Greetings! Summer is here and the month of June has already flown by. I hope all is well with you. We are all working hard and doing great in the land of SEND! My wife, Samantha, and my baby boy, Caleb, are adjusting well in the beautiful state of Indiana and we are blessed to be here on this mission field.
We have had a very productive and busy month as we prepare for our September launch. The unit is starting to form with such amazing young adults who have a fire for Christ unlike anything I have ever seen. As we prepare and build this ministry for the fall, I wanted to share some exciting thou
ghts in this month's blog, in regards to living a missional lifestyle. I truly believe this is what our students are most excited about and what we discuss most often during the application and interview process.
Last month, we discussed purpose - finding one's way and getting on the right path with God in charge. What is so exciting about SEND and the way it will challenge these young adults is being able to DO what they are learning. One of my favorite quotes is from Bruce Lee: "Knowing is not enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do." You can have all the knowledge in the world, but if you do nothing with it, it is useless. After seeing the curriculum Dr. Kent Hunter is putting together, it is just mind blowing. Two days a week our students will be at the SEND North America training center. There will be such a huge amount of training on so many topics, with expert teachers from all different areas: ministry, life matters, theology, finances, prayer, etc. What we are so excited about is DOING what we will be learning the rest of the week and for the rest of this immersion experience. Another great outlet in doing SEND will be one weekend a month, going on an excursion to a selected church - learning and doing not only ministry, worship, and service, but LIFE with these congregations. Getting out of the four walls and living it. Living with our brothers and sisters as a whole body. Going OUT and living the Great Commission and Great Commandment - a missional lifestyle.
One of my favorite mottos is "Live Your Faith." After being bored to tears with church services for years, I stopped going. For a couple of hours a week on Sunday I sat there and then never applied or did anything throughout the week. It wasn't until I started actively getting involved with different church ministries and getting out into the world living a life for Christ that I started to get excited. Why? I was doing it. Living it. Eating and breathing it. When I say eating it I mean eating FRUIT from doing life with Jesus, having a relationship with Him, while His amazing grace poured upon me.
Well, Josh, that all sounds good but how will you do it? How do you live like a modern- day missionary in our culture? Let us go to the Bible and grab an example. In Philippians 4:9, Paul states: "Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me or seen in me - PUT IT TO PRACTICE. And the God of peace will be with you." With the church so far removed from our culture, it is time we go OUT into the world and put into practice our faith. But how? Take your small group or Bible study out of the church. Do ministry out in the world at a coffee shop or a restaurant. While there, put up a FREE PRAYER sign. Call up a friend or family member who is hurting. Take them OUT for coffee and offer to pray on them. Go out to an ice cream stand this summer. Do a small money collection and then "Pay It Forward." Buy ice cream cones for the next 10 people behind you. Serve. Share God's love. Mow an elderly neighbor's yard on a hot day. Walk through the mall and silently say, "I love you. God bless you" to everyone you see. Do a worship service in a park this summer. If you are at work, in the grocery store, doing everyday things, you can bring the Kingdom of God anywhere. Have the Holy Spirit work through you. One of my all-time favorite things was with the callout 11 7 at Threshold Church. We did communion in an awesome restaurant called Pizza Papalis. Along with our pizzas, we ordered a glass of wine and bread sticks. Viola! Be bold and honest out in the world. Be real. Live your faith. Pray, think, and become missional. If people see your faith, they might want to join you in pursuing Jesus. Maybe then they will ask you if they can join you in doing ministry or coming on Sunday to worship. Walk the walk, not just hear the talk on Sunday my friends!
Until next month, please keep in touch and keep SEND in your prayers. We thank all of you for joining us on this journey and for all the support as well. Whether through prayer or financial giving, you are making a huge impact on this ministry and for these young adults getting ready for an adventure of a lifetime. Please keep checking out sendnorthamerica.com, and if you know of a young adult in their 20s who could benefit from a process like this, please contact me. I promise, they will find their purpose, while LIVING THEIR FAITH FOR CHRIST!
Until next month, grace and peace to you from God our Father.
ALIVE IN CHRIST,
Josh Humberger
SEND NA Leader
joshua@churchdoctor.org
sendnorthamerica.com
twitter: @joshuasendna
