A LIFE TO LIFE MESSAGE: Youth With A Mission
Hello Friends and Family!
I am so grateful for all of the love, financial support, and prayer I received for my trip to South Sudan, India, and Lebanon last October! It has truly opened my eyes to a new direction that the Lord is taking me. I have been evaluating the direction the Lord seems to be calling me to go and he has made some very clear and distinct moves.
First, if you received the last life update, then you are probably aware that I have been serving YoungLife with high school students for over 5 years. However, in these last six months, he has clearly closed the door with YoungLife staff.
Second, it was in this season that Youth With A Mission (YWAM) became an obvious option to explore. I heard about them through my friends Lia Dalpini, who is on staff in Australia, as well as Trevin Hoekzema, who has many connections with them. Bay Area Community Church (BACC), my home church, has been very familiar with supporting YWAMers. In May, the founder of YWAM, Loren Cunningham, came to speak at BACC. It was here that I began to realize that YWAM is exactly what I was looking for. The organization is very similar to YoungLife, in that it seeks out young people (18+), but it has a distinct focus that is different. Their main goal is to send "waves of young people" as missionaries around the world. This vision has expanded beyond just young people and they are now located in over 150+ countries around the world reaching the unreached people groups with the good news about Jesus. After hearing Loren speak about this focus on the nations around the world and after attending BACC’s world mission “Souls” conference, I realized that there was something stirring deep within my heart.
I cannot deny my deep-seated desire to embark on an uncertain adventure with God as his missionary going wherever he directs to share Jesus with the world.
So what is next? Glad you asked.
I am exploring the strong call God has put on my heart to do ministry with YWAM. I am starting that exploration by participating in their YWAM Ships 6-month Discipleship Training School (DTS), which is an entry point for all potential YWAM staff and a powerful tool for understanding and experiencing God’s movement around the world. This DTS is split into two phases.
Phase 1) takes place during the first three months. It is the lecture/training phase. We will explore understanding God, ourselves, and the nations on a deeper level.
Phase 2) is the outreach phase. In this phase we will GO to a nation (this remains to be determined by the coordinators of my DTS) for the latter three months. Here we will be bringing humanitarian aid like free doctor and dentist check-ups to potential nations like Papua New Guinea. Because this is the YWAM ships ministry, we will be using their ship to charter thousands of miles to unreached people groups that can only be accessed by boat, as there are no air strips available in these places. YWAM ship ministries are always strategically placed so that they can more easily access the unreached people groups.
When is this DTS?
September 26, 2019
Where is this DTS?
This DTS will take place in Kailua-kona, Hawaii! It is a global jump-point for YWAM ships to station and to reach the rest of the unreached world. The Hawaii location is also the crux and meeting point for exploring the opportunities with YWAM. The founder as well as many prominent speakers and staff all live in the area and will have a presence at YWAM's Kona Ship DTS. It is a huge door-opener for exploring the many staff opportunities with YWAM and it is a place where I will test the waters with God. Romans 12:2 and 1 John 4:1 speaks of seeking to understand what God's will is, to test the "spirits" that I am hearing. I believe God is directing me to this DTS location in particular. He will use the amazing leadership there to hone my skills in discipleship, teaching, and evangelism and the staff there will help me determine whether or not staff with YWAM is the next step. I am open to his leading wherever he wants me to go!
Here are my needs for this trip:
1) Prayer
This is my single greatest need and something I desire most. Prayer is a powerful and transforming tool. God can provide for all of my needs through it. Pray that my finances will be covered for this trip.Please pray that I would be receptive to my own growth and discipleship! Please pray that God would empower me with wisdom to understand my unique place and purpose in his kingdom.
2) Finances
This trip is not free. Here is the rundown of how much it will cost me to go to the DTS program.
Lecture Phase:
$3,995
Outreach
$4,500-5,500
Plane Ticket, Housing Deposit, Deposit for DTS
$705
Grand Total:
$10,200
What is this paying for?
- 6 months of teaching, discipleship, evangelism and team building
- Travel to Hawaii, and round-trip travel to another nation during Phase 2
- Housing for 6 months
- Food for 6 months
- An investment into my future in ministry
- An investment into God's kingdom
- A chance to be included in this adventure as I send updates, pictures, videos (via Youtube).
- You get the opportunity to be a supportive, sacrificial friend and brother/sister in Christ to me
Thank you all for reading or watching!
I am grateful for all of you and any support you desire to offer, whether that is encouragement, prayer, or financial support. I am simply a vessel before him with a mission that I believe he wants me to fulfill. Will you prayerfully consider partnering with me?
Wholly in him,
Paul Graves
