JEFFERSON CITY – Nearly 80 student missionaries were deployed by the Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) this summer to bring gospel transformation throughout the state.
Seventy-eight college students served in 35 churches and campus ministries, as well as with Missouri Disaster Relief.
“These students are brimming with energy and enthusiasm and are able to be the ‘boots on the ground’ for all kinds of summer ministry initiatives,” said Jason Yarnell, MBC interim director of collegiate ministries and campus missionary at Missouri State University. “We had two summer missionaries serving with us here in my local college ministry and it was such a huge blessing to have hands and feet to carry out a wide range of ministry ideas over the summer.
JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri Baptist collegiate missionaries built friendships with one another while serving at Super Summer in Bolivar and Hannibal. (MBCollegiate photo)
“We are raising up disciples who can invest in others and serve as leaders in our local churches for the rest of their lives,” Yarnell added. “They also have opportunities to verbally share the gospel and see lost people cross over from death to life! Then they return to their campuses (or other Fall environments) super charged to be on mission for Christ.
“A large percentage of the summer missionaries were involved in Super Summer and/or local associational church camps, where they made a huge impact on youth. Many of our summer missionaries led middle school and high school students to Christ, and also got to be a great example of someone who is faithfully following Jesus during their college years.”
Konrad Bradt, a senior at Colorado Christian University preparing for the ministry, returned to Missouri this summer to serve on mission with Parkway Baptist Church, St. Louis. Serving as a youth ministry intern at the church, he taught Sunday school, preached a few sermons, helped at Super Summer and even took part in planning and leading a youth mission trip.
“It definitely gave me some good experience on preaching and preparing a sermon and teaching and getting prepared and making lesson plans,” Bradt told The Pathway. “That’s how God really blessed me this summer. But He also blessed me with the opportunity to go to a Super Summer and go to camp with my youth group and do a mission trip with my youth group.”
MBC student summer missions opportunities are possible because of Missouri Baptists’ generous giving through the Cooperative Program and through the Missouri Missions Offering.
The Cooperative Program (CP) is the funding process Southern Baptists have used since 1925 to support missions and evangelism at the state, national, and international levels. Through CP, the mission of one church is extended to ministries that reach the lost, hungry, and hurting.
The Missouri Missions Offering (MMO) is the annual state missions offering that directly supports around 20 missions projects in Missouri, like summer missions.
To learn more about the MBC’s collegiate summer missions efforts, visit https://mobaptist.org/student-ministries/summer-missions.