UNSEEN. Kingdom Worker Connection J UNE 2017 A PUBLICATION OF THE MINISTRY OF CHRIST IN YOUTH

Transcription

1 Kingdom Worker Connection J UNE 2017 A PUBLICATION OF THE MINISTRY OF CHRIST IN YOUTH UNSEEN CIY S NEWEST SHORT-FILM TACKLES A TIMELY ISSUE

2 2 CHRIS ROBERTS DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS EDITOR S NOTE W hen Jesus was asked by his disciples why he told so many stories, he replied, To create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight. (Matthew 13: 13, MSG). The Kingdom Worker Connection is a magazine designed to celebrate stories of Kingdom work. It s one of many ways in which the ministry of Christ In Youth is celebrating the work of Christ in students lives all across the globe. If this is your first introduction to the Connection or to CIY... welcome! If you ve been a ministry partner before this, then we hope you enjoy the magazine s new look. Please make sure to check out all the other ways CIY shares these amazing Kingdom stories, such as on the Kingdom Worker Hub at ciy.com/kwhub, via social media, or through some of our amazing Æffect documentaries and short-films. We are honored to serve our King through events, mission trips and resources. And it is our joy to share the many stories that come from that Kingdom work in this magazine. Please make sure to check out more information about the ministry on page 27 of the magazine. STAFF LIST CIY PRESIDENT ANDY HANSEN andy.hansen@ciy.com EDITOR CHRIS ROBERTS chris.roberts@ciy.com ART DIRECTOR AUSTIN EIDSON austin.eidson@ciy.com CONTRIBUTORS THE BARNA GROUP, CALEB CLARK, ERIC EPPERSON, EMILY KROHN MARK N. PHOTOGRAPHY, MARK RANKIN, BRITTANY SHOEMAKE, SCOTT WALKER, AUDREY WUNDERLICH SUBSCRIPTIONS P.O. BOX B JOPLIN, MO (888) 765-4CIY To be added to the CIY mailing list, or to receive the Kingdom Worker Connection via , please contact marketing@ciy.com KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

3 3 KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION CONTENTS STAFF 2 PRESIDENT S LETTER Andy Hansen 4 SUMMER SPOTLIGHT MOVE 6 CIY S EXPANSION TO IRELAND 9 SUMMER SPOTLIGHT MIX 10 COVER STORY Unseen film 13 ENGAGE ONE-ON-ONE Jordan Stancil 18 SUPERSTART Fall Tour Preview 20 BELIEVE Fall Tour Preview 22 STORIES FROM THE ROAD Engage International 24 SOCIAL MEDIA SPOTLIGHT 25 FINAL THOUGHTS Scott Walker 26 CIY PROGRAMS 27 CHRIST IN YOUTH

4 4 PRESIDENT S LETTER Outside of your parents, who shaped you? Who challenged you? Who molded you into the person you are today? For me, and thousands of other teenagers in the 1970s, the names of Bob and Nell Stacy would roll off our tongues. I was a junior in high school when our education director at South Lansing Church of Christ, Virginia Beddow, asked our youth group if we would like to consider going to a special Christian gathering somewhere in Oklahoma that I had never heard of (Christ s 40 Acres in Honobia, OK). The organization putting on the event was Christ In Youth. That was early 1970, and we were all into bell-bottomed blue jeans, long hair and talking about Jesus. The camp we typically attended probably had 150 students at most. So the thought of driving what seemed like 30 hours on a bus to Oklahoma that coming summer where several hundred Christian students from around the nation would gather well, the answer was of course YES! Little did we realize that this experience would change the course of our lives. Andy Hansen PRESIDENT CHRIST IN YOUTH KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

5 5 CIY President Andy Hansen shares photos of construction associated with building expansion at CIY s headquarters in Joplin, MO, with CIY founder Bob Stacy. In 2018, CIY will celebrate its 50th anniversary. Stacy started the ministry in 1968 with traveling groups of college students singing and performing for churches around the country, as he preached God s Word in a convincing manner to that generation of students. So many wonderful memories of the trip flood my mind: experiencing the CIY Summer Conference itself; Looking Unto God discussion groups; main sessions in an open-air steel tent with a cement slab; being led in worship by young college students who played guitars and drums but modeled commitment to Christ; Encountering God on those Oklahoma hills; asking God to Speak to me as we had been instructed by the Encounter Speaker and larger-than-life founder of CIY, Bob Stacy. These sacred clips of spiritual history cascade like a river in my mind, along with so many more from listening to powerful preaching by some of the best speakers of the day, to watching baptisms down in the river. God, through His spirit, was doing something very special in this remote region of Oklahoma that would literally ripple out all across the globe. Bob s command of the Word when he spoke and the richness of his voice, combined with the largeness of his heart and love for God, was inspiring. This was evident by the loudness of his spontaneous laughter and his unwavering vision for a Kingdom revival that could take place through a generation of students. This was also evident through he and Nell s personal sacrifices and incredible steps of faith to make the dream of CIY a reality. Bob at times would look at his audience of young people, read a significant verse of scripture or witness a baptism and his face would ignite his eyes brilliantly twinkling with joy from the thrill of the moment. And out of his mouth would deeply project the word WOW! His favorite saying was on a banner that was always at the back of the stage for many years: Praise To Him Who Specializes In The Impossible! And Bob would repeatedly share impossible things God would and could do according to the Scriptures and echoed by current events in ways that pushed you to REALLY BELIEVE that we serve A GOD WHO CAN AND DOES DO THE IMPOSSIBLE! Bob became a huge spiritual force in CIY s formative years. So much has changed since those early years, but the reality is that easily more than 1 million students from thousands of churches have attended a CIY event or mission trip during this ministry s rich history and it is all because Bob and Nell Stacy had the faith, vision, passion and courage to throw everything aside to pursue a God-sized dream 50 years ago. In 2018, CIY will be celebrating its 50th Anniversary... and we do intend to CELEBRATE! Video testimonies, social media communication, visual in print, and a banquet in Joplin, Missouri are just a few of the plans you will hear of in the coming months. AND WE WANT YOU TO CELEBRATE WITH US! CIY will also unveil a plan for the future an aggressive vision to advance events and trips in dozens of new locations; to expand the reach of CIY resources over the next five years; and to move into international influence for Christ in several countries. All of the above will require an investment of resources, personnel and facilities. All of this will be clearly outlined in the most aggressive growth plan in CIY history. WE NEED YOU TO PARTNER WITH US in 2018, and for you to encourage others to do so! At the end of 2018, all of us want to be able to say: WOW! PRAISE TO HIM WHO SPECIALIZES IN THE IMPOSSIBLE! If you want to be kept in the loop on the celebration for CIY, or have contact information for people you know who would want to be a part of the 50th anniversary experience, please scott.walker@ciy.com. CHRIST IN YOUTH

