Pakistan

November 12-19, 2023

Led by Tom Boone, Associate Director for Mission

God at Work in the “Real” Pakistan: a learning experience with the Presbyterian Education Board of Pakistan

Pakistan, a Muslim-majority country, is among the top 10 countries where Christians endure the greatest degree of persecution. Yet, Christians there say, “please come” and for years The Outreach Foundation has responded to their call. This year we will be hosted by the Presbyterian Education Board (PEB). For more than 150 years, PEB has provided a bold witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ by serving the educational needs of Muslim and Christian children, who are exposed each day to stories of the Bible, prayers, singing, and quality education that equips them for higher education.

PEB will accommodate us in their air-conditioned guest house, and they will provide our food. Security and safe, comfortable transportation are among their priorities for us. This visit will provide participants with a remarkable opportunity to see with our own eyes the challenges Christians (particularly women and children) face in a context of tremendous persecution and the creative ways they embrace the Great Commission. We will meet and hear from Christian and Muslim families whose trajectories have been positively altered by PEB’s faithful work.

Our visit will feature visits to several PEB village schools, and we will help lead a women’s ministry event. Our visit will also include a conversation with students and staff of the renowned Forman Christian College and University. We have time allowed for reflection and visits to several historic sites in the Punjab area. We will visit a brick kiln in order to see the labor context so many rural families endure. This will be an impactful visit.

The dates for this trip are November 12-19. The cost is $940 plus round-trip airfare to Lahore, Pakistan. The cost includes one set of traditional clothing that we are asked to wear and will be custom-made for each participant. A tourist visa is required to enter Pakistan, which costs $60. It is each participant’s responsibility to apply for this visa and The Outreach Foundation will provide the details required on the application. The cost also includes a generous financial gift to Presbyterian Education Board.

You can apply online or print the application and waiver and mail it in. A non-refundable $150 deposit is required to secure your place. THE APPLICATION DEADLINE IS AUGUST 15 in order to secure visas.

For more information contact Carol Dublin: carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

TÜRKIYE

October 9-18, 2023

Led by Sasan Tavassoli, Iranian Mission Specialist
and Tom Boone, Associate Director for Mission

Each year people from the Persian-speaking regions of the world converge in Türkiye, the country formerly known as Turkey. Some come as refugees while others come for work or leisure. Through social media, online discussion groups, and satellite television programming God has been preparing many of these men and women for an encounter that transforms their lives in Türkiye. It is truly a time of harvest in a key strategic country for the Persian-speaking diaspora.

Our team will join Iranian ministry leaders from around the world who are providing an effective witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ in Türkiye. Our visits will take place in Istanbul, Izmir (the ancient city of Smyrna), and Ephesus. We will come alongside Iranian ministry leaders to see how God is powerfully at work in this region. These visits will both energize us and be a source for our own spiritual renewal.

You will experience the beginning of life-long friendships with amazingly courageous Christian leaders from Iran, hear inspiring stories from refugees, and receive generous hospitality. Additionally, we will tour historic Istanbul, Old Ephesus, and Smyrna, and experience Turkish baths.

The purpose of this trip is to provide you with a clear understanding of what God is doing in the Persian-speaking diaspora and in Iran. Additionally, we will be immersed in ministry with Iranian leaders. Our team will care for, listen to, and pray with refugees from Iran, Central Asia, and Afghanistan while bringing encouragement and spiritual refreshment to ministry leaders. We have been invited to take part in and lead seminars focusing on Christian discipleship, marriage, parenting, and sharing our own faith among people who want to hear our experiences with God. Our preparation will include pre-trip Zoom calls with some of the leaders we will meet.

Ground cost (lodging, in-country airfare, meals, tours, land travel, etc.) is $2,000. Costs for flights to and from Istanbul (IST) are each participant’s responsibility.

For anyone traveling with The Outreach Foundation, we strongly recommend bringing sufficient COVID tests and we ask that each participant self-test daily during the trip. If you test positive, you will report this to the team leader and quarantine from the team for the required time. Additional expenses that you may accrue as a result of a positive test are not covered by The Outreach Foundation. There are no COVID requirements for entry into Türkiye or re-entry into the United States.

You can apply online or print the application and waiver and mail it in. A non-refundable $150 deposit is required to secure your place.

For more information, contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

China: A Visit with Friends

July 20 - August 1, 2023

Led by Tom Boone, Associate Director for Mission and Rev. Chris Bin Wang

With the recent lifting of travel restrictions, The Outreach Foundation is glad to announce our 2023 visit to friends in China to bring greetings to leaders of the Church in Shanghai, Jiangsu, and Beijing. We will hear stories from emerging young leaders and visit important outreach ministries they have developed in recent years.

Our team gathers in Hong Kong for orientation from Rev. Chris Bin Wang, our trip co-leader. From Hong Kong, we will fly to Shanghai to meet leaders of the China Christian Council (CCC) & Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM). Our dialogues will highlight the challenging issues and resilient responses of the Church in China. Sunday worship will take place at the historic Hong-De Church built in a traditional Chinese architectural style with roots in the Presbyterian mission to China. We will hear about the church’s evangelism to a young generation in a secular and consumerist metropolis.

We will then travel by private bus to the neighboring city of Suzhou, which is Chris’ home city, where we will meet local church leaders who will show us the beauty and vitality of the city and the churches. Don Snow, a long-time friend of The Outreach Foundation and retired Presbyterian missionary, will meet us along with other Christian friends who will share their fascinating stories. Our visit continues westward to Nanjing (literally “the south capital”) after a brief exchange with Jiangyin church leaders. We will visit the Jiangsu Provincial Christian Council & TSPM and enjoy conversations with students and faculty of Jiangsu Theological Seminary. We will also touch freshly printed Bibles from the state-of-the-art Amity Bible Printing Company, while at the next moment, we will thumb through old, rugged copies of pew Bibles at the century-old St. Paul Church. In addition to marveling at the renowned cultural sites along main streets of Nanjing, we will visit the less obvious faith-related institutions hidden in alleys.

Our mainland journey concludes in China’s capital, Beijing. There we will meet with church leadership and attend Sunday worship at the 7000-member Haidian Church which neighbors Peking and Tsinghua Universities, both of which owed their inception and operation to missionary and national Christians. While in Beijing we will enjoy a meal of Peking Duck and visit historic sites. Our mainland visit will conclude with an official visit with CCC leadership before flying to Hong Kong.

From Hong Kong, team members may either return home or remain an additional two days for a meaningful visit with leadership of Christian Communications Limited. This ministry publishes support resources for pastors on mainland China and has become an important connection for us to know how God is moving in China. Also, we may listen to a series of presentations from a group of emerging church leaders covering topics such as evangelism and discipleship in the urban context, creative arts and Christian witness, advocacy for the marginalized, and folk religions and popular Christianity.

