Letters of Ladyhood
[Meet the cover girls!]
When discussing possible candidates to feature as our covergirls, a dynamic duo
immediately popped into my mind. Kenya-Nicole (the spunky blonde chick who's rocking the "vintage missionary glam" look) went on her first mission trip when she was sixteen months old. As a pastor's daughter and MFK [mission field kid], the girl has some experience when it comes to hopping on and off planes.
"Obviously, I don't remember it," Kenya recalls her first trip to the Philippines, "but my mother has told me numerous stories about my first journey. I was never a crier, but I guess I cried 3 hours straight on the flight. I quickly adapted to Filipino life however! According to my mom, I was the big shot and had an entourage of kids who pushed my stroller, held my hand on either side and followed me everywhere. Then at the House of God, my dad let me roam the aisles while he preached, and everyone tried to pull me in so I could sit on their lap. I was carried on the shoulders of some of the men when we went out into the bush country, as it was cobra season.
Overall, my mom said I did amazingly and loved everyone. Since that time, I have returned to the Philippines 17 times. Oh and by the way, I don't cry anymore on the plane!" she laughs.
Her sweet and sassy best friend Melody, is also a seasoned missionary. Although, her first trip wasn't until age eighteen.
"The group I went with from my church [to the Philippines] was mostly people around my age. They were all people that I had grown up with and I love, which was lots of fun. We had about 12 of us in our group. A few had already been there, but for the others, such as myself, it was our first time.
Even though I had heard so much about the land and people I was going to be visiting, from the others who had gone before me, I still wasn't sure what to expect. I had seen pictures and heard stories, but actually seeing and experiencing things for myself was a whole new ballgame.
As soon as we arrived we were welcomed by the missionary families that had been sent from our church back home to live and serve the people there. They had sacrificed their comfortable lives in America to move to another country and live a simple life in order to help others. Everyone we met, even the missionary families, were so thankful for the little they had. It was humbling to see the lack they lived in. They were always smiling though. They never complained. Their limited resources never stopped them from giving. They lived by faith, all of them.
We bonded with the youth group there and had time, not only around the Word of God which was our main purpose, but also had time to just go have fun with them and do things they might not always get the opportunity to do. It was also cool to see how, even though we all have different backgrounds and lives, we are all still children of God and had that connection.
While we were there, we visited different islands and churches we have in the Philippines. We traveled by way of trucks, vans, jeepneys, tricycles, and boats. We were able to preach the Word of God in small bamboo huts built and crafted by hand, one of which was right off the shore of a small, poor village. After sharing, we passed out rice, toothbrushes and toothpaste to all that came.
The people we met were thankful and blessed that we took the time and effort to come see them and give what we could. Overall, it was a wonderful experience that I will never forget."
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