Reflections

Global Mission Fellow Trobby Kandala, from Zambia, describes his role as an environmental advocate in Sierra Leone.

As we gathered as one body, inspired by Ephesians 4:4, we shared our triumphs and struggles, our hopes and disappointments, our joys and our frustrations.

Christmas celebrates, and mission shares – through the birth of Jesus Christ - the presence of God’s constant love in a world of uncertainties.

When I reached Montevideo, Uruguay, to begin missionary service as a Global Mission Fellow, I thought I would be working with youth and children. But the first place church leaders assigned me was Espacio VAR, which operates a shelter for people who have no permanent homes.

One of the greatest necessities and challenges for Christians is to genuinely love those whom we serve, especially those whom we do not know.

By God’s grace, I have settled into my new position as Community Outreach Coordinator with Gulfside Assembly of Waveland, Mississippi, and I absolutely love it. I am surrounded by the best of the best who have helped with my transition.

Jonathan, a physically challenged maintenance worker at the hospital, often catches a lift with me after work. In appreciation, Jonathan says, “May God give you long life.” He is slow at walking to the vehicle and in getting in and out.

When I received an email confirming my selection as a missionary to serve in Mozambique, I couldn’t believe it. When I arrived, I faced different challenges, including language, since I come from an English-speaking country.

As a United Methodist clergy member from the Philippines, my missionary assignment is to serve the “coldest capital city in the world,” Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. 

As a Global Mission Fellow US-2, I moved from my small town in Arkansas to Miami to serve as the Fundraising and Outreach Coordinator for Florida Justice for Our Neighbors, a nonprofit that provides free, high-quality immigration legal services to low-income immigrants throughout the state of Florida.

Roland Fernandes challenged Global Ministries’ directors to hold fast to God’s grace in a report delivered at their semiannual meeting, May 11-12.

Although people in Western nations generally think of bread and wine as the elements served at the Last Supper, Christians around the world may relate to other elements. The Rev. Claudia Genung-Yamamoto, a missionary in Kobe, Japan, offers a Maundy Thursday devotion.