Inside Missions

Four vice presidents of Maranatha get together to talk about some of the most common myths they hear about the organization. They tackle some common general questions like “Is Maranatha an Adventist Church entity?” “Does Maranatha receive funding from the Adventist Church?” “Does Maranatha pick where we work?” “Does Maranatha only work overseas?” “Does Maranatha do evangelism?” The crew also discusses who is doing the actual construction work, and whether Maranatha gets involved in disaster relief. If you think you know Maranatha, get ready to go behind the scenes to learn a lot of details about how we work—something that we don’t often talk about.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Volunteer leader Jennifer Trujillo joins the crew to share her experience leading short-term mission trips with Maranatha, fresh off a project in India. They talk about what drives their motivation to lead this time-consuming and challenging endeavor, the transformation they see in volunteers, and the positive impact on home churches that send volunteers. The group analyzes how mission trip leaders prepare their volunteers for the project, how crucial the first few hours after arrival are in setting the tone for the trip, and how volunteers can be culturally sensitive to the place they’re visiting. The panel reflects on the differences in planning a mission trip for teens or children versus for adults, how they prepare spiritually for leading a project, and what they’re doing behind the scenes each day on a mission trip to make sure it’s successful. The ladies touch on how important it is to rely on God’s leading, as our best-laid plans are often disrupted. Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Julie Lee and Sidney Needles share details of their recent trips to India and the Dominican Republic, and the stories they were sent to capture. Julie describes what travel is like in the northeast Indian state of Mizoram, including the exciting traffic, harrowing mountain roads, varying religions, and getting mistaken as a local resident. The group discusses how they approach changes when it’s a follow-up to a previous trip, how they battle jet lag when they have to push through full days, great meals they’ve enjoyed in India, and how they stay connected to family and other work projects when they’re trying to put their full focus into the stories in front of them. Julie talks about her visits to Pine Hill Adventist Academy for the dedication of a large Elementary Education Center, the Graceland Adventist School where Maranatha is adding infrastructure like dorms and bathrooms, and the Irvine Adventist School where Maranatha is constructing new dorms.Sidney reflects on how her pre-trip preparation has become more detailed over her three years working in marketing for Maranatha, and the crew speaks to how that preparation pays off on a media trip in allowing more time to capture better stories. The team discusses how important it is to stay open to God’s leading while visiting these sites to see what characters and stories present themselves that we weren’t planning on, and just how the people we meet become characters in the stories we tell. Sidney reports on the four churches she visited in the DR and their stories of need. Each one is unique, but they share a similar theme with many of the congregations we encounter there: members are passionate about evangelism, leading to growing membership and new churches that need to be planted. Sidney tells of one woman’s tearful moment that our TV camera captured while standing on the new concrete foundation of what will become the church she’s dreamt about for years. The panel talks about building rapport with volunteers during a project for potential interview subjects, how more time with characters before the sit-down interview helps makes for a better interview, and what they would miss most about media trips if they couldn’t do them anymore.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Don and Laura Noble join the show to talk about some of the most problematic projects, countries, and situations we’ve had to deal with over the years, and why Maranatha chooses to push through these roadblocks, when it would be easier to just move on. They discuss the difficulties of working in Mozambique after 30 years of war, the socio-economic disparity in Angola that made things problematic, and other brief examples of specific projects that posed issues. The group then recounts in-depth a specific project in northern Kenya with extreme logistical requirements, bringing churches and water wells to the Daasanach tribe there. It took Maranatha’s in-country crew five days of driving from its homebase near the capital city of Nairobi (Dustin said 3-4 days, but it was five), half the time on roads and half the time through the desert with no roads, to make it up near the Ethiopian border where the Daasanach call home. The team had to bring everything they would need for construction and well drilling, because there was no going back for supplies. They were told to prepare like they were leaving Earth for another planet. Don tells the story of one of the villages where experts said we would not find water, and how a double-miracle that occurred. Beyond that, a number of Maranatha’s crew decided to get baptized in salty Lake Turkana during the trip after witnessing everything they saw.In the rapid fire question round, Don and Laura share their biggest travel pet peeves, a country they’d like to visit that they’ve never been to, where they’d love to see Maranatha work in the future, and the most unique gift they’ve ever received or been offered on a Maranatha trip.Don tells the story of his very first Maranatha trip ever in 1983, which involved a small plane crash, changing plans to a commercial flight, circumnavigating the U.S. invasion of Grenada by flying to a another island, taking a boat to an island called Bequia to finally get to their site visit. After the visit, their boat broke down on the way back without any communication, and when they finally made it back late to the Adventist Church headquarters in Barbados to spend the night, they realized the church leaders locked the gate and went home, forcing Don to scale the exterior wall to gain access. Not a bad first trip. Don references our map tool showing our projects around the world, so here it is: https://explore.maranatha.org/map.The group then shifts its focus to Maranatha’s work in Cuba—how it started, why we chose to work in a communist country in the first place, and some of the challenges in making progress there over the last three decades. Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

