this summer i am going to estonia on a mission trip with some people i met at gcsu! i am really excited about the opportunity. i am going to post the letter i sent out to people for support, so you can see what i will be up to!
Dear Friend,
I have just finished my first year of college at Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville, and this past year has been incredible. Not only did I learn about math, science, history, and English, but also I learned things about life, God, and myself. It has been a year of new things and a year of growth. I have loved every second and would not change a thing about my experiences. I have been reading about God’s grace in the bible and learning to understand what it means. Grace can be defined as the free and unmerited favor of God. The grace that he shows me everyday is something that I really want to share with other people. I want to be quicker in “cutting people some slack.” This year at school I have met numerous people. Many which have impacted me forever. I have also been given the opportunity to go to Estonia with a group of students from GCSU. I am extremely excited about the opportunity to love on the people there and to share with them God’s grace.
Estonia is located in northeastern Europe touching Russia and the Baltic Sea. The team and I will be flying into Finland on July 22 and then taking a ferry over to Tallinn, which is the capital of Estonia. There we will spend a day prepping and adjusting to time, and then the following day we will head over to the island Saaremaa.
In Saaremaa, we will be working with Going Up Ministries, running a camp called English Camp. English Camps are a way for missionaries to come in and help the Estonians with their English and to share the love of Jesus. Christianity is new to the country; Jesus was first introduced to the country as a fictional character like Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy. How crazy is that? Personally, when I hear that people have never heard the name Jesus or think of him as a fictional character, it breaks my heart. I want to share with the middle school and high school students about the love and grace God has showed me through the good times and through the hard times. I want them to know that they have a purpose. I know that I will not be able to do all of these things in a week’s time, but I have the ability to plant seeds in these students and encourage the discouraged. Middle school and high school were very hard years for me because I had trouble fitting in and rarely enjoyed school. I want to share with the kids and show them there is someone else going through or has been through what they are going through. I want them to know that they will not be given anything that they cannot handle. God is bigger than it all.
It will be summertime in Estonia like it is here. The kids will be out of school, so during the day, we will be working with the kids at a school and practicing English with them. In order for Estonians to graduate form high school, they must be fluent in English, so this will be a good chance for them to practice with us Americans and our ‘awesome’ English. At night, we will hold services and introduce and teach about Jesus. We will also be spending the night with the students. Some of the members of my team have traveled to Estonia before, and they have said the best yet hardest times are at night. At night is when we will break up into small groups, and I will love on and share my story with a group of girls. I hope to be an encouragement to them and to have fun with them. I am excited to talk to these girls, and I am know I am going to continue to learn more and more about myself through the whole experience. I know this is going to be a challenging trip with many questions that I may not even be able to answer, but I am excited about the opportunity to share my story and to love on the kids!
The trip in its entirety will be $2,100 per person, which will cover the plane ticket, boarding, traveling within the country, and food for the 10 days. I would love for you to be apart of this adventure in some way whether that is financially or through prayer. If you feel led to help me financially, you can mail checks made out to Going Up Ministries to the following:
Going Up Ministries- America
3726 Four Mile Run Road
McDonald, OH 44437
If you could also put a slip of paper in your envelope with the following information, it ensures that your donation is tax deductible.
Money for: Kayla Ingram
Team Leader: Benton Cranford
Trip date: July 22nd- August 2nd
While I am preparing for the trip, I am going to be blogging, which is online journaling, about the trip from the website www.kaylabelleingram.wordpress.com. Please check it out, so we can stay connected, and leave me your comments and questions! I’d love to hear from you.
With love,
Kayla Ingram