The trip cost is $4,200 (single occupancy). After much discussion, we are selecting a single-occupancy rate in order to minimize COVID exposure among the team. For couples traveling together and sharing a room, the cost is $3,800 per person. The Hong Kong add-on dates cost an additional $500 per person.

You can apply online or print the application and waiver. A non-refundable $150 deposit is required to secure your place. For more information contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Faithful Women on the Road: Lebanon

July 16-30, 2023

led by jenna crunk

The Outreach Foundation invites you to consider joining a group of women from Presbyterian churches around the U.S. on a unique mission-vision journey to learn about and build personal relationships with Presbyterian women from Syria and Lebanon.

We will depart on July 16 and return on July 30. The “core” of this journey is a women’s conference that is held every year at a lovely mountain retreat center of the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon, north of Beirut.

For the six days of the conference, we will share life together with about 80 sisters from our Presbyterian family from Syria, as well as from Lebanon, learning with and from one another while we worship and enjoy fellowship, study Scripture and reflect upon God’s work in our lives, our families and our congregations. We will also have the opportunity to experience Lebanon and to meet with some of the other ministry partners of Outreach in Lebanon who serve refugees as well as autistic children and the elderly. This team is limited to about 12 and anyone applying should be prepared, while at the conference, to be fully engaged with lots of sisters from dawn until dark (if you are an introvert, this may not be the best trip for you).

Ground cost is $2,500. International airfare is extra (approx. $1,300 from major departure cities).

For more information contact Carol Dublin: carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Mexico - Build Cisterns in Xpujil

May 22 - 27, 2023

Led by Todd Luke, Outreach Consultant

Building cisterns in Mexico gives families who suffer from poor health due to a lack of clean water, access to an abundant supply of rainwater that improves their health. Ch’ol Presbyterian laymen organize families to work together to build cisterns that collect rainfall, and American groups work with our Mexican partners to help.

Xpujil, in the southern part of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula close to Belize and Guatemala, is about a six-hour drive from Cancun International Airport. Your host, Todd Luke, will meet you at the airport with a rented vehicle, and drive you to and from Xpujil. He will be your driver, translator, and cultural liaison during your entire stay in Mexico.

For three days, from 8:00 am-5:00 pm, we will build three or four cisterns. Led by our Ch’ol Presbyterian partners, our main task is to help mix cement. We shovel 70 pounds of sand and gravel into five-gallon buckets, which are carried and emptied into a cement mixer. We perform this activity in 45-minute spurts throughout the day. During downtime, we can interact with the cistern recipient families and our local coworkers. We eat lunch at the work site.

Groups stay in Xpujil at our four-room Guest House. Each room has two twin beds, two hammocks, ceiling fan, floor fan, and bathroom with a shower. Hot water is available.

Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are prepared by our Xpujil partners, who have more than 20 years of experience feeding American work teams. Bottled water is always available. Daytime temperatures normally reach the high 80s (upper 90s April–August). Overnight temps may drop into the low 60s in winter, and low 70s in summer.

Passports are required and any participants under the age of 18 must have a signed affidavit from both parents permitting travel to Mexico. Make sure your tetanus immunization is up to date.

Trip costs per person are $1,500 ($700 covers all in-Mexico expenses except for Friday dinner and Saturday meals, plus $800 for cistern building materials). You will book and pay for your own flights to/from Cancun, which are currently priced at about $700 per person. We suggest bringing $20-$50 to purchase your own snacks or incidentals. To request your place on the team, send your non-refundable deposit of $150, trip application, waiver, and a copy of the information page of your passport to The Outreach Foundation, 381 Riverside Drive, Suite 465, Franklin, TN 37064. For more information contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Poland and Lithuania

November 1 - 8, 2022

Led by Tom Boone, Associate Director for Mission

Cost: $1,800, plus airfare to Warsaw, Poland (WAW) and return from Vilnius, Lithuania (VNO).

Our friends in Ukraine have asked us to be present with them in their suffering. We cannot yet enter Ukraine, but we will go to the border between Poland and Ukraine to meet, encourage, hear stories, and pray over our friends in Ukraine. We will also go to Klaipeda, Lithuania, which is home to many Ukrainian refugees at City Church’s hotel.

We plan to arrive in Warsaw, Poland on November 1, where our hosts from the College of Theology and Social Sciences (CTSS) will meet us at the airport. We will head to the Warsaw Westin, unwind from the travel, enjoy some time exploring Warsaw’s historic Old Town, and have dinner at a nice restaurant with Dr. Piotr Nowak and some of his staff.

On November 2, CTSS staff and drivers will drive us to the border between Poland and Ukraine near Lublin, Poland. We will stay at a hotel on the border for one night. Meeting us will be Father Oleh from the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in Lviv and some of his team. Additionally, Dr. Ivan Rusyn and some of his team from Ukraine Evangelical Theological Seminary in Kyiv will join us. They have been faithful witnesses of Christ in many places in Ukraine during the war. We will hear many stories, encourage them over a meal, and pray with them before they head back home.

On Thursday, November 3, we will return to Warsaw and have dinner with the Ukrainian refugees at CTSS before going to the Hampton Inn at Warsaw airport.

On Friday, November 4, we will fly to Klaipeda, Lithuania, where we will be greeted by Pastor Saul Karosas of City Church. We will meet Ukrainian students from LCC International University and spend time with Ukrainians at City Church’s hotel ministry. Following worship at City Church on Sunday, we will drive to Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. We are going to stay at the Narutis, a boutique hotel in Old Town Vilnius. Following an evening with Saul and some of his team from City Church Vilnius, we will spend Monday touring Vilnius and visiting the KGB museum. This day gives us an opportunity to debrief with Saul.

Our team will disperse on Tuesday morning with flights returning to the U.S. from Vilnius (VNO).

Humanitarian relief supplies: We are asking each person to pack two bags for this trip. One bag is for humanitarian supplies that are needed in Ukraine. We will bring these to the border and deliver them to our partners in Ukraine. Tom Boone, the trip leader, will provide details by the end of September.

For anyone traveling with The Outreach Foundation, we strongly recommend bringing sufficient COVID tests and we ask that each participant self-test daily during the trip. If you test positive, you will report this to the team leader and quarantine from the team for the required time. Additional expenses that you may accrue as a result of a positive test are not covered by The Outreach Foundation. There are no COVID requirements for entry into Poland, Ukraine, or re-entry into the United States.

You can apply online or print the application and waiver and mail it in. A non-refundable $150 deposit is required to secure your place.