What started as a one-time translation job for a Maranatha volunteer project turned into a lifelong passion of service, and bringing others along for the ride. Josue got his first introduction to Maranatha on our teens-only mission trip, Ultimate Workout (UW), as a 16-year-old translator in his native Peru. The experience shifted his perspective in transformative ways, and as grew into adulthood, he continued to be involved, eventually as a volunteer staff leader.Over time, Josue’s commitment to this annual youth project was so strong that when his employer said he couldn’t have the time off one year, he simply quit his job! (He got it back.) He’s also developed life-long friendships on UW, including his wife, who he met on a project. At their wedding, a number of UW volunteer staff attended.Josue shares examples of how impactful the project has been for youth volunteers over the years, how he’s followed the examples of adult leaders before him, and the support he’s been able to provide to youth participants as an adult himself.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Maranatha board member and Executive Director of Global Missions at AdventHealth, Monty Jacobs, joins the crew for a conversation about engaging volunteers in meaningful, ethical service. Monty talks about his first Maranatha mission trip experience as a high schooler in 1982, and how that experience set him up for a lifetime of service. As he started his career as an immigration lawyer and got married, Monty continued to go on projects, and was eventually asked to be a Maranatha board member in his early 30’s. He shares how the Maranatha board of directors helps to guide the organization, and discusses what makes an effective board member.Monty explains how engaging employees in service has connected them more deeply to the mission of Advent Health in a tangible way, and how he’s drawn on his experience there and with Maranatha, to aid each other. He describes how Advent Health approaches mission partnerships with other organizations, donating medical equipment or supplies in a responsible way, and why long term relationships allow for transparency in the communication of needs.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Our chief operating officer joins the team for the first time in the show’s new format, sharing some of his personal journey to missions after 30 years working for Maranatha. Growing up in a missionary family, there was a certain expectation that Kenneth would do something for missions. But at a certain point he decided he wasn't going to follow suit. His career trajectory was set for high-level federal work in Washington D.C. until Maranatha’s president asked him to consider working for Maranatha. After struggling for weeks with his future, he gave it to God and ended up choosing Maranatha. The rest of the group shares their paths to working at Maranatha and remarks how God leads each person to the mission at the right time. The panel also discusses how working for Maranatha has impacted their own children, how their international experiences have changed the way they serve in their home churches, and even how the mission has enhanced what it means to be a Seventh-day Adventist Christian for them. Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Our country director for North America and Zambia makes his second appearance on the show, this time with our group of hosts in the new format. He shares stories from his time in Africa that he never told in Episode 1, explaining why he loves the continent so much, and some of the differences in people groups and languages between some of the countries there. The panel talks about what it means to be a missionary, whether you’re serving abroad or at home. David recounts camping in the African bush, explains how he learned local languages, reflects on how he’s handled periods when the work was hard, and talks about tough decisions to stop drilling for water at certain well-drilling sites. In our rapid fire question round, hear David’s favorite and least favorite African food dish, favorite African safari park, the African animal he’s most scared of, which African animal he thinks he can take down, and his favorite “Inside Missions” host to travel with. He also shares why Maranatha’s work in North America has such an impact on the places we serve, and the volunteers who assist.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

** NEW FORMAT! Going forward our TV producers will be regulars each episode, discussing a wide variety of topics related to missions, and sometimes bringing guests into the conversation.** What’s it like being a television producer in the mission field? Go behind the scenes with our “Maranatha Mission Stories” producers from the moment they get the assignment, all the way through capturing the images and stories that bring the mission to your screen. What goes into the planning of a media production trip before flights are even booked? What kind of logistics need to be fine-tuned before the team lands on the ground? The group discusses what happens when the best-laid plans don’t materialize, interviewing people who speak a different language, and balancing the need to show challenging conditions while not perpetuating inaccurate stereotypes, and yet still honoring the people and cultures we’re visiting. We also talk about why we always tell stories through the eyes of individuals, how covering a volunteer project is different from filming an episode on the challenges of a country or region, and how interview subjects have impacted us personally.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

President of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Erton Köhler joins us in-studio in one of his first long-form interviews since being elected during the General Conference Session in July 2025. Pastor Köhler talks about his journey to pastoral leadership, the growth of missions in his home country of Brazil, and the importance of Adventist media to connect the global Church. He also discusses his passion for missions, his experience serving on Maranatha mission trips, and how Maranatha is helping the Adventist Church to hasten the return of Jesus.