In April, a team of 43 people from Sydenham Baptist Church flew to the Philippines with a big heart for sharing the gospel and caring for people in need, as they served at Kids International Ministries (KIM) in Cainta Rizal, Manila. The trip helped the team to grow in their own personal faith through new experiences, learning about other cultures, and discipling others.
“One of the best aspects of the trip was how beautifully our team of diverse ages served in such unity together and how willing they all were to do whatever was asked of them,” said Karen Bonello, one of the team’s four leaders. “With such a widespread mix of ages and personalities, our team was able to generate so much enthusiasm and energy, complemented by rich wisdom and insight. Over the trip I saw people serving in lots of ways they would not have been prepared for before. Many people have come back greatly changed and challenged to serve in new ways at church upon their return.”
The group got involved in local communities, using their talents and training to volunteer in areas such as a children’s home, a birthing clinic, and youth and family outreach. Every morning, team members helped to distribute food to people in impoverished communities, and there were many chances to talk with the residents. “Many people gave their lives to Christ during the trip and we saw four people get baptised. Our 78-year-old team member would often share the gospel there – sometimes to 30 people at once! It was great for the team to see how she went about this. At another place, our team of dancers performed to a backing track featuring their testimonies, which was extremely powerful – there were a lot of tears and questions among the local people who watched this.”
Karen said the team was constantly challenged to step out of their comfort zone. “You do a lot of preparation before you go but nothing can prepare you for the things you will encounter while you’re there and the things you will be called to do, in the moment.” For example, Karen was asked to pray with ladies who had recently given birth, pray for a baby who was being registered for adoption, and pray for a pregnancy facing health concerns. “I felt like I was not equipped for these things, but it was amazing to sit with people and to step out and depend on God through it all as we encouraged them to do the same.”
Prayer underpinned all aspects of the trip from start to finish. “We believe prayer contributed so much goodness to our trip. Our church family was covering us in prayer every day. We had a prayer meeting every morning at 6.50am, so before each day started we were covered in prayer. We had no injuries or sickness, and we shared so much unity as a team, and that’s what we were praying for each day so these were real answers to prayer.”
As well as praying for the team, the wider church family was an “incredible” support through financial contributions plus donating something like 400kg to KIM including medical items, clothing and schoolbooks.
Karen would be happy to share with other churches thinking of sending a team to KIM – email kgbonello@gmail.com