2020 ICS

Closing thoughts about the 2020 ICS trip: Keegan: I learned so much on this trip not only about myself, but my relationship with God. It has been absolutely incredible to experience other cultures, and their ways of worshiping, and praising God. I met so many different people from so many different backgrounds. It was amazing to go on this trip with our wonderful leaders, and all of my other teammates. Cosette:  This trip was an incredible experience. I loved having the opportunity to teach English (in Thailand) and it really solidified my desire to do this as a full-time job after graduation. I loved making friends overseas and I’m ready to go back anytime!  Celiena: Having the opportunity to come overseas has been such a blessing. I have learned to put my trust in God even through some difficult situations. I have also been able to see God work in miraculous ways through some of the people I have gotten to meet. Thank you for all the support! Krista:...

Laura & Natalie here :) We arrived in Tokyo last Thursday and we have been loving every moment in this enormous city  From the people to the food, this city is always keeping us on our toes. Our team can be heard from miles away as we disrupt the peace of the beautiful city with our chaos. However, we’ve used this chaos to our advantage while working with several of the adorable children that live in this city. We have sung, danced and fed children crazy amounts of sugar while loving every moment of ministry. When we weren’t doing ministry, a crazy hunt for the perfect chopsticks kept us busy. One thing we didn’t see coming, was a ride on a pirate ship around Mt. Fuji as it rumbled, causing us to all think it was going to erupt! Overall, this trip has challenged us but blessed us with new friends and experiences that we will never be able to replicate. Every day we are shocked as we learn to live life together in a new culture. As this trip comes to an end, we are prepa...

Hi everyone!  This is Hannah Pearson, with (very) warm greetings from the Philippine Island of Cebu! After a graveyard flight on Thursday night, we arrived to Cebu City early last Friday morning, with a full day’s schedule ahead of us. By the day’s end, we were all completely wiped. The next few days continued to feel a little hectic, partially due to our schedules, but also due to our exhaustion, our mixed emotions of leaving Thailand, and general confusion over expectations for our time here. For me, I had a tough time the first couple of days here, just because everything we were doing felt random and disconnected. We didn’t have any context for our ministry activities, which made it difficult to be motivated or excited about what we were doing. But then I had the opportunity to have a conversation with Gay, the wife of Pastor Rainer Tong. This couple has been our hosts while we’ve been here in the Philippines, directing, guiding, and leading us every step of the way. Wh...

Laura & Natalie here :) We arrived in Tokyo last Thursday and we have been loving every moment in this enormous city  From the people to the food, this city is always keeping us on our toes. Our team can be heard from miles away as we disrupt the peace of the beautiful city with our chaos. However, we’ve used this chaos to our advantage while working with several of the adorable children that live in this city. We have sung, danced and fed children crazy amounts of sugar while loving every moment of ministry. When we weren’t doing ministry, a crazy hunt for the perfect chopsticks kept us busy. One thing we didn’t see coming, was a ride on a pirate ship around Mt. Fuji as it rumbled, causing us to all think it was going to erupt! ( We found out later that hasn't happened since the 1700s!)  Overall, this trip has challenged us but blessed us with new friends and experiences that we will never be able to replicate. Every day we are shocked as we learn to live life to...

   

From Dr. E Some background:  The Corona Virus originated in China and is now spread through most of China and is Europe, the Middle East other countries in Asia and also even in the USA.  So far 213 people have died, mostly in China, and it continues to spread. There are 10,000 plus with the virus in China and in every province of that country.  It is a virus and is spread through coughs and sneezing of a person with the virus. It can develop into Pneumonia and has been fatal. Currently It is only one case in the Philippine Islands.  She is from Wuhan, China and is isolated in a Government Hospital.  There are 19 cases in Thailand and one human to human transfer.  We should avoid traveling in Chinatown, Bangkok. In Japan there are 20 cases, of which 3 recently returned to their home in Japan from China.   Practical Steps:  We need to be careful to follow the following instructions on the internship:   We need to (1) wash our hands an...