By Gary Fallesen, Climbing For Christ
Today's Dispatch
Friday, July 26
Yusuf, in yellow, addresses the two groups after John Mollen and Damson spoke of us becoming one team. Yusuf’s group is guiding Mitch, right, and Gary, but in step with the C4C group. Outreach began here. (Photo by Gary Fallesen)
John Mollen explained the expedition to the 30 guides and porters encircled at our hotel. Twenty from Climbing For Christ and 10 from our friend Yusuf’s trekking company. We are climbing Mount Kilimanjaro together. The C4C team is on the mountain to evangelize. Yusuf is guiding Mitch and me.
Damson told Yusuf’s men about the brochures they might see the C4C guys passing out. He invited them to read for themselves and to learn more about the One we represent - Jesus Christ.
The outreach has begun. Two groups from different backgrounds brought together by C4C. We are praying for divine interaction and unity between them. Ultimately, we are praying for the salvation of those who started this trek not walking with Jesus.
We did some walking today. Uphill. Or up “The Hill,” as guide Hemedi calls Kilimanjaro. Hemedi, who works for Yusuf and has been on the mountain with us the past 10 years, asked if he could have one of the C4C shirts we gave to our members (along with C4C Tanzania hats and brochures to distribute). That’s a first step.
We climbed from the Machame Gate at 5,975 feet to the first camp at 9,925 feet. It was 6 ½ miles and very pole pole (slowly slowly), taking almost six hours.
A late start – because of all the national park logistics that needed to be dealt with – had the porters from both groups scrambling to get to Machame Camp before dark. Not a lot of evangelism was done today. When a park ranger started asking us questions about possessing drones, drugs or guns, Damson handed him a brochure. We carry only the Sword of the Spirit. He said, “This gets you into the park.” He shook our hands and wished us well.
Introduction
I’m not big on birthdays – aside from Climbing For Christ’s 20th, which we celebrated in April. But for some reason I decided more than one year ago that I wanted to do something special with my family for my 65th birthday. My original thought was Chamonix, France and climbing Mont Blanc. But when I realized the 2024 Summer Olympics were in Paris, I punted. Where else could we go that would be significant and memorable?
Mount Kilimanjaro.
Much of my life today has centered around Africa’s highest peak. Kilimanjaro was the mountain God used to birth Climbing For Christ when I first came to Tanzania back in 1998. It became a model of sorts for what we could do as a ministry when we conducted Mission: Kilimanjaro 2007 – only our eighth short-term mission trip and the first of 17 evangelic expeditions to Kilimanjaro. The concept was to work with guides and porters, an otherwise mostly overlooked group of people, and help them both physically and spiritually. We wanted to train up an army of evangelists to serve on the mountain among co-workers and tens of thousands of tourists who come here from around the world.
In 2008, the Kilimanjaro Chapter was formed. Teaching began.
In 2014, Damson Samson from neighboring Malawi answered the call to serve with C4C. He made the first of what is now 35 trips north to work with the guides and porters on Mission: Kilimanjaro 2014. Our daughter Hayley also came to Africa for the first time that year – climbing to the continent’s rooftop.
But the quantum leap for our training occurred in 2017 when we were introduced by Climbing For Christ Board member John Becker to The Timothy Initiative (TTI). Using TTI resources, we began to instruct guides and porters in how to be disciples who make disciples. This training was later exported to Malawi to our Mulanje Massif Chapter of guides and porters.
In January, this DMD training – which has included studies in “Discovering the Bible” and now “Communicating the Bible” – was taken to new, practical heights with evangelism training on Mount Kilimanjaro. During Mission: Kilimanjaro 2024, Part 1, we saw 157 people reached with the Gospel and 57 saved on the mountain.
The fruit of this first climb (on the Marangu Route) with 20 guides and porters led to Mission: Malawi 2024 (June 22-July 5) and prompted me to want to come back for another round of training on Kilimanjaro. This time, we would do the Machame Route. And so, earlier this year, it became clear where I was to celebrate my 65th birthday. I’d be GO-ing to Tanzania for the 17th time (more than most other countries other than Nepal) and climbing Kilimanjaro for an 11th time.
I proposed to our daughter and her husband of nearly six years, Mitch Harris, the idea of a family trip. It would include their 8-month-old son, Jones, who is our first grandchild. They agreed and the plan was in motion. Mitch, a firefighter in Aurora, CO, has wanted to climb Kilimanjaro with me for years. This would be his chance.
