By Tanya Merced
The Seed
Ever wondered why some dreams seem impossible to achieve and others out of reach? Well that is what WOWGROUP GLOBAL NETWORK accomplished on their mission to Egypt, Cairo. Let me explain how it all began. It all began with a seed that was planted for 40 days. Okay, not a physical seed, but a supernatural seed that first was planted by the Holy Spirit. You know the one that calls out your name and says pray, take action and trust.
Dr. Sandrie S. Smith had a vision that one day she would visit Egypt, however, everyone knows that a vision is only that unless you share it with a team. Dr. Sandrie S. Smith shared her vision with me and we decided to pray for 40 days. Egypt was never mentioned again until the Lord brought it up in October 2008 while I was teaching a lesson about Sand Dunes. At the time I was showing slides from my mission trip to Tecate, Mexico when my assistant who by the way happens to be an Egyptian tells me that the dunes in Mexico remind her of her home. "Yes, you can see the Pyramids of Giza from my rooftop," she said. My response was WOW someday I am going to visit Egypt. Then she said, "When you are ready to go to Egypt let me know so that I can give you the keys to my home?" My eyes began to well up with tears and I began crying in the middle of my class. I was so overwhelmed with joy, because the Lord had answered the seed so quickly and in such a special way. I then called Dr. Sandrie S. Smith and relayed all that God had did. The first part of the mission was accomplished.
Making It Happen
How many of you know that money doesn't fall from the sky onto your lap? One of the hardest things for a Missionary Ministry to get is supporters who believe in the vision. One of the things that I have learned from being a missionary is that people think you are taking monies from supporters and having a grand old time on some Resort and Spa. The truth of the matter is WOWGROUP GLOBAL NETWORK staff members raise their own funds to travel and reach all people groups around the world. Why would a team raise money to do missions? We believe that Jesus has sent us to partner together to build men, women and families so that they will know the heart of the Father. Knowing how difficult it was going to be to raise the funds I decided that fund-raisers would be one way of making this mission trip to Egypt, Cairo happen.
Making Connections
March 26, 2010, A double-look at our agenda and ititernary, Do we have a translator? Do we have transportation? Do we have our assignment? Did we contact everyone we needed to contact? I wish I could say yes to all, but the truth of the matter was that everything was good except for one, Dr. Sandrie S. Smith was not able to speak with her contact in Egypt. We were about to take off when Dr. Sandrie S. Smith received a phone call. You guessed it our contact was on the phone. God was right on time again and He was reminding us that He was the pilot and we were the passengers.
Walking in Favor
Dr. Sandrie S. Smith, Evangelist MaryAnn Goolsby and Minister Tanya Merced experienced the favor of God. During our stay at Cairo, Egypt one of the places we stood at the first night was in a small church in the city of Selam. This church was in the middle of a garbage dump and abandoned buses and it's mission to teach the street-kids about the basic necessities such as hygiene, nutrition, education, and the Good News Jesus Christ. Yes, we have plenty of dumps, ghettos, and dangerous territories in America that do the same thing, but it's even harder when you are in a Muslim country and only 10% of the population are Christians. It's even harder if you are a female living in a Muslim country. In addition, we were able to experience authentic Egyptian cuisine and how Christian Egyptian families find happiness, inspite of their circumstances. The second night, we stood at my assistant's flat, which was spacious and very pretty. My assistant's family were gracious hostess who made us feel so welcomed.
The Future is Ours
The Lord definitely played a major role in making this mission possible, however, God needed individuals who would obey and trust Him to accomplish the impossible. I am so happy and proud to be part of the WOWGROUP GLOBAL NETWORK team. WOWGROUP GLOBAL NETWORK will be returning to Cairo, Egypt in the future and will be partnering with families in need of our resources.
Join Us
We are currently accepting applications for our Cairo, Egypt conference 2011 team. If you are interested in joining a team that cares, please email us at wow@wowgroup.info
