Student takes internship in Kenya
Kristen Sullivan finds her passion in missions while continuing to study through Liberty Online classes
Hometown — Sullivan has called Kenya her temporary home since her arrival in 2012. Photo provided
Kristen Sullivan, a senior with Liberty University Online, has decided to follow her passion for missions by serving the country of Kenya. She is currently living in Johannesburg, South Africa, but she started the path that the Lord laid on her heart a long time ago.
Sullivan is currently studying international business with a minor in intercultural studies, but according to her, a missions trip to Tijuana, Mexico when she was 11 convinced her that she would somehow be involved in missions.
Since then, Sullivan said she has had a passion for missions and knows that the Lord is calling her to the mission field and to specifically minister through business.
By March 2012, Sullivan had already made the decision to move to Johannesburg, but plans began to change when she met Jannekah and Martin Guya, who live in Kenya. They joked with her about living with them in Kenya, but with plans already in place, Sullivan declined. However, she soon found herself asking the Guyas if she could live with them for a little while. After a brief stay in Kenya, Sullivan moved to her current location of Johannesburg.
After learning about Liberty through her older sister, Sullivan is enrolled in online classes to fulfill her callings through Liberty. She is now in the midst of online classes while she fulfills her internship duties in South Africa.
Sullivan said that learning time management and balancing all of her responsibilities can be quite challenging.
Hometown — Sullivan has called Kenya her temporary home since her arrival. Photo provided
“I can’t do school and reach out to the people every day without the Lord,” Sullivan said. “It has been really good. It is teaching me to rely on the Lord. He is my strength.”
Sullivan is interning with a nonprofit organization called Impact Africa, an organization she learned about through Teen Mania.
“Impact Africa endeavors to motivate, train and equip the body of Christ while facilitating outreach opportunities that deeply impact participants and the nations for the Lord,” according to the organization’s website.
Sullivan said she is involved with a Bible study on Tuesdays and Fridays where she helps lead the worship time and is on a rotation for teaching the lessons. On Friday mornings, Sullivan helps in the Impact Africa preschools where children, ages two – six can participate in activities and crafts, hear Bible stories and learn English. And two – three times a week she is involved in a form of street evangelism.
“We visit the squatter camps and go house to house, talking to people and sharing the gospel,” Sullivan said.
Because she is so busy, Sullivan must schedule rest time, during which she enjoys volleyball, movies, and catching up with friends and family who are back in the United States.
Sullivan’s internship ends December 2013, and, in the meantime, she is praying and seeking counsel for the next step in her life.
“The Lord is just so good,” Sullivan said. “I have seen things I never dreamt I’d see, and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it, seeing how much God loves the world and the people.”
Sullivan said she can sense the Lord directing her heart to Kenya, where she would like to spend at least a couple years learning the culture.
“People really need to know and see the love of Christ,” Sullivan said. “It’s not anything Kristen has. It’s all God.”