Answering the Call: Slingshot

The day after the Experience graduation Me and four others (Charlie, Stacey, Branson, and Nathan) made our way from CO to join up with six others (Matt & Chelsea Sroufe, Bailey, Stephen, Trey, & Eric) to do a week long training program called Slingshot ran by Caleb Bislow,  who is a KBM Itinerant speaker, who has his own sub-training program called Unusual Soldiers. Joining me was two KBM staff members (Stacey & Charlie) an experience student (Branson), one guy who went to Africa with me last Aug,st (Nathan), a married couple who did the experience with me two summers ago (the Sroufes), one from last years’ experience team (Eric), and three who did Caleb’s other program Stranded earlier this summer (Stephen,Baliey, & Trey). What is Slingshot?

Like the picture says It is the last stage of Caleb’s training for the few people that have a burden and senses a call to take the hope of Christ to the dark, dangerous, and despised and sometimes distant places around the world. As the week unfolds students will learn how to develop a personal strategy to ignite a disciple-making movement or a humanitarian initiative in their specific region. This conference will also train students with many ideas, cautions, and tips on how to do ministry in a treacherous part of our nation and world. Full Details of this prgram can be found at http://www.unusualsoldiers.com/training/slingshot/index.html.

This wasn’t something I had planned for when I started my summer but throughout this summer God kept prompting me to do this, but I didn’t know if I could or if I would have enough money for it. As the summer drew closer to an end it became more and more evident that I needed to go and one thing after another that was hindering me cleared up allowing me to go, but I was confused a little about what area to focus on, I had two places on my heart. first off I had the this “Albino Island” on my heart, which come to be when I was in African last summer. At the beginning of our time in Africa Caleb mentioned this place that we could visit in Tanzania, this “albino island.”  We were not fully sure if it was an actual place, but something in me wanted to go then and there, I had a heart tug. We never actually went nor did we find out if it was an actually place but when I got back home I couldn’t get it out of my mind so I  began to research and found that it is a real place, Ukerewe Island on Lake Victoria. The more I found out the more my heart broke for this place. The island has the largest Albino population of any other place in the world and they are their because family members would abandon them there because they are seen as worthless, lesser people as well to protect them from witch craft. Witch Doctors would have people go and hack body parts off these albinos to perform these ceremonies for people in hopes of good heath, powers, and blessing on their home and crops. In some sever cases the albinos would be eaten in hopes of super natural powers. This is very similar to what happens to the pygmies in the Congo, but a UFC fighter, Justin Wren who also went with Caleb to Africa and Slingshot and is now living with them to help free them, build water walls, and give them land and a sustainable way of life. His organization is called “Fight for the Forgotten.” So I have this place on my heart but then toward the end of the summer I all of a sudden had this burden for Somalia, which terrified me but also excited me, I know im crazy! The big thing with this was I wasn’t sure if it was God or me because several people this summer including the one experience student, Branson, was going for Somalia and had been talking to me about it. So I had a lot of confusing going into it. The crazy thing was when we were there sharing about the locations that where on our hearts six of us has Somalia as either our first or second place. But with-in the second or third day God spoke to me and told me to wait on Somalia and began to put a big passion and focus on the Ukerewe Island. I think there is a reason why six of us had Somalia on our hearts and im excited to see what the future might hold for that place. It is one of if not the most dangerous places in the world right now, especially for Christians. But the two people that focused primarily on Somalia got a crazy awesome vision for this country to “Redefine the Horn” to change the culture of Somalia and something even crazier is they had a vision and dream that one day the Horn could be a launching pad for missions around the world. If that doesn’t give you goose bumped and send chills down your spine there is something wrong with ya! So I began to dive into the Ukerewe Island and began developing a vision for it. This week consisted of a lot of class room training and teaching along with travel tips, times of worship and prayer, and research on our areas. We were taught about what it looks like to start a discipleship movement, what to do when faced with rebels and in a hostage situation, how to relate to the people we are reaching, how to be “wise and s serpent but innocent as a dove”, we talked about how to come up with a game plan, preparing yourself mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually for whatever you might face, and took simple but big next steps, along with a lot of others stuff. It was an exciting week, mostly just being with like minded people preparing themselves to go all around the world to take it for the kingdom.

For me the Ukerewe Island where I don’t know for sure what I’ll be doing but I know God has called me and possible headed there on a scouting trip next fal or winter after i graduated college. Then there is Bailey, 19 years old, who wants to move to Romania and start a movement to end the sex trade once and for all across the world. Then you have Charlie and Nathan, who will be traveling to Tanzania in October for 3 months to the Hadzabi tribe, the last hunter gather tribe in the area, to start a discipleship movement among the tribe. Charlie has already been there on a scouting trip and saw God begin to changing lives there. Then you have Stacey who has a passion for India and wants to work with rescued girls from the sex trafficking industry and Matt and Chelsea Sroufe who have a passion for Dadaab In Kenya to help with the Somalian refugees, who have fled their country that need a lot of medical attention along with a lot of other needs. Then you have Eric who has a passion for outdoor ministry and wanted to disciple people using the outdoors. He doesn’t quiet know what the next steps are but knows God has some big things in-store for him in this. To Branson and Tray who wants to begin a movement in Somalia, the most dangerous place in the world, to change the culture of the horn and Stephan who has a passion for videography and wants to travel to and with others to capture the stories and mission of what people are trying to do. to help share and spread the mission and maybe even inspire a few others to go and do the same. What a crazy group of radical world changers, Unusual Soldiers.

Top L-R: Stacey (India), Branson (Somalia), Me (Tanzania) Bot L-R: Bailey (Romania), Stephen (everywhere), Chelsea & Matt ‘Purple shirt’ (Dadaab), Nathan (Tanzania), Trey (Somalia), Charlie (Tanzania), Eric (MI or somewhere outdoors)

  UKEREWE ISLAND

This concludes my blog post about the summer. thank you again for joining me this summer and being apart of this incredible journey whether that was supporting me through money to help me get out here or praying for me or writing me note or just reading me blog. You all had a part in this summer and all had a part of this Kingdom movement this summer through so many  young people including myself. I can thank you enough not a single penny wen to waste!

THANKS,

Relentless Warrior 

a small town in CO that we stopped by on our way to Slingshot full of Somalian Refugees