traveling traveling

Kenneth De Heyn
30 nov 2016
7 minuten om te lezen

I just came back from an amazing and inspirational 4 weeks in Amerika. I traveled 2 weeks in Texas, from all the way of Lubbock to Dallas. After that I went to our SportQuest Summit in Oklahoma, where all of our staff gathered together and had an amazing week of fellowship. After that I spent another week in Kansas. Before I share some stories about my America trip, I want to share about my small trip to Vienna i took before I left for America.

Vienna - ECSU trip

I had the chance to help the ECSU (European Christian Sports Union), they make the Ready Set Go strategies some of you all know. They have developed over 40 strategies to evangelize using sports. I got invited as the SportQuest leader to help multiply their sport camp strategy. They have the goal to have a sportcamp in every European country by 2020. We have 18 more country's to go. And we pray God will reach each country in Europe to make a difference. I know sport camps work cause it changed my life. If you want to read more about how it changed my life, please read the about me page where you can read my testimony and how a SportQuest Camp changed my life. It was also an amazing chance to share how the ECSU can help us in Belgium and to see how we can help other countries also. Another fun part of this trip, is meeting all this different people who are kingdom minded and like me want to just use their gifts and time to change their country, city and community. And it just encourages me that we are all part of a bigger family, kingdom family.

I had 3 hours before my flight back to Belgium so i could sightsee Vienna also, if you ever doubting to visit Vienna then don't cause it's a really beautiful city, below you can find some pictures from my 3 hours walking around in Vienna.

2 weeks in texas

A basketball game, Alumni reunion (which you read about in my previous blogpost), and a day of packing later I was on my way to America.

I landed in Lubbock after a 25h travel so pretty tired, and with the news that my luggage was still in Houston. Luckily Rance and I were staying with a nice family the Epplers, I was happy to hear the next day by lunchtime that my luggage was already at the airport so didn't had to go long without luggage. I was to spend a week in Lubbock Texas and I met so many amazing people in Lubbock. It's very difficult to single out every single person that I talked to, that inspired me, that encouraged me but i would love to share a few stories from my time in Lubbock. I had the opportunity to speak to the youth group of one of the churches and talk to them about missional living, to encourage them to trust God and live with a bigger purpose. I really love encouraging young people and share with them how God works in my life everyday and how God wants to use them everyday.

I also had the chance to go to an amazing construction company called Betenbough. This company builds houses and is successful at it. But they have also an amazing kingdom mindset, where they serve the community but also have a real impact in this world and help build God's kingdom. It was amazing to meet some persons of the leadership team and just inspires me that you can be a big business but still have the right mindset and focus on the Kingdom. Beside some amazing churches, youthgroups and company's, I also met some amazing individuals who are just kingdom minded and my heart just smiles if i think of everyone I had the chance to talk with. Before i left, i was also able to speak at a chapel moment of a local school (See picture) which was an amazing opportunity to share my story and just show these kids a little bit of Belgium and hopefully inspire them to go on a mission trip with SportQuest that can possibly changes their lives and the lives of so many others that they will meet on a trip.

After a week in Lubbock, we drove to Abilene Texas and spent a few days there and then finished the week in Dallas. Also there i got the chance to meet amazing people, I met with a church in Abilene who has over 4000 members, and had a slide in the kids church (there is a picture of the slide under this blog as proof), I met with Joziah Boyd and was amazed to hear the stories about the church and to hear where they came from. I also met with a group of people who were missional minded, one of them even went on a mission trip to Belgium. But just loved to hear their stories but also the encouragement of how God provided, how God took care of them. It encourages me and I hope that if you read this that it may encourage you, that whatever situation you are in put your trust in our Father. He will take care of you, if we keep our eyes on Him.

In Dallas I really experienced how big America is, traveling takes always so long, there is people every where. I got the chance to meet up with some alumni of SportQuest, which is a bit weird to see them in America and not in Belgium. But also just amazing opportunity's to be a part of breakfast for men from Gateway church, meet people from Antioch church with a passion to reach the refugee's in Belgium. It's so hard to put it all to paper, and this is only a small glimpse of the people I met. But if you read this I want you to be encouraged that there are people everywhere who are Kingdom minded, If you think you are alone, if you think there is no hope. Pray to God then that He would give you strength but also that He points you to fellow people who are Kingdom minded. Who really follow Jesus, cause your Father in Heaven will bring Kingdom minded persons on your path. We are all part of a bigger family then we would ever could imagine. That's the main thing I've learned on this trip. Always seek first the Kingdom of God!

Summit in Oklahoma

I came to the summit in Camp Y'shua already pretty tired after 2 weeks of meeting people. But this summit was an amazing time to just reconnect with some SQ staff members who I hadn't seen in a long time and at same time meet Staff members who I heard a lot about already but never met yet. During the summit we focused on becoming closer together cause we really are not just a ministry organization but we are a SportQuest family. Also every SportQuest location did a presentation about the work they are doing, and it's so amazing to be a small part in all of this. And to see how God is working through every staff member in all these different parts of the world. We also got poured into us, learning about new ways to build a team, got a good work out in, some counseling, got a sermon about Grace which was very insightful.

I really love the SportQuest family and how we want to be more than an organization, but want to be a movement, a global family of disciplemakers through the world of sports and outdoor adventure. If you are reading this and you never joined a SportQuest outreach, I would encourage you to do so and let it change your life. I know it changed my life for sure!

K-State

After the summit I went to Manhattan, Kansas. I'm visiting the K-state campus, spending time with my good friend Leslie Geist, who will also join the Belgium staff starting this summer. So it's a nice time to talk with her about that step in her life, but also see America college life. I was also able to meet a lot of friends of Leslie who study at Kansas state, and just spend a little bit of time with them and it was amazing getting to know them all!

I really loved my time at kansas state, it was great seeing how American college life is, but also just to connect with Christian groups and encouraging Christians to live with a purpose, to not only believe in God but to truly follow Him and his purpose for their life. God is working in Manhattan, and young people are really getting to know Jesus and building on their personal relationship with Him. God has an amazing plan for all of these people and I hope I was able to help them see their potential in them. And help them see that God has an amazing plan for their life.

These 4 weeks were an amazing time, meeting amazing kingdom minded people, learning a lot. I have so many people to thank for opening their homes, their lives and theirs hearts when I visited them. I

It was a good time that i'll remember for a long time, and meeting people I will never forget.

I started this trip to raise support, and build relationships, but this trip has ment a lot more to me. I met so many amazing persons, who I can't thank enough for opening their homes, lives and hearts. It was an amazing time where I got inspired and just saw God working in so many different ways.

So my situation at the moment is that I am 60% supported, so i still need to raise 400 Euro to reach my 1000 Euro goal. I will start the visa process at the end of januari, so my hope is that I will be fully supported by then. If you have it on your heart to help me monthly, please pray about it if this is something God's wants you to do.

Thank you all for reading my blog, and here are some more pictures from my travel in the states.