The Middle East
DISCLAIMER: In order to ensure the safety and longevity of this mission trip, locations, names, pictures, and other information have been intentionally modified. Not because what we did was illegal, but because trips like this can be dangerous. Therefore, I will tend to air on the side of caution rather than putting information out there that might put others at risk.
The Middle East West Asia Summer Mission Team for 2022
The Why…
About a year ago, I found myself in Yellowstone National Park on a 10 week summer mission trip, and it changed my life.
Last summer I got equipped with tools I needed to create communities centered around Jesus. I acquired life long friends who were vulnerable and genuine. But most importantly I think Yellowstone challenged me.
Yellowstone fostered significant spiritual growth for me, it empowered me to be bold in new ways that I didn’t even consider before. So when it came to my plans for summer 2022, I thought I would double down and go on another mission trip, but I never would’ve predicted ending up in the Middle East.
Originally, I was thinking about South Africa, or maybe I would find myself in the Ivory Coast. Moral of the story, I wanted to go to Africa. But due to COVID-19, all the African doors were closed.
Instead, my old friend from Yellowstone, Reshma Giji, insisted on joining her in the Middle East. Next thing I know, another Yellowstone member, Jonathan Kimball, was on board too. Then, after a Middle Eastern dinner hosted by UMass Cru staff, followed by a vision school meeting centered around the importance of ministry in the 10-40 window, and then a strangely timed radio broadcast regarding the state of one country, I finally surrendered my summer plans, and I decided to full send it to the “Middle East: Western Asia.”
The 2021 UMass Yellowstone Students (Anju Minemoto, Matthew May, Maurice Powe, and Jillian Mathews), plus a new friend from Boston University (Daralyn Wen).
So, the next step was somehow raising $5,350, and that process was brutal.
Support raising for this summer could’ve been one of the hardest aspects of this entire mission. Due to my lack of time paired with a significantly higher financial goal, I found myself getting extremely anxious wondering how on Earth I would meet this goal.
On May 1st, 2022 I journaled…
“I need to write about support raising as an African American, and the sheer barriers that it’s taken to get here. It would be so easy to just give up and turn around, and that pains me because there’s probably so many black students who can’t go because of this one factor of finance. So, one day I want to do something to help them. I want to help them have the money needed to go on mission, because personally this fundraising experience has been extremely frustrating.”
With about a week left before send off, I needed a little over $2,000 to raise in support. Yet, solely due to God’s grace, by May 25th, I was fully funded and ready to go. Even as I write this letter today on July 5th at 1:53 in the morning (I’m jet lagged as all get out), the Lord provided an astonishing grand total of $6,792 for my mission trip, and $4,000 of that money probably came within the last week of support raising.
So, I mention this story as a reminder that God provides. I’m grateful for every donator, prayer warrior, or friend who helped me out. In one way or another, all of you helped contribute to the overall beauty of how God used people to somehow get me in the Middle East. So, before I get into any of the major details, I just want to say thank you for partnering with me! I hope that what follows can give you a glimpse into the ways that God used me! It has been such a blessing to participate in this trip this summer, so I hope you enjoy reading!
The What…
Reshma Giji (left) and Maurice Powe (right)
Now that I’ve explained to you the “why” behind my going this summer, I’m sure you’re still wondering about “what” exactly happened during the last month; So, I think the best summary that I can give you is in the form of these nine words…
“How does it feel to be an answered prayer?”
Those were the first nine words I heard at orientation, and I think it lay the foundation for everything we did this summer. Through a random grouping of 20 individuals, God somehow chose us to be the answer to prayer; And as I reflect on all the other things that I could’ve been doing this summer, I think it only amplifies the significance of God’s grace for me.
Instead of doing an internship or working a job, I somehow was chosen to participate in what God was and is doing in the Middle East. I imagine how easy it could’ve been to walk in the other direction and choose to opt out, yet for some odd reason the Holy Spirit empowered me to go.
So, if someone asked me on the street, “what possessed you, an American, to come to this country?” I think I would be very tempted to answer “I have no idea how I got here, but through the power of the Holy Spirit, my plans were redirected so that I could be the answer to someone’s prayer”
As a result, I was forced to view every interaction as a gift from God, because I knew for a fact that it was only grace that could’ve led me there. So instead of being miserable, I hopped in the passenger seat, and buckled in for a month-long ride; And when we were placed in a city with a population of nearly 20 million people, it became hard to believe that God wasn’t organizing conversations with intention.
