From the moment we met Karen and Scott Harmening nearly a year after their daughter Sarah was killed in a bus accident on her way to the airport to fly to Botswana, our hearts have been knit together and they have become some of our dearest friends. They have traveled to Botswana on multiple mission trips and brought their other 3 daughters with them. They have embraced the people and place their daughter Sarah was called to go to and share the gospel with them in so many different ways.
This year, they approached us about doing a Bereaved Parents Gathering with a few parents from Botswana that have lost children and of course we were on board. Due to an overwhelming response, we ended up hosting 2 events for bereaved parents where over 100 grieving parents found community and understanding and were clearly presented the gospel and the Hope of Christ for their sorrow. They did this in conjunction with an amazing organization for Bereaved Parents in the States called ‘While We’re Waiting’ (https://whilewerewaiting.org/) and we were so blessed to have the founders of that organization here with us and help fund the event.
In addition they hosted a conference for about 40 church leaders and pastors on caring for grieving people and a symposium of 18 mostly non-Christian counselors and health care providers where they discussed the importance of the Hope of Christ in grief and mental health care .
In the absence of room to adequately share the fruit we saw, Ephesians 3:20-21 is the perfect summary passage for the Botswana mission trip, God did immeasurably more than we could begin to ask or imagine, to Him be the glory."
Here is a link to Karen’s blog post: https://listeningtohim.com/2023/07/01/exceedingly-abundantly-above/
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