For more information, contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call  (615) 778-8881.

Egypt

November 1 - 12, 2022

Led by Marilyn Borst, Associate Director for Partnership Development

In the midst of global uncertainty, the Presbyterian Church of Egypt is hard at work and passionate about sharing the Good News! They are planting churches and revitalizing congregations that have been faithful for well over a hundred years. Of the 450 congregations which are a part of the Synod of the Nile (est. 1854), 25% of those were planted in the last 10 years – this is a movement with energy and vision! The team, led by Marilyn Borst, TOF’s Associate Director for Partnership Development, will visit some of these initiatives and see how God is working through his people. We will experience exciting new church developments along with vibrant, existing congregations and explore possibilities for establishing ongoing church-to-church partnerships for individual congregations.

We will spend inspiring time with the staff and students at the Evangelical Theological Seminary in Cairo which is training the next generation of leadership to expand Christ’s Kingdom in the Middle East. After 5 days in Cairo (which includes a visit to the Pyramids, of course) we will fly down to Aswan to be encouraged by the ministries of the Synod in its southern-most Presbytery and spend a day at the spectacular UNECSO World Heritage site of Abu Simbel, the rock-cut temples of Ramses the Great.

In this new “covid age,” we will make every effort to stay safe and healthy. Our accommodations will be in first-class hotels. Our trusted travel agent in Egypt will make sure that our minibus is cleaned daily and will arrange for any necessary PCR tests. As required by a decision of Outreach’s trustees, all travelers must be fully vaccinated.

Land cost: $2,795 which includes hotel (double occupancy) transportation, most meals, transfers, touring, visa upon arrival, and in-country airfare between Cairo and Aswan. Price does not include international airfare and PCR tests if required upon departure.

For more information, contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Iranian Diaspora in Europe

October 23 - November 1, 2022

Led by Tom Boone, Associate Director for Mission

The Outreach Foundation is walking alongside Muslim background believers in Europe and invites you to join in their incredible stories. We will be visiting friends of The Outreach Foundation and a partner organization in The Netherlands and Germany to hear their stories, participate in their ministries, worship with them, and bring encouragement as these refugees from Iran and Afghanistan find shalom in a land that is not their own. You will return having seen first-hand how God is doing something new, making a way in the desert and streams in the badlands (Isaiah 43:19).

Due to security concerns of those whom we are visiting, we cannot disclose specific locations and identities in this publication. Please contact Tom Boone (tom@theoutreachfoundation.org) for more information.

The team departs from the U.S. on Sunday, October 23, and will gather in Amsterdam (AMS) on Monday, October 24. Following a day of settling in and cruising the canals of Amsterdam with our lead partner in the area, we will head to Rotterdam to see his ministry in action. He will take us to visit a local refugee center and talk with the young leaders from across Europe who serve in this amazing ministry spanning Europe and into Iran. Also, we will gain an appreciation for the challenges and opportunities the Iranian diaspora ministry has in The Netherlands by visiting with representatives of the Dutch church. We have been invited to be part of our partner’s vast social media ministry and we will be contributing to it by providing teaching on a variety of topics such as servant leadership, Christian marriage, and discipleship!

Following this rich visit, the team shifts to Germany. On the evening of Thursday, October 27 we will fly from Amsterdam to Germany where we will join with leaders in the Iranian diaspora movements who are serving with a partner organization. We will hear the stories of refugees who are beginning new lives in Germany. Our visit will include vibrant worship with a congregation of Iranians in diaspora and an opportunity to serve in ministry alongside them. Joining us will be representatives of the German church to help us understand the challenges of the German context in which the Iranians are now calling home.

On Monday, October 31, we will return to Amsterdam where will spend the night before flying home on Tuesday, November 1. This set of visits will open your eyes to the way the church is flourishing in Europe through the presence of Muslim background believers from Iran!

Each person is responsible for providing his or her own transportation from the U.S. to and from Amsterdam Schipol Airport (AMS). The trip cost of $2,100* includes all expenses in Amsterdam and Germany.

*The price includes round-trip airfare between Amsterdam and Germany. Details will be provided only to those who register and pay for the trip. Due to rising airfare prices in the EU, we can hold this price only through the end of August. Registrants who join from September 1 onward may be subject to an additional fee to cover the cost of a higher ticket.

You can apply online or print the application and waiver. A non-refundable $150 deposit is required to secure your place. Full COVID-19 vaccination is required for travel with The Outreach Foundation.

For more information contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Mexico - Build Cisterns in Xpujil

August 1 - 8, 2022

Todd and Maria Luke’s Gospel-driven outreach to build cisterns in Mexico gives families, suffering from poor health due to lack of clean water, access to an abundant supply of rainwater that makes a family healthier. Ch’ol Presbyterian laymen organize families to work together to build cisterns that collect rainfall, and American partners work with our Mexican partners to lighten the physical load.

Xpujil is in the southern part of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, close to Belize and Guatemala, and is about a 6-hour drive from Cancun International Airport. Todd Luke will be your host, meeting you at the airport with a rented vehicle and serving as your driver during your stay in Mexico.

Groups are 4-8 people and there are 3 trip length options beginning Monday, August 1.

The 4-night option (Monday-Friday) involves work on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, flying home Friday. The 6-night option (Monday- Sunday) involves work on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, Friday spent experiencing local culture, return home Sunday. The 7-night option (Monday-Monday) involves work on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, experiencing local culture on Friday, worshiping on Sunday, return home Monday. On Friday of the 6-night or 7-night options, the team will experience local culture, including visiting Mayan ruins, significant archeological sites, and a bat cave where hundreds of thousands of bats fly out at dusk.

Workdays are from 8:00 am–5:00 pm to build cisterns. Led by our Ch’ol Presbyterian partners in 40-minute spurts, we shovel sand and gravel into five-gallon buckets that are emptied into a cement mixer. During downtime, we interact with the cistern recipient families and our local coworkers. Lunch at the worksite is prepared by our Xpujil partners, who have years of experience feeding American work teams.

Groups stay in the 4-room Guest House in Xpujil, located on the Luke family home property. Each room has 2 twin-size beds, 2 hammocks, a ceiling fan, a floor fan, and a bathroom with a rainwater shower. Hot water is available upon request. Bottled water is always available. Breakfast is usually between 6:00-7:00 am, lunch between 11:00-1:00 pm, and dinner between 6:00-8:00 pm, all prepared by our Xpujil partners. Daytime temperatures normally reach the high 80s (and upper 90’s April – August), with overnight temps dropping into the low 60’s in winter and low 70’s in summer.