What do I mean by this? Evangelism this summer looked like sitting in coffee shops in hopes of meeting students, walking down streets while praying for revival, traveling to different universities then inviting them to an English club meeting, and serving refugees by keeping their children occupied. So, when one considers all of these activities, I personally can’t get my head around the significance and beauty of location and timing.
Let’s talk location! When you’re living in an area with a significant population density, where you are is extremely important! Seen in Acts 8:26-40, Phillip faithfully went down the desert road and was exactly where God needed him to be, and this is where timing comes in.
When you consider the timing within the Phillip and the Ethiopian story, it’s strange to consider how Phillip got to the chariot at the exact moment he needed to be. Therefore, like Phillip, I think that every conversation I had this summer was my chariot. Through faithfully trusting in the Holy Spirit’s guidance, I always ended up being exactly where God wanted me to be, and that’s where the magic happened.
Maurice Powe and his Cornerback Friend
To give you a specific example, I was able to develop a significant relationship with one student on the first day we went out to evangelize. As another missionary and I sat down at a cafe, there happened to be around 10 to 15 students adding finishing touches to their capstone projects. Amazed by the complex contraptions, we asked the students to tell us about their projects. Not too long after, we befriended a mechatronics student who happened to be on his university football team. So, as a retired Longmeadow football star, I jumped with excitement sharing how I played football for 10 years. What were the coincidences?
“Really? What position did you play?” he asked.
“Cornerback!” I responded, what a coincidence, we both played cornerback?
Shocked by the similarities, I began to consider if God may have intentionally put me there to build a connection with that student, and when the next comment he made was infatuation with the New Orleans Saints, I couldn’t help but accept the fact that God wants me to be this student’s friend. Like the Saints are terrible, how on Earth could we both be Saints fans?
What followed was a three hour conversation in which my new friend would personally invite me as a guest inside his University. Bouncing around from categories of sports, to music, to relationships, to family, my new friend would eventually introduce the topic of religion.
Curious about our beliefs, our friend posed the question “Are you Christian?” In which I answered “Yes!”
So out of courtesy, we asked “what do you believe?” to which he labeled himself within a minority sect of Islam.
According to my friend, he believed that the determining factor for one’s salvation was whether or not the individual is good. He expressed how frustrated he was with the idea that if he didn’t pray five times a day, he was going to hell, or if he didn't fast for the entirety of Ramadan, then he was going to hell. Instead, my friend believed in the simple criteria to be a good person.
Respecting this outlook, I couldn’t help but think about similarities that I’ve heard between his perspective and perspectives here in the states. If I can be a good person, then that should be enough, if I can be a good Christian then that should be enough, and now even on the other side of the world if I can be a good Islamic person, then that should be enough.
Just like in the US, I found myself in a location where there were kind hearted people seeking to do good in hopes of inheriting salvation. But what exactly does it mean when someone says to be a good person?
Is there a goodness tracker that God knows and we don’t? Is there a universal standard to measure one’s goodness? Or maybe someone’s goodness is relative and the individual personally determines what’s good and bad? Asking him these questions, we watched as our friend wrestled with these possibilities until we eventually asked if he wanted to hear our personal opinions.
Granting us the floor, our friend was humbly enlightened with the Christian belief that no one is good. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23). We told him how we believe that humanity is corrupted, and how we will never do anything good enough for God. Isn’t that pretty terrifying, but luckily that’s where Jesus comes in.
In the midst of our brokenness, Jesus Christ came down to Earth to live a perfect life that would end on a cross. Yet, on the third day he resurrected. Therefore, through this resurrection, Jesus took on our sins and defeated them, allowing anyone who chooses to believe in him to have eternal life with God. Consequently, it wasn’t humanity’s “goodness” that made us worthy of Christ’s sacrifice, instead it was God’s unconditional love and grace that granted us eternal salvation. “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8).
