Youth for Christ in the Arabian Gulf has had the pleasure of sharing in Graham McClure's passions and dreams for 2 summers as we took teenagers from across the United Arab Emirates on Project Serve to help make a small difference in the larger picture of life.

Our aim on Project Serve is to give teenagers the opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus in lands with great needs. Serving in the community of Tanzania was not only a highlight in each student's life, but an experience that altered their future plans and increased their passion for God and His people.

Graham's not just been a friend of YFC, but an inspiration, an encouragement & hope to us and to the people in Musoma...their admiration & appreciation for what he does and what he'd taught them to do is evident around every house you walk by.  

 My time in Tanzania was the best time in my life. I was completely changed there, and just realized how small and insignificant my problems are compared to these. It just felt like such a blessing to be able to go there and love those kids and be loved right bock, and also to help in any way possible.

I realized I want to live for something much bigger than to just get on with life otherwise by myself. I came to know the Lord there in a completely new way, and ever since then, the Lord has been showing me more and more in my life that I really do have a heart for missions. Not to mention it was one of the most beautiful countries I've ever seen! I can't wait to go back. 

 Tanzania is a beautiful country. I have never experienced more breath-taking views or people who are so hospitable.

I traveled to Tanzania in July 2007 for two weeks with a group of 14 other people from Northern Ireland. Our main purpose was to repair two existing water tanks and to make repairs to dilapidated goat sheds in a small village Nyankanga. This work was challenging, yet thoroughly rewarding at the end of out time to see them complete. In order to carry out the building work, we all had to learn new skills which was, in itself challenging! We worked, as a team, with the local people, learning from them also as we went along. Some of us assisted in teaching English to the children in the Village.

We took some time out at the end of our two week stay (which flew by) to go on a safari. This was another fascinating experience and we got very close- almost too close to a couple of lions and hippos!

The people of Tanzania are wonderful and I would love to spend some time in the future getting to know them and their culture better. The music they sang filled my head for weeks after I returned home.

During our stay, we also visited a children’s home, full of babies and infants. This was a great experience for all of the team – including the blokes, so much so that we all visited this children’s home at least twice during our stay.

We were also privileged to experience two very different Church services – one in Musoma Cathedral and another in the village Church. It’s just a pity that we don’t show the same joy outwardly in our churches at home.

The Tanzanian people have very little, yet they are very content with what they have – unlike us. This is the main thing that I learnt during the time I spent in Tanzania. I would love to return and I am sure that many of the people I went with would also like to return.

You can take a man out of Africa, but you can never take Africa out of a man.