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7 7 AND THEN... The Apostle Peter is a person who had many and then... moments in his life. In many ways, the decisions he faced are similar to those faced by high school students, which is why CIY MOVE will focus on the life of Peter during this summer s 2017 tour. BY CHRIS ROBERTS GRAPHIC DESIGN BY AUSTIN EIDSON Peter sees who Jesus is before he knows who Jesus is, said Nate Karnes, MOVE programming director. He calls him Christ in the face of others saying so many other names. Peter knew Jesus true identity, but he didn t fully understand what that meant. And then suddenly he receives a new identity in that moment. Seeing who Jesus was changed who Peter was. Jesus called Peter rock before he was that rock. That s the and then moment, and it changed the trajectory of who he would become. This boldness in the face of so many and then moments for Peter is an integral part of this year s MOVE conference. And in a lot of ways high school students can relate to that scenario in that they try to live by faith without knowing exactly what they re getting into. But through all of those various and then scenarios for Peter and for high school students today, Jesus has a plan and he s asking those students to follow him. Like Peter, MOVE will invite students to leave everything and follow Jesus. High school students are at a place where they re trying to figure things out and trying to figure out what Jesus wants them to do and what their role is in living for God, Karnes said. What s their role in the Kingdom? As we call students to Kingdom work, we want to show them that they have a place and Jesus has something to show them if they re willing to trust him enough to do what he s asking them to do. The bulk of the teaching throughout the week will focus on the Gospels, though day five will shift toward Acts specifically the moment where Jesus ascends to Heaven and Peter fully becomes the rock, and the church gets planted and begins to grow. (Continued on next page) CHRIST IN YOUTH

8 8 Small groups are a key time for high school students to connect with one another and with caring adult leaders about what God is teaching them over the course of their week of MOVE. In essence, MOVE will show students how Jesus is calling them in the same ways he called Peter to live like he lived and do the things that he did. We want students to aspire to living that kind of life, Karnes said. That s what Kingdom work is. It s not about the person who is doing Kingdom work, it s about the King for whom they re doing the work and who should be getting the attention. It s work that they are passionate about doing because they ve been with the King. That s not to say that MOVE will be calling students to an unrealistic life of perfection. On the contrary, one of the days of the week will focus on the idea of failure and dealing with the reality of messing up from time-to-time. Jesus knows that s part of our humanity, and just like he did with Peter he offers grace and mercy. That s what Kingdom work is. It s not about the person who is doing Kingdom work, it s about the King for whom they re doing the work and who should be getting the attention. We can lay those failures on him and we re set free to do the things that we ve been given to do, Karnes said. Not to repay him, but out of an overflow of love for him and what he has done for us. To reinforce all of these ideas, the MOVE team has programmed some specific response moments for students throughout the week. Karnes said students will participate in activities in which their adult leaders will speak a new name into their lives, or moments in which they can symbolically take their failures and throw them onto a dirty canvas that then becomes cleansed through Christ s sacrifice on the cross. By week s end, students at all MOVE conferences will be challenged to bring the hope of Christ to other students within their spheres of influence. They ll also have the chance to accept a Kingdom worker challenge card that will encourage them to use their gifts, talents and abilities in the months following their MOVE experience to undertake acts of Kingdom work. KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

9 9 GOD S WORK IN IRELAND CIY partners with Barna Group to explore youth of Ireland and prepare for ministry expansion into Europe For more than 20 years, CIY has been investing in global work. Most recently that work has focused on Europe starting in Ireland and eventually branching out to other parts of the continent. According to Jayson French, CIY s vice president of programming, the ministry is making a tactical and important shift in its global expansion efforts by hiring in-country leaders to champion and develop Kingdom workers. God is doing beautiful things around the world, and we want to join His work already in progress, French said. We would like to join the effort of raising up Kingdom workers in other nations. Along those lines, CIY hired its first international director, Jasper Rutherford. Jasper is working toward developing Ireland s first CIY conference, which could launch as soon as He has also been working with The Barna Group to do an extensive study on the youth of Ireland. I am excited about the road ahead, Rutherford said. I am most excited about seeing how God leads us as we discern and jump into what He has planned for Ireland and Europe. There are exciting times ahead. The Barna study produced some revealing information about youth throughout Ireland and has given CIY a foundation upon which to build strategies. In large part, the study found that young people in Ireland face an increasingly post-religious culture, but Catholicism is still the religion of the majority. Nearly one-quarter of young people in Ireland are non-religious, but most of those generally still have some experience with Christianity. Some other findings from the Barna study include: After secondary school, youth are more likely to have quit than to have continued going to church. Catholicism is the denomination of three-quarters of young Christians. Christians are seen as judgmental by non-christians. Christianity in general is not appealing to those outside it, as they see it violating some of the chief values of their generation, including non-judgmentalism. Leaving school is a turning point in the religion of many youth; ministry through that transition will be essential. As part of its global expansion efforts, CIY will be asking all attendees of its MOVE, MIX and Engage programs to give financially through offerings and donations. MOVE and MIX will show the CIY-produced film Unseen, which is set in Ireland, and will also have video testimonies and challenges from Jasper. Both of those programs will also ask students to use the next six months to find ways to use their gifts, talents and abilities to raise funds for Ireland. If you d like to join CIY in its efforts of global expansion, please visit ciy.com/movetoireland. The Barna Study found that even those students who claim affiliation with the Christian church in Ireland are not regular attendees and don t regularly read their Bibles or participate in church activities. CHRIST IN YOUTH

