a small taste of India

As I am sitting here in my little nook in Nepal I am thinking of how it has been ages since I have updated my blog and how SO MUCH has happened it is unreal.

Over the last few weeks I have taken my first steps in India, fallen in love, and traveled all around the beautiful nation. My life will never be the same after being exposed to some of the most beautiful hearts and faces I have ever known.

The first couple weeks I was with my outreach team from Harvest School 16. We had an amazing team of 9 “laid down lovers” who loved, served, and worshipped just as Jesus did. We spent most of our time in the children’s home, appropriately named House of Love. HOL is home to over 100 children currently. We had the best time living among our new Indian family. We learned to cook for the masses. We watched some incredible Tollywood dance films and danced it up with the kids. We got decked out in Indian attire. We became part of a beautiful Indian family.

From the moment I met the kids I was completely undone. They welcomed us on the bus as we drove from the airport to the home. I was instantly moved to tears at the goodness of God. Three years ago He gave me visions of children in India that I would see and love and serve. For three years I have prayed and asked Him about when I would go and what it would look like. My heart has longed to be in the place He had shown me. And as the kids climbed on the bus I was just undone by their beauty, and by His love and faithfulness. And He is so faithful to make every dream come true. 

We arrived at the house and were showered with flowers. I mean showered. Covered in beautiful leis of fresh flowers, petals falling from all over as the kids were on different levels dropping down the orange and yellow petals on us. It was such a sight to be seen. More tears came as the house full of children welcomed us with such love.

Each day we would worship and pray and serve meals to the children. I have never seen such a hunger for the presence of God in such small children. They would ask for prayer rather than get in line to eat. They would weep in the presence and under the power of the Holy Spirit. They know and live in the Love of the Father and it is such a beautiful sight to behold. 

Each day we would play with the kids, sometimes joining them at school to play outside, other times taking them to the beach, other times just kicking it at the house. We also traveled to a few other homes in the surrounding areas- braving horrible roads and lots of carsickness for short visits into some dangerous unreached areas. The children would sing their beautiful songs of worship for us and we would get to pray for them and serve them dinner. It was such an honor to be in the presence of these little saints.

So much happened that I am not sure how to put it all into words... My most significant relationship is with a four year old girl we affectionately nicknamed “Baby.” She was brought to the home as a baby, rescued from her family where her father had gotten drunk, doused her in fuel and lit her on fire. This precious angel had burns covering one of her arms, her chest and some of her face. I talked with the Dad of the children’s home and heard of how she truly is a miracle to have survived. Her first months in the home she cried nonstop in pain, but they continued to love her, despite others saying she was a lost cause and just to forget about her. They continued to love. And now she is as happy as can be. She is the most beautiful child I have ever met. She is brilliant. She’s an absolute princess. I spent as much time as I could just loving on her and I know that God will be faithful to bring me back to her one day. She has stolen my heart completely. I just love God and his faithfulness, His kindness, His mercy. He is such a good, good Dad and we saw so much of evidence of this in our time.

After our stay in the south I traveled with a few other girls to Mumbai where we got a taste of Indian city life. So different from the rural area we had been in! It was a blast to go exploring and shopping and see more of India. I was also blessed to be reunited with my dear friend Nupur, who flew me with her to Hyderabad for her convocation from Law School. We had the best time exploring the city there. Next was a short trip to Kolkata where we stayed at another children’s home and were again blessed by the love we encountered. We were also able to visit the city and see the home where Mother Teresa lived and founded the Sisters of Charity. Another dream fulfilled. It was unreal to stand in the rooms and halls where this hero of mine loved and served and ministered so faithfully. Her life of laid down love inspires and challenges me to unreal levels. It was the stories of her life devoted to loving Jesus and the poor that really ignited something in me years ago. So to be in the place where she served was such an incredible honor.

God just keeps reminding me that everything is all about love. Simple acts of love. Love doesn’t have to look big and flashy. Love looks like listening. Love looks like holding a sick child. Love looks like waking up at 4am to cook meals. Love looks like looking someone in the eyes as they tell their story. 

Thank you Jesus for your goodness and your faithfulness to me. Thank you for so many dreams fulfilled. Thank you for accomplishing Your plans and purposes through me. I pray I may never get in the way of what You want to do on this earth. 