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Our country director for Peru and Paraguay returns as the show’s first repeat guest after an abbreviated first appearance in Episode 5. Elmer shares how the work in the Amazon jungle region of Peru progressed since then, and talks about his new responsibility in also overseeing Maranatha’s work in Paraguay, including the anticipation of leading Maranatha’s teens-only mission trip, Ultimate Workout, in summer 2025. Having established Maranatha’s efforts from scratch in four separate countries, Elmer explains how the organization first enters a country to start the work. He recalls his first years of service as a 20-year-old in Mozambique, including the construction of 1,000 churches, and the lifelong relationships he formed. He opens up about his journey in missions with his family, from spending time away from his new bride as a newlywed for two months in Angola, to his kids living in several countries already in their childhood. He concludes by sharing how Maranatha has impacted his life and what he’s learned about God through his 18 years of service with Maranatha.TV episode on the work in Iquitos, Peru: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/the-gospel-in-the-jungleTV episode on the work in Paraguay: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e43-1Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

As Youth and Pathfinder Director for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Northern California, Eddie has decades of experience taking youth on mission trips around the world. He recounts his first experiences with Maranatha, talks about the importance of doing a pre-trip site visit, and explains how he broke his neck in Costa Rica. He shares how he has grown as a leader, his goal for youth on these projects, and how he’s seen prayer literally influence events on his mission trips. Eddie shares his response when people question why the conference should do mission trips at all, and explains how a short-term mission trip can impact a community well beyond the project.TV episode on the Kimogoro Adventist School (segment starts at 13:51): https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e30Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

As Adventist Review’s senior news correspondent, Marcos has traveled the world covering stories for the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and has the unique experience of coming to the mission of Maranatha via journalism. Early in his time at Adventist Review, he was asked to cover the dedication of a Maranatha-built sanctuary in Cuba. He went, and was impressed with the dedication of Maranatha volunteers, donors, and staff. Since then, he’s been on more assignments involving Maranatha, and talks about the excitement of gathering unexpected stories in the mission field, and how God brings specific people into his path to help tell each story. Marcos reflects on his time at the Kajiado Adventist School and Rescue Center in Kenya, a long-term project for Maranatha from 2018-2024. He shares how he and his family were moved by their experience serving the Maasai girls there who had escaped child marriage and female genital mutilation. As a journalist, he talks about how hard it is to not let these stories impact you personally, and how his exposure to Maranatha has expanded his view of missions.Marcos’ first experience with Maranatha at the dedication of the Cardenas Seventh-day Adventist Church in Cuba led to several articles for Adventist Review, two of which you can read below: https://adventistreview.org/news/after-decades-of-prayer-adventists-dedicate-largest-church-ever-in-cuba/https://adventistreview.org/news/we-want-jesus-to-come/Watch the final TV episode featuring the Kajiado Adventist School and Rescue Center in Kenya, which includes the dedication of this campus Maranatha spent six years transforming: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e50-1 Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

What is it like to produce a television program in another country? Maranatha’s media production manager Leo Macias and communication specialist Sidney Needles debrief their recent trip to India. Come behind the scenes and learn how TV is produced in the field, and hear about specific challenges these two faced while filming across multiple states in India. Sidney describes her role as a field producer, and Leo explains how professional camera equipment makes a difference in filming.The two talk about their first stop in the state of Andhra Pradesh where they filmed a water well story. Sidney describes the challenge of conducting interviews through a translator, Leo explains the task of asking locals to authentically demonstrate their daily routines for filming, and spells out why the time of day can make a huge difference for shooting. Leo and Sidney also talk about the food they ate throughout the trip, what the bathroom situations were like, and describe the scene of two church dedications. After Andhra Pradesh they traveled to the state of Mizoram and the Pine Hill Adventist School, where they interviewed students who escaped civil war in neighboring Myanmar. Leo and Sidney reflect on the reality of being mere miles from conflict, recount a trip close to the border to film a water well story, and discuss how they know TV trips are successful.Here is a completed TV episode from the trip: https://watch.maranatha.org/maranatha-mission-stories/videos/mms11e61-1Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Maranatha’s chief operating officer talks about his earliest impressions of Cuba from the mid-90’s, how Maranatha got involved, some of the challenges of the Seventh-day Adventist Church there back then, and how Maranatha worked to construct or renovate more than 200 churches on the island over the years. He shares what it’s been like to build rapport and work with Cuba’s Minister of Religion long-term, the challenges of having periods of abundant government project approval, followed by seasons of restriction, and why Maranatha chose to stay committed to the country through it all.Kenneth talks about the Adventist seminary constructed by Maranatha, and its impact on the Adventist Church in Cuba and beyond. The guys discuss the current state of the country post-COVID, and how the pandemic negatively affected everyday people and the Adventist Church, including the seminary. Kenneth explains how the idea to send critical aid to the people of Cuba was hatched, how it was pulled off using shipping containers. He talks about how passionate the church members are in Cuba, how influential Maranatha’s work has been to them, and the latest projects going on, including the first volunteer project in years.