Maurice Powe, his Cornerback Friend, and his friend’s girlfriend at an English Club Meeting
Following that explanation, I slowly watched as the information processed, but instead of telling him to repent on the spot, or recite a statement of faith, we simply shared our thoughts and just trusted God that the seed was planted. After all, neither of us were the ones responsible for doing the heavy lifting. God knows his children and I’m sure we can trust him to maintain the crop.
Yet, the funny thing is, I think I got a glimpse into the growth of that seed. Although it may have been small, God allowed me to meet with this student FOUR other times during our trip. The second time was during our boat cruise, the third time was at our english club meeting, the fourth time was on the basketball court, and the fifth and final time was when we had dinner, in which the main course was sheep intestines, which was surprisingly good!
Now although these events might sound irrelevant, I truly believe that growth was and is happening. For example, during one of those meetings I was able to share a story about forgiveness through the sinful woman who ended up crying at Jesus’ feet (Luke 7: 36-50). After finishing the tale, I was taken aback when my friend’s next question was “so if Jesus is the way to salvation, what’s going to happen to all the tribes in Africa who may never hear about him?” After posing a question like that, I couldn’t help but think to myself, this is not the same seed that was there before. God must be doing something, so if you’re looking for things to pray about, I kindly ask that you pray for God to maintain the crop, that a hundred, sixty, or thirty times might come from what was sown.
So, I think it’s important to be reminded of the significance behind this story. As I mentioned from the beginning, it is solely due to Christ’s grace and mercy that any relationships were built over the last month. In other words, if I stayed in the US, I wouldn’t be writing this. Yet, like Phillip, through allowing the Holy Spirit to lead me to the right place at the right time, I was able to develop a really cool friendship, while also getting an opportunity to share the Gospel.
Therefore, this was basically the gist behind what evangelism looked like in the last month. Through going out in the power of the Holy Spirit our group was able to build some incredible relationships with people; However, since we were only scheduled to stay in the country for a month, we would eventually have to trust God, and leave the results to him.
So on July 3rd, we were forced to leave our new friends and return home to the states, and by God’s grace all of us made it back safely, and some people are even thinking about going back!
But what about the Middle Eastern students? Is a question I’m sure you’re asking.
Before returning to the states, we ensured that all our friends could be slowly transferred into the love and care of the long-term missionary staff who are living in the Middle East. Thus, I can faithfully trust God that my friends are in good hands!
The Hard…
After mentioning all of the fruit from this summer, I think it’s also pretty important to address some of the challenges that occurred as well. Having already mentioned a challenge regarding fundraising, I think overall the most challenging thing that happened in the last month was navigating my racial identity.
Allow me to explain, I’ve grown up in predominantly white spaces for my entire life, so as a side effect, I feel like I’ve been programmed to think about my racial identity constantly. How are people perceiving me? Do I fit in? Am I safe here? Thoughts along these lines. Thus, being the only African American on our team expectedly brought some challenges.
For instance, on the day we flew out, I remember arriving at our plane terminal and seeing countless dark-skinned individuals waiting to travel exactly where we were going. So I thought to myself, is there really that much black representation in the location we’re going to?
Unsure of the answer, I would eventually come to the conclusion that my assumptions were incorrect. Although many black individuals lived in the country we were at, very few of them were located in the area we were staying. So, tragically in a city with an estimated population of 20 million people, I somehow found myself once again in a minority. But due to God’s grace, I think I was able to see the ways in which God intentionally used me for the marginalized community there.
During the first week of our trip, a group of us traveled to a local park and stumbled upon a basketball tournament. As I looked throughout the stands I noticed four dark skinned individuals sitting together within a field of light bodies. So, thinking about how I grew up, I couldn’t help but empathize seeing that there’s a black minority in this country too; And to even further this observation, Ryan Marshall, another member on our team described the scene in this sense “I think I’ve seen four black people during our entire time of being here, and they might be three of them.” (Just for context, we were in the country for maybe three days at that point, so I can safely assume with 95% certainty that there was a little bit of hyperbole in that comment).
Regardless, as we watched on, the four black students began to warm-up; And since a large fence surrounded the court, I quickly realized that these students would need to walk past me in order to enter the blacktop. So, next thing I know, as one student is passing by, he offers me a fist bump, which I gratefully accepted. Not understanding the significance, Kayla, a long-term missionary, would watch the interaction and innocently ask “Did he just hand you a cigarette?”
