Worthwhile
So maybe you’re thinking about joining a Summit team going to Africa this year. Or maybe you’re thinking about sponsoring a child. Or maybe you just find yourself thinking about Summit’s partnerships in Africa but you’re not exactly sure why.
My hope for you is that you wouldn’t ignore this feeling, but that you would explore what God might be saying to you through it.
We live in a time where there is no shortage of causes to care about. As one who regularly follows current events, I know I am confronted almost daily with worthwhile causes I could spend my life fighting for. So in one sense, it’s never been easier to find a worthy cause and take steps toward fighting for it.
But the flip-side is the quantity. The sheer quantity of worthwhile causes is daunting. More than daunting, it can become paralyzing.
If you find yourself more often in a paralyzed state than one motivating you to action, you’re not alone. And while I can’t offer each of you reading this the precise answer, I would like to posit one suggestion that might help some of you.
If you are invested in the Summit community, or if you are at least curious as to what we are all about, perhaps you might allow Summit to help you in taking a next step when all you feel is paralysis.
If you know you want to have an impact somewhere, but you are having trouble deciding where or what to do, maybe just maybe your next right step is to move toward involvement with one of your church’s global partners. I’m not saying this is where you will be committed to serving the rest of your life, but I’m also not ruling it out!
Perhaps another uncertainty is whether or not you can actually make a difference with your limited time and resources. The good news is that one of Summit’s desires is to match good intentions with sound poverty-alleviation strategies.
For example, if you decide to join a team to Africa, you will join a much larger group of people who will be trained in poverty-alleviation strategies and appropriate cultural preparations in the months leading up to your trip.
“...as followers of Jesus we are invited into his ongoing rescue of everything lost and broken in this world.”
Long story short, if you’re feeling some kind of inclination toward involvement with one of Summit’s global partners, don’t ignore it! Consider the fact that as followers of Jesus we are invited into his ongoing rescue of everything lost and broken in this world. We’ve been given the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18–19) and I challenge you to consider what might be the worthwhile cause that pulls you out of paralysis and into action. Perhaps it just might be joining your church as we seek to understand what God would have us learn and do in the continent of Africa. You don’t have to have it all figured out beforehand. The disciples didn’t. And you don’t need to either. You are invited to learn in community alongside us. You are invited to Join Africa.
We would love for you to join us for one of our upcoming Africa Interest Meetings to learn more about what your potential next step may be. And if you can’t make it to any of them or if you’re still not convinced, you should email Nathan Boyett (he's the guy who wrote this blog and he's very kind and helpful and knowledgable and he's also our Global Partnerships Coordinator) at nboyett@summitconnect.org. He'd love to talk with you further and help you to discern if God might be inviting you to Join Africa.