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Long-time Maranatha mission trip leader, Loretta Spivey, shares her journey to the mission field, from becoming the first Seventh-day Adventist in her family as a result of a visit from a literature evangelist, to a year-long missionary assignment in Indonesia. She’s been heavily involved with Maranatha’s mission trip for high schoolers, Ultimate Workout, initially as a correspondent for Insight Magazine, a publication for Adventist youth, and later as a project leader. She explains why this project is so impactful for teens and talks about her goals for volunteers. She reflects on how she prepares the mission trip experience for the volunteers she’s leading, and some of her toughest challenges during projects.Loretta also shares the scary experience of becoming paralyzed from the neck down through a condition called chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, and her journey to healing.  Thanks for watching! Please like, comment, and subscribe.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

After serving as a Maranatha volunteer for years, Danny now works for Maranatha to ensure our buildings are constructed soundly. But his journey to Maranatha starts as a child in the former Yugoslavia, the son of a Seventh-day Adventist Church pastor there. He remembers international Church leaders passing through, talking about what God was doing around the world. As a kid, Danny wondered if he could travel and serve around the world one day too. As a young man, Danny fulfilled mandatory military service where he learned explosives and demolition, an ironic job, as he’d spend the rest of his life building up structures instead of destroying them. He started his own construction company in his early twenties and got married, but the young couple had to abandon their new life, as Yugoslavia began to collapse into war. Danny started a new business in the United States doing mostly remodels, where he also had his daughter, and his life was on a nice trajectory. Then a friend invited him on a Maranatha mission trip to India, an experience that would change his life forever. What started as one project turned into multiple each year, and soon he started taking his daughter on projects. Eventually he realized that there were more important things than earning a good living through his company. He subsequently listened to God’s call to use his skills and experience to work for Maranatha. Danny talks about behind-the-scenes work that goes into each building Maranatha constructs, from making updates to the plans to working with draftsmen and architects, and how Maranatha’s in-country construction crews get creative in overcoming unique challenges on the job site.Watch Danny’s daughter’s testimony - https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mk-poljakThanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Maranatha’s medical services coordinator grew up as a missionary kid in Asia, and later took her own family into the mission field to serve in several countries around the globe. Over her lifetime she’s experienced a wide range of danger and harrowing situations, from wartime air raids to local violence, and even attempted break-ins and muggings. But she’s also seen how God has been faithful to her and her family as they have worked to expand God’s kingdom. There are three themes she’s found to be true in her life of service, and in this episode she talks about them. 1) “God keeps you safe wherever you are.” 2) “The mission is wherever God puts you.” 3) God equips you for what he calls you for.”  Susan shares her life journey through childhood living in Asia, having her first baby in Africa, losing a baby to a rare heart defect, and having two more kids that spent time in the mission field. She also reflects on how God gave her family the desires of their hearts when things didn’t make sense initially, and how she processed difficult moments over the years. She explains her current work for Maranatha as a medical services coordinator, and how a request for a medical clinic turned into a memorial to their late daughter.“Rachelle’s Place of Healing” segment: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e39-1 (go to 15:00 to watch that segment only)Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Maranatha’s vice president for volunteers explains his unlikely path to missions, from his reputation as a teen troublemaker to pursuing ministry—much to the surprise of those around him. He reflects on the labels others put on him, and a crucial moment where he tested God with his future. Lisandro went on to study theology and journalism in Brazil, working in marketing for his academy alma mater, his university alma mater, a local conference, and eventually, Adventist media giant Novo Tempo. His career trajectory was set to the highest levels of the Seventh-day Adventist World Church, but Lisandro chose a different path that ultimately led him to short term missions with Maranatha.The guys talk about how his denominational experience helped him in his current role serving volunteers, what his goal is for each volunteer that serves with Maranatha, and how he sees himself in the teen volunteers that come on Ultimate Workout, our annual teens-only mission trip. Lisandro lays out why short term missions are valuable, addresses a criticism of short term missions, and how volunteers come alongside communities to be a part of what God is already doing there.Watch the story of the Serraria Seventh-day Adventist Church, the congregation served by a volunteer group that Lisandro led: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e48-1 The segment on Serraria starts around 19:00.