It seems like yesterday…the sights and sounds of Sri Lanka, small cell groups and the homely church, handing out gift packets to the women in Kandy prison, praying over the orphanage in Colombo…but in reality, it was almost a year ago when a group of 5 Kletosians (members of KLETOS, the TLC Young Adults Ministry) embarked on their maiden missions trip. Although we did have a set itinerary for those 2 weeks in Sri Lanka, the smartest thing we did was to say, “God, this plan is all Yours. Change it as You will and we’re there at Your service”. And He did!! We have seen first hand that God does not work according to our finite thinking. Sri Lanka is predominantly Buddhist and we had been requesting permission to visit the women at Kandy Remand prison, to share the love of Christ with them. We were disheartened at being refused, and so according to our set “plan”, we were to leave to Colombo the next day for a week. But God was about to change all that. We went to Colombo and spent two uneventful days there. On Saturday, we attended a prayer meeting, where we began to minister, and two British tourists gave their lives to Christ. Later the pastor told us that they had been speaking to these tourists about Christ for a few months, but to no avail. And tonight, they received Christ! God brought us all the way to Colombo just for those 2 tourists! Somehow after that meeting we felt our work there was done, and we decided to head back to Kandy. The next day, we received permission to visit the women’s prison, and were able to reach out to them. God does make a way, but only when we obey Him first! We watched God open the doors for our men to visit the men’s prison, and the warden (a Buddhist) offered to give us land, if we would help build a church for the Christian inmates there. God is no respecter of persons. When He wants His work done, He uses anyone. So over the past year, TLC has been sending funds to build a Christian church in a Buddhist prison!

We went there to give. Instead we received more than we could ever give. And by receiving, I do not mean anything tangible or in kind. We have realized that the mission of TLC extends far beyond the borders of Kuwait. We returned back knowing that we cannot be passive spectators anymore. We need to be part of what God is doing in His church. He is using men and women of our age group to impact both the younger and older generations- a task that requires “all hands on deck”. Just look around you. In every ministry, half of the working force comprises of young adults. Need I explain further why this ministry is vital to the church?
Over the past year, we have learnt that KLETOS cannot and will not fulfill God’s purpose without us being on our knees for it, without focus- to help discover our need for God, His purpose, and to equip our generation to be used by Him, wherever they are called.
This year, we plan to continue what we started- passing on what we’ve learnt to young adults in other countries. Surprisingly, Kenya has been on our hearts this entire year. Why Kenya? Because people there need what we have been receiving here, and we need what God has been doing there! Hence Kletos is sending a team, along with Pastor Steve. Our goal- to learn to work as an effective team, despite our differences, and our indifferences. To just do whatever God tells us to do, no matter how small or big it may seem. One of the highlights of this trip will be the pastors conference organized by Dr. Chacha for all the pastors from around Kenya. The only way we will grow is when we are stretched beyond our familiar zone, when God tells us to do things that we can’t on our own. For then we realize our dependence on Him. I think that is a point we all need to reach- where we are nothing, and He is everything. Then we will see Him divide our Red seas, raise the dead, calm our storms, and make the impossible happen.
We are grateful to be part of a church that has a heart for missions, to support such teams financially and most importantly in praying for us. For in giving, ultimately, we receive!