Past Mission Trips with the J.C. Fish Co.
Shangri-La
Clarks Grove, MinnesotaAugust 29th, 2024 - September 2nd, 2024With Street LevelFor me, the theme for this year's Street Level outreach to the Shangri La festival was about encountering people who have been running from God and/or hurt at church. In a festival that looks like a marriage between Halloween and every New Age practice you can imagine, “Christ consciousness,” meditation, vibration healing, and yoga, are all mixed in with bizarre costumes, live music, and camping. Those who attend come from as much of a spectrum as their tie-dyed clothing. You may find hardcore pagans and everyday partiers, but you'll also find professing Christians who are either trying to cast off the legalism of their past or who are just wandering. It can be quite a dark atmosphere in which to do ministry, but many people lift up the outreach and workers in prayer, and the Street Level Prayer Station has been a lighthouse there for years. In fact, if it was ever missing it would be noticed. People at the festival often stopped to thank us for our presence and partake of the free water and the free food, some of which was brought in by a local church. We had many people stop to ask for prayer or just to talk, and we also went tent to tent to have conversations about Jesus Christ. Just ask, “Do you have any spiritual beliefs?” and you soon have an open door for the gospel.
This year I had a long talk with a man from Brazil who was following Hare Krishna and trying to get others to do the same. He couldn't understand how Christians could believe God is love when there are people who will go to hell forever. He figured that God should let people rebel for millions of years if need be while He just lets their sin against Him go unpunished, not to mention the destruction their sin causes others. This disregard for God's holiness and belief that love means whatever I want it to mean has become not just a belief at that gathering but even in some churches. Some people we encountered have more of a problem with the lack of love shown to them by professing Christians. On one of the nights a man and woman came by the Prayer Station and she opened her heart about how she had been abused by her ex husband and how she was told to basically suffer for Jesus. This caused her to shut down spiritually and ultimately leave the church. She seemed to have sadness more than bitterness, and I spent time just listening and encouraging her, and the guy she was with even started reminding her of truth from the Bible. The next day I heard another story from a person hurt by professing believers. I asked her to please seek out Christians who understand grace. She appreciated our talk. Another person we talked with admitted they were running from God, and another was running like Jonah from a ministry he didn't want to do. There were about 9 of us working inside the festival off and on, and the gospel was shared with many people.
On the road leading to the festival, as cars were arriving all day Thursday and Friday, part of our team was handing out 1000 packets of free music and literature! I love the thought that many curious people may have listened to the music on the way home- and some had a long way to drive. Multiple people have reported that they listen to the music Street Level gives out, and I believe it because I'm one of them! We give out a variety of styles of music, and one of the recordings is a classic Christian rock band that a friend gave to me before I started to follow Jesus years ago. God meets us where we are, and it's an honor to represent Him and bring His love and truth to others.
I.A.M. Conference
Standish, MIAugust 23rd, 2024 - August 25th, 2024Educate Buena Vista
GuatemalaJuly 21st, 2024 - July 27th, 2024With North Canton ChapelPartnering with Mark & Gina Schmidt.
Educate Buena Vista
Joy to Brazil
Maringa, BrazilJune 15th, 2023 - July 25th, 2023Mark Gygi
GermanyJanuary 10th, 2023 - February 15th, 2023My Story
God has called me back to my European roots! I am Swiss/German/Dutch/British. God put Germany on my heart the summer of 2014 while doing a week long missions trip. I returned in May 2018 to visit Frankfurt. It was here again, my heart was filled with excitement & now for Frankfurt. He solidified that call in October 2018 on a short vision trip back to that city.
Where I Work
I will be engaged in winning souls for Christ and church planting in Frankfurt. I will also be investing in people, making disciples of the nations as He provides open doors.
Lebanon & Kosovo
Lebanon & KosovoOctober 10th, 2022 - November 10th, 2022I am thankful to have received partnership from J.C. fish on a recent missions trip to Lebanon and Kosovo in Oct.-Nov., 2022.
In Lebanon, I served with Shining Hope International in the Bekaa Valley along the Syrian border. Shining Hope is focused on Church planting in Druze Villages via door-to-door evangelism, setting up schools for Syrian kids taught by Christians who can’t otherwise get an education in Lebanon. They also house a Kurdish church in their school building and are setting up a pastor and leader training center in the region. I got the opportunity to go door-to-door in the Druze villages and see a few of these mysterious unreached people profess faith in Christ while I was there! Praise God! I also got the opportunity to teach a method of sharing the gospel to the Kurdish kids via gospel bracelets and also teach the teachers at Syrian school how to share the gospel with the bracelets with the Syrian kids. The hope is in turn they will go back and share with there families the gospel. Please pray for for the Syrians, Druze and Lebanese of Lebanon!
After Lebanon, I took a flight over to Prishtina, Kosovo. This was my fourth time in Kosovo where we served alongside Evangelical Christians from a few different churches. We set up Bible tables at various locations and gave out hundreds of Bibles and gospel bracelets to kids and adults. We also went door-to-door in villages around Kosovo in an effort with the local church to get the gospel to every home.
We were invited into many homes there just as we were in Lebanon. The hospitality is great and this gives longer opportunities to have gospel conversations. We had many gospel conversations and gave out many gospel tracts to the glory of God! Even one Muslim woman came to profess Christ in her driveway! Praise the Lord!
Thank you J.C. Fish for your partnership in this short-term mission trip!
For future gospel partnerships, my missions agency link is:
https://goinchrist.com/missionaries/entry/15194/
Revival Music Festival
Harmony Park, MNMay 28th, 2021 - May 31st, 2021How many: 2IAM Conference
Ankeny, IowaSeptember 21st, 2020 - September 22nd, 2020International Association of Ministries, Inc
IAM Conference
Fall Retreat
Alexandria, MNSeptember 17th, 2020 - September 20th, 2020With Fishing For LifeHow many: 5Board Meeting for The J. C. Fish Co.
New Testament Church Outreach
Merrill, WIJuly 27th, 2020 - August 3rd, 2020How many: 2July 27, 2020 - Twin Cities around Noon - Church Van to Merrill, WI.
August 3, 2020 - Church Van back to the Twin Cities.
White Earth Native American Indian Reservation
Ogema, MNJuly 21st, 2020 - July 27th, 2020How many: 2July 21, 2020 - Twin Cities 5:30 P.M. Church Van to Ogema, MN
July 27, 2020 - Leave Ogema, MN, Twin Cities in the Afternoon.
Fall Retreat
Alexandria, MNSeptember 12th, 2019 - September 15th, 2019With Fishing for LifeHow many: 2