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11 11 THE MEANING OF A CHRISTIAN Robbie the Robot, Dr. Seuss characters and a field full of bubbles are just a few of the fun things in store for Jr. high students attending this summer s MIX program all across the U.S. BY CHRIS ROBERTS GRAPHIC DESIGN BY AUSTIN EIDSON There tend to be two types of Jr. high students who attend CIY s MIX program every year: those who grew up in the church and are familiar with Christianity, and those who are just being introduced to the faith. For both of those groups, the fundamental question for this age group is: What does it mean to be a Christian day in and day out? That s a question that the MIX team hopes to help them answer this year as they explore the life of Peter. Jr. high students want to know how their faith plays out practically, said Taylor Brown, MIX program director. Jesus always mobilizes us. He always sets us into motion. It s about more than just saying to them, Now you re 12 and some day you ll get to go to Heaven. Death is such a far away idea for them; they re more interested in the right now. They re not getting ready to go to college and they re not even thinking about death. They re all about the now. To help facilitate those conversations and bring Jr. high students into an understanding of how they can use their unique gifts, talents and abilities for Kingdom work, MIX will this year walk them through the life of Peter. By using parallels from Peter s life and the life of a Jr. high student, MIX will create moments throughout the week during which students will be able to see clearly how Christ is calling them to serve in his Kingdom. The first day will focus on what it takes to follow Jesus specifically, how he calls us to drop our concerns and follow him. Peter dropped his nets right after not being able to make a catch and then having it miraculously filled with fish by Jesus, Brown said. He realized Jesus not only provides for him, but fulfills him and he says, I m in! We ll ask students what they (Continued on next page) CHRIST IN YOUTH

12 12 The Outer Realm is one of the most fun aspects of a week of MIX. The large-group games that take place in The Outer Realm not only promote community, but give Jr. high students a chance to just have fun! showed up to MIX concerned about. And that doesn t always have to be bad things it could be getting good grades or learning a new instrument. But sometimes there are hard things like mom and dad fighting. We want to, in a way, re-orient their minds to where they learn to seek first His Kingdom and righteousness and trust God with the concerns in their lives. On day two, students will learn about Peter walking on water and how that correlates to how they should focus on Jesus during the dark storms of their lives. In dark storms it s hard to see Jesus, Brown said. And then he gives us the power to walk through the storms. He doesn t always promise that the difficult things in life will go away and every Jr. higher has his or her own version of something difficult. We want them to know that hard things will happen, but Jesus gives us power to walk through hard things. Day three will focus on learning how to speak about Jesus to others and the importance of sharing the Gospel. Just like Jesus asked Peter who he said He was, so also does He ask Jr. high students who they say He is. Looking at the two groups of Jr. high students that will be in attendance, the group that is familiar with Christianity will be faced with the question: Are you speaking of your faith to the people in your life? The group who is just learning about Christianity for the first time will be asked: If you ve never confessed Jesus as God and your personal Lord and savior, are you willing to make that commitment? Day four will then shift gears a little bit and encourage Jr. high students to live out a life of Kingdom work. Like all CIY programs, MIX is passionate about equipping students and youth groups to return home ready to engage in Kingdom work. And this year MIX students will be challenged to do that in a variety of ways. We re sending them home with the idea that sometimes we fail, and then Jesus calls us to live lives of Kingdom work, Brown said. Back home these students will have the same drama and distractions and hardships and that s OK because sometimes Kingdom workers fail. But how does Jesus respond to us when we fail? He says, Feed my sheep. Basically he s saying, Let s get back to work. One of the phrases we ll use a lot this summer is: Jesus didn t die so that you could sit on the bench feeling guilty. He died so that you can live out the grace that he showed. In addition to the powerful teaching moments from stage, MIX has become well-known for its moments of organized fun especially in the Outer Realm, a group-oriented time for students to just play and have fun with one another and their adult leaders. This year s Outer Realm will have a theme of Christmas and winter. You can expect to see some of your favorite Dr. Seuss characters and Santa Clauses and snow men, Brown said. But there are also some very epic competitions to see which team will win the week. We re doing games called Dashing Through the Snow and Do you want to build a snowman? There will be foam and running and relays and hunts all things Jr. high students will love. KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

13 13 UNSEEN CIY will screen its latest short-film to more than 45,000 people this summer. BY CHRIS ROBERTS GRAPHIC DESIGN CHRIST IN BY YOUTH AUSTIN EIDSON PHOTOS BY CALEB CLARK

