Mike and Sarah Thiessen

Back: Simon, Mike Front: Gabriel, Sarah (http://www.omsinternational.org/missionaries/msthiessen)

Mike was born on October 19th, 1976 in Guelph, Ontario. Sarah was born on July 9th, 1974. They are my heroes because they went to Mozambique, Africa to teach pastors there how to plant churches. Mike and Sarah went to Mozambique and risked getting very sick, dying, or getting killed by trying to teach Mozambicans about Jesus and Christianity.

While they were in Africa, Sarah was working with the children of Mozambique, teaching them music, and Mike taught at a seminary with local pastors so that they could go and preach and teach in their churches.

Mike earned a diploma in Masters of Arts at Heritage College in Kitchener, while Sarah has a diploma in Early Childhood Education at Seneca College. They have 3 children: Simon, aged 6, Gabriel, aged 3, and their little girl Maylah, who is 6 months old. One of Mike's interesting facts from youth was that he was always making bad decisions, so he asked God to remove him of his surroundings. He lost his job soon after, and he had to move away from where he was living. When Sarah was young, a friend of hers died, and that experience made Sarah want to have a big impact on other people. Jesus changed Mike and Sarah's lives by calling them to go to Africa.

There were a few obstacles in going to Africa. Mike and Sarah had to get all of the money for the trip-they needed money for food, a house, and clothing before they left because they wouldn't earn any money while they were in Africa. In order to get this money, Mike and Sarah had to travel on weekends for a whole year to speak at churches and ask them to support their trip. Mike and Sarah also had to learn Mozambique's national language, which is Portuguese, and overcame that by hard work, studying, and preparation.

They also had to make sure that all of their belongings got to Africa - this takes a very long time, it is very expensive, some stuff even gets stolen, and they had to bribe the people at the port in order to get their stuff back. Some of their stuff didn't make it to Africa, so Mike and Sarah either had to live without the stuff they didn't get back, or go and buy new stuff in Mozambique.

When they arrived in Mozambique, the Thiessens did many things. Sarah fed the poor, took a very sick man to the hospital a number of times, and taught children in Mozambique who live on the streets. Mike taught Mozambican pastors in a seminary on how to care for other people and lead their churches. He created a college program that would allow Mozambicans to be trained and equipped to work and support their families. Mike and Sarah regularly went on "Giving Walks" up and down the streets of Maputo, the capitol of Mozambique - also where they lived. This means that they went on walks, and brought a wagon full of items such as clothing, sandals, and bread for the poor. Relationships are very important to Mozambicans. They measure your success not by what you did, but by the friendships you made.

Mike and Sarah both have the character traits of Courage, because Africa is a very dangerous place. They risked a lot of things to go there. They show love because, wherever they go, they are always helping and loving people. They are faithful because they trust God in everything they do, and anywhere they are. And finally, humour, because Mike and Sarah are always cracking jokes, telling funny stories, and making people laugh.

Mike and Sarah influence me to share the story of Jesus Christ with everyone I know, because if they can go to Africa, to teach complete strangers about Jesus Christ. I can do the same thing with people I know. Mike and Sarah also influence me to become a missionary, and to go to help the people in other countries who need love and help.