Upton August 2021

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Ephesians 3:20-21).

It’s official—I have plane tickets to fly to Liberia on September 24! I will move from Florida back home to North Carolina on September 13 so that I can spend my last couple weeks in the States packing and seeing family. The reality of the whole situation is finally starting to sink in as I get closer and closer to departure. I am very eager to finally arrive at my new home in a new country, build new friendships and relationships, and start the new work that God has for me.

At the Rafiki Village Liberia, I will serve in the Rafiki Institute of Classical Education (RICE). The goal of RICE is to train Africans to be godly teachers of classical Christian education, helping children grow through knowledge of God and a love of learning. Through their courses, RICE students study the liberal arts and sciences and learn about the existence and importance of truth, goodness, and beauty in all of life. The RICE Program teaches the necessity of building understanding on knowledge toward wisdom and emphasizes the goal of character formation and academic excellence and of virtuous scholarship.

Over the next few weeks, I will be training for my position in RICE, learning the ins and outs of the courses and structure of the program. This will help prepare me to provide administrative assistance to the Dean and academic support to the students. Although RICE is an academic institution, our desire is to disciple the whole person—the body, mind, and soul of each student. The days are busy with much hard work in learning course material, but every day begins with the Rafiki Bible Study. Thus, students start their day with the most important thing, growing in their knowledge of God and understanding of His Word.

RICE students in Liberia participating in Bible study

As I also participate in the Rafiki Bible Study each morning with the rest of the Home Office staff, I am encouraged as I grow in my own understanding of God’s character. The sovereignty of God has brought me particular comfort as I face the biggest transition of my life. Nothing is outside of my Heavenly Father’s control, and nothing can thwart His purposes. Through my journey to serving in missions, from the initial call in high school to now, God has countless times displayed His work in leading me to this point. I am joyfully anticipating what He will do in and through (and in spite of) me in this coming season.

Please pray that:

- Training for my position in RICE will prepare me well for the work.

- The accreditation process for the RICE Program in Liberia to be successfully completed.

- The intake of new RICE students arriving in October.

- Continued wisdom for me as I wrap up my preparations for moving to Liberia.

If you do not already receive my newsletter directly from Rafiki (either by mail or email) but would like to continue receiving it, please let me know so that I can ensure you are added to their mailing list since I will no longer be sending them out myself once I get to the field.

Thank you for all your prayers, support, and encouragement!

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