Smith July 2018

Dear friends and family,

I can hardly contain my excitement as I tell you that I get to go serve the people of Uganda through the Rafiki Foundation! This may be unexpected news for you, so I would love to share with you five “trail markers” that God has used to lead me to this point. The first trail marker is the strong desire God has given me to work with kids, music, and the Gospel in developing countries. A second marker is the point when I surrendered my fear of Africa to God a few years ago…God has a sense of humor! A third clear mark is an unlikely friendship with an African woman, Barenice, who I met in Belfast, Northern Ireland. She kept mentioning that I should come to her home in Malawi to teach kids music. (Much later I learned that she had connections with the Malawi Rafiki Village!) The fourth, and biggest marker is my brain tumor experience in 2016. God gave me that tumor so that He could get a hold of my heart, and then He spared me so that He could use my life to serve Him. It is crazy how God works! The final marker on the path so far is the clear answer to prayer that God granted me last fall as I was fretting about what to do after graduation. The night before my college’s Missions Conference, I got an email from Laurie Mueller, a Rafiki representative, who was coming to the conference to share about Rafiki’s work. And “long story short,” this work was just what God had been putting on my heart to do for years!

On July 20, 2018, I was commissioned along with ten other missionaries-in-training to serve with Rafiki in nine countries. This commissioning came at the end of a two-week training called “Survival Camp.” God taught me so much at the training. The first important lesson was catching the vision for Rafiki’s ministry. I was amazed at the clear mission God has given them to train Africans to be godly, skilled servant-leaders and then see them transform Africa for Christ. The second thing I learned was to gain a deepened respect for the African church. Rafiki partners with twenty-three African denominations by strengthening Christian education and providing income for the widows of the church. At our training, we got to hear from two godly African church leaders, William Zulu and Yunusa Nmadu. They spoke about how Africa is hungry for the true Gospel. A third lesson was realizing how much more I have to learn! Our team of trainees had to work together by dying to self, preferring one another, and being patient with each other, which was just a taste of the mission field!

The team of trainees with Rafiki’s Executive Director, Karen Elliott, and founder, Rosemary Jensen

All these lessons are preparing me to be a missionary in the Rafiki Village Uganda, where I will be the Music Coordinator. My work in the Rafiki School will be to conduct choir and orchestra, teach piano lessons, and train teachers in teaching music. I also will get to help strengthen the music of local church partners in Uganda! I am so excited! The only thing keeping me from getting on a plane next week is that I am waiting on God to provide partners to come alongside me financially and in prayer so my ministry in Uganda will be spiritually and physically grounded. Right now my goal is to be on a plane on October 1, 2018! If you are interested in supporting me in any way, or hearing more about my journey with Rafiki, I would love to get in touch! To donate to me online or find out more about Rafiki, you can go to www.rafikifoundation.org. Soli Deo Gloria!