Passports are required and any participants under the age of 18 must have a signed affidavit from both parents permitting travel to Mexico. As required by a decision of Outreach’s trustees, all travelers must be fully vaccinated. A negative COVID test result is required to return to the U.S. Make sure your tetanus immunization is up to date. Bring $50 to convert to pesos to purchase snacks at one of the two small general stores near the Guest House. Todd Luke will help the group exchange dollars for pesos.

Ground costs per person are $95 per night plus $600 for a cistern. Costs for flight to Cancun and PCR test for re-entry to the U.S. are each participant’s responsibility. To request your place on the team, send your non-refundable deposit of $150, trip application, waiver, and a copy of the information page of your passport to The Outreach Foundation, 381 Riverside Drive, Suite 465, Franklin, TN 37064. For more information contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Mexico - Build Cisterns in Xpujil

July 25 - August 1, 2022

Todd and Maria Luke’s Gospel-driven outreach to build cisterns in Mexico gives families, suffering from poor health due to lack of clean water, access to an abundant supply of rainwater that makes a family healthier. Ch’ol Presbyterian laymen organize families to work together to build cisterns that collect rainfall, and American partners work with our Mexican partners to lighten the physical load.

Xpujil is in the southern part of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, close to Belize and Guatemala, and is about a 6-hour drive from Cancun International Airport. Todd Luke will be your host, meeting you at the airport with a rented vehicle and serving as your driver during your stay in Mexico.

Groups are 4-8 people and there are 3 trip length options, with trips beginning Monday, July 25 and August 1.

The 4-night option (Monday-Friday) involves work on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, flying home Friday. The 6-night option (Monday- Sunday) involves work on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, Friday spent experiencing local culture, return home Sunday. The 7-night option (Monday-Monday) involves work on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, experiencing local culture on Friday, worshiping on Sunday, return home Monday. On Friday of the 6-night or 7-night options, the team will experience local culture, including visiting Mayan ruins, significant archeological sites, and a bat cave where hundreds of thousands of bats fly out at dusk.

Workdays are from 8:00 am–5:00 pm to build cisterns. Led by our Ch’ol Presbyterian partners in 40-minute spurts, we shovel sand and gravel into five-gallon buckets that are emptied into a cement mixer. During downtime, we interact with the cistern recipient families and our local coworkers. Lunch at the worksite is prepared by our Xpujil partners, who have years of experience feeding American work teams.

Groups stay in the 4-room Guest House in Xpujil, located on the Luke family home property. Each room has 2 twin-size beds, 2 hammocks, a ceiling fan, a floor fan, and a bathroom with a rainwater shower. Hot water is available upon request. Bottled water is always available. Breakfast is usually between 6:00-7:00 am, lunch between 11:00-1:00 pm, and dinner between 6:00-8:00 pm, all prepared by our Xpujil partners. Daytime temperatures normally reach the high 80s (and upper 90’s April – August), with overnight temps dropping into the low 60’s in winter and low 70’s in summer.

Passports are required and any participants under the age of 18 must have a signed affidavit from both parents permitting travel to Mexico. As required by a decision of Outreach’s trustees, all travelers must be fully vaccinated. A negative COVID test result is required to return to the U.S. Make sure your tetanus immunization is up to date. Bring $50 to convert to pesos to purchase snacks at one of the two small general stores near the Guest House. Todd Luke will help the group exchange dollars for pesos.

Ground costs per person are $95 per night plus $600 for a cistern. Costs for flight to Cancun and PCR test for re-entry to the U.S. are each participant’s responsibility. To request your place on the team, send your non-refundable deposit of $150, trip application, waiver, and a copy of the information page of your passport to The Outreach Foundation, 381 Riverside Drive, Suite 465, Franklin, TN 37064. For more information contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Faithful Women on the Road: Lebanon

July 21 - August 4, 2022

The Outreach Foundation invites you to consider joining a group of women from Presbyterian churches around the U.S. on a unique mission-vision journey to learn about and build personal relationships with Presbyterian women from Syria and Lebanon.

Led by Marilyn Borst, The Outreach Foundation’s Associate Director for Partnership Development, we will depart on July 21 and return on August 4. The “core” of this journey is a women’s conference that is held every year at a lovely mountain retreat center of the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon, north of Beirut.

For the six days of the conference, we will share life together with about 80 sisters from our Presbyterian family from Syria, as well as from Lebanon, learning with and from one another while we worship and enjoy fellowship, study Scripture and reflect upon God’s work in our lives, our families and our congregations. We will also have the opportunity to experience Lebanon and to meet with some of the other ministry partners of Outreach in Lebanon who serve refugees as well as autistic children and the elderly. This team is limited to about 15.

Ground cost is $2,500. International airfare is extra (approx. $1,300 from major departure cities). As required by a decision of Outreach’s trustees, all travelers must be fully vaccinated.

For more information contact Carol Dublin: carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Together in Christ: Understanding the Diaspora in Europe

June 20 - 28, 2022

Led by Tom Boone, Associate Director for Mission and Sasan Tavassoli, Iranian Mission Specialist

With so much attention riveted on the war in Ukraine, The Outreach Foundation is pleased to offer a positive and “big picture” opportunity so you can know what good things are happening in the kingdom of God in Europe through the diaspora in Europe. Hearing from people from Iran, Afghanistan, and various Arabic-speaking countries will be our focus of this visit. We will witness how many Muslim refugees are encountering a fresh message of the gospel in their own language and embracing the God who loves them. Joining us on this trip will be a leading evangelist in the Iranian world and Muslim background believer, Pastor Shapoor Ahmadi, whose ministry is based in Liverpool, UK but whose reach is across Europe and Iran.

After departing the U.S. on June 20, we will gather in Amsterdam on June 21. There we will meet with The Outreach Foundation’s partner Dariush Golbaghi and see his ministry, Safehouse, in action. Dariush will lead our team into hands-on ministry at a local refugee center and we will meet a Dutch pastor who has come alongside Dariush and experienced transformation through the relationship. We will hear about the practical aspects of the inter-cultural work that the church of The Netherlands is doing.

On Wednesday, June 22, we will travel by train to several locations in Germany, where we will join leaders in the Iranian and Arabic diaspora movements who are serving with a partner organization. We will hear the stories of refugees both to understand their challenges and to experience how vibrantly the gospel is spreading through the diasporic communities. We will attend a seminar focused on how Iranian and Arabic communities are fulfilling the Great Commission in practical ways. Also, we will participate in an evangelism opportunity among their Muslim peers. Our visit will conclude by worshipping with a congregation of Iranians in the diaspora. Due to security concerns of those whom we are visiting, we cannot disclose specific locations in this publication, but please contact Tom Boone (tom@theoutreachfoundation.org) for more information.