Unfortunately, our entire family could not be here. Our daughter-in-law, Aliana, is a social worker in a school for youth with chemical dependencies, mental or behavioral health problems, or recovering from trauma. Her school is not out for summer. So, she and our son Jesse, who was on the inaugural Mission: Kilimanjaro 2007 as a high school student, were unable to join us.
Flights were booked from Friday, July 19 to Sunday, July 21 with the five of us flying together from Denver, CO to Kilimanjaro airport in Tanzania. A few days “off” were planned to celebrate Elaine’s birthday and mine. Then, on Thursday, July 25, we will go back to work – teaching in the classroom and then on the mountain.
Damson, our African son, is joining us, too. It will be his fourth climb on Kilimanjaro. We have been praying into this and are eager to see God make more fruitful memories of our time in Tanzania. 
Friday, July 19
Travels begin: For us from Denver, Colorado (three flights across three continents), and for Damson from southern Malawi (two flights across two countries).
We awoke to news of the global IT outage and its effect on air traffic. As Board member Michele Hoffman said, “The global IT outage grounding flights is just a reminder that, yup, it’s C4C missions time.”
But our flights were not affected. God also blessed the trip by providing our Tanzania visas overnight – just in time to fly.
“Praise the Lord,” said Board member John Becker, who I’d originally invited to join our family on Mont Blanc – before reality stepped in. “We know this is a momentous occasion. Wish we were all together.”
Upon seeing a photo of us at the Denver airport, Board member Kevin Kimble responded: “This is totally awesome by every measure! May God be with you all every step of the journey.”
Saturday, July 20
We landed in London shortly after Damson landed at Kilimanjaro airport. We have miles to GO before we sleep in the prone position.
Sunday, July 21
The family – (left to right) Gary, Elaine, Jones, Mitch, and Hayley – in front of the Doha teddy bear, which stands 23-feet high, during a brief layover in Qatar.
Arrived at Kilimanjaro airport without incident – until our duffels went through X-ray machines exiting the airport. Tents were identified. We purchased five clients’ tents, three porters’ tents, and a mess tent (gear worth about $5,500 USD) to help Kilimanjaro Chapter coordinator John Mollen’s start-up trekking company, C4C Maasai Brothers & Grand Tours. We were required to pay an “import” tax for bringing gear into the country that was staying in the country. The tax was nearly 50 percent of what we paid for the tents we were transporting (Damson brought four of the clients’ tents with him from Malawi). I enlisted old friend and long-time guide Yusuf to help with negotiations inside the airport.
When he asked if I knew how much they wanted to tax me, I knew we were in trouble. Yusuf spoke in Swahili and then I heard, “How much can he afford to pay?” The “tax” was lowered to $300 USD – of which less than one-third was “official.”
Still, we are happy to be back in Tanzania – swindled or not.
Travel was mostly uneventful. All of our gear arrived with us. And eight-month-old Jones traveled for more than 30 hours through airports and on airplanes like a pro. He was greeted at Kilimanjaro airport by two of his “uncles” – Damson and Yusuf. He smiled at them in the same way he smiled at everyone he saw along the way. The happy traveler.
Moshi leaders of the Kilimanjaro Chapter, including chapter coordinator and guide John Mollen, second from left. (Photo by Damson Samson)
After welcoming us (“karibu”), Damson was off to a meeting with six of the Moshi leaders of the Kilimanjaro Chapter. Tomorrow, he will meet with chapter leaders in Marangu.
Monday, July 22
Marangu leaders of the Kilimanjaro Chapter. (Photo by Damson Samson)
Damson met with nine leaders of the Kilimanjaro Chapter from the village of Marangu to discuss plans for this week and next. Yesterday, Damson taught the Moshi leaders about positioning yourself to be in the right place to meet Jesus. He used the example of Zacheus. Today, the lesson was on betrayal, and he pointed to Judas. Damson warned the chapter leaders that if they do not follow through with their responsibilities, they will be betraying him and C4C. “This is your lifestyle, which you need to be doing at all cost,” Damson said.
After the meeting, Damson and chapter coordinator John Mollen joined our family for a birthday dinner for Elaine. They came bearing gifts: a cake with Elaine’s breath prayer written on it (“With God all things are possible” from Matthew 19:26), a Kilimanjaro T-shirt, and a camp chair for grandson Jones. It was the second birthday cake of the day as we received photos and video from Climbing For Christ member Pastor Christopher in Manipur, where the children orphaned by Hindu violence against Christians celebrated Elaine at the C4C Grief Center.
Eating regressively: Elaine having coffee and cake at the Union Café in Moshi before dinner. (Photo by Gary Fallesen)
She was honored by all her “children” and “grandchildren” – biological and through the bloodline of Jesus.