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Long-time Maranatha volunteer turned staff member talks about her transition from serving with the organization to working for it. She recounts how she first got into short term missions, how it has impacted herself and her family, and why she has a passion for using service to reach youth. She describes Maranatha’s 2024 high school mission trip to the Andes mountains of Peru, Ultimate Workout, including an extraordinary story of answered prayer. You can watch Ultimate Workout volunteer, Mary Arrick, tell her testimony that Dina references here: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/cv24b-arrickDina talks about how she’s grown closer to God through Maranatha, and why mission trips seem to put people in just the right place to connect with God in new ways. She shares her most recent project in the Dominican Republic, working on the Ciudad del Cielo School, dedicated to the memory of Maranatha’s late vice president of projects, Darrell Hardy. Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Three of Maranatha’s volunteer support staff join us for our first-ever panel! Maria Molleda from Peru, Alice Danla in India, and Kotesh Rao in Kenya, talk about the other side of the mission trip from what volunteers see. From booking hotels and excursions, to orchestrating outreach opportunities like medical clinics or Vacation Bible School, these people go to great lengths to make sure everything is ready for our volunteers when they arrive. They talk about the lack of sleep during projects, the importance of prayer, back-up plans, and the ways they try to influence a project spiritually. Over the years, our volunteer support staff have formed deep bonds with volunteers, who have inspired them in return. Maria, Kotesh, and Alice also share how they have seen Maranatha mission trips transform volunteers and reflect on how they’ve grown closer to God through all of their missions experience.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Maranatha’s president since the early 80’s, Don tells the story of how God called him to a small, fledgling organization called “Maranatha Flights International,” the original name for Maranatha. He shares how he listened for God’s leading in that initial decision, and how he has stayed attuned to God’s direction in every decision for Maranatha since. He explains how Maranatha interacts with the Adventist World Church, from the division level down, to respond to official requests for help through the construction of churches, schools, and water wells.Don describes one of the most dicey non-volunteer projects he experienced while in Afghanistan in the early 2000’s. On this trip he got severely sick, to the point that a General Conference vice president stayed up with him through the night because he thought Don might die. He recounts a car attack in Haiti, and explains why there are certain countries that Maranatha will not send volunteers if it’s not safe. Without a construction background, Don remembers early doubters saying he was the wrong man for the job. He talks about his initial commission by Maranatha’s board to “make it fly,” and how it’s his same job description today. After merging with an organization called “Volunteers International” in 1989, “Maranatha Volunteers International” took on a watershed project in the Dominican Republic where Maranatha constructed 25 churches in 70 days. This showed Maranatha and the Church that the organization was capable of more. Don also considers what he’s learned about God, and about himself over four decades of service through Maranatha.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Maranatha’s vice president of projects describes his first day visiting the Kajiado Adventist School and Rescue Center in Kenya, in what would become a six-year project he oversaw. He recalls his initial reactions to the plight of these Maasai girls who ran away from their homes to escape female genital mutilation and child marriage. The guys discuss what it’s like for these girls as they escape, not knowing where they’re going, and somehow end up at the Kajiado center. It becomes their new home as they are not welcome back in their village. Kyle explains how Maranatha’s scope of work started by simply providing adequate sleeping and bathing arrangements with new dorms. Over time, it grew to include much more infrastructure, including a high school. He also recounts a critical moment in the project, where campus water was needed, but geological reports indicated it was unlikely to be found. One of the special aspects of this long-term project was the hundreds of volunteers who came, sometimes on multiple mission trips, to help build the campus. These visits allowed opportunities for volunteers to serve as positive role models, providing advice and perspectives on endless possibilities for the girls’ bright new futures. Television episodes about the Kajiado School:Transformation at Kajiado: https://watch.maranatha.org/maranatha-mission-stories/videos/mms11e50-1A Refuge of Hope: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms907New Life at Kajiado: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms910Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

This audio story is about the Kajiado Adventist School and Rescue Center in Kenya. It’s a haven for Maasai girls, sometimes as young as six years old, who are escaping child marriage and a dangerous ritual called female genital mutilation (FGM). Maranatha dedicated the campus in July 2024 after six years of completely transforming the property, but in this story you'll hear what life was like at Kajiado closer to the beginning of Maranatha’s involvement. You'll also take in the depth of the connections formed between Maranatha volunteers and Kajiado students—a microcosm of the hundreds of volunteers that would end up serving on this project over the years.Television episodes about the Kajiado School:Transformation at Kajiado: https://watch.maranatha.org/maranatha-mission-stories/videos/mms11e50-1A Refuge of Hope: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms907New Life at Kajiado: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms910Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Jason is the Executive Director of Clinic Operations at Loma Linda University Health in California, but talks about life as a missionary kid in Malawi, and his subsequent return in adulthood as the CEO of the Malamulo Adventist Hospital. He describes his journey in-between and how volunteering on short-term mission trips ignited a passion to help facilitate medical care for others as a career. He reflects on his first Maranatha project in Zimbabwe and the second in Malawi, where God confirmed his path back “home.” Jason talks about his family’s transition to living in Malawi, including his kids, who were around the same age as he was when he lived there in childhood. He also describes his experience at the Malamulo Hospital and how it benefited him in his future work in healthcare in the United States. He closes with advice for people considering coming on a Maranatha project.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

