This is my plan to transform the nation.
I am a local church leader and I have worked with students over the past seven years. In that time our student work has gone from 3 to 70. But students are a transient people group so we have seen over 150 students come through our church community, be part of our small groups and receive what we have invested in them. It has been a privilege to be able to do this for so many.
As I look back over the last seven years I am encouraged by the expansive breadth of society we have sent these young adults into. I recently asked some of them what they are doing with their lives. It's fair to say that we have more teachers than artists in Florence, but below are a few of the jobs that people are doing. Notice how they cover the seven main sectors of society.
Arts & Entertainment: Museum Worker, Full Time Artist in Florence, Theatre Company Director
Business: Cafe Manager, Actuary, Management Consultant, Recruitment Consultant, Product Designer.
Education: PHD, Maths Lecturer, Teacher, Teaching Assistant, President of Teach First, Language Tutor, Researcher
Family/Health: Youth Worker, Midwife, Psychologist, Families Worker, Nurse, Psychiatrist.
Government: Local Council, Manager in Forestry Commission, Senior Civil Servant, International Development Worker, Chief Exec of Theos (Christian Think Tank), Campaign Coordinator (Campaign to End Loneliness).
Media: Documentary Maker at Channel 4, Runner for TV company, Performance Manager, Graphic Designer.
Religion: Missionaries to North Africa, Brazil & Bangladesh, Account Manager at CAP (Christians Against Poverty), Aid Worker in Sudan, Student Worker, Fusion Team, Chief Exec of Besom York.
Little did we know that as we welcomed those scruffy students, who usually arrived late and often didn't say much, that they would go on to be such important leaders in society. This is now my plan to change the nation.
We are only normal people in a simple church. But we have the audacity to believe that if we partner with what our Father God is doing, we can do outrageous things that would be impossible without him. If there is anyone out there who would like to see this nation transformed for Jesus, can I suggest you do one or both of the following:
1. Welcome students into your church, take risks on them, invest in them and release them into the workplace as missionaries.
2. Prepare and send your young people to university as missionaries through Fusion's Student Linkup.
This is my plan to change a nation. Work with, invest in, disciple, sharpen, equip and release students to be bringers of God's Kingdom on earth for the rest of their lives. Want to join in?
