Cote d'Ivoire 2026 Trip
This year my mother Shanita and I (Justus) are returning to Africa. Come July 17th we will be leaving for Cote d'Ivoire and we will return on the 27th of July. The overall goal of the trip will be to further support our brothers and sisters in Christ in Cote d'Ivoire. To see how the churches and people are doing and then we will start toward the infinitely more campaign inspired by Ephesians 3:26 that our church Palm Valley Church started. It's a multi year faith step by our church to be used by God to do more than what we can imagine possible. This campaign also takes from Acts 1 where we will work towards local, regional and global missions and our Cote d'Ivoire trip is a part of that global mission. The infinitely more vision is to help the church of Cote d'Ivoire reach more of the unreached people group (a people that have little to no Christian influence like churches in their area and little to no missionary outreach, and for us specifically this trip we will be doing few teachings and conferences about healthy churches, medical training and health care , supporting your community, kids ministries. We will be traveling to about three areas of the country, one of which being a new area for us to be able to bring our mission to. As well as celebrating 10 years of missions and relationships with the people of Cote d'Ivoire.
We will start our mission in Abidjan, the capital of Cote d'Ivoire. From here we will travel west to around the area near Touba. After that we will leave for the city of Man which is where the Esters House is ( A small live in school that protect young girls through out the school year). Finally on our way back to Abidjan to end the trip we'll stop in Gagnoa for celebration of 10 years of the PEACE Plan and life change in Cote d'Ivoire. Through out the entire time our goal is to do man teaching and seminars for pastors and community leaders about how to have health churches, out reach, and communities.
Cote d'Ivoire
The country of Cote d'Ivoire of the Ivory Coast in English on the West African Coast is a beautiful land with amazing beaches and breathtaking forest that look as if they are as wide as the sea. The national language is French and they have up to 78 tribal tongues among 34.3 million people. They have many different people groups up to 60 different groups. The religious population is approximately 42.5% Muslim, 39.8% Christian and the remaining are other beliefs. Basic living income is roughly around 7 USD a day due to the horrible levels of inflation and poverty for the whole nation and even less for the people outside the cities. Illiteracy strikes about 50%-60% of adults in rural areas making it harsher to make a living and thrive. And many deadly diseases like Malaria, HIV and AIDs, Diabetes and many other unchecked infectious diseases that take thousands of lives a year, and because voodoo and the cult is still big and practiced all through Africa when actual medical emergencies happen like seizure people refuse to help due to fearing the people are possessed. Young Girls and teens are unsafe going to school in rural areas going to school or to the city and at times sadly can be forced to get married to their kidnappers in some situations. These issues are the reason why the church is needed. People are hurting, scared, dying and hopeless but the only thing that can give lasting peace is our Lord and savior Jesus.
There are struggles and pains that pledge the world as a whole, Issues that every country faces and sadly most collapse under. The pains of the world in our mission are simplified into five of the most major issues that cause the most difficulty for any nation. We call them Global Giants. These Giants affect the spiritual and physical being of people. The financial and mental stresses that weigh people down. These Global Giants are spiritual emptiness, self-centered leadership, poverty, disease, illiteracy. The suffering mentioned in the section above show just a few of the issues Cote d'Ivoire faces but all can fall into one of these five.
While we see the issues and how damaging they are to the world. The depression, fear and hopelessness it causes, we also already know the solutions to each of these giants. We know these solutions work because we have seen it before, not only in the past but in the present day as well. While showing true results and healing for all that have. The solution we use in the mission field is the P.E.A.C.E. plan. Plant churches & promote reconciliation, Equip servant leaders, Assist the poor, Care for the sick, Educate the next generation. This is what we teach the pastor of Cote d'Ivoire so they can then take it back to their congregations and start the healing the nation needs. Below are specific pages to each Global Giant and its P.E.A.C.E plan solution
Global Giants
Missions
Connections
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Fundraising for the Trip
OUR GOAL IS
6,000
This trip is completely fundraised and paid for by donations. This is so that as we prepare for the trip we can keep our minds focused on the service of the people we are going to help and not get a sense of pride. If we pay our way it might influence our thoughts to feel as if the trip is a vacation or earned trip and we might be less likely to serve the people and just enjoy ourselves. Mission trips are opportunities to serve God and people not to fill our hearts with ego
For our fundraiser we will be selling items such as 3D prints, Shanita designed hats, custom graduation or party decoration, inspiring and funny wood planks and faith based things like mustard seeds. We'll also be having a few food events where you can order pick up or come by and eat and learn more about our trip. These events will have the beloved hoagie sandwich making a return and some delicious Cote d'Ivoire inspired meals
3,000 each
Its about Relationships
The way that people come to Christ most often is through his people and the way that most people turn away from Jesus is through his people. The way you treat people is massive when it comes to missions and just everyday life and most importantly when you are representing Jesus as his followers. Are we doing it through the way we love others and through our actions or are we distant from people and harsh in our treatment? That is why it is good to see how Jesus did his ministry. He took the time to understand people and care for them. He ate meals and celebrated, mourned and cried with the hurting and helped the people with real issues and brought them to real solutions. Jesus said the greatest commandment in Matthew 22:37-40, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself. The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments." To be a Christian is to be like Jesus and follow what he says, “Love God and Love others.” We can do that by being servant leaders and have compassion this world doesn't understand. Caring for the sick and going out our way to help the ones that feel abandoned. This is how missions are, when we go out to do our missionary work and share Jesus we always have to remember that we honor God and put people first, tasks second. Our goal as a church is to keep doing that on this trip. For the past 10 ten years Palm valley church has been able to partner with the people of Cote d'Ivoire not by rushing in and just doing what we think is right to do but by asking them what their needs are, what struggles they face and how can we help.
How are we raising fund?
Fundraiser Events
Our events are small junctures where we invite people to come out to either eat, see a movie or have a game night. Small and simple things we can do to show hospitality and opportunities for donations as well as selling items like 3D printed items or custom decorations
Upcoming Events
Date and time is TBDMccree house or at chewy for pick upDate and time is TBDMccree house or at chewy for pick up
Date and time is TBDMccree house or at chewy for pick upDate and time is TBDMccree house or at chewy for pick up
Date and time is TBDMccree house or at chewy for pick upDate and time is TBDMccree house or at chewy for pick up
PEACE CENTERS
Why Are We In Cote d'Ivoire
What our real mission purposes in Cote d'Ivoire is to help the local church of Cote d'Ivoire reach their own communities. This is because while as missionaries we can go and do evangelism and preach to the people there it's better to equip the people already there. We will only be there temporarily, we are not a part of the culture, we won't be able to sustain what we do unless we share and teach the people we are with. On the other hand the church (The believers ) of Cote d'Ivoire will be there because it's their home. They know the culture because it's their culture, and it will sustain because they can use what they have to keep it going the way that works for their communities. Like in the new testament helping the local churches be healthy and have them do what churches do (share Jesus with the lost) is how the Big C church, the global body of believers is supposed to work together
P.E.A.C.E. Centers are one of the ways we have helped the Churches in Cote d'Ivoire reach their communities. P.E.A.C.E. Centers are small buildings with a few full time church members that have been trained to provide spiritual, medical, and reasoned and compassionate care to anyone in the area. Such services are helping people get connected to a local church, have given medical advice and help with check ups and whether a medical emergency should be rushed to the city hospital. In 2020 we both had the opportunity to help celebrate the opening of one of the first P.E.A.C.E. Centers in Cote d'Ivoire and now there is a multiple throughout the whole country with loving church volunteers that are willing to love and support there fellow neighbor