A long-time Maranatha volunteer and leader, Greg explains how he first got into missions, influenced by his parents and uncle, Maranatha board member, Roger Hatch. He reflects on the first mission trip he led solo, how he’s improved in handling interpersonal conflicts on a project, how he’s become more efficient in anticipating needs on the construction site, and how he delegates leadership tasks amongst his team. Greg shares how crucial the pre-mission trip site visits are, why it’s important for volunteers to understand who they’re serving on a project, and how he prepares them to return to normal life back home.Greg recounts his experience serving in Côte d’Ivoire in March 2020 as the world shut down due to COVID, as well as one of his most challenging projects he’s ever led, which took place in Ecuador in 2007. He gives advice to aspiring mission trip leaders and explains why he always uses Maranatha to facilitate his mission trips.Watch the television episode that includes Greg’s group getting out of Côte d’Ivoire as the world shut down due to COVID: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e02Clarification: Dustin couldn’t remember exactly, but speculated that Maranatha might have constructed around 180 houses in Dominica in 1980. The correct number is 110. Later, Maranatha built 160 houses in the Dominican Republic.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

At the age of 11, Nancy’s family moved to Bangkok, Thailand, to serve as missionaries. She reflects on what it was like to grow up as a missionary kid, how her identity came to be more Thai than American, and how she struggled to assimilate into American culture as a young adult in the United States. Thinking she was more Asian than American, she signed up to be a student missionary in Hong Kong, only to realize that she didn’t really fit into Asia how she thought she could either. This started a decade-long process of coming to terms with being a “third culture” kid, in which the different cultures one is raised in shape a person in a unique way. After retiring from a career in education, Nancy was invited to serve on a Maranatha volunteer project in the United States, and got hooked. Over the course of two years she’s served on 14 projects in North America and has even stepped into leadership roles on different projects. She describes this community as her “church” and says interacting with volunteers is her favorite part of the work. Nancy also talks about how she’s growing into the spiritual nurturer role while leading Maranatha projects.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Currently the coordinator for the Ending Homelessness Initiative for the Northern California Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, Joelle previously served as the Director of Disaster Recovery & Development for the Paradise Seventh-day Adventist Church in California. She worked closely with Maranatha after the Camp Fire of 2018, which at the time was the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California's history, and the most expensive natural disaster in the world in 2018 as far as insured losses. Over the course of several projects in Paradise, Maranatha constructed 452 storage sheds for survivors of the fire, who were living on their burnt properties with no place to store their belongings.Joelle recounts the day of the fire, November 8, 2018, what it was like escaping the flames with her family, and the subsequent aftermath. She recalls the moment when she felt called to do more to help her community and how she grew into her role with the Paradise Church despite no disaster recovery experience. She talks about the inspiration for the Maranatha shed project and how she helped to coordinate hundreds of volunteers across multiple projects. She also discusses how she’s had to redefine the term “missions” since her community outreach work began, understanding that a person can serve locally without having to travel internationally.Watch two episodes of our television program, “Maranatha Mission Stories,” on the Paradise Shed Projects: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms10e07https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e03 Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Since 1992 Steve has run his own ministry, “Involve Youth,” speaking for youth events, conducting training seminars for youth leaders, creating youth ministry resources, and teaching youth ministry professionals. He’s an author of many books and coordinates the Intergenerational Church cohort for Andrews University’s Doctor of Ministry program. He’s been instrumental in helping to craft the experience for Maranatha’s annual mission trip for high schoolers, Ultimate Workout (UW), and helped to start Maranatha’s collegiate and annual Family Projects.Steve reflects on how he first got into youth ministry, how much he and his youth changed in serving on those first mission trips, and at a fundamental level, what the goal of missions is. He describes his first UW experience, which was actually the third UW, and how the program was almost shut down. He reflects on how the tragic death of volunteer Alex Williams was a galvanizing force for UW as a movement; in the first couple of years, there were 20-30 volunteers, but the next year there were 70 kids who applied, many citing the legacy of Alex and wanting to make a real difference in the world. Steve explains why the mission trip environment, with new people and new places, is the perfect setting for teens to discover more about their identity, and how the world around teens has changed in his decades of ministry. He discusses how leaders can approach volunteers who may cause problems for others, and how he begins to prepare a group for a return home from the mountaintop experience of a mission trip. Steve talks about why he eventually felt the need to step away from UW and how he tackled the challenge of leading new age groups when he was asked to create a collegiate and family project mission trips for Maranatha.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

