Why We Go

The Teach To Transform team has a passion to “Go” to the hard places because every life is valuable and loved in the Kingdom of Heaven. The reason we have a desire to serve in the darkest areas of the world is that God is the author of our story. The Lord allows us to see through His eyes by blessing us with divine appointments, and shows us suffering and persecution that sparks a fire in us to Go.

This weekend, I received a call from a pastor in Africa concerning a two-month-old baby, who had been bleeding from his gums for 24 hours. Thousands of miles away, I felt helpless. I can’t begin to imagine how overwhelmed his family was, watching their baby boy lose strength minute by minute. We were told he had been suffering from a traditional cutting of gums. The exact cultural basis of this tradition is unclear.

Due to limited resources, we instructed his father through the pastor to apply a tea bag (which helps blood clot) and local pressure to his gums, which eventually controlled the bleeding. The baby then began to vomit, presumably from swallowing blood, which can be irritating to the stomach. There was no immediate access to medical care, so we instructed the father on how to prepare Oral Rehydration Solution with the plan to move immediately to a clinic when possible.

I received heartbreaking news that 24 hours later, the baby died. Although we have been in this country training, we have not yet trained anyone in the north near this village to recognize babies in distress and how to control bleeding.


This scenario is repeated over and over in places we go – infanticide in India, mothers and babies dying during childbirth, starving in refugee camps in Africa, and the list goes on. When the Lord gives us a glimpse of the least of these –  the thirsty, hungry, sick and naked people in the world –  we must act. When Christ gives us these divine appointments, He expects two responses: to hear Him and then to Go. It is not enough to feel empathy, we must show love and compassion by going. (Matthew 25:42-46)

What do we do with this tragedy?

In trying to make sense of this, we must see what the Lord is teaching us. First, we must pray that his family knows Christ and He is with them in their pain. Second, we know from our faith that Christ opened his arms to hold this baby in heaven today.

Knowing this story, would you help Teach To Transform go and reach the least of these by teaching medical skills, Farming Gods Way and vocational skills to indigenous believers so they can care for the suffering, the hungry, thirsty, naked, sick or the homeless? Most importantly, would you help us empower indigenous believers with skills so they can make their way to these villages where there is no hope and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ?

We invite you to join us with the goal to empower. Over time they will not remember Teach To Transform, but they will know their “neighbor” who cared for them and shared the love of Christ. Who better than a neighbor, who knows the language and the culture, to continue to show the love of Christ long after we leave? Help us break the cycle of dependency on the West and empower through teaching to glorify Christ. Join our Kingdom work in hard places.

For His Glory,
Tom and Karen