These past two months I have re-adjusted to life in the states. There was no culture shock really- after last year I knew what to expect. I didn't experience any jet lag either(thank you Jesus!). As of now I still hope to return to Uganda with Awe Star/Extreme Team International's(XTI) 2010 team but I am waiting to hear from God.

Please continue praying for the Karamojong people. Pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to work in their hearts in our absence. Pray against the spirit of drunkenness that holds them captive.


In August I was presented with an opportunity to begin being trained for cross-cultural ministry. Larry and Terry Singletary (founders of XTI) have a discipleship/training program in San Antonio. Their goal is to help bridge the gap between "the call" and actually going. After much prayer and a visit to San Antonio to check it out I feel like this is the next step God has for me.
So what will I be doing in San Antonio? :) Well, I will be living with 4 other girls in the XTI training program and we'll have a "class" with Larry and Terry once a week (I think). I'll also have to work 30-40 hours a week, which will be a huge step for me so be praying for me! :) Our ministry will be building relationships with the refugees nearby. I will also, at some point, begin working towards getting a bachelors degree(hopefully in music so pray for scholarships!!).
That is just a brief overview. When I learn more I will be happy to share it with you!
These next few months will be spent preparing for this move so please pray that everything will fall into place!

Thank you so much for your prayers and support! I couldn't do this without you!

Joyfully!

Marissa Watkins

Pictures

Team 1 and our friend Rev. Dismas:

Me with my two friends Irene and Lucy:


Sunrise on the Nile during our stay in Jinja:


My African mother and hut-mate, Nichole:


My dear African brothers Simon and Losike!


Our Lorray(village):


My hut decor:


Fun loving kids!


Bethany telling a story through a translator:


Darling little kid:


Me with my two friends Makolet and Keeru:


Me and those playful kids!


Kenya in the background!


A hut we spent the night in:

Uganda 2009(overview)

Hey folks!

I am safely returned from an incredible adventure with God in Uganda! Our time there has changed me forever and I am so excited to be the one to tell you what God is doing in the Karamojong people!!!

For starters I want to give you a brief timeline of our trip then a short description of our time there. We had 4 days of pre-field training in Oklahoma City at the home of our leaders Tye and Christy Brown, 4 days of training in the city of Kampala, Uganda, 9 days in Moroto (unexpected 7-day delay because of a car radiator), 5 weeks on the mountain, and 3 days of rest and debrief in Jinja before we flew home. Our time on the mountain was spent hiking out in small groups (2-3) to various villages storytelling(telling various Bible stories through a translator) with the people and building relationships with them. We would hike out each day and spend the morning with the people. Afternoons were spent in the Word, studying language, debriefing from the morning, and various other things such as washing clothes, bathing, or just hanging out with the team(who I love!). Evenings were times of teaching and corporate worship.



The goal of this trip was to give us a taste of what frontier missions is all about as well as to begin the process of reaching the Tepez people. Much was accomplished on both of these fronts. We learned much about the process and logistics of frontier missions-- lessons that will continue to challenge and assist us throughout our lives whether we go into long-term missions or not. In addition a great foundation for the gospel was laid in the Tepez people. Many of the villages were very receptive to the message of the gospel and some even promised to continue to spread the Word even after we left. We are excited to see what will happen with future teams!

Frontier missions is basically the process of reaching a people group that has never heard the gospel. This includes everything from the first mention of the Word to the first gathering of the new saints to the people reaching out to their own tribes. One of the things I learned about frontier missions is that knowing the people and their culture is absolutely key to effectively reaching them with the gospel. Knowing a people can affect how the Bible stories are told, which stories are told at what times, and can even affect where stories are told. The familiarity you have with the culture of a people will dictate how ministry works and how long it will take. Other things I learned were how important little comforts of home (like food and music) became, how refreshing calls home can be, and how very necessary it is to have people at home praying for you. I also learned that doing logistical things such as set up, take down, and other daily tasks that may seem mundane are just as much part of ministry as going out into the villages every day. These support tasks are completely necessary and without them, the village ministry could not happen. When I realized that, they became less of a drudgery.

As far as the village ministry goes—I LOVED it! I loved sitting on the ground shelling beans with the ladies. I loved playing games and teaching dances to the kids. I loved telling the stories. I even loved (and really miss) hiking to the villages! I didn’t mind having to live in a primitive hut with few of my comforts of home to do that ministry. The Lord gave me a grace to live and love that kind of life. I can definitely see myself going back and perhaps even long-term. As of now, I plan to go back there next year(of course, it’s all in the Lord’s hands). If you would like to stay in touch with what the Lord is doing with the Karamojong, you can give me your e-mail address and I will add you to my monthly e-newsletter that I’m getting started. This newsletter will include trip preparation info, how you can be praying for the Karamojong, other stories from my trip and things the Lord taught me, as well as links to various missions resources. Don’t miss out on God’s work in Karamoja!!

Thanks everybody for your prayers! Don’t stop praying for these people! They need Jesus and God has given us the task of bringing that message to them. It’s up to you!

In His Grace,
Missy

Uganda Update # 12

This past Friday we got a short update from Awe Star that Ty and Christy were on the way home and to expect a detailed update when they were able to get to a computer. Well today it came. What a thrill, we got a personal message from Marissa. In fact there is a personal message from each team member. Click here to go to the Awe Star page to see all the messages. They are very interesting to read.