“No,” I responded, “He just gave me a fist bump.”
Similar to what some people might know as “the head nod,” the student’s fist bump inaudibly spoke the words “I see you.”
This is why you’re here.
I felt like God had brought me there to reach some students who were living within the minority.
After the game, I would learn that these black students did in fact speak English, and that they also knew how to ball! Two of the students were twins from Ghana, another student from Gambia, and I'm not remembering where the fourth student was from, but regardless I felt grateful to meet all of them. And although I was only able to follow up with them one other time during the trip, I still regularly keep in touch with them on WhatsApp. So, hopeful to see what God has in store for them, I faithfully ask you to be praying for these boys, as they continue to traverse the margins of society.
Moving on, another challenge for me this summer was seeing the ways in which other people were treated due to their ethnicities. During the first week of our stay, I remember walking down a busy street with my good friend, Anju. Then, as we were walking, a bold street vendor found it wise to greet Anju with the common phrase “Ni Hao.” Anju is a Japanese-American, “Ni Hao” is a Chinese greeting.
Maurice Powe and the Ghanian Twins
“Yikes!” I responded, “If you need anything after that, I’m definitely here for you, Anju.”
“Thanks Maurice,” Anju responded, and we basically left the conversation at that.
The next day Anju would briefly mention the encounter again, “Apparently the staff wanted to warn us that there’s certain groups of people that aren’t treated well here.” Having not experienced any racially motivated encounters at that point in time, I was taken aback learning how certain groups in society don't feel welcomed or loved.
Again, I was reminded of my experience being black in America. From the recent stories regarding the Buffalo shootings to anti-black emails at my school, again I couldn’t help but empathize with those people groups. I recall talking to a marginalized student, in which he said that “they treat the stray dogs better than they treat us,” and once again I felt an affirment of, this is why you’re here. So, again I felt like God was calling me to go to the unloved and the marginalized.
However, when I’m the only African American male amongst a group of white men, I was conflicted about having those conversations with students, because I assumed that white people stereotypically don't like talking about those things. In other words, I felt silenced a lot of the time, and began to pray for God to provide more ethnic diversity within the missions field; And in a strange way, I think that’s where Ryan comes in.
Maurice Powe and Ryan Marshall with two Middle Eastern students who are within a marginalized culture group
Having already referenced Ryan earlier for saying, “I think I’ve seen four black people in our entire time of being here, and they might be three of them,” I think that Ryan was a much needed member in our group for me.
For clarity, Ryan isn’t black, but after hearing his story, I felt like God answered my prayer through demonstrating the ways in which His love transcends racial boundaries. Due to his parents' involvement with inner city ministries, Ryan in a sense was more knowledgeable about hood life than I was. His testimony filled me with peace and assurance knowing that he understands the ways things can be and with that knowledge he was there for me; Plus, after Soulja Boying with him on the top of our boat cruise, I think it’s hard not to see his heart for the black community. So if you’re reading this Ryan, Thank You!
Yet, despite having Ryan as a resource, there were still days when I felt inadvertently isolated and othered from community due to my race. During the last week of our trip, a group of us were walking around when a local man insisted on showing us his novelty coin collection. Proud of his collection, the man would look up at me, and in the most ignorant way possible, he would mistake me for Barack Obama.
Stunned by such a comment, I stood as the man would continue to use that label four or five times when referring to me. Eventually finding an exit, Anju quickly checked in on me, until down from the road the man came riding on his motorcycle in our direction. Slowing down beside us, we awkwardly watched him as he again let out one last Obama before riding away.
Then everything was back to normal, WHY DID EVERYTHING JUST GO BACK TO NORMAL? I stood in silence listening to my white friends just forget about everything that happened and just move on with everyday life. I was confused by the way that they were acting, I felt like a target was on my back, and instead of receiving support, their silence forced me to deal with it.
The next day during our full group meeting, I would address these feelings to our team group, and with tears rolling down my face, I somehow received the courage to bring my hardship into the light. I didn’t feel comfortable talking about racial things, but I think the moment I spoke up a lot of growth was capable of happening.
