A Refugee Tale: The Impact of the Church

Posted by Kaylee K on Thursday, March 3, 2016 Under: Response
During our time in Italy we were humbled and encouraged by our encounters with refugees who were willing to share some of their journey with us. Over and over, we learned of the impact that Christians and churches have had. We heard first-hand testimony from refugees about Christians who cared for them and led them to Christ. We heard from churches about the power they saw just by welcoming refugees into their community. And we learned that when a Christ-follower serves a refugee at one point in their journey, they are likely to seek out Christians and churches upon their arrival in a new community. "Joseph's" story had particular impact on us. You can read it here on our organization's news page: "The Impact of the Local Church".

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John and Kaylee Kolditz Kaylee founded Refugee Connect in 2008. John joined the work in 2011 as we investigated the refugee situation in Europe. But our faith and cross-cultural journeys have been a work-in-progress for many years. Much of this blog reflects that. ************************************************ We met in Austin, TX, while volunteering at a serving event at Gateway Church and have been married since 2002. Marriage, parenting and ministry all require a great deal of intentionality, humility and true reliance on God for strength, wisdom, and grace. It is a journey we are grateful to be on together. Ultimately, what matters to us is building into meaningful relationships in ways that, to the best of our ability and by God's grace, demonstrate the love and hope Jesus freely offers to us all. ************************************************ We bring both business and ministry backgrounds into our current work. John started a business in his 20's and helped build several other businesses. He has also served with churches in a variety of roles including as an assistant pastor, director of community development, and missions board member. Kaylee left her marketing career to become the global missions director for our home church in Austin, TX, then founded a local refugee ministry, and became TEFL certified (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) in order to prepare for our work overseas. We have led short-term teams domestically and internationally, and served with a variety of cross-cultural ministries. In 2008, we sensed a call to build into the church in Europe, which was also around the time when God broke Kaylee’s heart for refugees. Since then, God has continued to weave together this heart for refugees, desire to serve alongside the church, and focus on His call to Europe.

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