Hello All,
My name is Heidi, and I am grateful to be joining Jubilee Church's outreach team traveling to Sri Lanka this July 2026. I first went to Sri Lanka in early October 2025 as part of Jubilee's inaugural team partnering with the Ceylonese Evangelistic Association (CEA) to serve in Nuwara Eliya. At the invitation of CEA and local churches, our team had the opportunity to provide gospel-centered programming for children and youth, training for local leaders, and physical labor for church restoration, while building relationships that share the hope and love of Jesus.
I walked away from this trip deeply impressed by the work CEA and other local leaders are conducting in Sri Lanka. Only about 7.4% of the Sri Lankan population identifies as Christian, so a strong local church is crucial. My hope on this trip is to again come alongside the local church to offer the services and support they identify as beneficial for the building of God's global family of believers. However, the context in which we will serve is a little different. For this trip, instead of serving in the region around Nuwara Eliya, we will be serving churches around Kandy. Kandy, as the last capital of the Sinhala kingdom and the site of a major Buddhist temple, is culturally distinct from Nuwara Eliya, where the majority language was Tamil and the majority religion Hinduism.
To be frank, after completing my first trip to Sri Lanka, I had some doubts about whether I would return for a second. The first trip was a wonderful, instructive experience that I shall never forget. However, I questioned the value of my returning to Sri Lanka. What could I contribute that I had not already done? Financially, would it make sense to fundraise for a second trip? Wouldn't it be better if someone else went, someone who hadn't had the experience? When the time came to apply to join the 2026 outreach team, though, I clearly felt that I should offer my services and support again, in whatever capacity that might take. I am still not quite sure what to expect, but I am excited to see what God has in store for this second trip.
The financial cost for each team member is about KRW 3,000,000 (~$2,000 USD) to cover logistical expenses (e.g., transportation, housing) as well as program costs for the children's, youth, and church programming we will be conducting. I will be utilizing personal funds to cover about 25% of the individual cost, and I would appreciate your consideration as I seek to secure financial and spiritual support for the trip, along with my fellow team members.
You can come alongside us in the work for the Sri Lankan church community financially as well as by:
- Praying for our team to be unified, joyful, and bold in Christ
- Praying for wisdom, humility, and godly inspiration as our team plans and executes programming
- Praying for open hearts and minds in Sri Lanka
- Praying for strength, good health, and safety for our team and the children, youth, and church leadership who will be participating in programming
Thank you for your support, in whatever form it takes! I look forward to sharing more about what God is doing in Sri Lanka.
~Heidi