How do you curate a volunteer experience that makes people want to come back time after time? Our VP of Advancement shares how Maranatha has worked to provide mission trips that make a difference in the lives of project recipients, as well as the volunteers doing the work. Karen’s journey with Maranatha started in 1989 in Berrien Springs, Michigan, and in this episode she shares what projects were like in those early days and how they’ve evolved. She recounts the first large-scale project for Maranatha in 1992, when they recruited 1,200 volunteers in just five months to construct 25 churches over 70 days in the Dominican Republic. She also reflects on just how impactful these mission trips have been to volunteers, even those who are rediscovering their faith.Karen talks about how Maranatha has intentionally shaped its projects to provide participants with the space to reflect on their experience, connect with each other, and how making accommodations more comfortable at times has removed barriers to participation for some people. She explains how anyone, no matter their skillset, age, or experience, can be an effective volunteer on a Maranatha project, and why she believes people continue to return year after year.Karen references a testimony from Sondra Godfrey in which she shares how anyone can serve on a Maranatha mission trip. You can watch that testimony here: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/cv23b-godfreyThanks for listening! Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Laura has worked for Maranatha in Donor Relations for years, but there was a time when she never thought she’d work for such a ministry. Her early career in software sales was lucrative, allowing her to rub shoulders with California's rich and famous. Yet, she wasn’t happy. Her job lacked purpose, she couldn’t find meaningful connections in her relationships, and the faith of her youth was a faded memory. In a low point, she was reminded of an influential figure from earlier in life, Don Noble (Maranatha’s President). She reached out, in what would be the start of a transformational journey that would see her travel around the globe with Maranatha, find love, renew her faith, and connect with countless people also changed by the mission.Laura talks about her journey outside the church and how a trip to Cuba started the process of bringing her back. She shares what it’s been like to visit potential project sites Maranatha is considering, including when we have to say “no” to a project request. She reflects on some of the unique settings, people, and places she’s experienced over the years. The conversation closes with her recent mission trip to the Dominican Republic to help construct a large school building in the neighborhood of “Ciudad del Cielo.”Thanks for listening. Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the show!Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Our VP of marketing shares her journey in telling the story of Maranatha through print, TV, and more. What’s it like to capture the essence of people in need halfway around the world? What goes through the mind of a field producer as they’re curating a story for television? Julie shares her experience in navigating delicate topics and intentionally writing to help broaden her readers’ worldview, as well as some of the most impactful stories she’s worked on and how all of these experiences have shaped her as a person.Julie’s storytelling extends beyond traditional communication mediums, to a large convention she plans each year called “Mission: Maranatha,” which has attracted up to 2,000 attendees or more. She explains what goes on behind the scenes to pull off a successful and meaningful event of this size.Julie also describes how she was touched on a recent trip to India at the Binjipali Adventist School, where the living conditions for students are horrid. She relates that knowing just how different things will be once Maranatha is finished on a project like this gives her a sense of anticipatory joy.Read Julie’s magazine story about Karl Schwinn and Maranatha’s work in Afghanistan here: https://maranatha.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/The-Mission-Pilot-Karl-Schwinn-CORRECT.pdfThanks for listening! Please like, comment, and subscribe.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Go behind the camera with our director of television, who breaks down how we produce a TV program in the mission field. It’s a balance of logistics, planning, and keeping your eye open for just the right story. Christina has been filming and producing programming for Maranatha since the early 2000’s and has experienced it all, from embedding with a well-drilling crew in the bush of Mozambique, to rescuing a Maasai girl in Kenya from female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriage. She shares how important the producer’s role is in creating a story from scratch, knitting the components of visual footage, character interviews, and overall story arc into a final product. Christina also explains the other types of media she collects on a trip outside of the episode she’s producing, the post-production process for TV after the trip is over, and how being a part of these stories has impacted her life.Here’s the two TV episodes of “Maranatha Mission Stories” that highlight the Kajiado Adventist School and Rescue Center in Kenya:https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms910https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms907 Thanks for listening! Please like, comment, and subscribe.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

