Going to Cambodia on a Global Xposure in January was a transformational experience! How you ask? Well, God opened my eyes to what His mission looks like, not only in Global context, also in my local context! The Xposure trip had me asking questions and reflecting about what I had observed and how we could bring our learning back home.
We had visited several incredible social enterprises that helped the Cambodian people on the margins to learn new trades, be rehabilitated, become educated and re-enter the work force. We saw the impact of faithful cross cultural workers who were serving, building relationships with their local community and making a difference in the lives of those they had met. Our team experienced local village life and community within the friendships of local workers. We feasted together, shared stories, shared life and saw what God was doing amongst the least reached people groups we encountered. The end of the trip was spent in reflection – there was a time of solitude, listening and hearing from God, times of laughter and fun, poignant times of sharing our hearts and coaching through our next steps as we headed back into our local communities in Australia.
Urban Xposure was birthed out of our Cambodian experience. How could we learn from what we saw overseas and use it in our local church context? How could we inspire the next generation to put down their devices and engage with their neighbours?
We started by having an Unearthed Feast in July this year with mission minded Youth and Young adults at Kilsyth South Baptist. Like in Cambodia, we ate together and heard from a young adult, Andy, a Global Interaction candidate. We had opportunities to share our stories, ask questions, dig deeper and reflect on what we had heard.
Our first Urban Xposure was to explore Creation Care, a social enterprise in the heart of our city! Having done some research, Creation Care and Social Justice Issues were areas that young adults want to engage in.
We had a group of seven Young Adult Leaders from various churches and backgrounds join us in September to visit ‘The Green Room,’ which is operated by Planted Places and run by Sherry and Geoff Maddock.
Sherry shared her heart for what they do saying “our generosity doesn’t have limits, we need to love people who do not feel loved, we need to wake up each morning with a lens of love.” Inspiring words that had us excited to hear and see more. Geoff shared their history and experience of mission in the US, reminding us that “social isolation is an epidemic.” Sherry encouraged us to “live a life that evokes questions, as we are the ones that hold the light to share Gods love in the world.” They shared about their mission, which is to directly address disadvantage through the cultivation of relationships with plants, people, and place. They do this by connecting with people experiencing social isolation and hardship, specifically asylum seekers, refugees and international students.
On reflection of their time in ‘The Green Room’ the team shared that Sherry and Geoff “were passionate, genuine, engaging and really transparent, their energy was contagious, what they are doing is incredible.” Another stated that “I really enjoyed the opportunity to come across a different type of missionary, it inspired me to try and involve the people I work with in a similar eye-opening experiences.”
Our Urban Xposure team then met for lunch and heard from Wendy, a Cross Cultural worker from Global Interaction, who had served there for over nine years with her family. She shared about their call, their Creation Care experiences, her involvement running a café and family life. She shared that “God lights up each step ahead, not the whole path” and that “we need to trust Him as we walk our journey.” Another inspiring story from an amazing woman of faith.
The team shared afterwards that “it was inspiring, and they loved “how strong she was,” and that “it was so real and raw.” One of the team shared how they felt after hearing of Wendy’s experiences “being a missionary is not easy, you have to go through a lot of difficulties at times, but if you put yourself in God, nothing is impossible.”
The common word to encapsulate our day was “INSPIRING!” We spent time debriefing and reflecting upon what we had learnt and what it may mean for our local context.
Our next step of the Urban Xposure is to have a Reflect Day. It will be running on Monday 28th October in Warrandyte. We will spend time in solitude, learning about some of the Spiritual disciplines that help us to hear from God. We will meet Derek and hear how Now and Not Yet Café came to be, and be inspired by the part Global Interaction played in his story.
Why run Urban Xposure? We want to partner with churches, youth groups, young adults and individuals to start thinking about what Global Mission looks like in our own neighbourhoods. This will then give us the opportunity to look at what we already do well, and how we can use what we have observed and become creative in innovating what mission looks like in our local church context. It is a springboard to exploring what Global Mission looks like and how Global Interaction’s missiology is relevant in our daily interactions and walk with God.
Oh, by the way, I was so inspired and transformed by my Cambodian Global Xposure that I gave up my job as a Primary School teacher (15 years!) to work as the Young Adults Consultant at Global Interaction!
Sulari Nielsen
Global Interaction
Young Adults Consultant Vic/Tas
Source: BUV News