Our visit concludes on Tuesday, June 28, when we will head back to our homes touched deeply by what God is doing with fresh eyes and informed perspectives on the opportunities God has brought to our own neighborhoods.

Each person is responsible for providing his or her own transportation from the U.S. to Amsterdam (AMS) arriving on June 21 and departing Frankfurt (FRA) on June 28. The trip cost of $1,500 includes all aspects of our visits to Amsterdam and Germany.

You can apply online or print the application and waiver. A non-refundable $150 deposit is required to secure your place. Full COVID-19 vaccination is required for travel with The Outreach Foundation.

For more information contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call    (615) 778-8881.

A Visit with Ukrainians in Diaspora

June 8-17, 2022

Led by Tom Boone, Associate Director for Mission

The media has filled our ears and eyes with dire stories about the war in Ukraine. Many of us are left asking how is God at work in all of this? Through the church, The Outreach Foundation has established partnerships in Europe that can help us to answer this question. We have been witnessing God’s miraculous work in the midst of the war. Until now it has been best to stay put and support our friends on the front lines of relief efforts financially. Now, they have asked us to come! As God showed up to us through His incarnation, we are going to show up for the church that is stepping up to be the face of Christ in the midst of war.

We have four goals for this visit:
1.      Show up to provide encouragement and pray over our friends.
2.      Listen to stories so we can share them with congregations and donors in the U.S.
3.      With them, discern our next steps for partnership.
4.     We will each pack an extra suitcase of supplies. We will deliver these to our partners for their relief efforts.

Each person is responsible to provide his or her own transportation from the U.S. to Vilnius, Lithuania (June 8) and return to the U.S. from Valencia, Spain (June 17). The trip cost of $2,500 includes all aspects of our visits in Lithuania, Poland, and Spain.

Each of the friends we will visit is actively engaged in ministry so we will not be staying long! Each visit will focus on hearing their stories, talking with refugees, and videoing the work our partners are doing. We will pray over their ministry and offer a lot of encouragement. Each visit will be quick so that we will not be a burden to anyone.

Due to safety concerns, we are unable to visit Ukraine. Instead, we will focus on our relationships in three locations. We will have zoom visits with partners in Ukraine and Romania.

Vilnius and Klaipeda, Lithuania (June 9-12), Hotels: Amberton in Klaipeda; Narutis in Vilnius
We will drive from the capital city, Vilnius, to the port city of Klaipeda, the base of operations for City Church. We will visit with Pastor Saul Karosas and the leadership team about their work and meet with many Ukrainian women and children. Additionally, we will visit LCC International University to hear about its work not only among Ukrainian refugees but refugees from the Middle East and Central Asia. Our visit will conclude back in Vilnius meeting with Gediminas Dailyde, a church planter who has taken several trips into Ukraine and is leading his church in several relief efforts in Vilnius.

Warsaw, Poland (June 13-14), Hotel: Warsaw Westin
We will visit with Piotr Nowak and the leadership team of the College of Theology and Social Studies. They are hosting nearly 50 women and children from Ukraine while providing education to their theology students who are training for church leadership. Also, we will visit the Poland/Ukraine border and see what is happening there. Finally, we will have zoom visits with our partners in Kyiv, Lviv, and Romania since we cannot visit them in person.

Valencia, Spain (June 15-16, return to U.S. June 17), Hotel: Melia Valencia
We will speak with Lena Vasylevska and her leadership team of Radooga Ministry and JAMM School about their journey from Kyiv to Valencia. Each of the women on this team have husbands and family still living in Ukraine. We will hear from several student mentors on their staff and some expats from the U.S. and UK working with them. From Spain, they are providing online Christian education to nearly 11,000 Ukrainian children scattered throughout Europe.

You can apply online or print the application and waiver. A non-refundable $150 deposit is required to secure your place. Full COVID-19 vaccination is required for travel with The Outreach Foundation.

For more information contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Pakistan

March 23 - April 1, 2022

In his final visit to Pakistan in 2018, Rob Weingartner (former Executive Director of The Outreach Foundation) wrote these compelling words: “Imagine being a missionary, a pastor, or simply a follower of Jesus in a country that was only 2% Christian. 2% of 212 million people. That is the experience of Christians here in Pakistan, and it shapes their identity and their engagement with society in profound ways. Christians here are spared the easy option of triumphal thinking; the realities of each day invite them to think of practical, humble, life-giving ways that they can demonstrate the love of Christ. All that is available to them is the option of serving their neighbors in the way of Jesus.”

In Pakistan, we have the opportunity to encourage Christians where their suffering is among the greatest in the world. Outright persecution happens in many forms – through the application of blasphemy laws, the not-so-subtle threats by Muslim neighbors and little legal protection, and encroachment on Christian land. The Holy Spirit summons us to go and remind our friends they are not forgotten.

As we encourage them, we will see that the witness of Christ persists. Our 9-day visit will be anchored in Lahore. A city of over 11 million people, this area is also central to our web of partnerships: Forman Christian College, Presbyterian Education Board, Pakistan Bible Correspondence School, and Pakistan Christian Recording Ministries. In addition to visits with these ministries, we will be spending meaningful time in villages to understand better the difficult life of rural Christians and pastors. We will see firsthand how Christians and Muslims alike are providing generous hospitality to refugees from Afghanistan.

Traveling north a couple of hours we will meet with leaders and students of Gujranwala Theological Seminary, whose history goes back to 1877. Today it is training 78 men and women to serve Christ in churches and schools throughout Pakistan. Also, we will see their new educational building project. The highlight for us will be attending their graduation ceremony and celebrating their achievements.

The Spirit is at work in Pakistan well beyond our historic partners, too, and we want to hear that good news story! We will meet with the creative and energetic leadership of PAK7 and PAK Mission Society to hear their reports of evangelism and discipleship through social media, television, business as mission, and training for Christian leaders in professional circles.

This trip is by invitation only. Cost is $1,500 per person, excluding airfare and required COVID tests for entry into Pakistan and return to the U.S. For further information please contact Tom Boone at tom@theoutreachfoundation.org.

Liverpool, UK

March 11 - 19, 2022

The Outreach Foundation invites YOU to be part of a Ministry Immersion Experience

You are invited to come along with a select team from The Outreach Foundation to experience hands-on ministry alongside Shapoor Ahmadi and Yasamin Moradi. They lead a flourishing ministry of hospitality, evangelism, and discipleship among Muslim women, men, and children living as refugees in Liverpool. Shapoor and Yasamin possess amazing faith and their stories will bring each of us hope, joy, and a renewed understanding that Jesus Christ reigns.

