As soon as we are introduced as a “GOBA”—Greater Orlando Baptist Association, the mission organization we serve—at Fun Spot, it seems we are put under a magnifying glass, and people are just waiting to see what we do next.

What I find most amusing are the questions our co-workers have asked us: “Do you ever curse?” “Have you ever partied?” “What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?” “Do you have a curfew you have to follow?” Or there’s my favorite: “Are you actually into things like the mall and stuff?” This last question was asked when a co-worker of mine ran into a couple of us GOBAs at the mall on one of our off days. He said we were the last people on the planet he would have expected to run into there. He thought we just hung out around the camp all day when we weren’t at work or church. You almost have to laugh at people’s assumptions of what Christians are like, especially those of us labeled as missionaries.

People watch. They want to know how we react to different conflicts and situations. They want to know if our lives are really all that different from their lives and if it’s something worth having. No pressure, right?

But, there is good news out of that. Because of the questions we have been asked, we have been able to share with others our past and a lot of the pain that was in it. In fact, many of our teammates have gone through—and are still going through—some tough times and some real hurt. But, we have come to find out, a lot of our co-workers are going through a lot of that same pain, too. So in these conversations, we have begun to show them that there is hope and healing in this world and that it comes from one solid source. And you never have to go through pain on your own.

One of the hardest things to do as a Christ-follower is to admit your past to someone. But God is so good to use that for his glory. When you reach out to someone who is going through a struggle that you have been through, telling your story to them can be one of the best things for them. We’ve already seen kids and co-workers open up about their past and their current pain. One guy at Fun Spot even recommitted his life to Christ because of our stories! It’s not easy to admit that you don’t have it all figured out and that you do have some real pain and loss in your life. But it is necessary to show others that the one true Healer is in your life and that because of that, you have hope and happiness each day.

Don’t be afraid to open up. We’re not going to always get it right, but when we look to God, you will see that he has everything under control. His sovereignty goes beyond my understanding, but I don’t need to understand in order to believe.

Emily Gerloff,  a student at the University of Texas at Austin, is serving with Go Now Missions in Orlando, Fla. See all Students On Mission Blog posts.

This is a great addition, because we will be able to minister to more people here in Tokyo. But it also causes changes and confusion. We are in the process of training them—taking them to the mission sites, showing the train lines and helping them figure out the winding streets of Shibuya, all while they are adjusting from being away from home in a different time zone.

One day, I was the only guy on my team, so after we arrived at our mission site in Tachikawa, I let the girls have their “girl time,” while I just walked around and inside the station. I went to my favorite super market. It is hard to find, stuck in the basement of a building outside the south exit. They have amazing prices on everything, including chips, bread, sodas and their best item—meat. I had bought my sodas, bread, and snacks from this store, but I could not buy meat, because Tachikawa is 45 minutes away from Shibuya—on a good day.

But since I saw a wonderful deal on meat, I flagged down a worker in the store. Through a combination of English and a spectacular display of charades, I tried to ask if I could freeze the meat and come back later. He took me to an ice machine and said “free.” I had nothing to put ice in, but he changed that. After speaking to an employee, a nylon green freezer bag was brought out to me—the perfect solution to get my meat home safely. Even though he could not speak a word of English, even though I was the only foreigner shopping in the store, he went out of his way to help me. I felt so humbled and loved by this.

My adventure continued to the gourmet food court of Tachikawa station. It is one of the most beautiful culinary sights I have seen—lines of perfectly lit foodstands with every kind of Japanese food and more. I ended up at a cheese stand, where three employees greeted me and offered me samples. As I looked over the selection, I began to name cheeses I previously had tried, and in simple English, tell them of Christmas traditions and my favorite kinds. I even told them I could not buy anything, but they still talked to me and offered me samples. Even though I was only able to share such a small part of my life with them, they made me feel loved beyond measure. I had a handful of other experiences such as these while I walked around, seeing what other Japanese people would make true eye contact with me.

Some see the Japanese as having a cold and hard exterior, but they are the most warm and beautiful people once you are able to get inside. They have so much love to give—so much love, I have been blown away and been blessed beyond measure. I was humbled and thankful God would let me come and serve people such as these.

My experience was a reminder from God. Our call as Christians is to love people. Countless verses in the Bible speak of love. It is a dominant theme of the Bible. While I am here, in Japan, God has called me to love people. But this day, God used unbelievers to love me. And it felt so wonderful to be loved.