Thank you all for sharing in the story and the journey. I look forward to the days of being able to talk face to face and share more personal stories. May you each be blessed in the love of the Father, Son and Spirit.

Kelly

it's a beautiful life.

Hello beautiful saints of God,

I’m sorry I have not done well at writing updates. I get wrapped up in all that is happening here and I am not sure how to relay it all.

This school of students is really beautiful. We have been having a wonderful time together pursuing the presence and Kingdom of God. Jesus is so at work in each of us, changing and transforming our lives. We are becoming image bearers of God. It’s really beautiful.

I am not sure what to update on... Things have been really wonderful here. My days are full with classes, administration work, worship, time loving on students, resting, seeing Fogas and other friends from the village.

Ah, here is an amazing testimony from last week Monday. I went with a few of the girls from my house to go visit Fogas and his family in the village. Before we went I was told one of Fogas’ older brothers, Lucas was in the hospital. So when we got to the home everyone was a bit somber and worried about Lucas. So we all prayed together for his healing and for peace. As we prayed I was reminded of the story in the bible where a man comes to Jesus and tells him about his son who is sick and needs healing. He says he knows Jesus can heal him, all he has to do is say it. Jesus blesses him & honors his faith & says his son will be well. As the man returns home, someone meets him along the way and tells him that his son was healed at the exact hour Jesus said it would be so. Ha! What an amazing Jesus. So I am  praying, fully expecting Lucas to be healed. We hang out at the house for a few hours, eating and fellowshipping with their beautiful family. After eating I tell them I will go to the hospital to check on Lucas, because they are also telling me there will be hospital bills which they cannot pay for and they are asking for my help. So I feel prompted to go to the hospital and see the actual situation, and visit my friend Lucas rather than just hand them a wad of money. 

So, we set off on an adventure to the hospital! My friend Julianne, Fogas and his younger brother Asam come along and we hop in a taxi to the hospital. We get there and have quite a difficult time finding where Lucas might be. His name isn’t on any records of sign ins and they are just sending us to look through each hall of the hospital. It’s really hilarious because we are in and out of abandoned and full hospital wings. We are roaming around with Fogas & Asam (who are actually not allowed because they are children) but we need them to help us translate. After about an hour of searching we find Lucas’s name is on the list which says he is in the one wing of the hospital where visitors aren’t allowed. haha. So... the hospital staff at this point is a bit annoyed & is asking us all to leave, especially the boys. So we walk out, but Julianne says to me that I need to go back in because we have searched for so long & I need to see him. So I go back in, praying Jesus gives me favor, and an ability to speak without a translator... and guess what happens... Jesus hears and responds! I go in, wait in line to talk to some man in white coat who everyone is trying to talk to. I explain to him in broken Portuguese my situation- that I have a friend who is like family in the hospital and I would like to see him and help pay for anything he needs while he is here in the hospital. The man smiles and agrees to let me go see Lucas immediately! ha! So then I wander into the prohibited area and I’m looking all around for him, not finding him anywhere. A nurse approaches me to ask what I am doing & I tell her the name I am looking for. She steps into a room & then comes out with Lucas’s release papers! Because he was already gone! Because God healed him and he was able to go home! Come on! Praise Jesus. So good. 

So it was quite a beautiful adventure of love. God is good. He is healer. He hears our every request. We went home & found Lucas healed and happy.

I love serving this altogether beautiful, worthy, lovely God.

Thanks for sharing in the adventure. Thanks for all your prayers and love.

Blessings!

Kelly

Outreach to the BushBush

Oh the BushBush was amazing. My team was incredible. They are all so filled with the power and love of God. We traveled 3 hours drive on the back of our big Iris trucks with 40 or so people to go share the love of Jesus. We had our Harvest School students, a team of 10 Scottish visitors, and our Mozambican brothers ready to love and serve. I was so blessed to lead alongside one of Heidi’s closest sons, Pascoal. He is a new hero of mine. He carries the heart of Jesus in an amazing way, full of love and compassion. His story is one of the relentless love of Jesus and how He completely transforms lives and fills His people with love and holiness. I was so blessed by my time learning from this mighty man of God.

