Everyone has a place and role in the Great Commission. God wants to use you for beautiful things! Here are some things you can do right now to start reaching the nations whoever you are, wherever you are.
What works against you in grasping Christ's love for you? When I think about this question, my answers create a long list, sadly. My sin, fear of rejection, not being good enough, not being faithful enough, being a burden, seeing and experiencing broken relationships, feelings of shame.
During my time with Cafe 1040 in Europe, our group navigated the city through a "buddy system," ensuring no one ventured out alone. When a teammate sought a companion for a rendezvous with a girl she had met at a local Korean Festival, I volunteered without hesitation, completely unaware of what God would do from this encounter.
Have you ever wanted to sit down with a Cafe 1040 grad over coffee and hear about their experiences? Each of them has been impacted in a significant way by our overseas mentorship program and has many stories to tell.
Q: If you could summarize Cafe 1040 into one sentence, how would you summarize our program?
A: A semester of a lifetime that broadens your perspective of missions work and bring transformative growth to your walk with the Lord. You truly see God’s heart for the nations, but not how you expect. You see God’s creativity.
Q: Describe an experience you had that impacted the way you thought about missions.
A: We spent some time away from basetown for about a week and it was a really difficult week. It was one of the most difficult weeks of my life. Being secluded in this place. I was not just away from family and friends and things that were comfortable. We were away from our team leaders, language and we were confused with our interactions with locals in our homestays. Walking away from that week highly discouraged, but we were equipped, consoled and we go again. They mentored and prepared us for that spiritually. We were given great guidance and direction. This is a takeaway you can build on.
“The focus shifted off of the things God gives me and instead, to learn how to delight in God for who He is and not what He can do for me. It felt so freeing. I experienced what God has for me and who He is. My view of God got so much bigger and I looked around at these people in this hard place. Throughout the entire semester, I thought, You are way bigger than I thought. I focused on His character and His heart. He started changing my heart to more align with his. He gave me desires and dreams. I experienced so much clarity, so much freedom, and very clear next steps.”
Q: If you could summarize Cafe 1040 into one sentence, how would you summarize our program?
A: I learned that God has a heart for the nations and God has a heart for me and he wants to use me in His greater plan of spreading his glory to the nations.
Q: What would you tell someone who is considering Cafe 1040?
A: The summer going through the program was the most influential of my life. It completely changed the way I viewed God, the world and myself. I believe whole heartily you will leave a different person and when we allow God the opportunity to hear from Him, He shows up. This experience will change the way you experience your relationship with the Lord.
Q: Give us a little background about your testimony/story and how that led you to looking for an organization like Cafe 1040.
A: I grew up going to church, I was saved when I was six years old and I can remember telling my mom that I wanted to be a missionary. I don’t even know where I got that vocabulary or where it started. I just knew I wanted to go and tell people about Jesus.
Q: Give us a little background about your testimony/story and how that led you to looking for an organization like Cafe 1040.
A: Missions was the only thing that was consistently on my heart throughout my life. Once I graduated, I decided I have to figure it out now. I did a short trip to Israel with my church, and I loved the people and the culture. I thought maybe the Lord is calling me to the Middle East. I went to Greece and worked in a refugee camp and loved the experience. I was able to share the gospel with people and see them respond. I tripped over myself so many times. I knew nothing about the culture, so I decided I needed more training. This is where Cafe 1040 came in. I met a guy in my local coffee shop and he told me about Cafe and told me to look into it. I thought that sounds cool, and I love an adventure. I then started to pursue Cafe 1040 for more training.
Q: How/When did you know that God was calling you to missions?
A: I heard the gospel at a young age, but it wasn’t until junior year in high school where the Lord gripped me and I started walking in relationship with the Lord. Shortly after that I felt a strong pull/calling on missions. I started to look at what missions is according to the Bible. What does it look like to do work overseas? Cafe 1040 seemed like a clear next step.
Q: How did you find out about Cafe 1040's program?
A: I looked at several organizations that have 3-month programs. My missions pastor helped me find Cafe 1040.
Meet Abigale – A Grad From South Asia
Q: What was your biggest obstacle that you had to overcome in missions before going through Cafe 1040's program?
A: I was lost because there were so many choices. Every agency has their different systems. I was really looking for the focus of the organization. I was careful to look at the mission’s values and what they believe about the Bible. I knew where I was in my faith and I knew what the Bible said and how the Holy Spirit would guide me to right organization. I looked a countless websites, blog posts, went to the Lord in prayer, along with my parents being involved in the process.
Q: Why did you choose Cafe 1040?
A: “After looking at Cafe 1040, I also explored some other organizations. It was really eye opening for me to see a mentorship is something people actually do. Honestly, the reason I picked Cafe 1040 is I felt heard, and understood and identified with by Cafe, more than other organizations that have similar program.”
