November 2015 – Esther Honegger
Dear friends and family,
If you had to describe your life and God’s ongoing work in your heart, what would you compare it to?
Many would say life is a journey, in which God leads them in paths of righteousness and deepens their faith
as they encounter all sorts of obstacles. Others might say life is like a tapestry, and each experience of sorrow
and joy is a thread which God weaves together to create a masterpiece. Some, like Paul, will describe life as a
race we run to pursue Christ and the righteousness God calls us to. I believe it is all these things, but I prefer
an agrarian analogy.
Since high school, God has been shaping my heart and ways of thinking to reflect His love for the nations, and
particularly for Africa. God began to cultivate the soil of my heart with a love for Africa in high school, when a
global studies course and youth group discussions gave me a better understanding of the hardships faced by
many people in developing nations.
In June 2012, I went on a short-term mission trip to Malawi through the Rafiki Foundation, where God planted
seeds of joy and a love for His children in Africa. At a missions conference a few months later, God watered
those seeds with a conviction to serve cross-culturally for at least two years. Roots have begun to grow this
past year as I trained as an agriculture intern in Texas, with a focus on serving in developing countries.
Psalm 37:3-4 says, “Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” God has certainly used
the past eight years to place these desires in my heart, tending them carefully and bringing them to bloom in
His perfect timing. I am excited to share that I have committed to serve with the Rafiki Foundation in Africa
for two years.
Rafiki’s mission is “to help Africans know God and raise their standard of living with excellence and integrity.”
This mission is accomplished through ChildCare of orphans, Education, Bible Study, Advanced Learning
Institutes, and Widows Programs at a Rafiki Training Village in ten different African countries.
I have completed a ten-day Survival Camp training with Rafiki, and have been commissioned to serve at Rafiki
Village Ethiopia. I will serve as the Assistant ChildCare Administrator and the Agriculture Manager, and I hope
to arrive on the field in January 2016. I am excited to use the gifts God has given me in caring for children
and creation, and to serve in the continent that God has put on my heart.
I would like to invite you to prayerfully participate in the mission God has called me to. As tomatoes
need a trellis in order to properly grow, so I need your prayer and financial support to bear fruit in this
ministry. Please visit www.rafikifoundation.org for more information, and feel free to contact me at
[email protected], as I’d love to share more details with you.
In Christ,
Missionary #228
E-mail: [email protected] Esther Honegger
221 Sandy Point Ln
Lake Zurich IL 60047