Heather Hodges

Missionary Debriefing is a time of Rest, Renewal, Reflection, Re-Affirmation, and to prepare for Re-Entry back into their home country and culture. These fourteen people dedicated three weeks to serving children in Ukraine. They had been preparing for almost a year to go on this journey. But once they arrived in Ukraine and began the work with the children they realized how difficult the time was going to be. Several of the Americans had never been on an airplane before much less visited another country. They experienced culture shock and wrestled with the language barrier. They ate food that they did not recognize and were exposed to unusual and sometimes unpleasant odors. But this did not divert them from their mission to show unconditional love to the children and orphans of Ukraine.  After three weeks, the missionary team wept to see the children leave.  Their hearts had been touched and they had fallen in love .

The team processed their experiences. In what ways had it been the “Best of Times” and the “Worst of Times?”

“Remembering the Children”  The team created a collage or drawing to reflect on their time with the children.  For most this was one of the most emotionally difficult exercises to complete.

Joel and Dima.  Dima is a Ukrainian university student who is majoring in languages and will be an English translator. 

“Balloon Trolly” This team work exercise helps illustrate team dynamics. We used it to explore ways they functioned well together and also highlights areas where improvement is needed.   Besides all that it’s just plain fun.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 27th, 2007 at 6:09 am and is filed under Ministry. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.