Youth With A Mission and the 4-14
For Such A Time As This
Introduction:
Youth With A Mission (YWAM) is placed in a position and posture to fuel the 4/14 Movement for such a time as this. Like the orphan Queen Esther was uniquely positioned to make a difference in her day, so YWAM is in our day. The key biblical reference, Esther 4:14 matches the 4/14 Movement not only in the numbers 4/14 but also in the motif. Mentor Mordecai challenged the orphan queen with the words "for who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?"1 There was a window of opportunity then to change the world at the time of Esther. So there is a window of opportunity today to change the world: the 4/14 Window.
God has divine purposes to accomplish in this world through people at appointed times. For Esther, the orphan who had become queen, the word came from her uncle, "Perhaps you have come to royal position for such a time as this," Esther 4:14. There are several reasons to believe that Youth With a Mission (YWAM) prioritizing missional focus on the 4/14 Window could make a difference in our time.
As servant catalysts in the 4/14 Movement, Doris and I readily responded to the invitation from our friends, Jim and Judy Orred, to come to Kona to bring focus on the 4/14 Window for the weekly 'Ohana Gathering' meeting. On March 15, this meeting comprised around 600 staff and students from 47 nations, as well as family and guests from abroad and the local community. Jim chairs the YWAM Kona leadership team.
As we heard the heart of YWAM co-founders, Loren and Darlene Cunningham, and many others serving at the YWAM base in Kona we became increasingly convinced that YWAM has a unique catalytic contribution to make to the 4/14 Global Initiative to raise up a new generation from the 4/14 Window to transform the world. In fact, we see that YWAM could have been raised up to the position it has today as the largest long-term mission agency in the world today operating from more than 600 bases with an additional 800 locations where university registered courses are taught totaling 1400 operating locations with more than 25,000 full time missionaries engaged in training, mercy ministries and evangelism.
At the 'Ohana Gathering Luis shared from Joel 2:28 as quoted by the Apostle Peter on the Day of Pentecost "In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams."2 The 4/14ers will play a major role in global mission in the end times, expounding God's view and end-visioning the future with the help of the Holy Spirit and generational links. "As the founders of Youth with a Mission--this ever-expanding global ‘movement of ministry organizations,' which has reached into every nation, Loren and Darlene Cunningham embody Joel 2:28 as generational links to a mighty emerging movement of the Holy Spirit in and through a younger generation. Prophesy is all about bringing God's viewpoint to earthly matters." Luis noted that one of those young men was a 21 year old--in fact when he was 20--he saw a vision--while traveling in the Bahamas--of waves on the shorelines of the continents on a world map, growing bigger and bigger, covering the landmass which changed from waves to young people covering the continents talking to people about their faith. That young person was Loren Cunningham. Youth with a Mission was born shortly after. As we listened to the co-founders, elders, department and project leaders and day by day decision makers there was a growing awareness in our hearts and minds that God is up to something and it is the raising up of YWAM for such a time as this to reach, rescue, root in God's Word and raise up a new generation from the 4/14 Window to transform the world for the following reasons:
- Call and Recall Missional Ministry to the Children Priority Focus
- Media Ministry Highway to the Culture of the 4/14ers of our Day
- YWAM Intercession for the 4/14 Window in the Personal Prayer Diary for 2012
- Justice Advocacy Attracts the 4/14ers
- Infusion Integrating Incoming 4/14ers and Youth Increases
- King's Kids Connection
- Seven Spheres Curriculum Catalyze 4/14ers to Maximize their Transformational Impact
- Future Fusion Fueled by Circles, Cycles, Circuits & Omega Zones
I. Call and Recall Missional Ministry to the Children Priority Focus
Darlene Cunningham led the YWAM family gathering on March 15 and told the story about the calling she and Loren had received from God not only to minister to the children but also to prioritize missional focus on the children. "This was the ethos at the beginning but through the years we lost this. Three years ago at the Global Leadership Forum, which took place in Fiji, after a time of prayer there was agreement as expressed by several people in the room, that the call had been forgotten and it was time to take it up again."
That same morning Darlene had shared with us that she recalled that prayer time at the Global Leadership Forum in Fiji that God was speaking to us about conviction and correction. We need to pick up. It's time to issue a call to the YWAM family for priority focus of the 4/14ers with intentionality in every ministry of YWAM. These words that speak to the future were spoken with heart felt passion by Darlene.