Tuesday, July 23
Kilimanjaro Chapter team on Sango Mountain. (Photo by Damson Samson)
Two dozen members of the Kilimanjaro Chapter gathered on Sango Mountain, as is the norm before the start of training, to pray and fast together. “We had a big number,” Damson said. “After the morning prayers, I led the team in a personal sharing time where we allowed each member to share with the team what he feels will help the team grow.”
The team then broke up into smaller groups, Damson said, “where we prayed for our meeting (classroom training Wednesday and Thursday), our trip to the mountain (starting Friday), for good weather and health (on Kilimanjaro), and grace to reach anywhere possible. We lifted Climbing For Christ around the globe.”
Wednesday, July 24
Daniel Nasari, center, with two of the eight people he and Prosper Njau reached with the Gospel. Seven accepted Jesus. “They thanked God that the door was open to them,” Kingdom worker Damson said. “They never expected it.” Included among the conversions was a retired police officer who cried when they prayed together.
Preparing for a week on Mount Kilimanjaro began with an exercise in the streets of Himo. Damson prayed with our second class of DMD students before sending them out two by two to witness to any and all who they encountered.
“I knew some they don’t trust themselves,” Damson said. “They can go and do the work. I shared with them how wonderful God is and I told them God does beyond human comprehension."
With his prayers and encouragement, these 25 guides and porters from the Kilimanjaro Chapter shared the Gospel with 68 people. The Holy Spirit moved the hearts of 36 people to accept Jesus Christ. “Victoriously they came back with much joy to His glory,” Damson said.
Gary, right, prays a blessing over $7,500 USD worth of gear for the trekking company John Mollen, second from right, will lead. (Photo by Elaine Fallesen)
After this exciting day of training, Damson and chapter coordinator John Mollen arrived at our hotel to pick up the five tents we had brought with us from the States. “My heartbeats are high,” John messaged Sunday in anticipation of receiving this gift. “I can’t wait to see them. I have already received four tents from Damson (which staffer Andreas Moritz and I delivered to Malawi a few weeks ago).”
John also used funds we’d sent to purchase a kitchen tent, three toilet tents, radios, an office printer, and he ordered tables, chairs, and an oxygen cylinder and first-aid kit. All the makings for a start-up trekking company.
He unpacked this gear outside our hotel in Moshi and asked me to pray over it. John again expressed his thanks and how humbled he is to be chosen by God to lead C4C Maasai Brothers & Grand Tours. John also will be guiding our chapter members on the upcoming outreach expedition.
Thursday, July 25
Damson, with “my guys” (Kilimanjaro Chapter members), holding a plaque recognizing his 10 years of service with Climbing For Christ. (Photo by Mitch Harris)
Damson has been known to surprise us with gifts ranging from a wood carving of the Climbing For Christ logo to clothes to (yesterday for my birthday) a painting of Mulanje Massif in Malawi. But today he was the one surprised when I honored him with a plaque for his 10 years of service with C4C.
He accepted the call to serve as our Kingdom worker in Tanzania and Malawi in March 2014. He first came to Tanzania on Mission: Kilimanjaro 2014 in August of that year. It was also our daughter Hayley’s first trip to Tanzania, when she summited Kilimanjaro.
Ten years later, he is on his 35th trip to Tanzania and about to embark on his fourth trek on the mountain. He will be with 20 of our guides and porters on a seven-day outreach expedition. I taught this group today – introducing them to their next study, “Communicating the Bible,” and leading them through a lesson I’ve written on “Spirit Walking” based on late missionary Steve Smith’s superb book Spirit Walk.
My prayer for this group – and others who have been taught about Spirit Walking (so far in Tanzania and Malawi) – is that they left the classroom with God’s clear and majestic presence in their lives. That they would hunger to go Spirit Walking from this day forward.
This team exited the classroom and will enter the gateway to the mission field on the Machame Route of Mount Kilimanjaro fueled by prayers, years of training with Climbing For Christ, and hopefully with the encouragement of having Mitch and me by their sides. We are eager to see how and to whom the Spirit leads.
In January, we took our first Kilimanjaro Chapter team up the Marangu Route and rejoiced in the results. The fruit produced at that time led the Spirit to prompt me to return this month. We came to celebrate birthdays, family, and God’s ministry to the high places.
Yesterday, chapter coordinator John Mollen gave me a birthday cake inscribed with my breath prayer, “Apart from You, I can do nothing” (from John 15:5). I shared this cake with our team at the end of training today. We celebrate God and Who He is in our lives. Glory to HIM!