Summer’s over and classes are beginning! What an exciting time of year as kids and college students return to their campuses for another year. At GoCorps, summer’s a time where there’s a little bit of everything happening. Some staff were fundraising, one was on sabbatical, we did a week training in Chicago, our coaching team tracked with 18 Goers getting ready for GoWeek 2, and the mobilization team dreamed about new recruiting ideas for 2023-2024! And now, the students who are the class of 2024 are all arriving to campus to begin their senior year. So, here we go…

In this update:
>>. New Goer Story Vid!
>> Goer visit report from Berlin!
>> The Latest: Staff Training in Chicago!

Goer Story Video
In this month’s story, Goer Cassy, a dancer using her degree in the Middle East and Europe, shares about the time God prompted her to say something very specific to a total stranger. Was it really God that told her? What do you do in those types of situations? Watch the video and learn Cassy did and what happened!

Return to Berlin:  The Power of Friendship by Goer alum Melody Dillon
About Melody: Melody is a dance performance major from Belhaven University who served as a Goer from 2017-2019 using her degree alongside a Christian artist collective.

Last month, I visited many of our Goers currently serving in Berlin, Germany. Thanks to our media coordinator, Jamie, we were able to film interviews with these Goers about their experiences so far and listened to them tell stories about their time. What I noticed after listening to all of these stories, is that they all began with a posture of friendship. Over and over, I heard these Goers say things like, "We got to know each other during language school and last week we prayed together for the first time."

I served in Berlin as a Goer from 2016-2018 and I was also able to reconnect with an old friend while I was there. This is a friendship that developed towards the end of my time in Berlin and we weren’t really able to keep in touch long-distance, so I was looking forward to seeing her again. Unbeknownst to me, this friend had been in a season of deconstructing and questioning her faith and theology. She still believed in God, but she was disentangling herself from a lot of damaging theology she’d once been taught. As we discussed our beliefs and I listened to her process her thoughts and feelings, she told me that she hadn’t talked about these things with anyone. After growing uncomfortable at her own church, she had no other Christian friends to turn too and was desperate for a friend that would listen, understand, and offer compassion and encouragement.

As Goers are all young adults, they are uniquely positioned to build close friendships with a variety of people of all ages. Something so normal, making friends with someone, is often what then leads to authentic Gospel interactions where Goers can share hope, truth, and the love of Christ with their friends. Sometimes the work our Goers do seems simple, but building authentic relationships with people and always being open to wherever a conversation may lead is a hugely powerful ministry. It was such an encouraging reminder to see how that is still happening for our Goers every week. And I was also grateful that God allowed me to have that one simple conversation with my friend, that helped her continue to realize how deeply God loves her.

Melody (second from the left in front row) and staff Jamie (back row on far right) hanging out with some of our Goers and alums in Berlin in July
 

The Latest: Staff Training in Chicago

A week ago, 11 of the GoCorps staff gathered in downtown Chicago for 5 days of training and team building. 4 of our staff are brand new this year, so it was an important time to be able to get on the same page regarding the overall messaging and vision of GoCorps. We took a boat tour, spent on day on the campus of Wheaton College (one of our partnering campuses), and also got the chance to spend the afternoon with the staff of One Collective, one of our main mission organization partners. We had a blast and everyone returned home with a ‘clear mental picture of what could be’ and also 'the conviction that it should be!’

We had a blast spending a whole day on Wheaton’s campus learning about their rich missions history and praying for the class of 2024 and beyond!

We couldn’t do this work without your support!  Thank you for your investment and encouragement!