14 14 HOPE IS FOUND BY BRINGING UNSEEN THINGS TO LIGHT It has been CIY s practice for many years to produce a short-film or documentary to show to students at its summer conferences with the intention of helping to highlight a social justice or cultural issue in which students might be able to affect change. In conjunction with the programming at each CIY event, these films have proven to be influential in mobilizing students to take action in their own homes and communities using their individual gifts, talents and abilities to affect change for the Kingdom. It was that idea, in fact, that led to the formation of CIY s film and resource division, called Æffect. This year s film is Unseen, and it touches on a cultural issue that is extremely pertinent to today s teenagers: suicide. The film centers around a man and his grandson, both of whom live in Ireland. After finding his grandson Owen preparing to end his own life, Alexander takes him along on an errand. As the day unfolds, Owen learns new information about his grandfather s past and unlocks the secret to facing his own future. Suicide is the hot topic of discussion in teen culture right now, said Eric Epperson, CIY s senior director of Æffect and the writer/producer of the film. We want to create a space where people can have healthy conversations and get help. A lot of people have been told that if they talk about it, that can be negative. But it actually can help people who are struggling and bring unseen things to life. Hope is found by bringing unseen things to light. Epperson said the film is timely, but the first steps down the path toward its creation weren t intentional toward addressing such a timely issue. As with most CIY-produced films, the Holy Spirit really led the way in the creation of the story and has set the stage well for CIY to be a powerful influencer for a lot of students and youth groups in regards to suicide and mental illness. And Epperson pointed out that even those who aren t suicidal can still carry unseen burdens that they need to talk about with someone. We all need Alexanders in our lives who will walk with us and help us process and hear us and know us for who we are, KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

15 15 BEHIND THE SCENES WITH THE DIRECTOR: MD NEELY ABOVE: Director MD Neely talks with his crew before a shot. BELOW: Actors Bob Carley and Desmond Eastwood share stories between shooting scenes. he said. As CIY MOVE and MIX look at the life of Peter this summer and the relationship between him and Jesus, students will be able to quickly see that he was a guy who followed Jesus closely but he wasn t perfect. He messed up a lot. Jesus presence and grace and ultimately even purpose for Peter s life was what restored him. We ll be talking a lot this summer about how Jesus takes upon our sin and guilt and shame and it s bound to the cross with him. He carries that. He doesn t just offer hope for Heaven, but also hope in this life. He tells us that this life is worth living and does have purpose and meaning through His death and resurrection. When Jesus defeated death, He didn t just save us for after we die. He gave us hope for this life and connected us to life. And we want students to understand through this film that the worst thing is never the last thing. One of my favorite lines in the film is what Alexander says to Owen when he s asked why God doesn t just take away the pain. His response is, I don t know but God doesn t waste our pain. The two main actors in the film are Ireland and Northern Ireland natives. Alexander is played by Bob Carley, who also served as a primary source of information on the suicide crisis that affects the countries of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Carley has had multiple TED Talks on mental illness and (Continued on next page) MD Neely is CIY s director of film and served as the director and co-producer for this year s CIY-produced short-film Unseen. Being a director for such an ambitious project requires a lot of attention to detail and a diverse skill-set from interpersonal communication with actors to fine-tuned organization associated with logistics. That becomes magnified on a shoot that takes place in another country, such as Ireland. MD said he s excited for more than 45,000 students and adult leaders to see Unseen this summer at CIY s MOVE and MIX events. He sat down with us to share a little bit from behind the scenes of making the film. KWC: How were you first introduced to the story of Unseen? MD: We knew we wanted to do a story in Ireland because of CIY s global expansion into that country and because of the partners we have there, but we didn t have a story at the beginning. And if you don t have a story, you re always caught in between wanting to go to the country and get boots on the ground and not being able to do that. I got to a point where I was tired of not having something, so I started Googling stuff about Ireland. I can t recall exactly what got me to this point, but I started to find all these articles about suicide in the Irish Times. I started looking into it and found statistics about the suicide rate in Ireland and it caught me a little unaware because it was so high. When we talked with our partner in Ireland, Jasper Rutherford, about it, he gave us a resounding, Oh yeah! This is a huge issue in Ireland. It became evident pretty quickly that this was the subject matter that the Holy Spirit was leading us to, but we still didn t have a story. So we took a research trip to Ireland in January and met with Bob Carley, who would eventually go on to play Alexander in the film. We found out about Bob when Jasper sent us a (Continued on page 17) CHRIST IN YOUTH

16 16 MD Neely, director of the film, takes a moment to pray with Bob Carley, who played the character of Alexander in the film, prior to shooting an emotional moment on a bridge overlooking the River Shannon in Limerick, Ireland. has been an advocate for more education on the subjects of mental illness and suicide for many years. Owen is played by Desmond Eastwood, a professional actor who CIY found through Jillian Reynolds Casting. Eastwood is based out of Belfast and, according to Film Director MD Neely, was chosen because of how well he listened and connected to the material within the script. You could tell in his eyes that he was connecting with the material, Neely said. I knew the performance was going to have some times where there was big emotion, but also times that were really nuanced and intimate. I felt like he could be that guy, and when I brought him to Eric s attention and he saw the audition he said, That guy is awesome. He really gave us an amazing performance. One of my favorite lines in the film is what Alexander says to Owen when he s asked why God doesn t just take away the pain. His response is, I don t know... but God doesn t waste our pain. Epperson said the reason for choosing Ireland as the setting for the film is twofold: first, because it s a country that deals more with suicide than most other countries in the world; and second, because CIY is currently expanding its ministry into the country. The film will not only serve as a conversation starter for students this summer, but will also alert students to peers just like them in Ireland for whom they can begin to pray and raise support as CIY continues to amplify Christ s call on students lives to be Kingdom workers both in the U.S. and throughout the world. Unseen will premier at weeks of MOVE and MIX this summer to approximately 45,000 students and adult leaders. The film will also be submitted to several film festivals around the world, and Epperson said CIY is hopeful to develop additional partnerships for distribution of the film through educational and church/ministry avenues. CIY s films have previously won awards at festivals and have been shown to global audiences, and hopes are high that Unseen will see similar success. KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

