MAP Ireland

Apply By December 31st!!

Loving the Community, the Church, and Each Other

“Ireland is a sad, beautiful place.  God crushed our small ideas about what the Christian life is like, and showed us that following Jesus, like Ireland itself, is heart-wrenching and beautiful.  Many of us began a journey of honest struggle that will drastically change the course of our lives.  The value of living life daily in community was inestimable.  It was there we learned how to repent, forgive, confess, and battle for each other’s hearts in prayer.  God brought together disparate cultures and personalities to give us a really poignant picture of the Kingdom.”              ~Michael Chen, medical student

Each summer, a group of college-aged to thirty-something individuals descend on Dublin to work with World Harvest. They are joined by a group of Irish university students and recent graduates, many of whom are some of the only evangelical Christians they know in their age group. These Irish have demonstrated leadership gifts and expressed interest in being involved in the growth of the church in Ireland. All of them need peer support,  desire mentoring, and value practical experience in ministry.

The summer begins with a course of training administered by World Harvest Ireland and MAP team members as well as our national associates, according to Sonship, STIM, and Alliance for Saturation Church Planting principles. The team will meet for 2–3 weeks to listen to lectures, pray, and interact in various training and team-building activities. It’s a time to explore the dynamics of living cross-culturally and how to bring the Gospel to bear in that.

After going through training in Sonship, STIM and Alliance for Saturation Church Planting principles, Americans and Irish are given opportunities for ministry in everything from kids clubs to the arts as they go in teams to live and work in various parts of Ireland. Each team usually has a different focus; all of them come alongside Irish church-planters or Christian workers to further the long-term vision for that community as they love unbelievers, the church, and each other. No two summers are ever the same; no two people have the same experience. The hope is that through the experience, interns will become more aware of the power of the Gospel in their own lives and out of that awareness will be motivated—even compelled—to invite those in the world around them into relationship with God. It’s also a chance to explore the possibilities of God’s calling on their lives through their time on the mission field.

“This summer my faith has become more real to me as I have caught a glimpse of the radical adventure that is the Christian life.  I have felt God’s presence amidst spiritual warfare like never before and I have tasted authentic kingdom-minded community through a mix of both American and Irish believers.  God revealed my sin and His grace to me in Ireland and I am returning home confident of His love for me and for His children.  The internship in Ireland was both my most difficult and most exciting experience I have ever been through, and I would not trade it for anything.” ~Rebecca Giles, student at UVA

For more info, post here or go to: http://www.whm.org/go