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Jen Bradbury
Jul 28 · 5 min read

The poster children for refugees

The Good Lie

Twice over the weekend, people told me that I should see The Good Lie, a 2014 movie starring Reese Witherspoon about some of the lost boys of Sudan – children who fled Sudan as refugees without either parent.

As someone who's stood in a refugee...

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#refugee #war #Congo #Kiziba #Rwanda #movies

Jen Bradbury
Aug 07 · 5 min read

Here & There: Connecting Short-Term Mission Trips Abroad to Life at Home

I hate international mission trips.

Not all, but some.

More specifically, I hate international mission trips that plop teens down in an exotic location far from home and fail to make the connection between what goes on there and what goes on at...

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#refugee #Congo #Kiziba #Rwanda #Missions #youth ministry

Jen Bradbury
Aug 05 · 5 min read

Money Matters

I just returned from a two-week mission trip to Rwanda with my high school youth ministry. Twice now we've been privileged to partner with International Teams Rwanda for the international leg of our three-year mission trip cycle.

The trip was, in...

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#vocation #Kiziba #justice #Missions #youth ministry

Jen Bradbury
Jul 08 · 5 min read

What I Learned: In a Congolese Refugee Camp

I'm thrilled to be guest posting at Rachel Pieh Jones' today as part of her fantastic series, "What I Learned." 

Ask me to describe a refugee camp and I’ll start with the smell.

It’s the smell of far too many people living in far too...

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#refugee #Congo #Kiziba #Rwanda

Jen Bradbury
Jun 02 · 5 min read

Every day for 15 years

A few weeks ago, our friend Emile, a Congolese refugee, attended one of my mission trip meetings to help prepare a team headed to Rwanda for what they will see and experience in the Kiziba Refugee Camp.

As part of our time together, I interviewed...

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#refugee #Congo #Kiziba #justice #Missions

Jen Bradbury
May 06 · 5 min read

A beautiful mess

5minutefriday

Today, I'm linking up with Lisa-Jo Baker‘s Five Minute Friday. The rules: Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking.

This week's prompt: Mess.

I woke up this morning to a mess. The bathtub was filthy. Wet towels...

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#refugee #Five Minute Friday #story #Kiziba #Rwanda

Jen Bradbury
Dec 16 · 5 min read

Yes, They Know It's Christmas

I'm currently knee-deep in mission trip preparations for my team's 2014 trip to Rwanda. As part of this mission trip preparation, I'm working hard to shatter any Messiah complexes my team members might have.

That Messiah complexes exist in teens...

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#Kiziba #Rwanda #cross-cultural #privilege #Missions

Jen Bradbury
Oct 11 · 5 min read

Refugees: More victims of the government shutdown

Over the last two weeks, there has been extensive news coverage about the impact of the government shutdown on various services.

We've seen headlines about WWII veterans trying to visit a closed WWII monument in Washington DC; About frustrated...

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#refugee #Kiziba #Rwanda #justice

Jen Bradbury
Sep 27 · 5 min read

Whose story is it?

The other day, this tweet from People caught my attention:

Christina Aguilera takes an emotional trip to Rwanda, says "I know I will go back." http://t.co/aAU6D0QTeN

— People magazine (@peoplemag) September 26, 2013

Having grown to love Rwanda...

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#Transformation #refugee #Kiziba #Rwanda #justice #Missions

Jen Bradbury
Sep 16 · 5 min read

Hope is a precious commodity

For the past month, my suburban community has been slowly making improvements to our sewer system.

Truthfully, I don't exactly understand the details.

Insituform

What I do understand is that when the Insituform truck arrives outside my house, it's going...

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#refugee #Congo #Kiziba #hope #Rwanda

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Latest Posts

  • The poster children for refugees
  • Here & There: Connecting Short-Term Mission Trips Abroad to Life at Home
  • Money Matters
  • What I Learned: In a Congolese Refugee Camp
  • Every day for 15 years
  • A beautiful mess
  • Yes, They Know It's Christmas
  • Refugees: More victims of the government shutdown
  • Whose story is it?
  • Hope is a precious commodity

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