II. Media Ministry Highway to the Culture of the 4/14ers of our Day
The Kony2012: Invisible Children video was viewed more than 80 million times in only thirteen days since it was uploaded to the Internet on March 5, 2012 (www.kony2012.com). It is a film and campaign by Invisible Children that aims to make Joseph Kony famous to raise support for his arrest. The Kony 2012 campaign sank under scrutiny soon after, but not before the video went viral like no other piece has ever done because it connected with the culture of our day and especially the youth.
It was shown following the YWAM family gathering on March 15. In addition, the interview of Joseph Kony by YWAMer Sam Farmer, was shown. In fact, Sam Farmer is reported to be the only person known to interview Joseph Kony. One reason for that could well be the intentionality of YWAM's media ministry to be on the spot to tell the news. In so doing they not only influence the sphere of media but they also build a highway to the culture of our day through the media.
Media is highly influential among the 4/14ers of today. They have increasingly become the focus of media advertising firms promoting their material products as well as places to eat and gambling in Macau. Media is the primary coping mechanism for stress among youth. The Internet is easily accessed.
Directing the media ministry for YWAM David Cunningham, the son of Loren and Darlene, made many people stop and listen to a different point of view as a producer in Hollywood sometimes creating a stir in so doing (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_L._Cunningham). His film To End All Wars(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/To_End_All_Wars) performed well at several Film Festivals.
When we met with Loren he asked the question: "Did you hear about the grasshoppers?" Indeed we had! David had explained to us the day before that the grasshoppers was the name for children of ten years old who were being trained to tell the news. At a time when there is more influence today among the youth though the media than through their own parents YWAM's media moves are building a communication highway to the next generation of leaders who will change the world. One of the new initiatives is the action comic on David due to go public around 4/14 (April 14) (http://www.lionofwar.com/new/motioncomic/). It will speak directly and dramatically to the truth told in the anchor verse of the 4/14 Movement, Psalm 8:2. "Through the praise of children and infants you have established a stronghold against your enemies, to silence the foe and avenger."
Why is this innovative media project so strategic to the 4/14 Initiative? When young David left the sheep following his father's orders, to bring gifts from home for his elder brothers, David sees Goliath defying the ranks of Israel and how all the Israelites ran away in great fear. He offers himself to fight the giant when he hears about this. Tall King Saul scolds the diminutive David, "Don't be ridiculous!" "There's no way you can fight this Philistine and possibly win! You're only a boy." "You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are only a boy." But, as we read in Psalm 8:2, God chose a boy from the 4/14 Window on whose lips he built a stronghold. God revealed it to David himself, the human author, in Psalm 8:2 "In the lips of a child God established strength." Despite the fact that David was scorned by his own older brother, ridiculed by his own king, Saul of Israel, and mocked by the giant Goliath of Gad for only being a boy he won the battle against the Giant.
III. YWAM Intercession for the 4/14 Window in the Personal Prayer Diary for 2012
In December 2011, Tom Bragg, Director of YWAM Publishing wrote: "For over thirty years, YWAM Publishing has had the privilege of publishing the Personal Prayer Diary and Daily Planner. Currently, over 40,000 Christians worldwide join in God's work in the world through vital intercession for the nations using this comprehensive resource. For 2012, we are especially excited about our focus on the 4/14 Window." The Personal Prayer Diary and Daily Planner for 2012 incorporated "The 4/14 Window: Raising Up a New Generation" as anchor article. Likewise the Spanish and Portuguese editions by different publishers with distributions of 30,000 and 20,000, included the article and focus on the 4/14 Window.
With so many tens of thousands interceding in the worldwide family of YWAM for the 4/14 Window in 2012 it would be within the realm of possibility that the vision and the burden to focus YWAM ministries of all kinds in all places on the 4/14 Window would emerge as an answer to prayer. YWAM, you have been raised up for such a time as this. As the 2012 Prayer Guide makes clear, we should prioritize our missional focus on the 4/14 Window because it is a vast unmobilized demographic ripe for the harvest.