Love is powerful. But the love of God is even greater. These people who loved on me only were loving in part. It is only through the love of God that true love can be made whole. This is the love instilled into our very being—a love that will radiate from us, if we are willing.

Being loved moved me emotionally. But being love to the people around us—it moves people’s lives. May we be conductors of God’s love.

Dan Black, a student at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, is serving with Go Now Missions in Japan. See all Students On Mission Blog posts.

Julianna and I were paired to work with a church from Oklahoma. To be honest, I was a little uneasy about them at first. After all, they were OU people, and I attend UT. So, I naturally was expecting some sort bickering, but that was not the case. I'm pretty sure Julianna and I both feel like our week would not have been as incredible as it was had we not been working with that church.

The first day, we went to the park where the camp was to be held, and we planned for the week and prayer-walked the grounds. I got to talk to one of the girls in the Oklahoma group, and she opened up to me.

She was about to enter her senior year of high school, and she reminded me so much of a friend I had in high school named Erin. She was in student council, lots of sports, honor classes, and was very involved in her church—exactly like Erin. The difference is that she had been through so much medically and just been challenged all of her life. But she had a fire for the Lord unlike any I have ever seen. She longed for people to come to know Jesus Christ, and she was an encouragement to everybody.

Throughout the week she was leading the group of younger kids, ages 3 to 5. She never complained. Instead, she treated the little ones with so much kindness their parents went to her after the day camp was over and wanted to talk with her. It was incredible.

As we got in the van, she told me about all the things that she was struggling with back home. She didn't complain to me—she was just craving advice and guidance. This was totally a God thing, because some of the things that she is and has been going through I've already been through and conquered with Christ. I shared with her some of my experiences and how I got through it with Jesus. I gave her some Scriptures that I relied on during those times, like Jeremiah 29:11 and pretty much the whole story of Job. I just reminded her about the love God has for her.

She looked at me and said: “I just don't feel like he's been around lately. I don't know what to do.”

I looked at her and walked her through the day and all that had happened, telling her that God was everywhere she was today. I saw it. The parents of the kids she was working with saw it. When she finally thought about what I was saying, she saw it, too.

She was stuggling, but Jesus was still with her. He was giving her a love that she showed others all week—a love that the people didn't understand. It's the kind of love that can only come from the Father above.

I love that God can be with us and even though we are so human and don't see him, a lot of the time it's just because we forgot to look. God is so faithful in all that he does, even if we don't see it. We just have to trust that he's got it all worked out.

Caitlin Campbell, a student at the University of Texas at Austin, is serving with Go Now Missions in Philadelphia.

We have been working with Alan Reed and the incredible team of people working with Pursuit Church getting started in Fort Collins. It has been very interesting to see the difference in the part of town Pursuit is reaching, versus the area that the other church we have worked with, Inside Out, has been focusing on. We have learned to adjust to the suburban, family-oriented south side of town from the more New Age, collegiate north side of Fort Collins.

What a blessing to work with such unique churches reaching almost opposite communities within one town!

Having such a well-rounded view of ministry to all different ages, has reminded me of the beauty of how there is no specific type we must conform to as the body of Christ. God has uniquely equipped each of his children to reach people of every walk of life, whether homeless, college students, business professionals, moms, hippies, artsy people, musicians, athletes, Goths or whatever. All are equal in the eyes of the Lord. Jesus does not want them to become what much of the world may view as the squeaky-clean Christian “type” before they can come to him. He wants them just as they are, with all their quirks.

In the same way, we do not need to morph our interests and hobbies to fit into one specific missionary mold to be effective in outreach. In fact, I would say conforming that way would hinder our witness, since what makes us tick probably does the same for someone else. And that provides common ground on which to build a genuine friendship that potentially develops into sharing Christ.

It gives me great peace knowing that I do not have to be good at everything—just allow God to use my individual interests and talents to reach those with whom relate.

I am not saying that we are limited to being a light to only those who are like us, because God breaks down those difference barriers daily as his people seek to be light to the lost. However, there is something special about meeting others when are in our element that allows nonbelievers to see that Christians are indeed real and unique people. I do not think that many would argue against the simplicity of doing what we love and meeting others as we go, forming relationships that will plant a seed in someone’s life and possibly even bring them to Christ.  There is no formula, and the organic connections that are made through all different people make up one body. For that, I am thankful.

As it says in 1 Corinthians 12:12, “The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ.” Just as Fort Collins may be two distinctive communities making up one town, all groups have place within the all-encompassing, impartial body of Christ.