Our first night our team arrived a bit late and we set up our tents and headed out to a big field to show the Jesus film, preach and pray. We had a pretty large group turn out. The projector ended up not working so we improvised with some skits and testimonies. We introduced ourselves and I was blessed to get to share with the crowds about how much Jesus loved them. I told the crowd how He called me all the way from America to this little village in Mozambique just to see their beautiful faces and tell them in Makhua (the heart language) “Yesu nau fenta” - Jesus loves you :) It was beautiful. Faces lit up. Hearts were filled. So many decided to give their lives to Jesus. hallelujah.

Then we invited any who wanted any sort of healing to come forward. This is my favorite story- A Mozambican Mama with a baby strapped around her back came up & wanted prayer for a headache. We prayed a bit and I asked her if it was better. She said it was a little better, so I said let’s pray more. As I prayed I asked God-when she is healed, let it manifest in a smile. (In the culture here I almost never smiles when they receive healing. They just walk away with same solemn countenance they had when they came to ask for prayer) So we are praying and within seconds a HUGE BEAUTIFUL smile comes across her face- “Uhovona?” (are you healed?) Yes! She is so happy she is beaming. And she proceeds to follow me, laying hands on and praying for all the other women around us with headaches as we continue seeing Jesus touch and heal His beloved Bride. Wow. My God is so good. He didn’t have to fill her with joy as he healed her, he didn’t have to show me that smile. But He loves us so much and His heart delights in bringing us joy. It was so special.

So that was night one. Night two was just a continuation of glory and goodness. We were able to get a  different projector so we could share the Jesus film- hallelujah the full Gospel was shared! We preached and prayed and saw so many people decide to give their lives to Jesus. We saw deaf ears open, headaches be healed, stomach aches be healed, joy replace mourning and grief, we saw Love manifest. It was beautiful. 

We also spent time walking through the village, spending time with people, hearing a bit of their stories and praying with them. Everywhere we went we saw God’s love manifest in healing and salvation. I am just overwhelmed by the kindness of God.

I could write pages and pages of all that we saw & all that God accomplished... It’s amazing. But I am very tired and very much in need of rest :)

Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for your love. Thank you for sharing in the story.

So much love to each and every one of you. I am so blessed as you share in the story with me. May your hearts be richly blessed and encouraged as you hear the testimonies of our King. I pray it provokes you to hunger for more. I pray we are never satisfied with what we have seen and experienced but that we always want more. I pray that as we continue to seek Him out, we would find Him in new and amazing ways.

Love you,

Kelly

With love, from Pemba

Lord bless this Pemba internet :) This is the first time I have been able to really successfully use the internet since being in Pemba, other than wifi on my phone. So sorry for the delay in updating :)

So much love to everyone back home and all around the world. It’s been a glorious first couple weeks back in Pemba. Every day I wake up overwhelmed by the goodness of God. I am so blessed to be here in this place I love surrounded by so many people.

My house is now full of new students for the Harvest School. I have 12 beautifully amazing women to share life and space with over the next 10 weeks. We have already shared laughter and tears and prayers and meals it has been such a beautiful time. I am really excited for what Jesus has in store for this season. Thank you so much for your continued prayers as I love on and minister to these twelve girls from 5 different nations & all different ages. Such a beautiful Kingdom picture.

I have been reunited with the Mozambican brothers I love so much. Last weekend I was reunited with Fogas and his family at church. I can’t express in words the joy I had as Fogas saw me for the first time, ran towards me yelling “I’m going jump you!” and leapt into my arms. We worshipped together in church, mostly just hugging each other and praising God that He is so good to allow us to be reunited again. My God is so good. I then got to go to his house while his mom made us all delicious lunch & I got to hold his 2 new baby nieces! His older sister & his older brother have each had baby girls. ah they are so beautiful!

I am so thankful for all of your prayers. Sorry it is late here and I am exhausted from all that has happened this week, 300 students arriving, getting everything in order, preparing for the school and all that it entails :) I’m thankful for your prayers for sustained energy in it all! :) 

Tomorrow morning we start classes! I have such an eager anticipation for this school. The students have all come so hungry to know more about Jesus and His heart. It is so beautiful to see. I know Jesus is going to be at work transforming lives in this season as we continue to press into Him. He keeps reminding me that it is all about Him and seeking out His heart. Everything flows from knowing Him. ah He is so good and I love Him so much.