17 17 (Continued from page 15) link of a TED Talk from him on the subject of mental illness. There was something very engaging about the guy when we met him, and he has a fascinating story. And when he began to share with us his own personal story about losing his wife, the idea of Alexander was born. There s a line in the movie that is pulled directly from that first meeting with him when he was talking about his wife he said, It s been 17 years and I still get sad sometimes. The best part of that research trip was sitting with Bob for three hours in a food court and letting him share his story. KWC: How do you direct actors through such sensitive subject matter? MD: It helps that we had such amazing talent. Bob was actually trained as a theater actor back in the day and he felt like God was calling him to give it up to do church planting so he laid acting aside, but always told God that if ever there was a chance to act again he would love to do so. This turned out to be his chance to come back to that. Bob played Alexander, who is the grandfather of Owen, who is played by Desmond Eastwood. Desmond is probably the most method actor I ve ever worked with. He would stay in character through lunches like he wouldn t eat lunch because he didn t want to get his energy up. He would do all kinds of physical stuff between takes to keep his heart-rate up. He would constantly pace or run in place sometimes for two hours. I never told him what I thought Owen s motivation was to pursue suicide. I just told him to pick something, and I didn t need to know what it was, and I never asked. But he and Bob were polar opposites in their methods. Desmond was always on. He was always Owen. KWC: What was the biggest challenge for this film? MD: The biggest challenge was that we didn t have a crew until three weeks before the shoot. We hired Stephanie Whonsetler to be a producer and sent her to Ireland to get things in place. She helped co-produce CIY s short-film Aullido, and had helped us prep another project that never was completed. So she literally gets off the plane in Ireland, gets a rental car and drives to the film board in Ireland and walks in with a copy of the script and says, I need a crew. They put her in contact with a MD Neely (center) takes a moment behind the scenes to look at a shot alongside Director of Photography Mike Hartnett, and Producer Stephanie Whonsetler, while on location in Limerick, Ireland. guy who would become an assistant director, and by MD: I think it could have a far reach. Outside of the the next morning they were having coffee together students in America who will see it, there are tens and putting together plans. She said he was calling of thousands of students in Ireland who could see it people as they were talking and setting things up. and be affected. In my humble opinion, 2017 is just Everybody got on board because of the subject the beginning of where this film could go and the matter. If they could help people not die by suicide, amount of exposure it could have. I don t feel like it s they wanted to be part of it. a film that can be outdated after a year. That s our prayer. KWC: Many of the scenes were shot in the area of Limerick. Why did you choose that location? MD: It just had that feel we wanted, with a great combination of textures and looks. We really wanted to put Ireland on the screen. Limerick has the River Shannon running through it, and a lot of people take their lives by jumping into that river. It s the only city in the world that has a 24-hour suicide watch on the river. While we were there scouting on the boardwalk overlooking the river, someone came up and asked us, Are they pulling out another body? That s how common it is. So for the Irish audience that sees this film, we thought it would be a landmark that they MD Neely (left), director of Unseen, would recognize and immediately catch. and Desmond Eastwood, one of the main KWC: What kind of an impact do you think this film actors, pose for a picture on location will have on people? at the Cliffs of Moher. CHRIST IN YOUTH

18 18 INSIDE ENGAGE DOMESTIC Engage Domestic Program Administrator Jordan Stancil sits down for a one-on-one to provide some insight into this year s theme and Kingdom worker training disciplines. As Engage Domestic rolls into its second year of a revamped program, the focus of Kingdom worker training continues to evolve and grow. Last year the program focused on two training disciplines: Identity and Justice. This year the program will add two new disciplines: Evangelism and Peacemaking. Engage Domestic has also added Jordan Stancil as team lead, a three-summer veteran of CIY who had previously served on the MIX team. Jordan said he s excited for this summer and the things students will learn while participating in the Kingdom worker training sessions they ve developed. KWC: This year s theme for Engage Domestic is Restore. Tell us a little about that. Jordan: It started with questioning where we wanted to land for the summer in terms of Scripture, and I pitched Nehemiah. I ve always loved the story of Nehemiah. It s so much more than about building a wall. He s a great leader. He s a great servant. I like him because he s a Kingdom worker. And the story of Nehemiah transfers so well to students. He wasn t a pastor or a priest or a prophet. He was a cup bearer for a foreign king living in a foreign land and he heard the call of God and became heartbroken because of it. And then God restores his heart. That s so applicable to students. They don t have to be prophets or priests or kings to make a difference for the Kingdom. They can just be everyday cup bearers. The idea of restoration is all over the book of Nehemiah. It s really the central idea of the book. Restoration happens in his heart. And when God restores our hearts, it forces us to move, to change and to do Kingdom work. You can t help but do Kingdom work when you have a restored heart. It s also a book that talks about restored places. Nehemiah goes to Jerusalem and restores the place. Jordan Stancil PROGRAM ADMINISTRATOR ENGAGE DOMESTIC When God restores our hearts, it forces us to move, to change and to do Kingdom work. You can t help but do Kingdom work when you have a restored heart. And we really believe at Engage that if a place is not restored, people can t be restored. God is inviting us to restore and partner with him in what he is already doing. That s a key tenet of Engage. We re not trying to be heroes. We can t save a city in four days. And one of the key principles through our training is that God is already working. KWC: A week of Engage is so much more than a typical mission trip, but how does the idea of missions fit into this year s program? Jordan: I love missions because I think it has the potential to change someone s life and perspective. It shows them more than what they just see every day. It s so important for people to get that perspective. Even if you never go to the international mission field, I still love the idea of students being able to leave their city and see a different perspective and culture. It helps you to keep in mind that the world is bigger than just your town or community or church. Seeing the global church is one of the healthiest things you can do. In terms of this year s theme, we believe that God can restore our mission. We believe that once we have restored hearts and relationships, we as Kingdom workers can have a restored mission. God brings about the restoration of all things. And that s our pitch, so to speak, to students this year. If you re called to Kingdom work, then you re called to the restoration of all things. If your mission is just about you or one thing, then it s too small. God is about the mission of restoring lives and hearts, and I m super excited about bringing that idea to students this summer. KWC: You re adding Peacemaking and Evangelism to the training disciplines this summer. Tell us why you chose those topics. Jordan: Those are both things that are central parts of our faith, but we don t talk about them enough. This year s Peacemaking training is one of those KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