"Every Christ follower in every community and nation—even children and youth—are called to involvement in Christ's transformational mission. In the Bible, 4/14ers like Samuel, David, Josiah, Esther, and Jeremiah were used by God to enact great transformation. Jesus Himself loved and used children in his ministry, such as the young boy with the five loaves and two fish (John 6:9). Jesus flipped the world's view upside-down: He saw children as the spiritual pacesetters for adults. They modeled what His Kingdom was all about. "Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it" (Mark 10:15).
IV. Justice Advocacy Creatively Attracts the 4/14ers
Advocates for justice for children taps into the 4/14ers missional concern of today regardless of whether they are Christian or not. Human nature cares that its defenseless little ones are made slaves and forced to fight in armies over causes not their own, at the cost of their own lives. It expresses the heart of mission of Jesus as stated in Luke 4 to release the oppressed rooted in God's revelation from the book of Isaiah as in "He will give justice to the poor," (Is. 11:4); in which as the servant "He will bring justice to the nations," (Is. 42:1) and "He will bring justice to all who have been wronged" (Is. 42.3) and "He will not falter or lose heart until justice prevails throughout the earth" (Is. 42:4). Jesus stated mission included setting the captives free. In today's world an estimated twenty seven million human beings are kept as slaves, mainly in the sex trade and many of those children.
PhotogenX is one of the creative means for advocating justice that appeals to all, including children. New Zealander Paul Childers, with his photographer wife Susie, has published books; a prayer guide for thirty days of prayer for the voiceless speaking on behalf of those cannot really speak for themselves. Seventy thousand copies of an English edition were printed with photographs calling the body of Christ to engagement in this same concern that was the passion of Jesus. (See interview at www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPUNSy1qurk)
V. Infusion Integrating Incoming 4/14ers and Youth Increases
YWAM's program called Infusion attracts thousands of thirteen to fourteen year olds for two weeks to tackle topics such as the Father's heart, Jesus is Lord, who the Holy Spirit is, and what living out the Kingdom looks like. Each year these 4/14ers join and integrate older teens seeking after God and His will for their lives. The older teens are those on the planet most able to positively influence the 4/14ers as they live in their culture and understand their language while being often regarded as heroes to the younger teens.
Infusion speaks beyond a program to a reality of unprecedented growth of this ever-expanding global "movement of ministry organizations," which has reached into every nation. Entering YWAM normally involves signing up for a DTS (Discipleship Training School) or other course in the largest non-formal university in the world called the University of the Nations.
The screen on one wall in the Gateway shows the number of incoming students interested in coming to the Kona base to take a DTS course or some other course who are online (blue), pending acceptance (pink), to be interviewed (yellow) and accepted (green).
Gateway and Crown (Christ Revealed on World Networks) Ministries led by Chong Ho Won, a former IT executive, along with a team of highly qualified people who have committed themselves as IT missionaries to provide a gateway to crowning ministries, have successfully gone from a paper office four months ago to a paperless picture perfect visual presentation of each person who enters the University of the Nations and training courses at YWAM's Kona location. The photograph, address and phone number for each of those who are accepted into one of YWAM's many programs flashes on the screen. Chong Ho Won told us that it reminds each person at Gateway and Crown Ministries that every person counts.
Among other promptings for upgrading to this remarkable new system to track of people entry through the gateway committed to God's mission was a vision of 200,000 people coming for training to the University of the Nations for diverse Christian organizations on God's mission in the nations. YWAM leaders views themselves not as a mission organization or mission agency but rather an international movement of Christians from many denominations dedicated to presenting Jesus personally to this generation, to mobilizing as many as possible to help in this task, and to the training and equipping of believers for their part in fulfilling the Great Commission. As citizens of God's kingdom, called to love, worship, and obey our Lord, to love and serve His Body, the Church, and to present the whole Gospel for the whole person throughout the whole world.
Several we talked with expressed anticipation that there is a fresh wave of people coming who want to prepare to serve among the nations. A university based mobile DTS is being prepared to train 25,000 students beginning in January 2013.
There are a growing number of partnerships with other ministries such as the South Pacific partnership for the purpose of Bible translation and Call to All.
VI. King's Kids Connection
The largest of YWAM's Ministries is King's Kids International ministry which was launched thirty six years ago by Dale Kauffman and has grown in numbers and maturity. KKI / King's Kids International is a ministry of "Youth With A Mission" that serves in partnership with families, churches and other like-minded organizations. King's Kids is an international movement, embracing a Kingdom lifestyle that is family-based and generationally linked.
