michiganders in Dublin

At the beginning of December, I was able to travel to Thailand for the EFM Worldwide Missionary Gathering. It was such a nice respite from Ireland for a little while. I had the best time getting to know other global workers that I only ever read about in prayer updates. It was especially sweet to catch up with Elise Paty, another single female worker who is now a part of the EFM family. Returning home, saw me finally getting COVID-19. I had to sit out most of the Naz’s Christmas festivities, but I was well enough and testing negative to be with my church family on Christmas. On January 1, I had the blessing of preaching for my church body again about something both EFM and myself are enthusiastic about: the specific equipping and gifting of each believer.

As I look forward to my second year in Ireland, I look back at a year that God was so present in my life and the life of those we serve here in Greystone. God has richly blessed me. God has also taught me about the beauty of his grace which is a lesson this closet perfectionist could be learning for the rest of her life. As I look forward, I am blessed by the provision of God and his people that support my ministry here in Greystone through prayer and generous giving.

All my love and prayers,

Molly

Elise Paty, Chelsea Carpenter, and Molly in Thailand

Molly’s Christmas tree!

Praises:

• I am really happy with how my sermon went last Sunday. I am looking forward to preaching more often.
• Thailand was amazing and such a blessing. Thank you to EFM for the provision and facilitation of that trip.
• My lease was renewed without question, so I get to stay in my house where I have made a genuinely nice home for myself.
• I was welcomed into the family of the Stephens for Christmas, and it was an absolute treat! Chatting with my family that evening was wonderful as well.

Requests:

• I have put myself on the preaching calendar more often, please pray that preaching and sermon prep get less stressful the more I get to do it.
• We are starting a new book study in our small groups next week called “How to Pray” by Pete Greig. Pray for openness and good discussion in those three small groups.
• I have begun the process of getting an Irish Driving License, please pray for the logistics and favor with the government and my memory of proper driving from 23 years ago to return.

The post Molly Morton’s January 2023 Update first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

The post EFC Nepal October-December 2021 Ministry Report first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.