Student missionary correspondent Amber Cassady, a communications student at Texas A&M University in College Station, is serving in Colorado with Go Now Missions.

Last spring as I walked through my college campus, I passed by a small creek where people had thrown trash into the brown, stagnant water. “What a waste,” I remember thinking.

The next time I walked past, it was raining. The water cleansed the stream, removing the dirt and garbage, transferring the stagnant water into a flowing stream. It was beautiful.

It struck me that God does the same in our hearts. In this world there is so much junk, so much filth. God rains his mercy on us and makes our hearts clean. He makes us a new creation. He takes something gross and makes it breathtaking.

God reminded me of this concept here on the mission field. In Venezuela, it rains nearly every afternoon. As I sat and watched the rain pour down, I thought about all it does. It lowers the high temperature, makes the grass grow green, and rinses the dirt out of the trees.

At times, in my ministry here I feel stagnant, useless. It’s easy to get discouraged because I can’t always see what God is doing. Then, it rains and my Father reminds me that he is moving in Venezuela. As Lamentations 3:22-23 says, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”

My teammates and I went a popular coffee shop in Old Town, the downtown shopping area of Fort Collins. Like every Friday night, it was “open-mic night,” in which customers could sing or play an instrument on stage. Strategically placed over a hookah bar, the coffee shop has a really social, collegiate atmosphere, which we decided would be a perfect opportunity to meet the exact group of people we had been trying to reach.

As Mike, Jarred and Clara bought some coffee, I sought out a booth near the stage that seemed a prime location to start conversation with people who would be sitting around us. We knew we had come to the right place when after five minutes of Mike strumming his guitar, we were engaged in dialogue with several people.  I noticed a chance to start conversation with a girl sitting in a booth next to ours. I had been trying to build a quality friendship the past three weeks and quite honestly seemed to have not gotten very far with anyone. Not expecting much, yet not wanting to let another opportunity slip by me, I turned with a smile and opened with the oh-so-cliché, “Do you guys come here a lot?”

While this was not the most creative icebreaker, it did not matter as the conversation quickly began to flow, and the young woman began to open up to me. We connected about the music being played, the Fort Collins area, her recent loss of her grandma and some of the hardships she has been experiencing since she returned from living in a group home the last three years of her life. I complimented the really beautiful yet simple cross necklace she was wearing and asked her if the cross meant anything to her or if she just liked the necklace. She replied, “Thanks, yeah, I wear it because I am a Christian.” A small part of me sank, I love Christians but I wanted to befriend someone who needed to hear about Christ. However, as we talked I found that what the label “Christian” meant to her was very different of what it means to me.

She knows all about God and believes he exists and she thinks that is enough. There is one huge problem —it totally leaves out the need for a relationship with Christ. My new friend had been through it all, and I was amazed at how quickly she opened up to me. She was desperate for someone to care enough to listen. Through simply filling that need of being a listener, God opened up the doors for a friendship to begin.

She and I have talked a lot since then, and continued trials have occurred in her life that she has come to me about. I kept stressing he importance of prayer. She now has prayed for her first time and also realized that God is not putting her through all of her heartache, but he is allowing it to happen so that she can realize that she needs to accept him.

As I continue to invest in her life, God is persistently working in both my new friend’s life and my own as another beautiful expansion of his kingdom. I know that even if my new friend is the only person I get the opportunity to pour into this summer, that it was more than worth it. Just one life, but with such a bigger picture in mind!

Student missionary correspondent Amber Cassady, a communications student at Texas A&M University in College Station, is serving in Colorado with Go Now Missions.

Our goal was to enter the campus without being stopped by campus police, for the IMB Missionaries who work here in Japan are always denied access due to their age. Then, we were supposed to eat lunch at the cafeteria, meeting students and beginning to cultivate relationships.

But things were not going my way. I attempted to text two of my contacts with whom I had exchanged information a few days ago, but my Japanese phone kept flashing error reports I could never hope to read. It was raining on the walk over, and both Amanda and I were without umbrellas. Once on campus, we finally bought lunch and went to sit a reasonable distance from two Japanese guys, only to watch them immediately stand up, grab their gear and leave the area.

In my heart, I was telling God this was not the way it was suppose to happen. I was here to meet people, to be the social butterfly, not to send people away. But Amanda, in her wisdom, spoke the message God was trying to so desperately show me.

