BARTLESVILLE, Okla. (ABP) — On day 27 of a 40-day fast in a cabin in Michigan, God called Kevin Turner to ministry — specifically in war zones, disaster areas and places where Christians are persecuted.
Since then, he's had quite an adventure fulfilling that calling.
“I believe we're sent into the hot spots of the world,” said Turner, president of Strategic World Impact, based in Bartlesville, Okla. “Our approach is to get in, be part of the solution, make an impact and get out safely. We're not doing long-term development. It's a stopgap ministry to touch the lives of people who are standing on the brink of eternity.”
Over the last decade, that mission has taken Turner and his staff to more than 20 nations, including multiple trips to Sudan and Eritrea. This month, Strategic World Impact is sending a 20-member medical mission team to Darfur.
The United Nations estimates that about 400,000 people have died as a result of conflict in Darfur since 2003, and more than 2 million have been displaced.
The Strategic World Impact team — including five physicians, one dentist and several nurses, paramedics and disaster relief specialists — plans to deliver 1,000 kits containing tarps, mosquito netting, utensils and hygiene items to displaced people in the war-torn area.
The volunteers, who plan to fly into southern Darfur by way of Kenya, will also deliver a solar-powered water purifier and Bibles for distribution.
“We bring in Bibles because the Christians there ask for them,” said Turner, an ordained Baptist minister. “We never do the kind of distribution where people are told they have to take a Bible in order to get something else they need.”
Travel costs are significantly higher for this trip than for most missions Strategic World Impact undertakes, Turner said. The cost of the cargo plane alone is about $34,000, and the organization still lacks about $13,500 to cover other expenses.
“But the Lord always has been faithful to provide, and we're trusting him,” he said. “This is our chance to get in to Darfur, and we never know how long the opportunity will be available.”
Last April, Turner conducted an on-site assessment in Darfur. He encountered displaced women, children and elderly people who lacked food, water and medical attention.
“I saw people walking or crowded onto the back of gravel trucks, fleeing through the desert. There were people who had traveled three days on foot since their last water supply in up to 130-degree temperatures,” he recalled.
Turner acknowledged the safety concerns inherent in ministering in places like Darfur, but he said that Strategic World Impact trains staff and volunteers in how to minimize risks. Still, as the father of three young children, he recognizes the danger.
“In our case, the kids haven't ever known anything else,” he said, noting that his family has lived in Bosnia and Egypt. “It's all in what you become accustomed to.”
But as he avoids placing himself in a risky situation without proper preparation, Turner said he believes “there's nothing that can be taken from you when it's all surrendered to the Lord.”
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— This story is part of a series on the biblical passage of Luke 4.