Egypt Missions Trip

Hello Friends and Family,

Many of you know us already, but we are L.J & Novica Olinger. We are from Columbus, OH and attend Vineyard Columbus. I (Novica) am a resident in the Pastoral Residency program and L.J is a small group leader and member of East Campus Advisory Team as well as a key leader at East Campus. We've been married for over 25 yrs and working together in ministry for over 20 yrs. We love pouring into people, helping them along their journey of faith. Recently, we felt the Lord inviting us to take a missionary trip to Egypt. So, this is why we are reaching out to you!

We've had a desire to go on a missions trip for many years and have been presented with an opportunity recently with our church, Vineyard Columbus, to travel to Egypt and connect with the Coptic Christians there to understand some of their current needs. It's important that we show love and encouragement to those who are facing such adversity in trying to walk out their Christian faith in a Muslim community. We feel this trip will help us to better serve our Muslim brothers and sisters here in our own city.

Coptic Christians make up about 10 percent of the population in Egypt. They are often the victims of persecution and repeated attacks on their churches, as Egypt is a majority Muslim country. They face constant trouble, like not being able to build churches and they are often openly discriminated against or lynched.

We will travel with local guides, stay with local people, engage in spiritual conversations, look through God’s eyes at those we encounter, pray deeply to see and understand the history of Islam and Christianity in this area, and discern long term missions in this country or amongst Muslims elsewhere.

With your financial support, we can raise the funds needed for both of us to travel to Egypt and be a part of this opportunity we feel God is inviting us into.

We solicit your prayers also, as we prepare for this trip. It is both scary and exciting, but we know the Holy Spirit will meet us there and equip us for the journey.

Blessings and thank you in advance for your generosity,

L.J & Novica Olinger