Prayer, finance, chocolate and cheese sauce

April 2004 index

Karen Salmon is a Crosslinks mission partner working in Ethiopia. She’s grateful for all the support she gets from twelve churches in the UK – some of it the kind you’d expect, and some you wouldn’t! Karen explains “My supporting churches are very active in praying for me, and generous in financial support. At least one person, usually a mission secretary, writes to me regularly, sends Christmas cards, chocolate and cheese sauce.”

 

 

 

Karen’s home church, Knocknagoney Church
of the Annunciation

St Patrick's Ballymacarret


Originally from Belfast with a Master’s degree in nursing, Karen has been in Ethiopia since 1993. This year she started a new work at Mekelle Youth Centre in the north-east of the country. Her role there is raising awareness of HIV/AIDS among 500 young people, teaching prevention strategies and offering counselling. Since there is no human cure for AIDS, Karen feels that saving faith in Jesus Christ gives the only hope, and with the team she seeks to reach the youth with the Gospel and to disciple new believers.

She communicates with her supporting churches mainly through prayer letters. Then every three years she has a six-month break when she visits the parishes and speaks at church services, prayer meetings and Crosslinks conferences.

Communication is greatly helped by key personnel at Crosslinks. Says Karen: “Mark at the London office puts together my prayer letters, which he with Joanna in the Belfast office sends to supporting churches. Janet in London also includes prayer points from these letters in the Crosslinks magazine.” In addition, Karen’s profile and prayer letters are posted on the Crosslinks website, along with her PowerPoint presentation on HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia.
Karen has a few constructive suggestions as to how links could be even better, from “Perhaps short snippets from the letters could be read out during a church service.” to “I would love to have folks from my supporting churches come out and visit Ethiopia.” She also suggests “Having a link person in each parish who has email access would enable me to send monthly updates on the work and include prayer requests too.”

In 1990 Karen was living a comfortable life. She was advancing in her career, involved in her church, supported by her family and a large circle of friends. She had a lovely house, a new car and annual skiing holidays. Then she read an article on mission which was to change her life. Soon after, she was given a verse from Genesis 12:1 “Leave your country and your father’s house and go to the land I will show you.” – a verse that kept returning through Bible college and right up to her first evening in Ethiopia.

God’s word continues to sustain Karen, as does the support of the churches at home. “This support is a tremendous encouragement,” she says, “I love hearing from folks back home. Also, I know I could not continue with the work without the prayer support folk give me.”

 

 

 

Crosslinks magazine April 2004 index