19 19 rare things in my life that I ve worked on that has changed my life. It s confronting me in the way I hope it confronts students. I think the church has really gotten behind the idea of Justice really well a lot of organizations have championed that idea well, and I love that. But one of the things that gets overlooked sometimes is peacemaking. Justice is a reaction it s something that s needed when something has gone wrong. But peacemaking is a proactive thing you do before justice is even needed. So we re going to challenge students to be proactive and figure out ways to stop violence and poverty and other things before they even begin. I m excited about both of these trainings and to see where they go with our students. Both will practically call students to look at what those ideas are without them having to make any assumptions. They ll have to ask themselves questions like, What do these words even mean and what impact do they have for my life? and Why does it matter for me, what is it, and why do I do it? It all comes from a Biblical perspective and it all centers around the life of Jesus. KWC: How does Engage Domestic prepare students to interact and understand other cultures in better ways so as to spread the Gospel message and be more well-equipped Kingdom workers? Jordan: Again I would point to Nehemiah s story. He faced a lack of culture, a lack of safety and was staring change in the face that was probably really scary for him. And then he went and rebuilt the wall in 52 days which is incredible. And because of that, restoration of relationships and people began to happen. I think there s a step there where the place had to be restored first. People were living there who weren t restored until the place was restored. But once it was, for the first time in years the people came out and asked for scripture and wanted to sing to God and repented of their sins. Many of them were worshiping God for the first time in years. ABOVE: Students work on a public garden in the middle of the city of Joplin, MO during a Spring Break trip with Engage Domestic. BELOW: Students on an Engage Domestic trip embrace Kingdom work by using their hands and feet to create a park for children in the city of Knoxville, TN. Sometimes it s easy for students to think the issues going on in their church are the only ones, but when they can get outside of their communities and begin to see that churches and people all over the world are going through struggles, as well, it really opens their eyes and allows them to put themselves in other peoples shoes. CHRIST IN YOUTH

20 20 POWER UP! Preteen students love video games, and CIY s SuperStart program will tap into that passion by creating a video-game-themed world during its 2017/18 tour, which begins this fall. BY CHRIS ROBERTS PHOTOS BY MARK N. PHOTOGRAPHY Not only do preteens love to play video games, they also love to watch other people play them. One of the most searched-for items on YouTube is videos of people commentating the video games they re playing, and the overwhelming demographic making that search is a preteen audience. SuperStart wants to tap into that passion by creating a video game-themed world during its tour. The name of the tour will be Power Up, and everything in which preteen students participate will immerse them in various video game-inspired elements. The actors on stage will be participating in a video game tournament, and students from the audience will have opportunities to help influence both the game and the people playing. Ultimately, this world will all point to the focus of this year s tour: valuing God s Word. We want to create an excitement for how God s Word can be used in our lives as we learn to follow Jesus, said Drew Crisp, SuperStart s programming director. In a video game, when a character gets a power up they have an extreme advantage in the game. The Power Up in the game always gives that character a little something extra to be able to complete their task. For us, the task is Kingdom work, and God s Word Scripture gives us power. It shows us the truth and helps us to know the way to walk. To help preteens understand the power of God s Word in their lives, SuperStart will walk them through three main ideas: When I don t know the way, God s Word shows me what s right; As temptations arise, God s Word helps me to fight; For those who can t see Him, God s Word helps me to be a light. KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

21 21 To reinforce this idea, SuperStart will focus on Luke 11:24, which says, Blessed are those who hear the Word of God and keep it. Crisp said the teaching during this tour will use that verse to help students understand that God s Word can be a compass, a sword, or a light at different times of their lives and through all kinds of situations. Much like characters in video games collect items to help them along in their quest, so, too, does God s Word give you tools to use to walk through every situation in life. As you go through life, you re going to need these words of God, Crisp said. They re going to be power in your lives. Words in general have power when spoken in the context of a relationship when parents say they re proud of us, or a loved one tells you they love you. This is so much more true when God the Father speaks words to us. They have power. Crisp added that part of the importance of this year s theme for preteens is the paradox in which Christians find themselves in regards to the Bible. It s a book that is more accessible than it has ever been before in all of history even to the point of being available on any mobile device. But a side effect of that phenomenon especially for preteens is that it can very easily become just another app on a phone and not something they spend time with or cherish on a daily basis. We want to help them understand that the Bible isn t just something they bring to church, or something they only open on their app, Crisp said. The Bible is something they have a living, active conversation with. We want to create a sense of excitement and value. Reverence for the Bible is something adult leaders all over the country are already teaching. We want to help that conversation with preteen students. SuperStart s first event is scheduled for Oct. 6-7 in St. Louis. Please be in prayer for the SuperStart team over the next few months as they prepare to bring this message to preteens all over the country. All programming at SuperStart is intentionally created to cater to a preteen mind. That means fourth, fifth and sixth graders have a place that s just for them, filled with fun, friends and age-intentional teaching. More often than not that means preteen students at a SuperStart event interact with actors and teachers on stage. CHRIST IN YOUTH

