CRC Ministries Join Local Church in Trip for Justice

When Ezra Craker decided to go on a mission trip to Nicaragua this summer, his goal wasn’t to do volunteer work or bring the gospel to local residents.  Instead, he went to learn.

“It was our intention to listen to the people in Nicaragua and it was fully set up for us to learn from them,” said Craker, a young adult who attends Madison Square Christian Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, Mich.

“It was important for us to go with humility and open ears, acknowledging that the gospel was very present in Nicaragua already.”

Craker was one of eight young people and five adults who made the trip to Nicaragua in mid June to visit various organizations and programs, many with ties to the CRC.

Various CRC ministries and offices were able to partner with Madison Square CRC to make this Nicaragua Listening and Learning Trip possible. They included the Office of Social Justice, Faith Formation Ministries, Christian Reformed World Missions, and World Renew. Each of these ministries brought different dimensions and resources to those going on the journey.

“We have traditionally shied away from a mission trip abroad because we did not want to perpetuate the idea that we would be taking the gospel to others,” said Christy Knetsch, youth director for Madison, which is a multi-site church with three campuses..

“Instead, we wanted to send our young people to have an experience where they were intentional to go and see where God was already at work in and through leaders who were called to join God in the work of transformation.”

With this goal in mind, they began a process that led them to seek the help of the Nehemiah Center in Nicaragua. They also contacted OSJ, which agreed to participate in the trip and connected Madison with other ministries and resources both in Nicaragua and Grand Rapids.

In the process, a partnership between one CRC congregation and different denominational ministries was formed — a partnership that OSJ and others would like to see replicated by other churches.

“It was inspiring to see how all of this came together for young people to holistically learn how to do justice and how to live out that calling as a lifestyle,” said Paola Fuentes Gleghorn, communications specialist for OSJ and Faith Formation Ministries.

“I’d love for other congregations to think about creative and experimental ways in which they can learn about doing justice like this.”

Fuentes Gleghorn, who grew up as the daughter of missionaries in Nicaragua, led the seven-day trip, during which participants visited a school for special needs students as well as a program that works to bring women out of a life of prostitution.

In addition, they spoke and learned from missionaries and pastors at work in different ministries in the country and to business people who represent Christ in the marketplace.

“We were very intentional on the trip about learning and listening and asking questions as to how people in Nicaragua are working to bring about justice,” said Fuentes Gleghorn.

“We also wanted to see if there any parallels between how God is at work in Nicaragua and what God is doing at home in Grand Rapids. We went with the idea of developing a vision of us all working together to better serve the church.”

Before they went, they spent time studying from Changed for Life, a new resource put out by OSJ, World Renew, World Missions, and several other CRC and Reformed Church in America ministries.

Written by those who have years of experience in short-term missions, Changed for Life provides materials for participants to use in preparing for a trip and then offers resources and suggestions to help them sort through the experience once they come home,

For instance, when they returned, several of the youth spoke at a gathering of how the trip impacted them. One recent high school graduate, said Fuentes Gleghorn, told the group how deeply moved she was by visiting the home for special needs students.

“She said she saw what they were doing and she is now thinking of studying special education in college and working at a school like that when she graduates,” said Fuentes Gleghorn.

Also as part of the church’s summer-long focus on justice, the entire youth group at Madison used Live Justly, a resource developed by CRC agencies and Micah Challenge USA, for their summer Bible study.

Ezra Craker, who helped to lead the study, said he tried to use what he experienced in Nicaragua to apply it more broadly to all of the youth at Madison.

“We had a hands-on experience with justice issues on the trip and saw how people were addressing them in real ways,” he said. “The Live Justly curriculum is helpful because of all the specific ways it talks about justice and how we can take part in that.”

Christy Knetsch said another connection between Madison and denominational programs came this summer as members of the youth group accompanied her to take part in a Blessing, Not a Burden event sponsored by OSJ.

The event allowed a number of people to tell their stories about how immigrants are bringing different blessings to the Grand Rapids community. After that, Knetsch and her husband, Brad, a pastor at Madison, preached on immigration.

“If it weren’t for our denomination’s commitment to providing both biblically-focused education as well as opportunities to act in solidarity with those who are oppressed,” said Knetsch, “we would not have had these resources to equip or our congregation, particularly our young people, with the tools to put their faith into action.”