Here is Missy's message:

Howdy Folks!
Greetings and blessings from deep in the bush of Africa! ? What an amazing and adventurous trip this has been so far! There have been some delightful times and some discouraging times but I have felt the hand of the Lord on us constantly. He has taught me so much! One thing He really impressed upon me is the power of singing to Him. One night a few weeks ago the team felt the need to pray and pierce the darkness deep into the night. My hut mates and I were called upon to sing worship songs while the guys prayed. We sang until we were hoarse and I have never felt the power of worship songs like I felt it that night. Starting from that night the words of many songs have become so much more sincere and genuine for me. The truth and power of worshipping Him has never been so real to me. Singing to Him has become the weapon with which I fight the powers of darkness here. I love singing late into the night with my teammates and I look forward to seeing how God uses this newfound weapon and renewed passion in the States.

To my awesome family: I love yall and miss ya! Could you bring a set of clean clothes(jeans would be great) to me at debrief? Homemade chocolate cookies would be amazing also. ? Tell Sonny, Favorite, Dixie, Ezekiel II, and Jake hi for me. ? Looking forward to pizza and Blue Bell!!!!!!!!!!

As you can see she misses her animals and other comforts of home. There time is short. Continue to pray! By the end of this week they should be coming off the mountain to begin their journey home.

I would like to thank all of you who have joined our family on this journey with Missy. It has been a great comfort to us know there is a wonderful group of people out there praying! You have taken part in a powerful mission for the Lord! God is good!!!

Blessings

Jack

Uganda Update # 11

Exciting news from Uganda. It rained twice this week. A very important answered prayer. For all of the details go to the Awe Star site for the new update.

Missy called again this morning. The whole team had piled into their vehicle, some on the top, and came into Moroto to celebrate the 4th. She still is excited to be there and sounds strong. She is learning about spiritual warfare. There is a lot of oppression there. She finds herself singing praise songs, doing warfare in the heavens. The enemy has a lot of strongholds over the people in that area, and it takes much prayer before there are any breakthroughs. So keep praying that strongholds will come down.

"2Co 10:4-5 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;"

On their hike further up the mountain she said they came to a point where they had a beautiful view into Kenya. She stood in awe of the beauty.

The physical demands have not been as hard on her as I thought. I asked her if she wanted to run with me when she gets back. She said, "No way. I hate running, but I'll walk twenty miles with you!" Well she's got me beat there. She is getting in tremendous shape. They are living at an elevation of around 6000'.

The weather is nice there. It gets cold at night. The food is.......well, they have enough, but don't offer her rice for any meal when she gets back. They eat it along with some kind of mush three times a day. She relishes her power bars she took with her, so she is conserving them. How blessed we are here in the US with our variety and endless supply of food.

They will be leaving the area they are in now, around the 17th and going to another area. Then they will make their way back to Kampala and leave the 21st. They arrive in Dallas on the 22nd for debriefing and then she can come home on the 24th. So we probably will not hear from her for a couple of weeks.

Thanks for your support and prayers!

Jack

Uganda Update # 10

We received a call from Marissa Sunday morning. We were pleasantly surprised. She was in Moroto, and they had come down off the mountain to get some supplies. She did not have much time left on her calling card and the time ran out while I was speaking to her.

She sounded great and was still very excited about being there. It has been over 30 days in country for the team. Sometime this week she is going deeper into the mountains with a smaller team. They will be trying to make contact with some tribes that have not had much contact with the outside world. So please pray that God will open the door for the Gospel to be shared with these lost tribes. It is a very difficult hike, high in the mountains, so pray for strength, stamina and health. Continue to pray for Christy Brown as she and her husband make the decision when to head home and have the baby.

There is an update from Awe Star out today. Also, remember the Peru team that Kelsey and Kaleb Abbrat are on.

June 30th, 2009

The Awe Star Office has received a text message from Tye and Christy. The report is that ministry is going well. They continue to ask everyone to pray for rain. It is one of the keys to seeing God move among the villagers. As they are entering the homestretch of the work in Uganda they are asking that your prayers be focused not only upon the ministry to the Karamajongs but you would also pray that the team will finish the race unified, focus and healthy. Many times we are asked what is the hardest part of working on foreign soil and the answer is …the last thirty minutes. As you get near the finish line it is easy to begin to transfer you thoughts to back home, getting a hot shower, eating a home cooked meal, seeing family and friends. Pray for the team that their best ministry will happen in the last…thirty minutes.

Blessings to all,

Jack

Uganda Update # 9

Got another update from Awe Star. It is good to hear things are going well. Prayer warriors keep praying. I believe this trip will be a pivotal experience for a lot of the team members. Not only are they ministering to unreached tribal groups, God is doing a work in these young people, preparing them for their future.

I am excited, curious, maybe a little apprehensive on how this trip is going to affect Marissa. She has the heart to serve her Saviour where ever He leads.

Here is the update:

June 26th, 2009

Team Uganda has sent us word that ministry is going well. They are currently focusing on two villages. One village is full of the blind, deaf and lame. This team understands the ministry to the “least of them.” Pray that their love for these outcasts would open door for the love of God. In the other village God is letting the team lay down the basic frame work for the gospel. The are excited that they are now living in huts and become like the Apostle Paul said, “becoming all things to all people so that a few will know.” To continue to pray for their health, safety and ministry. Pray for the RAINS to fall! That the Karamajong will know that our God has sent this team.

Also, there is another Awe Star team in Peru, in fact there are several Awe Star teams across the globe. A good friend of Marissa's, Kelsey and her brother Kaleb Abbrat are in Peru. Check out their update here.

Thanks,

Jack