In our first field episode, Dustin Comm talks to our country manager for Zambia under a mango tree at the Bethel Seventh-day Adventist Church, during a mission trip where Maranatha volunteers were constructing a medical clinic in October 2023. Luke’s career started in India’s corporate world, but the toll it took on him prompted a change. Working in construction for Maranatha offered him the chance to travel and take photos, one of his passions. Luke started off working as a construction supervisor in southern India. Later, he took his young family to live in the second-smallest country in Africa, the island-nation of São Tomé and Príncipe as Maranatha’s country director there. He talks about the challenges of transitioning to a new place far from home with a foreign language. He describes the first steps Maranatha takes when establishing itself in a country, before volunteers have come for mission trips. He also shares how he and his wife, who were not Seventh-day Adventist, began to diligently study with the conference president in São Tomé, who baptized them in the ocean.Eventually Luke took his family to mainland Africa where he currently manages Maranatha’s operations in Zambia. He talks about some of the needs there, like clean water and basic health care. He reflects on how difficult it is when, from time to time, the well-drilling team doesn’t hit water, including the heartbreak of facing a village to tell them the news. Luke also shares some of the current projects Maranatha is working on in Zambia, including the Sala and Mwami Adventist Schools, and the Bethel clinic project.Thanks for listening! Please like, comment, and subscribe.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Maranatha's country director in Peru shares how he started in the mission field as a 20-year old missionary to Mozambique. Elmer recalls how he constructed hundreds of Maranatha's One-Day Churches in both Mozambique and Brazil, and how the COVID pandemic affected the work in Peru, including dramatic escapes by two Maranatha volunteer groups before the country shut down in March 2020. He also talks about the exciting work Maranatha is beginning in the Amazon jungle of Peru, where, without roads, materials must be shipped on a river barge on a seven-day journey to reach congregations waiting for help. Unfortunately we were short on time for this episode, and look forward to the next opportunity to hear much more of Elmer's story!To watch the TV episode about the initial COVID pandemic shutdowns in Peru and elsewhere, and how they affected Maranatha volunteer groups, click here: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e02Thanks for listening! Please like, comment, and subscribe.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Our country director for the Dominican Republic shares his lifelong journey in missions, from a missionary’s kid in the north of Brazil, to Africa and the Middle East as an administrator for the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and now in the Caribbean for Maranatha. Gilberto talks about the advantages and challenges of raising kids in the mission field, the unique blessings and difficulties it presents, and the lessons he’s learned from a full career of service abroad.Gilberto also reflects on how he grew as a leader without an abundance of mentorship and why some of his fondest memories are actually the places where he faced the most challenges. He recalls how he first connected to Maranatha as a liaison from the Church, just how difficult the work is in the Middle East, and what it was like surviving violence in Togo. Thanks for listening! Please like, comment, and subscribe.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Dustin Comm sits down with Maranatha’s country director in India, who shares his journey from a Himalayan town in northern India to becoming a Seventh-day Adventist and eventually working for Maranatha for the past 23 years.Vinish talks about his initial experience with Maranatha as a translator for a large project called “India 2000,” working as a volunteer support person thereafter, and the big-picture impact Maranatha has had across the country since then.The guys discuss the recent work in the mountainous state of Manipur where transportation is difficult, the variety of ways that Maranatha has provided clean water across India over the years, and how the COVID pandemic was particularly difficult for our in-country crews there.Vinish also talks about the current work at the Binjipali Adventist School, and the extraordinary story of the Jingshai Mihngi Adventist School which sat directly next to an open sewer line.Thanks for listening! Please like, comment, and subscribe.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Dustin Comm sits down with Maranatha's country director in Kenya who talks about her journey to Maranatha and how she's seen God's leading no matter the challenges. From moving to Africa with a two-year old, to facing an ebola epidemic with her family of four, Anu has overcome many obstacles while serving with Maranatha in a number of countries. She talks about the loneliness that missionaries can feel while abroad, and reflects on how the trials she's faced over the years have made her a stronger leader. Finally, she touches on the current work Maranatha has been doing in Kenya in recent years, from school campuses like the Kajiado Adventist School and Rescue Center, to One-Day Church construction, to water well drilling in extremely remote and dry locations like Ileret.Thanks for listening! Please like, comment, and subscribe.Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!

Dustin Comm sits down with Maranatha's country director for Zambia and North America, who talks about his journey with Maranatha, including what it's like to move a young family to Africa, and the challenges of living in the mission field. He shares the projects he's been involved with through Maranatha in the past, as well as his current work in Zambia over the past several years. David also recounts a harrowing night break-in early on in his family's time serving in Africa, and how God answered their plea for help.Thanks for listening! Please subscribe and share! Visit maranatha.org for more info on the work of Maranatha Volunteers International.Text us! Let us know what you thought of this episode and the show in general!