This coming summer and the past summer, I have partnered with SendMeNow missions. Last summer I spent six weeks in Mt. Airy Georgia as a camp counselor at Camp Hawkins. This summer, along with going back to Camp Hawkins,l I will be doing Olympic ministries in Brazil! Maybe if that isn’t interesting enough to you yet, I ought to mention that SendMeNow covers the cost of my entire trip to Brazil. Do I have your attention yet?
SendMeNow is a mission’s opportunity sponsored by the Georgia Baptist Collegiate Ministries. According to the website, “through SendMeNow, students are mobilized to serve God through missions in Georgia, the U.S. and around the world. SendMeNow includes opportunities for the summer and during the semester (Semester Missions). SendMeNow is committed to sending students out to share the Good News of Jesus Christ."
Throughout the year, the GA Baptist Missions Board “creates” a serried of trips ranging from one week to three months. This year alone they had roughly 40 trips for students to go on. Some trips are close to home in Georgia, other as far West as California and others across the globe in South East Asia and South Africa! The part about SMN that I find the most amazing is that the trips are either fully paid for or offer a paid position. That’s right, free. SendMeNow is a unique ministry that gives college students amazing opportunities they otherwise would not have.
How does it work?
I just told you how SMN offer trips with paid positions, and if they aren’t paid that SMN takes care of the cost. You may be thinking that something that incredible must be too good to be true; how can they send me to South Africa or even California for free? Well, through the hard work of your local BCM’s. Throughout the year, the leadership of you campus BCM comes up with unique and exotic ways to raise money. At the beginning of the year, they set a goal for how much they want to raise and go from there. They will do about anything to raise money. They may sell t-shirts, have a missions banquet or formal, do a car wash or my personal favorite a penny war. This year my BCM hosted a penny war where the boys and girl competed to bring in the most change and loose dollars. The losing gender got pied in the face.
Despite your trip is free, it takes a lot of work to raise the money for you to go. So, donate. Whether or not you even go on a trip, give your loose change or big bucks to help your BCM meet their goal!
How do I get chosen for a trip?
In order to participate with SendMeNow missions, you first must apply. The application found on the website opens up around September and closes around December. It has a series of sections with questions about your education, health, spiritual background and mission’s experience. The application is extensive, but definitely worth it. Just don’t wait until the night before the deadline to complete it (like me).
In September, along with the application, the list of trips will released for students to look at and think about what trips they might want to go. This list will be edited and added to as time goes by.
After your application is accepted, you will have a meeting with your campus minister (or pastor if you’re going through your church). In this meeting, you will be asked questions similar to your application. Here your campus minister will do his/her best to gauge if you are mature enough and ready to take on summer missions. ( Not everyone is cut out for SendMeNow, as it is not a free vacation.) If you are selected to participate in SMN you will then attend Discovery Weekend. Here you will be placed in a family group comprised of people you probably won’t know. During the 30 or so hours you have with them, you learn more about the trips and yourself. You will open up to your new family and discover things about yourself you never knew.
At the end of the weekend, you will meet with the campus minister in your family group and narrow down your trip choices. After you leave, all the campus minister’s meet and pray about each of the trips and who they feel should go where. So, even though you have given your list of preferences, they will place you where they feel you would fit best based on the gifts and abilities God has made for you.
Sunday afternoon your campus minister will call you with your placement. You have a short amount of time to decide if you will accept your placement. If you chose to accept your placement (which I hope you will), you will continue with the process of meeting your team, learning about your trip and then finally going!
Why should you participate?
The real question is why would you not participate? You are young, in college and it’s basically free! Most likely, you will never come across an opportunity like SendMeNow again if you pass it up in your college years. Take advantage of this awesome ministry God is using to change the lives of the people going and the people they encounter.
Through SendMeNow, God did some big things in my life. Before going Camp Hawkins (which is a camp for children with special need) I was extremely insecure and felt that I couldn’t do anything. I would freak out when asked to do the simplest of tasks at work. I felt that I had very little social skills and was very reserved. I was also horrible at first impressions. Every time I would meet someone new at BCM or SendMeNow, I was very pessimistic and didn’t want to be friends with any of them. Boy, am I glad God did a work on me.
At Camp Hawkins, I did more last summer than I did in my entire freshman year. After I came back from camp I was a new person. I was confident in the skills and abilities God had given me and I was optimistic to make friends at BCM! So, if for no other reason, participate in SendMeNow in order to grow in every way!
You will meet some of your lifelong friends. I wouldn’t know it when I first met them, but two of the girls I met at Camp Hawkins that went through SMN are now my best friends. God used common passions, and a love for Him to make a bond that will last forever. I am counting down the days until I will be reunited with them! 34 days girls!
Lastly, God knows what He’s doing. Even if you get a trip that wasn’t on your top list, take it, go on it! You will have the time of your life and who knows your life may change forever for the best! I have seen God do big and amazing things through SendMeNow in my own life and the lives of many others.
So...go!