22 22 GOD WITH US CIY s Believe program aims to help Jr. high students understand all the various ways they can worship God and live out a life of Kingdom work by helping them see how God is WITH them at all times. BY CHRIS ROBERTS PHOTOS BY MARK N. PHOTOGRAPHY It s impossible to come up with a definitive definition of worshipping God without defining who God is. This is especially true for a Jr. high student, who knows that they want to worship God but may not understand what form that takes or even why they feel compelled to respond to God s presence in their lives. And so it s upon that presence in their lives that CIY s Believe program will focus its teaching during the tour. Using the term With, and focusing on Matthew 28:20, Believe will help Jr. high students discover how to worship God through a right and faithful relationship with Him, in all the forms that worship can take. It started with the idea of worship, said Mike Branton, Believe director. As we started discussing how we could bring the idea of worship to a Jr. high audience, and spoke with a lot of other youth ministers around the country about it, we soon realized that there are a lot of preconceived notions of what worship is. So we decided to start with the foundation of the idea the theology of it and just talk about who God is. That will encompass a trinity conversation, because we want to help students understand that from the beginning of time God has been in pursuit of a relationship with us. He has been WITH His people all throughout time. Branton said he realizes the concept of the trinity and the Holy Spirit is sometimes a difficult one to communicate to Jr. high students, but he points to Believe s Presence tour of 2013 in which the focus of the teaching was on the Holy Spirit. That year produced some of the program s highest response numbers from students making Kingdom worker decisions, and multiple youth ministers commented on the effectiveness of the teaching following their respective weekends. KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

23 23 Jr. high students attending Believe events say corporate times of worship are impactful. Every year, students attending Believe say times of praise and worship are some of their favorite times during CIY s weekend event. To help illustrate how profound it is that God has been with his people throughout all of history, Believe will focus on Matthew 28:20, which says, And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. Over the course of the weekend, students attending Believe will get an overview of God s faithfulness throughout history, an explanation of the Gospel and how it proves that God is with us, a description of the Holy Spirit and how it shows that God is within us, and a challenge for us to be with God by being obedient to the call He places on our lives to do Kingdom work. Also included in the weekend event will be an exploration of the things that cause a Jr. high student to feel lonely. Using a model inspired by C.S. Lewis Screwtape Letters, Believe will create an Institute for Loneliness a station that will help students understand how Satan works to isolate them from peers and caring adults so that they will despair. I m excited about the psychology that goes into this and looking more deeply into the combination of things it takes for students to become lonely, Branton said. We ll be dealing with a lot of issues surrounding loneliness that With could be the cure for. Things like anxiety, sin, depression, distorted identity, rejection, self-worth, abandonment, and even how technology can play into it. Even though we re connected doesn t mean we re in healthy relationships, which is a concept that the Netflix show 13 Reasons Why dealt with. We want to show students that relationships are key in life, and that a relationship with Jesus is where life really comes from eternal life. The problem is if students have a distorted view of how relationships work on earth, they ll have a mistaken view of how a relationship with Jesus works. We want that to be clear. The first Believe event is slated for Oct in Dallas, Texas. Please join us in praying for this tour and the tens of thousands of Jr. high students who will hear Christ s call on their lives while attending this tour. CHRIST IN YOUTH

24 24 STORIES FROM THE ROAD Engage International is continuing to train students for a life of Kingdom work by partnering with nearly 300 this summer on trips to countries all over the world. Students will continue to go through training that includes Engage s seven Mission Principles. The training has two levels an introductory level for those who have never been on an International trip with Engage before, and an advanced level for those going on a second or third trip with Engage. By allowing both levels of training to focus on the same seven principles, mixed groups can have deeper levels of discussion and utilize a common language throughout the trip. The following are testimonies from students who have traveled with Engage International and participated in the training. TABITHA OLDENDER (Cambodia) Engage training did a phenomenal job on preparing me for this trip. The videos and devotions gave me the right mindset going in and gave me the perspective on how I should serve. One video stated: To embrace more cultures is to embrace different characteristics of God. While in Cambodia, you see the characteristic of God s hospitality. The Engage training has shown me how important and powerful prayer is. Even now, five months after our trip, my prayer life has changed and become more serious. HUNTER JONES (Nicaragua and Dominican Republic) The lesson I best remember from Engage training is that there is both beauty and brokenness in all places. Growing up, I was somewhat led to believe that Christians are all perfect, and we need to reach out to the broken people around us. This allowed me to see that I still have brokenness, but Jesus is constantly making me a beautiful creation out of that, and He can do the same to those around me. LUKE MARTIN (Zambia) I regret to say my spirituality wasn t a very big priority in my life. One of the goals for me in this trip was to change that part of my life. But the training videos helped change that part of my life before I even left the States. I had no idea what to expect when I got to Zambia. My mind was blown when I saw Zambia for the first time. My mind might ve exploded completely if the Engage training hadn t prepared me. The training taught me how mission isn t just in the trip overseas, it s also in my day-to-day life. MARINA ONTIS (Cambodia) The Engage training was a time for me every week to really turn off my other distractions and to focus and pray for the trip. The scriptures, questions and activities helped to prepare my heart for the trip and what we would experience while we were overseas. While we were in Cambodia, we were able to put the mission objectives we had learned through the training into practice and I think going through the online training helped me come into the trip with an open heart and mind. TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ENGAGE S TRAINING RESOURCE, VISIT AEFFECT.CIY.COM/TRAINING. KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

25 25 SOCIAL MEDIA SPOTLIGHT Stories of God s amazing work in the lives of so many Kingdom workers all over the world can be found in different places throughout social media. Below is just a small sampling of the #Kingdomworkers embracing Christ s call on their lives. CHRIST IN YOUTH

