Inside Story
It Doesn't Take a "Super Christian"
Lessons learned on a short-term mission to New Zealand
by Rebecca K. Grosenbach
It didn’t take Laura long to decide she wanted to spend a summer overseas in short-term missions with The Navigators. The first time she heard of the opportunity she was raring to go.
It was 2004, her
freshman year in college, where
she was actively involved in a Navigator campus ministry. Mark and Lou
Ann Stebbins, from The Navigators’ U.S. International Missions Group
(U.S.IMG), presented short-term opportunities to her campus group.
While she was eager to go, she held off when others encouraged her to
wait and get more training. But the following year, when the
opportunities were presented again, the tug on her spirit was
undeniable.“Mark extended an invitation,” she says, “and I felt the same call in my heart. So Mark said, ‘Okay, let’s try to make that happen!’ ”
While Laura’s passion was great, the task wasn’t easy. In late 2005, it looked like she wasn’t going to have the necessary funds. Laura says, “Lou Ann and Mark came to our group again and Lou Ann told me, ‘I am praying for you.’ She encouraged me to trust God to provide what I needed—and He did!”
So in the
summer of 2006, Laura boarded a plane in Denver and deplaned the next
day in Auckland, New Zealand. She and five other U.S.IMG missionaries
spent seven weeks working with international students. There’s a large
population of Asians studying in New Zealand, and Navigators hold Bible
studies, discussion groups, and other activities to help them know and
grow in Christ. “The six of us were servant leaders,” Laura says, “so we helped out any way we could.” The team helped facilitate the China fellowship group, as they shared stories from their spiritual journeys. They also led a high school Sunday school class. Plus, Laura helped with fundraising for a group of students going on a short-term missions trip to Japan.
“News Watch” proved one of the more unique activities. Those who spoke English and those who were learning would get together and watch a clip from a local television news cast. The international students took notes on phrases they didn’t understand. Then they paired up with native English speakers and discussed the story.
“We’d explain what certain phrases meant
and give them an opportunity to talk,” Laura says. These conversations
helped the internationals develop their English language skills and
build friendships with the ministry team.As Laura looks back on her experience, one thing that stands out is the laughter. “I really connected with the Chinese girls,” Laura says. “When I am out of my comfort zone it forces me to interact with people in new ways. I formed friendships quickly. It was so enriching to my life.”
Laura says her understanding of God changed in the process. “I knew intellectually that God was the God of the whole world, but being with international students really made Him come alive as the God of all nations,” she says. “Plus, I saw they were struggling with the same things I do. I realized I didn’t have to be a ‘super Christian’ in order to be used by God. The internationals didn’t want me to have all the answers. They wanted to discover them with me.”
She was also challenged to live outside
her comfort zone when she returned to the United States. “God impressed
upon me the fact that Jesus spent time with the sinners and tax
collectors of His day, and that’s what I needed to be doing, too,” she
says. So—what advice would Laura give to someone considering short-term missions?
“Do it,” she says simply. “It will be hard, and there will be times it isn’t the most fun thing you’ve ever done, but it’s so worth it. Trust God with everything. He’s going to provide for you. It’s unbelievable what God can do.”
To learn about short- or long-term missions opportunities visit USIMG.