The purpose of King's Kids is to care for, reach, equip and mobilize children, youth and families into their destiny of knowing God, bringing Him joy, making Him and His Kingdom known. They value relationship with God as a first priority by growing to know Him intimately and by bringing Him joy. They value discipleship training in the context of everyday life.
They value the spiritual capacity and destiny of children, preteens and teenagers. They value the family and the linking of the generations. They value team leadership, networking and partnerships. They value a lifestyle of reaching out by making Jesus and His Salvation known to all peoples, serving in ways that can extend His Kingdom into all spheres of society worldwide.
VII. Seven Spheres Curriculum Catalyze 4/14ers to maximize their transformational impact
The development of a curriculum for 4/14ers to maximize their transformational impact in the seven spheres of cultural influence in society was worked by YWAM-King's Kids International leader Yarley Nino with Lyssette Ruiz titled: Transforming Nations – Discipling the 4/14 Generation.
The curriculum is designed to transform nations through well trained 4/14ers. They seek to provide educational material based on Biblical Worldview of the spheres of cultural influence in society. Designed to be taught in a seven day camp the sessions are highly participatory giving Biblical foundations for entering each of the spheres of cultural influence in society.
The training consists of topics such as: Christian character and the spiritual capacity of children and Self-Government based on the teachings of Dale Kauffman and missional goals per sphere of cultural influenced based on Landa Cope's Deuteronomy Template. (www.technoheaven.com/bi/zBI-Old Testament Template.doc) They are witnessing the work of the Holy Spirit bringing revival in the lives of children, adolescents, youth and adults in Panama and transformation of a community in Colombia. They have given the course in Hong Kong.
VIII. Future Fusion Fueled by Circles, Cycles, Circuits & Omega Zones
As we met with Loren Cunningham for an hour at his home on March 17th we talked about the past for some time, then about the present including the vision for the release of children as change agents using the grasshoppers as an example.
Then he shared his heart about the future of YWAM with reference to Circles, Cycles, and Circuits and then about Omega Zones. As he talked I saw a future involving the fusion of many ministries over many years fueled by intentional missional engagement in greater breadth and depth in and through Circles, Cycles, and Circuits and then about Omega Zones. These geographical units are called Omega zones because YWAM wants Jesus - who is the Alpha and Omega - to be known in every part of the earth. For more information link to http://4kworldmap.com. In our conversation he expressed a vision for a YWAM presence in every one of the Omega zones around the world.
The picture of the circles, cycles, and circuits emerged the first morning after the YWAM 50th anniversary celebrations of 2010 ended. He talked to us in some detail the geographical layout of the circuits and need and plans for forty more naval vessels to use. In the 2011 Global Leadership Forum gathering Loren presented the vision as a way to steward the future growth of YWAM. "John Dawson explains that Loren spoke about circles of purposeful relationship, which could include existing groupings within YWAM, such as mercy ministry or frontier missions, but could also include YWAMers working within the spheres, such as in the area of education. He also talked briefly about circuits of geography, and cycles of time. He said this three-fold model could allow for tremendous expansion of YWAM's ministry. The circles and circuits and cycles, they're going to enable us to multiply greatly."
Conclusion:
Youth With A Mission is positioned to enhance and energize the 4/14 Movement for such a time as this.
Recent President of the Evangelical Fellowship of Mission Agencies, Paul McKaughan, who has served as a member of our accountability/support committee for more than twenty five years made this statement about YWAM in the mid-1990's: "It is probably the most significant seed bed for leadership in the Christian movement today and indeed is the largest long term mission agency in the world. So many people of vision now in pastorates and other leadership positions have been impacted by and have come out of that ministry. It is this that makes YWAM one of, if not the most influential movement in our Christian world today. The question becomes can they sustain it as they mature in the 21st?" In our view not only have they sustained their momentum but they have surpassed the expectations of years gone by.
It is our conviction that prioritizing their missional focus on the 4/14 Window in the next phase of their ministry YWAM will maximize their positive transformational impact in the nations and omega zones of this world.
References
- The Holy Bible: New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Es 4:14). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
- The Holy Bible: New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Ac 2:17). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.