At the end of the day, I think I’ve come to the conclusion that whatever group is sent, even if the group may be majority white or majority black, when people are going in the power of the Holy Spirit, God will use them. So when it comes to our group this summer, God in remarkable ways used us, despite our racial makeup.
However, even though God can use whoever isn’t sent, I do believe that a multiethnic body of missionaries could be a significant conduit for future revival within countries. Something about the multiethnic body changes people. From an internal perspective, it makes believers feel safe and loved, knowing that there are people within the body who look like me; Thus, from an external perspective, outsiders are able to see that there’s people within the body who are loved from all sorts of different backgrounds. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13: 34-35). Therefore, the disciples' multiethnic love was a conduit for evangelism. Their internal love for one another should in theory create Gospel opportunities, and a moment like this actually happened this summer!
On the last day we were in the Middle East, a group of us decided to go out and check off the last spots for site-seeing. While we were looking around, a stranger and his family came up to us and asked where we were from.
Maurice Powe and Matthew May with their Middle Eastern Friends
A little nervous at first, we kindly answered the United States, to which he answered similarly how he was a native to Texas. Interested in why he was there then, someone asked him the question, “What brought you to the Middle East?” And to our surprise his answer was, “I have a feeling we might be here for similar purposes.”
Unprepared for such a response, our group sat in shock as this stranger willingly outed himself as a full-time missionary within the region.
“I saw you guys walking around earlier, and I said to my mom, mom I think something is different about that group.”
The stranger would explain how you rarely see college students from different ethnic backgrounds unified together in a country across the world.
In other words, the multiethnic body made us stand out! Our body consisted of white people, an international student from India, a Japanese American woman, a Chinese American woman, a Brazilian woman, and me, an African American. Where else do you see diversity like that?
Our multiethnic identity, forced that stranger to notice how something is different about them. And that difference was Jesus. Jesus’ sacrifice allows us to be unified despite our differences, and as a result our team’s love for each other acted as a conduit in creating a Gospel opportunity!
After that, I would later find out that the stranger who initiated this conversation was mixed African American and Panamanian. So, on the last day of the trip, I was comforted knowing that God is and continues to send African American missionaries to do His work.
Yet, “from a brother to a brother,” he told me “we definitely could use more black people doing this.” Agreeing with that demand, I grabbed his contact info and left again smiling knowing that this is why God brought me here.
In the midst of every difficulty, God would consistently remind me that I’m not alone and he’s with me. Everything is going according to his plan and he will never forsake me. So, I look back at the hardship, and it allows me to rejoice in my sufferings, “for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9).
The group of students with the missionary from Texas and his family
The Future…
So what now?
If someone were to take only one thing away from this entire newsletter, I would probably want them to leave with the same love that I have for the Middle East, and I would encourage them to prayerfully consider checking the region out on their own, especially if the person reading is an ethnic minority! Revival is happening over there, and it’s a pretty significant time to participate in the change that God is authoring.
However, on a personal level, I personally am unaware of where I’ll end up in the coming future. Unsure of whether or not the Middle East is where God wants me, I think the most immediate next step for me is helping to send others.
From the words of the long-term team, “Our biggest need is warm bodies and people willing to invest.”
So, as I begin to start a black campus ministry in Amherst, I feel like I’ve been uniquely equipped to encourage and send students to go and make disciples of men.
Likewise, I think another possibility that has arisen this summer, is newfound curiosity of Northern Africa. I never really considered how similar Northern Africa is to the Middle East, so if God ends up leading me there in the future, I wouldn’t be opposed to it.
Nonetheless, if you made it this far, I truly commend you; But even as I conclude, there are still probably so many more impactful experiences that I haven’t even scratched the surface of, so please don’t be afraid to reach out to me. I would love to talk more in regards to anything that might have left you feeling confused, curious, or even interested in participating in the revival that’s happening in the Middle East. Regardless, I’m grateful that I had the opportunity to participate, and I pray that my account might leave you hopeful and excited about the things God’s about to do.
Thank you for your endless prayers and donations. This entire trip wouldn’t be possible without any of you. May the Lord bless you, keep you, shine his face upon you, be gracious to you, turn his face toward you, and give you peace!