This weekend I will be leading the first teams into the BushBush for outreach! Hallelujah! We are taking the name and love of Jesus into new places and seeing His goodness transform lives! He is going to bring healing and wholeness and salvation & He is going to use us, His children, to do it. Wow. What a humbling and incredible joy we have set before us. Please be in prayer for us as we go out. Prayers over the teams health and travels. Prayers as we enter into new territories that the Spirit of God would go before us making a way. That there would be a hedge of protection around us all. That the Gospel would go out in Power! That we would see His love on display in healings and signs and wonders. :) Ah He is so good and He has it all mapped out. Pray for me as I lead the team and help train the new staff on leading outreach. Haha I can’t believe this is my life. Taking out the Gospel & equipping others to do so. Wow. Jesus. Also pray that our team would quickly bond as family. It will be a new dynamic for me to lead an outreach so early in the school when we haven’t had time to really bond and get to know each other yet, but I know the Lord will be at work to unite us quickly. It’s going to be amazing. I can’t wait to post about all He does!

Love you all so much. Sorry for a disjointed blog. Just trying to post but needing to sleep. I love you all. I am so blessed by your prayers. You are incredible. 

May you be constantly undone by the Love of your Creator, Sustainer, Redeemer. 

Blessings,

Kelly

One for the books...

What a day! What a gloriously hilarious day....

So I arrived at the Johannesburg airport at 7:45 this morning. My flight set to leave straight for Pemba at 11:10am. I take my time checking in, paying huge sums of excess baggage fees (oye), enjoying a nice breakfast, treating myself since it’s my last decent meal for a while (or so I think). I get to my gate around 9:40 (boarding is listed to begin at 10:25). My new friend Julie, also on staff for HS16, arrives and we sit and chat at our gate. Times goes by and we mention how we should be boarding by now. We look around, no one has moved, no sign has changed. Still at the right gate. No listed delays. Flight not listed as boarding.... More time goes by and I get a big antsy so I walk around trying to find an agent for our airline. There, of course, is no one to be found. So as we begin to walk from gate to gate asking where we can find a representative of our airline (keeping our gate in sight this entire time, still no activity) someone finally approaches us and informs us we have just missed our flight. 

Excuse me? We are so confused. Did the gate change? No. Did the flight leave out of this gate right here? Yes. When did it leave? Right on time; We opened the doors at 10:25. No, that is not possible, I looked at my watch at 10:29 and wondered aloud why there was no activity. We go back and forth for a while until she tells us to find someone else to talk to.

We are then sent on a goose chase around the airport to find our airline’s supervisor, who shows us no grace and assumes we are lying about having been at our gate because everyone else somehow made this (very sneaky) flight. (although there was one other man who somehow missed this mystery flight alongside us) This goes on for quite a while as we try to explain that it wasn’t our fault. We were where we were asked to be. We waited. We watched. There is no way this flight left without us knowing. Still no mercy. Our tickets have been forfeited. 

At this point I am so sad. I want to be in Pemba. I don’t want to pay another $500 for a 2 1/2 hour flight into Pemba. We are in the Johannesburg airport with no working phone numbers of anyone on this continent. We try emailing our few local contacts to see if there is anything that can be done to help. No response. And then we run out of our 30 minutes of complementary internet. 

So I take a minute. Be still. Listen to the Lord. (Yes it took me this long to get to this point...) But as I am still I am made aware that the last couple hours have consisted of me fighting to get my way to Pemba. I was frustrated. Disappointed. Confused. Sad. Anxious. So I laid all that at His feet and I apologized. I’m sorry for trying to take matters into my own hands. I’m sorry for wanting to be in Pemba more than I wanted to hear what You had to say about the situation. And I was still. And there was peace. And then things (slowly) began coming together. I got in touch with our one South African contact. He advised us to go to another airline and try for tickets later this week. After some hilarious moments back and forth at the ticket counter we were finally able to purchase the tickets. I was reminded that no money is ever my own, it is all a gift from heaven, for His glory. I have no right to lay claim on any of it. 

