The Rachel Project
Kenya and Haiti
About the Name
Larry and MarySue Martin have named their current ministry The Rachel Project, named for their daughter, Rachel. Rachel was saved at a young age and returned home from Sunday School at age 5 to tell Larry and MarySue God had called her to be a missionary. She asked them, “When do we leave?” Both God and Rachel were far ahead of Larry and MarySue in their missionary call. Rachel was able to deploy to Kenya as a missionary in 1998. Rachel was very involved in ministry to children while in Kenya and led many to Christ. She was living her dream and call. Rachel completed her first year at Liberty University in 2004 when the Lord called her home in a violent car crash on June 29th of that year.
The Rachel Project In Kenya
The Rachel Project includes both humanitarian and church ministry outreach. Our humanitarian project plans include building local rural health clinics and wells in rural Kenya. This will help to earn the opportunity to be heard as well as do something that was close to our Lord; meeting the physical needs of the poor and children (Matt. 10:42). We will accomplish this through an NGO (non-government organization). We already have land that is waiting to be donated so that we can build our first clinic/well location.
The ministry side of the Rachel Project will be a ministry training center. The Martins are experienced in this type of ministry as this was the focus of their ministry while they served in Kenya. This will include pastor and local church worker training, training conferences and seminars, and mission trips in Kenya with both local nationals and trainers from the USA. Their ministry will focus on Kenyan church leaders leading in our ministry. One such leader is Charles Juma who the Martins met in Kenya in 1995. Charles is finishing his research papers for his doctorate at South Seminary in Louisville, KY. Charles Juma is well known and supported by Pastor Russell Howard.
The best tools God has to reach Africans are Africans. Rachel Project will assist the national church to grow strong in areas where they need help so they can more effectively reach Kenya for God.
The Rachel Project continues its ongoing ministry of assisting select pastors and medical students with school fees.
The Rachel Project in Haiti
The work in Haiti is very similar to the work in Kenya. Besides the pastor training and seminars, there is a lot of relationship building and leadership training for eight churches in a rural area north of Port au Prince. The Rachel Project has also helped to provide financial help for the pastors, especially during the pandemic time. With the recent political unrest, it has been difficult to be onsite, but the Rachel Project still communicates with them using video conferencing.
The Rachel Project Personnel
Rev. Larry & MarySue Martin, both have been hands-on in youth and children’s ministry since the mid-1970s. Both of their parents served as missionaries to African American migrant farmworkers, both served in Child Evangelism Fellowship. Ministry was modeled to them from a young age. Their ongoing ministry at home has been at McGregor Baptist Church including Children’s Ministry teaching and leadership, security detail, Beyond Us evangelism, mentoring ministry, and mission trips.
Larry is an Ordained Southern Baptist Pastor, who served as both vocational and bi-vocational pastor and youth pastor in several local churches. Larry graduated from Liberty University with a degree in Pastoral Ministries (Youth) and has additional classes at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary. They served together as a family in Kenya as missionaries from 1998 to 2002. Their ministry in Kenya was training local church workers and pastors. They have been hands-on active in ministry for 40+ years.
The Martin family's journey of faith is truly inspiring. They have dedicated their lives to serving the Lord and building up the churches in Kenya. Their passion for spreading the Gospel and providing theological and ministry leadership training to church leaders is admirable. The impact they have made on the churches in Kenya is immeasurable, and the enthusiasm from local churches to receive more teachings from them is a testament to their effectiveness.
The Martin family's work in Kenya is not only transformative but also crucial. The need for theological and ministry leadership training in the region is immense, and the Martin family's efforts are making a significant difference. Through their work with established local churches, they are strengthening ministries and furthering the spread of the Gospel in Kenya.
The Martin family's commitment to their faith and their work in Kenya is unwavering. They have been traveling to Kenya every year, with the help of their supporters, and their goal is to increase their visits to once a season (four times a year). They believe that the Lord will provide all their needs as they continue to serve Him by helping build up the churches in Kenya.
You, too, can be a part of this incredible journey of faith. Supporting the Martin family means supporting the growth and development of churches in Kenya. Your generosity can help provide theological and ministry leadership training to church leaders and further the spread of the Gospel in Kenya. Join the Martin family in their mission to serve the Lord and build up the churches in Kenya.
Photos from one of the training trips to Kenya
