Hey Girlfriends!!
I’m so
excited to share with you the ways in which God has been working in my life
recently. God has called me (Kaitlin Saenz) and Margie Fogal to go Ethiopia and Honduras to support
and come alongside Campus Crusade for Christ (CCC) staff. We have been asked by the CCC staff in both
countries to join them as they put on national conferences in each country. Though we will embark on one trip this August,
we will divide our time between the two countries. We will be in Ethiopia from the ninth to the
eighteenth of August serving at the Rise
and Shine National Women’s Conference and in Honduras from the nineteenth
to the twenty-sixth serving at the Josh McDowell Youth Conference.
As I was praying about my
involvement in this trip and seeking God’s will, He lead me to John 15:16 where
Christ reminds us that he has chosen us and therefore appointed us to go.
It is my joy to serve the Lord here in Orange County where I have been
planted. To be given the opportunity to
be available for God’s purpose for me in another context is a true gift. I am thrilled to be able to continue to carry
out my purpose as a gospel-believing women in Ethiopia and Honduras. I’m excited for God to use me to serve in these
two countries as the lives of both women and youth are changed in response to Gospel.
God has given me an excitement to
see the lives of women changed when they see the radical love that Christ has
for them. The way Christ interacts with
women in the gospel of Luke depicts God’s great love for them. Through a newer version of The Jesus Film, Magdalena: Released from Shame, women
are able to see the gospel story of Luke on film and as they experience this
film lives are being changed. As the
film has been shown throughout Ethiopia the response has been greater than the
CCC staff had anticipated. There is a
great need for leaders to be trained to disciple new believers using the Reflection of Hope Bible studies that
accompany the film. At the Rise and Shine National Women’s Conference
in Ethiopia 10,000 women leaders from 20 strategic centers around the country
of Ethiopia will be gathered for a week to be trained to meet the growing
needs. Damtew, the CCC National Director
of Ethiopia, has asked that Margie and I come serve alongside him and his staff
during this historic conference.
Additionally, God has given me a
great passion for seeing the youth be transformed by the gospel in a way that
dramatically changes the course of their lives. In Honduras the Josh McDowell Conference seeks
to train thousands of youth leaders from around the country to encourage youth
and families to expel pornography from their lives and to live sold out lives
for Christ. The CCC staff in Honduras
specifically asked that Margie and I come and take part in this conference. First Thessalonians 5:11 instructs us to
“encourage one another and build one another up,” we hope to do just that for
those putting on this exciting conference.
Additionally the staff has seen the value in the connections we made
when we embarked on a vision trip to Honduras this past February. We will be
able to assist the CCC staff in expanding their scope of impact through our
contacts. This too will give me the
opportunity to connect with our Hope Coffee ministry partners in Siguatepeque
to establish more definite plans for the trip Josh and I will be leading next
December to Honduras.
This trip is something that my
heart truly beats for, but it is completely out of my comfort zone. However, God is challenging me to be
stretched in my faith for the sake of the Gospel and His glory!
Please be in prayer for us as we embark on this crazy adventure that God has us on!
--Kaitlin Saenz