So then at this point everything is funny to me. Like how we had to go back and forth to the ticket counter because our tickets had to be paid in cash, not American dollars but Rand... So we had to go to the ATM. Which was hesitant to give us money. But then they didn’t have change at the ticket counter. So we had to wander around asking for someone for change for a 50 because we owed them 38R and only had 28R (meaning, we were short less than 2 dollars and no one would help us out!) I spent so much of the afternoon just laughing at our unreal circumstances. I have been in the airport for 9 hours. I have seen every inch of the airport. I have pushed around my tremendously heavy (by my own doing) bags. (Which, by the way, the original airlines had time to find and offload our bags from our flight before letting us know we had missed the plane... so bizarre).

So, all that to say, by the grace of God I am now heading to Pemba Friday morning :) I am going to enjoy a day’s rest in South Africa with Julie. I am going to continue laughing at what happened. And I am going to continue looking expectantly for what He has in store next. 

I am thankful that in all time, places, and circumstances He is sovereign and He is good. I am thankful for His hand of protection and provision. I am thankful for his joy and laughter. I am thankful for the reminder to be still and Listen. I am thankful that even if the plane heads on to Pemba, His presence stays with me.

Hallelujah. What a day.

Thanks for the prayers and the love.

May you be continually blessed by revelations of His goodness towards you in ALL things.

Kelly

The Adventure Continues

It’s 3:30am here in Johannesburg, South Africa and I am lying awake in bed praising God for His goodness and faithfulness. I am overwhelmed by His unchanging love and faithfulness. In just a few short hours He is returning me to a place and a people my heart has so fallen in love with. 

Thank you all for your prayers and devotion over the last months. I have felt the Lord’s hand of protection and provision over me as I have prepared to return to Mozambique. Everything came smoothly and easily- visas, finances, flight arrangements. I am still in awe of the ease of everything. I know it comes as the result of prayers and the decision to abide in Him and allow Him to handle every detail. As we rest in Him He cares for our every need. Thank you God.

I also want to thank each of you for your support and prayers as I had my surgery in March. I should have posted sooner- but everything went wonderfully. It was really easy and all the test results came back negative for cancer. Hallelujah! As I went and visited the doctor just last week he informed me that my thyroid levels were perfectly normal (even though I only have half a thyroid left in my body) and so PRAISE JESUS I don’t have to even take any supplements. God is so good and He cares for our bodies perfectly. Thank you for all the prayers and love sent up on my behalf.

I am so eager and expectant for this next season. I am so honored to be able to continue loving and serving my God in a place that is so dear to my heart. I am looking forward to meeting up with new and old friends tomorrow and in the next days as the rest of the school staff continue to arrive. I am eager to meet the new sisters I will have in my house to love and care for. My heart jumps at the thought of seeing my Mozambican family again. 

As I step back into the Pemba dirt I am so so very thankful for your prayers-

prayers for wisdom as I love on and minister to the new students (297 in counting for this next school)

prayers for my family and my heart as we adjust to being apart again

prayers as I and the other 37 staff finish up all the preparation for the upcoming school- construction of new houses and beds, provision of supplies for each house, preparation in our hearts for all that is in store, openness to hear what the Lord is saying about this next school

Thank you all for your love. I have been overwhelmed, yet again, by everyone’s encouraging words and prayers over the last months. I am so blessed by His body here on earth. I pray you would each know the power of your willingness to be obedient to Him in all that you say and do, and that you would receive all the blessings and benefits of your obedience.

So much love to you all. Many blessings. May the Lord continue to reveal Himself and His heart to each of us. That is my one desire. To know Him more, to hear His voice and to follow wherever it beckons. May we all be strengthened with His power, with His love, and with His joy. 

Kelly

A Much Overdue Update

Hello friends and family! Lots of love and blessings and joy to each of you as you continue to journey with me... It has been a long while since I have written and I feel like I have a million things to update on, but I will do my best to be both thorough and concise :)


I am back in Knoxville. :) Hallelujah. Jesus is really good and He invited me to move back here while I was still in Mozambique. I was hesitant at first to want to follow because I love Birmingham and my beautiful brothers and sisters there. But I am learning that obedience is the greatest joy. As I follow Him, I see that He is already with me, closer than ever, and there is nowhere I would rather be that right beside Him. Thank you God for your presence in my life.