26 26 FINAL THOUGHTS As CIY continues to grow with new events and locations for all programs in 2018, and more ambitious stories through film your partnership with the ministry is all the more important. When I first saw the story of Jace, I was at a MOVE event in Joplin, Missouri. His story was one that the MOVE team had spent most of the first half of that year putting together in one of the amazing CIY-produced films that I had come to know and love. I d seen many of CIY s short-films and documentaries before, but for some reason Jace s story hit me right in the gut. I remember fighting back tears as I watched this young man embrace Christ s call on his life to be a Kingdom worker, even when his body began to fail him and he did all he could to fight off death. And then I looked at all the students in the auditorium and I realized just how important films like this are. They reach teenagers in ways that no other medium does. These stories relate to students in ways that no sermon from stage or small group conversation can. Not to say that those things aren t important, but something about CIY s films has a way of stirring something within a teenager s heart that then makes the sermon from stage or the conversation with their peers and a caring adult all the more deep and life-changing. Creating films like this costs CIY a lot of money often tens of thousands of dollars. But it s a price worth paying when at the end of the year we can look back and see all of the Kingdom worker commitments, dedications for lives of vocational ministry, and best of all, first-time decisions for Christ. Last year CIY moved its film department under the umbrella of Æffect, a division of the ministry that produces many of the organization s resources. As the demand for more stories such as Jace s grows and grows, Æffect is doing all it can to keep up and provide churches, youth ministers and students with tools they can use to be equipped to be the best Kingdom workers they can be. That s why Scott Walker SENIOR DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT CHRIST IN YOUTH Something about CIY s films has a way of stirring something within a teenager s heart that then makes the sermon from stage or the conversation with their peers and a caring adult all the more deep and life-changing. your financial partnership with the ministry of CIY makes such a huge difference. Æffect is a platform that meets students where they re at, but even one week s worth of programming such as our Kingdom Worker Week, which will take place this November for the second year in a row costs as much as $30,000. Æffect is also in the midst of revamping its website and other digital avenues for distribution of CIY resources. That will cost the ministry another $20,000, at least. Would you consider a gift to help Æffect take those next steps forward as CIY does its best to respond to God s calling to use resources such as Jace s story to reach more students for Christ? CIY is also growing in other ways specifically in the realm of new events and locations for all of its programs in To accommodate that growth, CIY will have to purchase new production equipment and trucking systems to transport that equipment around the country. This is growth that must happen, and CIY will push forward responsibly to make sure these needs are met. But your financial partnership would go a long way toward helping the ministry meet these needs swiftly. Would you consider a gift of $25 a month, $50 a month, $100 a month, or $500 a month to go toward this program expansion? Or would you consider a one-time gift of $1,000, $2,500, $5,000 or more to help off-set these costs? I hope you get the opportunity to visit one of CIY s many programs, and if you do I hope you get to experience the power of one of CIY s films and see how it impacts students in such a profound way. I d love to visit with you more about how you might be able to join CIY as a ministry partner, and if you d like maybe we can visit while attending one of CIY s programs later this year. Scott Walker is the senior director of development for Christ In Youth. To find out more about ministry partnerships, contact Scott at scott.walker@ciy.com. KINGDOM WORKER CONNECTION

27 CIY coordinates and produces programs, events and trips for students in grades four (4) through college throughout the U.S. and the world, and develops resources that benefit the local church. CIY amplifies Christ s call on students lives to be Kingdom workers. For more information, visit ciy.com. A two-day interactive weekend program designed specifically for preteens (4-6 grades), engaging their growing minds and teaching them more about the Bible. ciy.com/superstart ST. LOUIS, MO ATLANTA, GA PHOENIX, AZ CONTACT: Chase Allcott chase.allcott@ciy.com LOUISVILLE, KY ORLANDO, FL DALLAS, TX HOUSTON, TX TULSA, OK INDIANAPOLIS, IN BLOOMINGTON, IL CINCINNATI, OH CHICAGO, IL Believe is a high-energy weekend event for Jr. high students only, packed with powerful worship and teaching from God s Word. ciy.com/believe DALLAS, TX IRVINE, CA PORTLAND, OR CONTACT: Titus Weece titus.weece@ciy.com TULSA, OK LOUISVILLE, KY CINCINNATI, OH KISSIMMEE, FL SPRINGFIELD, IL ATLANTA, GA KANSAS CITY, MO ANDERSON, IN HOLLAND, MI Engage offers domestic and international mission trips that train students to engage other cultures of the world for the Kingdom of God. ciy.com/engage CONTACT: Chase Allcott chase.allcott@ciy.com NORTHERN IRELAND DOMINICAN REPUBLIC CAMBODIA HAITI KENYA INTERNATIONAL HONDURAS PUERTO RICO POLAND ZAMBIA CINCINNATI, OH NEW ORLEANS, LA INDIANAPOLIS, IN KNOXVILLE, TN DOMESTIC TULSA, OK PHOENIX, AZ LONG BEACH, CA ELIZABETH CITY, NC A five-day summer program for high school students to experience God, including daily devotions, nightly worship, community discipleship and messages. ciy.com/move MISSOURI CALIFORNIA TENNESSEE OHIO CONTACT: Chase Allcott chase.allcott@ciy.com MICHIGAN FLORIDA COLORADO INDIANA NEBRASKA ILLINOIS TEXAS OKLAHOMA OREGON A four-day summer conference for middle school students (6-8 grades) designed to address the unique spiritual, cognitive and developmental needs of that age group. ciy.com/mix CALIFORNIA MISSOURI INDIANA CONTACT: Titus Weece titus.weece@ciy.com OKLAHOMA OHIO TENNESSEE FLORIDA PENNSYLVANIA MICHIGAN NEW MEXICO

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