What if our purpose at Hosei University was different from God’s purpose? I had one goal, to meet people. But God has one purpose for us all—to be the gospel. And being the gospel is not always as glamorous as we want it to be. We could be light at the campus just by being in prayer for the people who attended, and we could pray for God to soften the hearts of those who will one day hear the good news—even if we are not the ones who receive the harvest. God called us to this place, and our God wants obedience, not results.
 
We sat there in silence, praying for God’s work to be accomplished, not our own. As we were taking our trays back to the kitchen, I was stopped by a Japanese guy who wanted to talk. I did not initiate the conversation. I did not even make eye contact with him. He stopped me. And he was not the only one. By the end of the hour, I had five new contacts, all wanting to talk and hang out outside of the university. God provided people for me to begin relationships with as soon as I surrendered my will and began to seek for his. After a few cell phone pictures and many laughs, Amanda and I walked off of the campus, seeing how the not-so-glamorous work pleases our faithful God.

Dan Black, a student at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, is serving with Go Now Missions in Japan.

At first, she simply said, “hope.” Then, she paused and seemed to consider the meaning of the word more. “In our language it is deeper; it means more than just hope.” She stopped and looked me straight in the eye and said, “abundant, flowing hope.”

Those truly are the perfect words to describe this place. Everyone who comes to the clinic is either getting tested or treated for HIV/AIDS. These are people without hope, people who get up every day and look death straight in the face. Here in South Asia, they face rejection from their families and communities. They are shunned. They are outcasts.

One man comes into the clinic every day. He humbly limps in with his cane gripped tightly and with a bag over his foot. Underneath is the infirmity he carries—leprosy. It has eaten away all his toes and only half of his foot is left. The flesh of his foot is rotten, and the bones of his foot thrust out. I look at him with pity. My nose is filled with the stench of his flesh, and I have to step back. The doctor just smiles as he cleans the wound. There is peace and understanding between the two—a relationship. The doctor is healing not only this man’s foot, but also his soul.

The leper—who also has AIDS—was turned away from the local hospital. Like many here, he was rejected—considered unlikely to live and not deserving of medical care.

But Nireekshana opened outstretched arms to this man. When there was no hope for him, the people here gave it freely. Through free medicine and counseling, this man has been given back his life.

Praise God for these doctors and people here helping the broken. They truly are being the hands and feet of Christ. I have no doubt when they enter heaven, God will say, “Well done my good and faithful servants.”

Kandace is a student at Howard Payne University serving with Go Now Missions in South Asia. Her last name is withheld for security reasons.

The group, directed by Angel Leal, began seven years ago. Today, Yeshua has 15 members, most of whom attend Angel’s father’s church. They practice Monday through Friday, three hours a day, at the local cultural center where they regularly meet new dancers. An invitation to church is always extended but never forced. Angel says he wants the youth to attend church because of God, not out of pressure. If anyone wants to accept Christ, Angel talks to them personally to make sure they understand the decision they have made. An estimated 80 percent of new dancers become believers. Although the group primarily practices breakdancing, they also integrate a variety of other dances such as salsa and hip-hop. They dance to rap, rock, hip-hop and reggeaton music with Christian lyrics that are often interpretive of biblical stories or concepts.

One of their routines, entitled Resurrection, begins with John 11:25: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.” As the music starts, the team is laying on the ground. By the end, they have been resurrected from the dead, representing what Jesus did on the cross and the new life that believers have in Christ.

For many of the members, the song is more than an illustration; it is a personal testimony. Many have forsaken gang life to follow Jesus and be part of an evangelical Christian dance team.
Angel says the song provokes spiritual conversations from audiences. The name of the group, which means Jesus in Hebrew, is also a witnessing tool, allowing the team to share about the Jesus they are praising with a dance. Although unorthodox, the kingdom of God is expanding thanks to urban style dance.

New Age thinking and an emphasis on being a spiritual-but-not-religious person seem to be the majority mindsets of the population here.  Most people seem to have this attitude: “I have it figured out. Buddha, Allah and Jesus are all the same. Let us all go out of our way not to step on each other’s toes, so that we may live in harmony and coexist with one another.” 

Driving around Fort Collins, it’s easy to see many cars with a bumper sticker that says “COEXIST” on it. Each letter in the word represents the emblem of different religions—for instance, the “C” resembles the Muslim crescent moon and star, and the “T” represents the cross of Jesus.  I think that this is a perfect representation of the majority religious attitude in Fort Collins, Colo.

