GO Missions in North QLD are investing in our future leaders
When SU’s GO Missions first began in 1996, it came from a dream to connect with local churches and bring the Good News to remote and regional communities..
Julie, now 72, has been involved in GO missions across Normanton, Karumba, Georgetown and further afield since 2000 and still has a heart to see the lives of children and young people across Far North Queensland changed.
“These GO Outreaches are a great way to inspire people to consider ‘mission’ more seriously, and how they can be involved in short-term ministry opportunities,” says Julie.
While GO Missions may vary slightly from one location to the next, they share a few common traits – a team of enthusiastic volunteer leaders from cities and towns who travel to remote and regional communities to run programs that engage children and young people with the Good News of God’s love, says Julie.
“Our team of leaders are predominantly 15-19 year olds, and then you have the directors who are older. Over the last two or three years, we’ve been seeing some older people join the team, which has been fantastic.”
“As much as these missions are for the kids, it’s also about the local Christians in the community; to support and encourage them.”
The leaders will run classes for the kids, as well as games, craft and trivia questionnaires, while exploring a Bible verse for the session.
In some instances, the team will run a night program for the kids and usually the whole community ends up joining in. There’s rarely phone reception in these locations, so it’s a great opportunity to be present and intentional about building meaningful interactions with the young people in these communities.
One leader at last years’ GO Gulf Mission, Elizabeth, saw first-hand the difference a moment of connection can make in a young person’s life.
“At one of the schools we visited, I saw a girl sitting by herself at lunchtime. I felt prompted to talk to her, and she said she was going to be attending boarding school next year at the same school I go to in Cairns. She was so excited to know one person before she started, and I loved the opportunity to build a friendship with her and hopefully make that transition easier,” says Elizabeth.
SU Missions are a great way to show our volunteer leaders that there are Christians everywhere (even in the most remote locations!) and that God is at work.
“Once the leaders see and experience the impact of this work, they can go back to their local communities and share about what they’ve seen. We’ve had leaders travelling all the way from the Gold Coast and Brisbane to be part of it,” says Julie.
If you’d like to be involved in SU’s GO Missions this Summer season, reach out to Julie Arthur by emailing: juliearthur1951@gmail.com.