A Day in the Life of a Quickplacer

Ian flew in from the UK to set up Quickplace for us. Quickplace is like an online forum where people can post comments, be informed about upcoming events, chat, reminders, etc...the options and the benefits of this program seem to be endless! The best thing about Quickplace is that it's completely secure (unlike many web stuff these days...). So, people can post things about certain countries...ahem...I'm not going to mention which ones...and others can look and pray about some of the existing ministries that are going on in these "closed" places. It also allows the Serve Asia Workers to be connected to others that have had similar eye-opening experiences and be able to fuel the flame for Missions :) I was reading an article the other day about short-term missions and whether it induces lasting change in people. Here is what the article had to say:

"Students come down to Honduras for four months and we do our best, with God's help, to share our passion for creating a Honduras and a world more pleasing to God--more just, less poor, and filled with more people truly knowing and serving Him. We have seen many students change their majors and career goals based on their experience. I think the time here is very powerful for all of them. But then they return to the United States, to their busy life with friends, family, studies, a consumerist culture, and churches that do not often emphasize these issues. Their experiences have lent support to my belief that we all need and encouragement and accountability if we're to turn powerful experiences into lasting change. Two students may leave Honduras equally motivated and "changed," but the ones who returns to their old group of friends without staying in touch with their Honduras friends or joining a group with similar interests is unlikely to see much difference after a few months. The ones who stay in touch and get involved in a social justice or mission group on campus will often end up making even more radical changes than they talked about in Honduras. So I think the young person who does a short-term mission trip for only one or two weeks would need even more support in making sure those weaker impulses translate into action."

I know that this is a long article to read, but the content seems to ring so true in the world we are living in today. As an Alumni Coordinator for those returning back from the missions field, I feel that this online community that Quickplace will provide will be so crucial in developing encouragement and accountability to make their Serve Asia Trip lasting. It's very difficult, especially in this generation, for one to grow alone. There needs to be a sense of community, more importantly, a Christian community (online one will do!), in which there's honest discussions, prayer, joint focus on our Lord and a passion to serve His people in East Asia. What potential!