One church planter, Nate Templin, assigned my team the task of walking around Fort Collins and videotaping interviews with people. We were asking questions that allowed discussion for spiritual matters, such as “What do you think of the Bible?” or “How do you feel when you hear the words Christian or Jesus?”  Most of what we heard was along the lines of “Jesus was a great man,” or “The Bible has some great stories in there!” 

These people have heard the “stories,” but they have completely missed the point of Jesus Christ.  Matthew 28 does not say, “Therefore go and COEXIST with one another.”  Only God can change the hearts of those who don’t consider themselves in need.

Clara Kern, a student at Angelo State University, is serving as a summer missionary in Fort Collins, Colo., with Go Now Missions.

Shedding my shoes at the door I enter the small, simple room greeted by a wide, toothy grin. “Welcome,” says the elderly Iraqi man, proudly using one of about 10 English words now in his vocabulary.

As I am seated, I accept the boiling tea that burns my lips and fingers through the tiny glass cup. Although it is 104 degrees outside and I am already sweating, it would be unkind to refuse the gesture of friendship. After all, the reason I am here is to build relationships that will be bridges between this Muslim family and the gospel of Jesus that I am here to share.

Sharing hot tea, doma (rice-filled grape leaves), and giving English-as-a-Second-Language lessons all are part of bridging the gap. God’s gift of salvation is for all nations.

Michelle Campbell (front row, left) with a group of refugees she works with through World Relief.

Sometimes we are called to go to the nations, and other times God brings the nations to our own turf. I smile as I realize that in one apartment complex in Fort Worth, I have been able to share God’s love with the nations of Iraq, Burma, Nepal, Butan, and even the closed, predominantly Muslim, nation of Somalia.

Working alongside the staff of the nonprofit refugee aid organization World Relief, I am ministering to physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of these friends who are scared, hurting and struggling to learn a new way of life far from what was once called home.

As a volunteer for World Relief, I have the most blessed job because I am free to spend time sitting with and befriending refugees when the overworked staff is busy with many difficult case loads and government-mandated tasks and services. Of course, the best part is working together as one body of Christ with a common goal that all nations would worship the one true God.

This is the everyday mission for all Christians, and I just thank God now for this unique experience to participate in a focused time of service through Go Now Missions.

Michelle Campbell, a student at West Texas A&M University, is serving World Relief in Fort Worth as an Impact missionary through Go Now Missions.

Church planter Nate Templin of Inside Out Church said during one of the first times we met him, “If you guys could make even just one relationship with someone who doesn’t know Christ, then you have done your job.”

He did not mean that we are to limit ourselves to only one relationship this summer. Rather, he would prefer that we make one genuine, lasting friendship with a lost person that could impact them for eternity than a multiple surface-level friendships that we do not take the time to invest in. The goal is ultimately to find those who would never normally set foot into a church building to bring them the redeeming love and truth of Christ to create a community of new believers that will spread out sharing their story. Investing in one person has a long-term effect that will last after we are gone so that the truth will continue to spread. Just one person could multiply into two, two could multiply into four, four into eight, and so on having such a greater impact on for God’s kingdom reaching far beyond us.

With only 45 percent of the Fort Collins’ population having any faith involvement whatsoever and the overall faith receptivity at a very low, there is no way that we could even make a dent in that staggering statistic in our short time this summer. However, we can touch at least one life through the grace of God, and that person will be here for the long term to spread truth to more people in this area.

God brought one of Jesus’ parables to mind that really helped me better understand why I should value even just one life being changed. Jesus tells the story of the lost sheep in Luke 15:3-7. In this parable a shepherd leaves 99 of his sheep to find the one that was lost. When he finally finds him, he brings him back to his neighbors and rejoices that he has been saved. He compares this to how much more joy there is in heaven over one lost soul repenting than over countless people who are “righteous” that feel no need to repent. Just one sheep.

So after hearing that spoken by a fellow Christ-follower and reading the parable in the lost sheep in God’s word, my attitude in what I am here for this summer has been shaped. Not only that but I know that I will never be able to go back to life as before without applying this. I do not have to be in Fort Collins, Colo. God’s love for each of his lost sheep extends to every area. No matter where God calls me, I can never belittle the immeasurable value of even just one life.

Student missionary correspondent Amber Cassady, a communications student at Texas A&M University in College Station, is serving in Loveland, Colo., with Go Now Missions.