Why the United Kingdom? People from around the world are converging in Europe. It’s called “Diaspora,” people dispersed out of their homelands. As a result, people from areas where it is impossible to speak openly about Jesus are hearing the gospel and experiencing God’s love in tangible ways. God is making a river through the desert and you can be part of it!

We will experience the beginning of a life-long friendship with church leaders in the European diaspora, hear inspiring and humbling stories from refugees, and receive generous hospitality. We will also tour historic North Wales, the Beatles Museum, and other places!

Our team will care for, listen to, and pray with refugees new to the UK, bring encouragement and spiritual refreshment to ministry leaders, and learn how to bring God’s truth and Jesus’ love to Muslims. The women will lead a women’s conference, while the team will be encouraged to use soccer as a platform for sharing the gospel among youth. There will be opportunities to lead discipleship seminars and share your faith journey among Muslim-background Believers.

To prepare, we will have pre-trip Zoom calls with Shapoor and Yasamin. Also, David and Susan Rice of The Antioch Partners, who serve in the UK, will be part of our preparation and debriefing.

We will stay in a nice Airbnb home close to the refugee center and our church host. Sanitization services are provided daily.

Ground cost (lodging, meals, tours, land travel, etc.) is $1,000. Costs for flight to Manchester (MAN) and PCR tests to enter the UK and for re-entry to the U.S. are each participant’s responsibility ($80 for each test). To request your place on the team, send your non-refundable deposit of $150 and trip application and waiver to The Outreach Foundation by January 31, 2022.

COVID presents a fluid situation for entry requirements. We will keep the team informed as developments occur. Full vaccination status is required for entry into the UK.

Mexico - Build Cisterns in Xpujil

March 7 - 14, 2022

Todd and Maria Luke’s Gospel-driven outreach to build cisterns in Mexico gives families, suffering from poor health due to lack of clean water, access to an abundant supply of rainwater that makes a family healthier. Ch’ol Presbyterian laymen organize families to work together to build cisterns that collect rainfall, and American partners work with our Mexican partners to lighten the physical load.

Xpujil is in the southern part of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, close to Belize and Guatemala, and is about a 6-hour drive from Cancun International Airport. Todd Luke will be your host, meeting you at the airport with a rented vehicle and serving as your driver during your stay in Mexico.

Groups are 4-8 people and there are 3 trip length options, with trips beginning Monday, March 7, May 9, July 25, and August 1.

The 4-night option (Monday-Friday) involves work on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, flying home Friday. The 6-night option (Monday- Sunday) involves work on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, Friday spent experiencing local culture, return home Sunday. The 7-night option (Monday-Monday) involves work on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, experiencing local culture on Friday, worshiping on Sunday, return home Monday. On Friday of the 6-night or 7-night options, the team will experience local culture, including visiting Mayan ruins, significant archeological sites, and a bat cave where hundreds of thousands of bats fly out at dusk.

Workdays are from 8:00 am–5:00 pm to build cisterns. Led by our Ch’ol Presbyterian partners in 40-minute spurts, we shovel sand and gravel into five-gallon buckets that are emptied into a cement mixer. During downtime, we interact with the cistern recipient families and our local coworkers. Lunch at the worksite is prepared by our Xpujil partners, who have years of experience feeding American work teams.

Groups stay in the 4-room Guest House in Xpujil, located on the Luke family home property. Each room has 2 twin-size beds, 2 hammocks, a ceiling fan, a floor fan, and a bathroom with a rainwater shower. Hot water is available upon request. Bottled water is always available. Breakfast is usually between 6:00-7:00 am, lunch between 11:00-1:00 pm, and dinner between 6:00-8:00 pm, all prepared by our Xpujil partners. Daytime temperatures normally reach the high 80s (and upper 90’s April – August), with overnight temps dropping into the low 60’s in winter and low 70’s in summer.

Passports are required and any participants under the age of 18 must have a signed affidavit from both parents permitting travel to Mexico. As required by a decision of Outreach’s trustees, all travelers must be fully vaccinated. A negative COVID test result is required to return to the U.S. Make sure your tetanus immunization is up to date. Bring $50 to convert to pesos to purchase snacks at one of the two small general stores near the Guest House. Todd Luke will help the group exchange dollars for pesos.

Ground costs per person are $95 per night plus $600 for a cistern. Costs for flight to Cancun and PCR test for re-entry to the U.S. are each participant’s responsibility. To request your place on the team, send your non-refundable deposit of $150, trip application, waiver, and a copy of the information page of your passport to The Outreach Foundation, 381 Riverside Drive, Suite 110, Franklin, TN 37064. For more information contact Carol Dublin at carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Syria

October 19-November 3, 2021

Led by Associate Director Marilyn Borst

This journey of encouragement will touch base with multiple congregations of the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon. In places like Damascus and Homs, we will learn much about the work and witness of the Church whose faithful presence has shone the light of Christ through war and pandemic and the ensuing economic collapse. In Kharaba, near the Jordanian border, it has only been a short time since rebels, who held the church and nearby houses, were expelled, allowing the church to restart its ministries---which are thriving. At Amr Al Hosn, in sight of the Krak de Chevelier (a well-preserved Crusader castle), a long-dreamed-for retreat and conference center, being built by the Synod with help from Outreach, is under construction to provide a place to “equip the saints for the work of ministry” and we will be present for its dedication. 

Much time will be spent in worship and fellowship and in learning, from the example of our Presbyterian family in Syria (and in Lebanon, coming and going), how “suffering produces perseverance; perseverance character; and character, hope…”  

Participants will need to be flexible, patient, and adaptable as the contingencies of travel have grown exponentially in this post-COVID age, but we will be well-cared for and expertly guided by partners on the ground. ALL TRAVELERS MUST HAVE HAD THE COVID VACCINE, AS REQUIRED BY OUR BOARD. The ground costs are estimated to be around $3100. Airfare to/from Beirut is not included, and each traveler will book their own flights.  

You can apply online or print the application and waiver. A non-refundable $150 deposit is required to secure your place.  

November 2-12, 2020

EGYPT 

In the midst of uncertainty, the Presbyterian Church of Egypt is hard at work. They are planting churches and revitalizing congregations that have been faithful for well over a hundred years. Of the 417 congregations which are a part of the Synod of the Nile, 25% of those were planted in the last 10 years---this is a movement with energy and vision! The team, led by Marilyn Borst, TOF’s Associate Director for Partnership Development, will visit some of these initiatives and see how God is working through his people. We will experience exciting new church developments in the city and in satellite communities. We will also explore possibilities for establishing ongoing church-to-church partnerships.

