Around the Ministry
 Andy, who also teaches a fitness class, started running the bleachers every Sunday afternoon. Little by little others have joined him until they decided to call themselves the Running Man’s Club. “Not even rain or 100-degree heat will stop this assemblage of ‘crazy people’ from sprinting up the sections of 90 bleachers around the University of Florida’s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium,” Andy says. Most of the group also works out together once a week at the gym where Andy teaches. “This has led to us getting together socially, like having dinner parties at our house, watching movies together, and dialoging over life and God. “Friendships and trust are forming,” Andy adds, “allowing Suz and me to share our love for Jesus, the Bible, and our family. The gap is being bridged among local twentysomethings.”  To learn more about “better2gether,” visit www.b2g.org. |  Jon Heine, on staff with The Navigators in Tucson, Arizona, mixes with a variety of nationalities in his work with international students. One of the more unique ministry opportunities he’s had lately is disciping one of 200 Chinese commercial pilots in a Tucson flight school. “A few of the pilots have become believers, and I had the privilege of following up one of them, a man named Wang,” Jon says. Because Jon is a former Air Force pilot, they had much in common and talked a lot about flying. But Jon also taught Wang about having a daily quiet time, prayer, and keeping Christ central. They also completed a study on the major people and events of the Old Testament, and Wang was baptized before his return to China in June. Jon adds that friendship with Wang is enabling him to reach new ministry heights. “Through him,” he says, “I now have a study going with two other pilots.” To find out more about our International Students Ministry go to www.navigators.org/ism.  |
 “There
is no greater thrill than to be used of God to help others grow and to
help build His Kingdom,” says Abe Chavez, who with his wife, Liz,
serves with The Navigators in Albuquerque. “This is what some of our
ministry partners experience—the marvel of God using them in the lives
of others.” Abe and Liz are discipling Michael and Rose Sanchez, and now Michael and Rose are moving into ministry and experiencing this “thrill” and “marvel” of personal ministry for themselves.  God has used Michael and Rose to start a retreat ministry called ACTS (Adoration, Community, Theology, and Service) in Albuquerque. “The commandment to ‘love one another as Christ loved us’ is clearly lived out at these retreats,” says Abe. “This becomes a magnet that draws attendees into deeper commitment and kinship with their ACTS community. A real brotherhood and sisterhood surfaces, where the love of God’s Kingdom becomes a unifying force that is irresistible.” The Chavezes and Sanchezes are now developing a follow-up ministry, directing retreat attendees into Small Christian Communities (SCCs). “We are now beginning to schedule training for SCC facilitators,” says Abe. “Each of these small groups provides an environment where conversion, transformation, and mobilization can happen all over again.” |  by Alan Andrews, U.S. Navigator President One of the most exciting new efforts in The Navigators is reaching and equipping men for the advancement of the Gospel of the Kingdom. We are excited that our Church Discipleship Ministry, NavPress, Glen Eyrie, and other dimensions of the work are constantly looking for ways to reach men.  Why
focus on ministry to men? Of course, the Navigator ministry has always
been concerned about men and their contribution to God’s mission. At the same time, throughout the 1990s I observed Promise Keepers grow from small beginnings into a major movement among men. An incredible amount of good came out of this movement, but today the numbers of men in churches around the country show that there is still much to do. For example, statistics tell us that men are significantly more unchurched than women—about 1 in 3 men are unchurched, compared to 1 in 4 women. To me, the fact that men are so much more likely to reject Jesus speaks of the immense importance of our calling: to advance the Gospel of Jesus and His Kingdom into the nations through spiritual generation of laborers living and discipling among the lost. We must see laborers for the Kingdom living next door to everywhere. This is absolutely critical to reaching men effectively. The Gospel is for all nations, economic classes, men, and women. May God continue to use Navigators to help men experience His goodness and promises to them. |
 “University of Cincinnati student Micah Whitt is obviously up to something,” says Evan Griffin, who with his wife, Kim, leads the Navigator ministry there. Last year, Micah helped establish a campus group called Serve Beyond Cincinnati (SBC). The idea was to create an opportunity for U.C. students to serve others in need. It also created a “shared project,” something that would bring students who don’t yet follow Christ alongside Navigator students and give them a chance to interact about deeper life issues. In the spring, Micah led 10 students on a community service outreach to Alabama. He didn’t know any of the students before the trip. The first night, one of them, a young woman named Alex, saw him reading his Bible and asked a long string of questions. “I did my best to express how God has shown me love and grace in my life,” Micah says. “I wanted her to know that no matter what, God loves her and will always want her to have a relationship with Him. “Getting people in situations where their curiosity about God can be explored is the first step,” he says. “Being willing to share your life with someone—even when all you need to do is sleep—can have life-changing implications.” By the end of the week, Micah had taken time out for similar conversations with each of the students on the trip. And when they returned to Cincinnati, several of the students started attending Navigator activities. As Micah prayed about the SBC trips for this school year, he asked God to lead 40 people to apply for an SBC winter trip to Alabama, Mexico, or El Salvador. “I wrote this number down,” Micah says. “When the application deadline arrived, I had 40 applications.” Evan adds, “Micah says God is obviously up to something.” |