Hello everyone!
Below is my November update about what Gap Year is up to, what Courtney and I have been doing, and more! Thanks for reading!
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First, I want to share some testimonies that some of our Semesters trip participants gave. The Semesters participants are typically about the same age as our Gap Year participants (Gen Z), so it gives you an idea of the impact that these trips are having on our young participants….
“On this trip, I grew into a much more personal relationship with God. I was able to see how He loves and cares about each of us in such a unique and personal way. I changed my view of God as more of an authority to more of a loving Father.”
“I now have a greater view of God’s character and His great power. I experienced the Bible come to life in a new way and have seen how purposeful God is. I learned more about the importance of living missionally.”
“I think we all learned that you can do missions anywhere including home. For me in a college atmosphere, it will look like being a light for Christ on campus and in every opportunity I’m blessed to be in.”
“100% said that going on a Semesters trip was a beneficial experience for their life and relationship with the Lord.”
This is what it’s all about and the reason we do what we do! It definitely makes me want to take care of the details that much more, so that the participants can just focus even more on who God is and what He is doing around the world! I love seeing young people awakened in their faith!
Gap Year
Our Gap Year Participants launched to the field in early November. One squad is in Romania, one is in Guatemala, and the other is in Costa Rica. Here is what they have been up to…
-Romania: G squad is working with one of our long-time partners in Craiova, Romania. They are doing a variety of different things including evangelism in the community through outreach events, building relationships in the Roma (“Gypsy”) community, and some physical labor projects to help the local missionaries. I actually worked with this ministry when I was in Romania as well, and the man who leads it is one of the best people I’ve ever met at helping people to understand what they are passionate about and gifted in and then mobilizing them to use those passions/gifts for the Kingdom of God.
-Guatemala: H squad is at our Adventures in Missions base in Antigua, Guatemala. They are doing house visits and building relationships in the community and in local villages. Some are teaching English and helping the locals to practice their English. The AIM base also distributes water filters and installs stoves in the area.
-Costa Rica: I squad is going to be doing all sorts of things. They are moving around to different ministry sites throughout the few months they’re there. Some highlights include working at a Christian camp, doing surf ministry with the locals in Jaco, and painting murals on the light posts in Jaco (the locals and tourists love it and it makes for great conversation and relationship building!).
What I’ve been doing in my role…
-I’ve been booking a lot of flights. As I mentioned last month, one thing we have to be aware of is which countries require “Proof of Onward Travel”. For these countries we have to plan months ahead because, when you enter a country that requires this, you must show that you have a plan to leave that country as well, i.e. flight itinerary, bus tickets, etc. In addition to Gap Year’s flights, I’ve also started helping book flights for our other programs as well. Booking flights is one of my favorite parts of the job!
-I have also been helping to build out projects within our project management software. We are trying to get everyone using this software so that all processes and tasks are streamlined and more efficient. This also helps make sure there are no details slipping through the cracks.
-I have been continuing to train and work with our awesome Logistics leaders who were selected from among the squads to handle financial and logistical responsibilities on the field. The participants on this trip are 18-20 years old, and this role is definitely a big responsibility for them, in addition to participating on the trip and adjusting to being overseas and doing ministry every day.
-Before our participants left, I was trying to think of any and every detail and situation that they could possibly face. Part of my role is just preparing them with what they need to make their trip as smooth as possible. For example, finding out the ministry address that they need to put on their customs forms, planning out money and when to pull it out of ATMs because not every area has ATM access overseas, monitoring COVID requirements in each country and making sure they get tested in the right time frame, etc.
-I also just got done reviewing our first round of Expense Reports. I had a call on Monday with all of our Logistics leaders to review the reports and spending. It’s important that we are following proper procedure and inputting expenses as they should be. It can be a little complicated and confusing, so just working with our Logistics leaders to continue to train as they go.
-That’s a little bit of what I do on a daily basis, but just like any job, a lot of time is spent putting out fires and addressing urgent situations that come up while the squads are overseas.
Courtney and I….
-We were able to go back to Illinois for a few days for Thanksgiving. We took the train home, since flights were expensive over the holidays, and realized the train might be our new preferred way to travel!
-We have had multiple missions meetings to prepare for our trip to the Dominican Republic. Courtney will be helping lead a Vacation Bible School for the kids in one of the communities, and I will be helping lead a basketball camp for the young men in that same community. Super excited to get to build relationships in the community through basketball!
-We attended the Fall Retreat Weekend for the middle school youth group at our church. Something about getting away for the weekend and just having some fun together really allowed the kids to open up a little more and have some deeper conversations which was awesome!
-We continue to meet with people and share what God is doing in our lives. Huge thanks to everyone who is already supporting us, and to everyone who will in the future as well!!! We couldn’t be serving God in this way without you!
A few final notes…
-Something I have tried to focus on lately is prioritizing people over tasks. I find myself getting so caught up in the busyness of our culture that all I think about is what I need to get done, and I don’t actually take much time for people. God has been faithful to give me opportunities this week to put that into practice and take little moments to choose relationships/people over efficiency/productivity.
-Along those lines, Courtney and I are trying to live more missionally here in the US and not just wait until we’re back overseas to be bold in our faith. Something cool happened recently, and that is we were walking at a park and we passed a man with a brace on his knee. I really did not want to, but I felt like God told me to turn around and pray for the man’s knee. He told me his name was Keith and he was caught off guard, but he let me pray for his knee. A few weeks later, I saw him from a distance, and he was walking without the brace on his knee! I just thought that was a cool little reminder and encouragement for us to not wait until we’re back overseas to live radically and boldly as Christ followers, but to really live our faith out here in America too.
-Courtney and I leave for the Dominican Republic on Saturday! We are both very excited to get back overseas and serve, even just for a week!
Thanks for reading our November update!
*Courtney and I are continuing to prepare for the future and develop partnerships with people who believe in what we are doing and who want to support what God is doing in our lives. If you would like to be a part of what God is doing, please message/call Courtney or I, or comment below. If you would like to be a financial partner, you can give by clicking the “Donate” link at the top of the page. Thanks for all your support!