While in Cairo, we will stay at the Evangelical Theological Seminary (ETSC), where leaders are trained for congregations throughout the Middle East. The visionary leadership at ETSC has led the tremendous growth in student numbers (from 67 in 2000 to over 400 currently). We will meet students and hear inspiring stories of their aspirations for ministry, and visit the Pyramids of Giza and the museum which houses the spectacular treasures from King Tut’s tomb.

We will travel south to Aswan to encourage---and be encouraged by congregation old and new in this remoter region of the country, and take a day trip to be amazed by the Temple of Rameses the Great, carved into a mountain at Abu Simbel, overlooking Lake Nasser.

Estimated land cost:
$2,850 including accommodations, transportation, most meals, transfers, flight to Aswan and touring (does not include $25 visa upon arrival and international airfare).

For more information contact Carol Dublin: carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

October 18 - 27, 2020

Missional and Missionary Spirituality: A Journey to Brazil

In the last four decades, The Outreach Foundation has nurtured the missionary vision of churches in Brazil, focused on the development of missional leaders, supported church-planting initiatives and helped launch a movement of spiritual renewal among pastors. Brazilian Presbyterians have developed a strong commitment to sending missionaries to other cultures and countries that we can learn much about. In this trip you will:

• visit with the largest Presbyterian congregation in the Western hemisphere ministering throughout the Amazon region

• be part of “Affirming our Common Commitment,” a historic consultation that will bring together mission leaders from Presbyterian denominations in the country and in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.

• learn from a movement of spiritual formation with more than 400 pastors led by José Pezini, Portuguese-Language Ministries Coordinator for The Outreach Foundation

Estimated costs: $1,300 ground costs + international airfare

For more information contact Juan Sarmiento: juan@theoutreachfoundation.org
(615) 778-8881

Application deadline is August 14, 2020

October

See God at Work through the Church in Cuba

You are invited to join Outreach this October to experience God’s work in Cuba. Marilyn Borst, Associate Director for Partnership Development, will lead this team and our host will be the Evangelical Theological Seminary at Matanzas. Along the way, you will be learning from church leaders and exploring partnership possibilities as you meet with congregations of the Presbyterian Reformed Church in Cuba. You will absorb the history and culture that shape the ministry context for our partners to the south and discern how changes in relations between our nations affect them.

Estimated land cost and international airfare to Havana from major departure cities is $2,300.

For more information contact Marilyn Borst: marilyn@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881

September 9-19, 2020

Iraq: A Journey of Solidarity

The Outreach Foundation staff has enjoyed a strong partnership with the Presbyterian Church of Iraq for nearly 20 years. During that time, we have laughed with our friends as well as cried with them. Through it all, they have persevered and been courageous in their witness for Jesus Christ. Join us as we meet with leaders from the Presbyterian churches in Kirkuk, Baghdad, and Basrah. Our primary focus of time will be spent in conversation, worship, fellowship, and prayer with them, encouraging them with our presence, supporting them with our partnership, and covenanting to walk together into God’s certain future. In turn, we will be mutually encouraged by their faith and faithfulness.  

This trip will be led by Associate Director Marilyn Borst.

For more information contact Marilyn Borst: marilyn@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881

August 1-8, 2020

Haiti Outreach Ministries

Friends of The Outreach Foundation are invited to join us on a short-term mission trip to Haiti August 1-8, 2020. We will visit and serve alongside our Haitian partners, Haiti Outreach Ministries (HOM) in Port-au-Prince. Our primary aim is to help the Haitian medical team, under the direction of Dr. Quency Etienne at the Cite’ Soleil clinic where 90-150 Haitian children and adults will come daily for basic medical, dental and eye care.

Cite’ Soleil is in the poorest section of Port-au-Prince, which is the capital city of the poorest country in the Western hemisphere. Food shortages and poor access to health care is not a short-term crisis in Haiti, it is an everyday reality. Most Haitians survive on one meal a day and do not have regular access to clean water, so malnutrition and waterborne diseases are rampant in Port-au-Prince for all ages and especially dangerous to pregnant women and young children. In addition to addressing the primary reason for the patient’s visit to the clinic, each visitor receives clean water from the on-site water treatment system from Living Water for the World and is administered vitamins.

Any able-bodied adult is welcomed to join us on this trip – you will be forever changed. Individuals with medical, dental or pharmacy experience are especially needed. You will need a passport. Hep A & B, Tdap, and Typhoid vaccinations are recommended.

Estimated cost per person is $2,000 + international airfare.

For more information contact Ralph Wheeler at ralph@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 771-8881.

July 29 - August 11, 2020

Faithful Women on the Road: Lebanon

The Outreach Foundation invites you to consider joining a group of women from Presbyterian churches around the U.S. on a unique mission-vision journey to learn about and build personal relationships with Presbyterian women from Syria and Lebanon.

Led by Marilyn Borst, The Outreach Foundation’s Associate Director for Partnership Development, we will depart on July 29 and return on August 11. The “core” of this journey is a women’s conference that is held every year at a lovely mountain retreat center of the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon, north of Beirut.

For the six days of the conference, we will share-life-together with about 80 sisters from our Presbyterian family from Syria, as well as from Lebanon, learning with and from one another while we worship and enjoy fellowship, study Scripture and reflect upon God’s work in our lives, our families and our congregations. We will also have the opportunity to experience Lebanon and to meet with some of the other ministry partners of Outreach in Lebanon who serve refugees as well as autistic children and adults. This team is limited to about 12.

Ground cost is $2300. International airfare, extra (approx. $1300 from major departure cities).

For more information contact Carol Dublin: carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881.

Experience Holistic Evangelism in Tete Province

June 8 - 18, 2020

In Tete Province, Sebber Banda, the Project Director for the Holistic Evangelism Project and public health nurse, will be our guide as we travel from village to village, meeting local Christian leaders and encouraging them in their work. We will experience components of the Holistic Evangelism Project that are supported by Presbyterians through The Outreach Foundation:

• planting and building churches

• digging community wells

• building schools and teacher houses

• training in church leadership and income-producing skills

• improving the lives of the people through health education

The trip will be led by Berry and Elizabeth Long and Tom McDow. Berry and Tom are trustees of The Outreach Foundation.

The cost will be approximately $4,800. The airfare part, which you pay directly to our travel agent, will be about $2,200 depending on when you purchase your tickets. The ground costs of visa, lodging, meals, and travel, which are paid to The Outreach Foundation, are expected to be $2,600 but could change slightly due to situations beyond our control. In addition, you will be responsible for transportation within the USA, immunizations and medical trip insurance.

