Below is another inspiring testimony of the M3 Conference given by Amy Herman, RN. Her testimony was shared with us through Steve James, President and Founder of Kenya Relief. Amy tells of her experience beautifully and really captures the meaning of the conference.

“Going to the M3 conference gave me hope in not only the work that Kenya Relief does, but the work that ALL of us do collectively when it comes to helping people who are really in need. I am a firm believer that we are gifted with skills and talents that can be used to serve one another and being at the conference allowed me to meet people who do that every single day and they do it with great joy and great hope. 

Sometimes mission work can feel overwhelming and family and friends don’t quite get your passion for wanting to reach out to those most in need, but virtually everyone at this conference understands. I met a nurse doing work in California in the Tenderloin neighborhood of which I had never heard of before. Her daily work, and the work of a ton of other people in her organization, is changing the lives of people that the general population doesn’t even want to look at, much less offer a helping hand to. She inspired me with her passion for people. 

I met a nurse who served at Tenwek Hospital in Kenya who helped organize the training and education of local young women who wanted to become OR nurses. Her calm and confident outlook on the future of nurses at Tenwek filled me with hope and her work inspired me.  

I heard Dr. Kent Brantley’s story first hand and then found him after his talk standing quietly in the background of booths, leaning against a counter all by himself. His humble nature, the incredible amount of hope he has and the way that he spoke of the people he served, with such tenderness and love, inspired me too.  

I seemed to be surrounded by nurses, doctors and people who could not wait to serve!! They were fueled by passion and that passion was almost tangible everywhere I went during the conference and with each person I spoke to. It was exhilarating and inspiring! 

If you’ve ever wondered…”Can it really be done?”  If you’re ever thought…”But there’s so much need and so much to do!”  Hear what the people who come to the M3 conference have to say about that. Share YOUR stories of hope and love and passion for the work you do with the people you will meet there. It’s an atmosphere of hope in the future and new ideas are exchanged with virtually every single person you encounter. You’ll be both grounded and forever changed. 

Can. Not. Wait.

Amy”

Steve James, President and Founder of Kenya Relief, shared the testimony below with us that was written by Jo-Ann Caron. It is an incredible testament of the way God works. We pray the 2018 M3 Conference brings many more stories like this!

“Dear Steve,

The hustle and bustle of the holidays have ended and as I took some time this morning to plan out my coming week, I realized that I will soon be leaving on a medical mission to Kenya…and that’s when the panic set in. So I am typing this note to you to quell my inner anxiety and to tell you how you are partially responsible for my to trip to Migori.
This past February, I attended the M3 Mission Conference at Lakewood Church. To say that the hand of God led me there would be an understatement, because up until one month before, I was unaware that Lakewood Church or Joel and Paul Osteen even existed!! But that is a story for another time.
I didn’t go to the conference with an agenda, I just knew that God had sent me to Houston. I signed up for a breakout session titled, ‘No Boundaries to Love: The Perfect Place to Start Your Medical/Surgical Mission’, because it sounded interesting. When you began your presentation, I was immediately drawn in by your personality and the incredible story of how and why Kenya Relief began. That still small voice said pay attention. But as often happens, that other voice told me I was not what you were looking for. Yes, I’ve been a nurse for over 35 years but my expertise has been in OB. Plus I ‘retired’ from my hospital based position and have been conducting wellness and vaccine clinics. I have not been in an OR in 3 years. I left the session and thought, ‘I guess this is not for me’.
Over the course of the 2 and 1/2 days, I kept walking by the Kenya Relief Exhibition Booth but was too afraid to approach for fear ‘I wouldn’t be good enough’. At the close of the conference, Caleb, who was the emcee, addressed the conference attendees. He felt led to say that there were a few members of the audience who had been walking by a particular booth for several days but fear was keeping them from moving forward…fear of not being good enough, fear of the unknown, fear of stepping outside your comfort zone. His challenge was to get up and approach that booth and Just Say Yes!!  At that moment in time, the message to me couldn’t have been more clear.
I left my seat and headed to the Kenya Relief booth. As I approached, you looked up and said the most incredible thing….’we’ve been waiting for you’. Wow!!  I left Houston with a lot of information and went home and prayed.
On Jan. 19th I will arrive in Nairobi and meet the members of Team 2.  All those fears I had in Houston have begun to dance in my brain and gut once again!!! But I go confident in the ‘One’ who has sent me there. See you soon…Jo-Ann Caron”