Last week my squad spent a week together in Instanbul, Turkey to debrief the time spent in Albania and the entirety of first half of the race. During debrief I got to spend time with other squad mates I haven’t seen in awhile and catch up with leadership over 1 on 1 coffee dates. We also spent time learning about Islam.
Here are a video I made of a few of my friends sharing testimonies of how they have changed or been made new over the past 6 months.
We are beginning month 7/11 & country 4/6! My team SDR (Stop Drop & Roll) has settled in a small town called Avanos which is a part of a larger area called Cappadocia located in the central part of the country.
We will be spending the next four weeks serving with the local church in various ways. Here I will give a brief description of a week in our lives doing ministry:
Tuesdays and Wednesdays will be likely be spent building relationships with locals, working on learning Turkish, studying the Bible, and working on other ways to support the church. Knowing a few Turkish words has already given us opportunity to earn respect and show the locals that we honor them. My go to words are Merhaba (hello), Güle güle (goodbye), & Teşekkürler (thank you).
On Thursdays, we will be doing home visits with families impacted by the earthquake. Many families have moved to this area to escape the devastation.
On Fridays, we will clean the church and prepare for service on Sundays.
On Saturdays, we will likely be spending our time exploring the area or spending time with believers in the church.
On Sundays, we will serve at church in the children’s ministry, lead worship, and share testimonies. I am excited for great fellowship following each church service.
On Mondays, my team will sabbath.
I wanted to share with you about Turkey through photos in hopes that you will learn about the culture and area we are serving. I am learning every. single. day.
Prayer Requests:
• The rest of P squad living in various areas in Turkey- safety & wisdom
• My Muslim brothers and sisters who have yet to know the one true living God
• My team to be established and rooted in the word so that we will be living in the overflow
• People impacted by the earthquake
• The local church- strength in their faith in a country where they face judgement & persecution
Be well. Love well.
Mags
Thank you for your ministry—being the face and hands of Christ.