If you are interested or would like additional information, please contact:

Berry Long berrylong3@gmail.com, (407) 257-7807

Elizabeth Long elizhlong@gmail.com, (352) 406-4959

The Outreach Foundation info@theoutreachfoundation.org, (615) 778-8881

May 22 - 29, 2020

Responding to the Venezuelan Crisis in Christ’s Name: A Journey to Colombia

Last year, The Outreach Foundation supported initiatives to share the love of Christ to Venezuelans by providing meals, groceries, and medicines in over 25 church locations in Venezuela and Brazil. Presbyterians in Colombia are also responding in creative ways to the over 1.5 million displaced Venezuelans that have recently arrived in the country. In this trip you will:

• come alongside churches and ministries that are serving displaced Venezuelans

• gain a better understanding of the critical conditions of the Venezuelans who are temporarily in Colombia by hearing directly from them

• visit with the Reformed Synod of The Presbyterian Church of Colombia, a family of faith that dates to 19th-century Presbyterian mission efforts

Estimated costs: $1,000 ground costs + international airfare

For more information contact Juan Sarmiento: juan@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 771-8881

Application deadline is March 20, 2020.

Syria

POSTPONED UNTIL OCTOBER 2020

This unique journey, led by Marilyn Borst, Associate Director for Partnership Development, is designed to bring encouragement to and gain inspiration from many of the Presbyterian congregations in Syria which are an integral part of the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon (NESSL). Since 2012, when The Outreach Foundation ramped up its efforts to support its longtime partner, the Synod, as fighting and violence threatened the homes and livelihoods of families as well as the ministries of the churches because of the collapsed economy, Outreach through its supporting churches and individual donors, would provide hundreds of thousands of dollars as well as “show up”, even in the midst of the war, to demonstrate our love and concern to our family-by-faith there---8 times since the war began!

This 9th journey, in a mostly-peaceful Syria, will include visits to more familiar places like Aleppo, Damascus, Latakia, and Homs. But it will also bring us to the far south of the country where, in Sweida, the Presbyterian congregation of nearby Kharaba now resides in exile, and to Amr Hosn, a small town in the “Christian Valley” where a new Retreat and Conference Center, with significant gifts from Outreach, is under construction to give space for rest and refreshment, as well as equipping and teaching for Presbyterians of Syria as well as other local Christians.

Participants will fly into and out of Beirut, where we will gather before entering Syria together, under the guidance of the Synod and with the logistical facilitation of the Rev. Dr. Nuhad Tomeh, Mission Consultant for Outreach, a native Syrian and pastor-member of NESSL who now resides in Tucson. Plan for long drives (and long days!) as we move between cities in western Syria to visit as many congregations as possible. Because of the lead time needed by the Synod to secure visas for our team, applications must be in to our office by March 15.

Ground costs are estimated to be $3300 which covers accommodations, meals, vehicles, and visas. Airfare to/from Beirut is NOT included.

For more information contact Carol Dublin: carol@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881

March 13 - 20, 2020

Christ-Centered Community Engagement: A Journey to Guatemala (Closed)

The Outreach Foundation is sponsoring a trip to Guatemala to learn from ministries that are making a difference by bringing Christ’s hope to their communities.

• travel to Cobán, a primarily indigenous area where the impact of Presbyterians is felt through K-12 education, the development of new congregations and a new theological center for church leaders

• learn more about the rich diversity of cultures in the country and how they are sharing the Good News despite serious social conditions

• hear about transformational ministries directly from Guatemalan pastors and believers

Estimated costs: $900 ground costs + international airfare

For more information contact Juan Sarmiento: juan@theoutreachfoundation.org or call (615) 778-8881

March 5 - 16, 2020

Egypt

Though a small minority within a challenging context, the Presbyterian Church of Egypt (350,000+ members in 400+ churches) has much to teach American Presbyterians about being “missional.” Rather than simply seeking to preserve themselves, this church is increasingly looking outward, to serve its Christian and Muslim neighbors in need and plant new churches. As the largest Arabic-speaking Protestant body, they also seek to bless their region and even refugees in Europe.

The Evangelical Theological Seminary of Cairo is the vital center of this outward focus of the church, and will be our home base in Cairo. In addition to meeting students and faculty, we will visit a variety of new and old churches and ministries, as our hosts in the Synod of the Nile expose us to their work. We will provide updates as we learn where our hosts will send us.

Since the Christians in Egypt are the most directly descended from the ancient Egyptians (Copts), we will certainly see and learn some of the ancient as well as the Christian history, from the pyramids of Giza and Egyptian Museum (King Tut’s splendor and mummies), to ancient churches and monasteries. This trip will be led by the Rev. Dr. Nancy Fox, a past president of Outreach’s board of trustees.

Estimated land cost is $2,500. (International airfare not included)

February 20 - March 1, 2020

Seeing Our Faith through African Eyes: A Journey to Ghana

The Outreach Foundation is sponsoring a trip to Ghana to introduce participants to the riches of African Christianity. Over 9 days we will:

• travel to northern Ghana to see the work of two Ghanaian Presbyterian denominations in an area where Christians and Muslims live together in peace;

• see the Elmina Castle on the Ghanaian coast where slaves were transported to the Americas for 200 years;

• learn to see our faith through African eyes as we sit at the feet of African Christians in the Akrofi-Christaller Institute for Mission, Theology and Culture;

• and participate in the inauguration of a new center for the study of Islam and Christianity founded by the Rev. Dr. John Azumah, former professor of World Christianity at Columbia Seminary and Board member of The Outreach Foundation.

Estimated costs: $1500 ground costs + visa and international airfare.

For more information contact The Outreach Foundation: info@theoutreachfoundation.org.

November 11 - 22, 2019 (TRIP IS NOW FULL)

Kenya

Join The Outreach Foundation to see how God is at work in the world. This trip will help travelers build a strong relationship with partners serving the Lord faithfully in Kenya. The traveling team will include Rev. Dr. Eve Tolley, former Outreach trustee and a long-term friend of ministries in Kenya caring for vulnerable children.

We will fly into Nairobi and introduce you to the Girls’ Rescue Centers led by Stu and Annie Ross, and spend a day meeting and hearing their stories of hope for the future before heading to Nyeri. We will spend time interacting with children at both Huruma and Tumaini, have a VBS and a counseling session with the children, meet the board, and learn about the new government policies for effectively caring for the children while addressing the root causes of their misery.

The basic trip cost is $1,600 per person. This includes: in-country accommodations, meals, transportation and a two-day (optional) Safari at Sweetwaters National Park. It does not include international airfare, visas, travel insurance (required), offerings/gifts. A $150 non-refundable deposit and application to hold a place on the trip must be received by May 1, 2019. The Kenya visa is easy to obtain for American citizens, but you will need to apply online at eCitizen.go.ke. You will then print out the approval and carry it with your passport.

For more information:
(615) 778-8881
info@theoutreachfoundation.org