When I was sixteen years old, I really sensed the Lord leading me to Africa to make disciples for Him. I was not sure where to go, the timing of it, or why He was leading me there. In my head, I figured the Lord was calling me to live my entire life in Africa after college, not just go on short term trips. Finally, the Lord provided a way for me to go to Kenya when I was eighteen years old. The Lord gave me a deep passion for the people of Africa. I told all my close friends and family that I was going to be a full time missionary in Africa, and to be prepared that I was not going to have...

The struggle just gets harder and harder. God just keeps pushing me in ways I never thought he would. He has changed my life forever. I can never stop thinking about him. I’m always praying. Just always want to share his word. If you don’t know me here’s a little before Africa story. My name is Jackson Jacobs aka jack Im 19 and live in Sheffield Ohio. About 5 months ago I caught myself broken and depressed. Working a job I hate, not in college, trying to find happiness in drinking partying and girls, but yet just feeling so unhappy and like a complete loser. Then, next...

We have settled in to our ministry here in Swaziland and begin working with El Shaddai orphanage. The team is incredible. Their openness to doing life here is exceptional. They embrace community living, and embrace the culture and all the “uncomfortable” that comes with living the life as a missionary. That’s no easy task, but as they will tell you even when it comes to shoveling pig poop all morning to use as fertilizer for a garden, they are all willing to get their hands dirty to stretch themselves and grow during this season of their lives. Our ministry is...

As I begin my last month here, the word “home” has run across my mind more and more. And the question usually accompanying that word is, “Am I ready to go home to the States?” It’s not necessarily a question of, “Am I ready to return to my family or my job or my life?” I ask that question more because I am wondering if I have sufficiently and fully completed what I was meant to do here. But here’s the thing. It’s been two months. The first month I spent juggling multiple doubts, but they were hopeful doubts. Those doubts were the initial...

Every time change happens I leave something behind. That is how change works. You leave a place that made you comfortable, made you safe. You leave friends, familiar conversations, people you trust, people you play with, and people you love. You leave what you know which even, to some extent, includes leaving a part of yourself. When you leave a place, you leave a place that grew you, a place where influential conversations and memories happened that make your soul rich and satisfied. But they say the hardest part about moving away is not necessarily the leaving, it is the staying. When you...

Greetings from Swaziland!   We arrived here in Nsoko five days ago and so far we’re loving every minute of it! Ministry doesn’t start here until tomorrow (February 2nd), but everyone has been diving right into loving on the kids here and getting to know the community.   This is a very safe place that we live in; we’re staying at a place called The Anchor Center which is a community center that has a medical clinic, a preschool, a church, community garden, a care point, a soccer field, and our team house. At the care point they provide one meal a day for kids...