Recently, a small team from Portswood Church in Southampton went to visit and spend time alongside Dawn, who has been working in the Indian Ocean Islands for many years.
As Dawn’s sending church, we wanted to offer encouragement to her by going out to pray alongside her and experience first-hand the work that she is involved in.
Witnessing relationships
Although we were only visiting for a relatively short length of time (two weeks), we were able to meet with many of Heather’s friends and ex-students. The husband of one of them said, “You are a stranger, but she is not a stranger. She is one of us, she speaks our language and that is why our children are not afraid of white people”. It was humbling to see the relationships that Dawn has developed over many years and to join with her in praying for the Lord to reveal himself to her friends.
“We saw the urgency that they feel to reach out to others…”
Hearts for mission
It was also a great encouragement to meet the wider team on the island and to join with them for prayer and fellowship. We saw the urgency that they feel to reach out to others while they can in the context of a culture that is changing rapidly. We loved the passion and focus they have brought to developing the strategies and tools to help them to do this. Everything they do is undergirded with prayer. We had a real sense that the Lord is on the move but we also realised this is hard and tiring work, and that the workers need our prayers, support and encouragement.
Spending even a short time on the islands has greatly increased our understanding and has helped to strengthen our links with Dawn.