Grow & Go - July 2026

As many of you who read this know, nine people from Oakhill Baptist just embarked on a 10 day cross-cultural mission trip to Lusaka, Zambia in Sub-Saharan Africa. On this short term mission trip, there were numerous first time experiences. Some of those experiences included sharing the gospel to a strange person, sharing the gospel in a cross-cultural context, organizing and leading a B.A.M. (Business as Mission) Conference with the IMB Team in Lusaka, Zambia, and witnessing countless wonders of God’s glorious Creation for the first time. And with every one of these firsts, our great God showed His sovereign power over all Creation, ordaining each of those experiences so that we who participated in His mission would find awe, worshipping and praising Him for all that He has done.

Nothing becomes more apparent on a mission trip once those wheels of the plane come off the ground, and that is the sovereign God of all Creation is in control. Having this understanding, there are two choices for
us – we can either trust God, and roll with things that come up along the way, adjusting as needed. Or, we can fight against the grain of God’s timing, and His sovereign plans and purpose for what is to be accomplished on the trip. Too often, many Go with the second mentality. They go with preconceived expectations they are going to be able to operate just like as if they were at home – doing, saying, and acting in the same manner as they did in the U.S. What is really encouraging to watch as a leader is when God transforms the hearts and minds along the way to truly say “God, you are in control here. I am going to surrender to what you want me to do”. What we will find along the way is surrendering ourselves to God’s time and plans, whether we are in the US or on the other side of the globe, is the most freeing thing we can do.

One way each person on the team surrendered to God’s sovereign plan on this trip was during the Business as Mission Conference with the 24 college students who attended. Yes and amen, thankfully, we had a lot of information going into this we were able to prepare, but this was the first time the IMB team has held one of these conferences at this location and there were still many unknowns. It was unknown exactly how many students would show up, but the Lord provided. It was unknown if each of our testimonies and teaching sessions we prepared to share would resonate with the students, but the Lord knew, and it was very well received. It was unknown if once the students heard the teachings if they would submit business ideas and proposals, but they did. It was very apparent that the Lord blessed the work done in the B.A.M. and it was even clearer the reason why is that we trusted God to provide. And He did in more ways to describe!

The question now and always is this – Will we take home with us what we learned? Because, the same God of all Creation who ordained and guided our steps on Mission in Africa is leading us here! The same God who reveals His power and glory in and over Creation in Zambia is the same God calling each of us to pray, give, go, and send here. How will you surrender to God’s call to surrender and Go?

Thank you OHBC family for supporting the work of missions.