Since being home God has gifted me with the most amazing job I could ever dream of having. I get to work with precious 3rd grade students as their teacher in an after school program at my church here in Knoxville. I ooze with joy whenever I even think about my students and my time with them. I am thankful that Jesus continues to remind me that the Kingdom belongs to the children. I love getting to play, laugh, sing, dance, swing, run, pray, read the Word, and learn alongside these beautiful treasures of the King. Please keep us in your prayers as I continue seeking God and his strategies in speaking Life and Truth and Love into their hearts and minds.


God's timing is perfect in everything. This job truly is one of His miracles of provision. I started within weeks of being home and my semester with my kids will end in mid-May, which is perfect, because Jesus (and Iris) have invited me back to Mozambique to be a part of staffing two more of the Harvest Schools of Missions :) Praise Him!


(big big smiles on my face) I cannot believe how good Jesus is in gifting me with more time in a place I love so much. I will be returning to Mozambique at the end of May to staff another 2 Harvest Schools in Pemba. I am so excited and blessed I can hardly stand myself :) Another beautiful gift of Jesus- after the first school, so in Mid-August, I will be leading a team of graduated students on an outreach to India! Yes, India. Because God is good and faithful. I am so blessed to be partnering with my amazing brother, Lyle Phillips, and his ministry Mercy29. If you aren't familiar with him and his ministry, I can't encourage you enough to check it out. They rescue children. They see the broken made whole. They set captives free. The love with abandon. It is truly and miraculously beautiful and I an in awe of the opportunity Jesus has given me to join with them in this season. Please pray for me and other staff and students as we prepare our hearts, minds, and all else to serve Him in another season in Pemba. Pray as I arrange flights, visas, and all the other details that come with traveling :)


I am so thankful for those of you who join in my story by reading this blog and partnering with me in prayer. I have another update and prayer request to share with you as you continue to walk with me :) Just before I left for Mozambique last September I went in for a regular physical exam in which the doctor found a mass on my thyroid. After having an ultrasound, he requested that I have it biopsied so that we could find out what it was and how it should be treated. There wasn't time between discovering the mass and my flight to Mozambique so I left for Pemba knowing that Jesus held me in His hands and called me to serve Him in Mozambique in that season. Since being home I have had the biopsy and based on what they discovered the doctors have decided that I need to have surgery in order to remove the left half of my thyroid. With surgery they will be able to tell what kind of cells are growing and whether the second half has to be removed.(it won't be, in Jesus' name :) So, all of that to say, I am going into surgery on the morning of March 29th. I am beyond thankful for your prayers as Jesus continues to heal and take authority over my body. I know that I am called to serve Him in the nations and that no weapon formed against me shall prosper. I know that His plans and purposes for me are good. I know that He is healer. I know that He provides and cares for me. So I am thankful for all of you who join with me in walking in healing and peace.


Thank you for your continued love and prayers and support. You are so very beautiful. Every day I am overwhelmed with the body of believers Jesus has surrounded me with. I can't praise Him enough. In many nations and cities and states I have the most beautiful, powerful, Sons and Daughters of God standing with me in battling for the Kingdom. We are blessed. And highly favored. :)


The most powerful gift you can give me is your prayers. ( I also really love words of encouragement :) )And I also want to invite you, as you pray, to seek the Holy Spirit about whether He prompts you to financially sew into what He is doing in the nations. I am always blessed and amazed at how Jesus continuously, faithfully provides a way in whatever He calls me to. If you feel prompted to give please email me at kazimmer@samford.edu so I can give you more information.


I know in many ways this update was brief; it definitely does not capture all the Jesus is up to in and around me. I would love to share more with anyone who has time to listen :) Please accept the invitation to call, email, facebook message me, (or any other form of social media I may have forgotten) if there is anything more I can share about. I am also eager to hear your stories of what Jesus is up to in your lives!


Thanks for Listening. Much Love.
Kelly






Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Remain at work in us this day and always. Let us be attentive to your stirrings and movements on this earth. All glory and honor and praise to Your Holy Name.