A Word from Our Founder
2023 was filled with stories that showed us the power of love over time. We just need to stay the course. As Paul said to the Corinthians, “love never fails.”
This past week an old neighbor of ours named Carol Carrel tracked me down to share what that means to her. 54 years ago, my mom reached out to her with the message that Jesus loved her, and it changed her life.
“Your mom gave me a paper-backed New Testament that I devoured and came to realize a commitment to Christ. She was crazy, but I liked your mom’s crazy.”
You know, it took me a while to make my mom’s crazy faith my own. It’s that kind of faith that we, at Adventures, seek to impart to a generation that is anxious and searching. They wonder if Jesus can be trusted. We show them he can be.
Over the years we’ve taken more than 160,000 young people on mission, using the experience to teach them to listen to the Lord and to follow his guidance. We’ve shown them that they can make a difference and that life with him is worth living. Our hope is that they will become disciples like Carol Carrel.
Thank you for partnering with us! Thank you for embracing the Great Commission Jesus gave us! The fields are indeed ripe unto harvest in the years to come.
Yours in partnership,
Seth Barnes
Seth Barnes
Adventures in Missions
Beauty for Ashes
God’s transformative love is dismantling hopelessness and women are rejecting lies to embrace God’s truth over their worth and identity. The following are a few examples of numerous women whose lives have been forever changed through Christ at a Beauty for Ashes retreat.
God used this retreat to help me forgive and heal wounds that I had for a long time. The Lord Jesus reminded me of my identity and how valuable I am to Him. The dynamic of praying, drawing and then sharing what God and the precious Holy Spirit brought to my heart was a great blessing and very healing for me. I thank God for this beautiful ministry.
Some of the retreat attendees weren’t even believers but were drawn to the opportunity to get real, breathe deep, and build community. By the end of the retreat SO many of the women expressed an interest in taking the next step towards Jesus. What a joy to be a part of what God is doing!
I am immensely grateful for this life-changing experience, as it has profoundly shaped my understanding of my spiritual path. With God’s love as my guide, I am committed to being a dedicated leader, worship leader, walking alongside other women on their journey of faith. I eagerly look forward to embracing this sacred calling of God and embracing God’s will in all aspects of my life.
World Race Expedition
In 2023, our World Race Expedition participants served alongside our long-term strategic partners in 9 different countries, including Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Romania, Albania, Turkey, Jordan, Thailand, Eswatini and South Africa. These World Racers are finishing their year-long journey with a deep desire and passion to reach people for the Kingdom of God wherever they go next.
We are seeing a higher level of leadership qualities coming out of these Alumni Expedition Racers. Many of them are continuing their journeys with us by leading new World Race squads or joining us at Center for Global Action (our discipleship training program). We are also seeing an increase of desire within our alumni to go back on the field as long term missionaries, which is a huge win to us!
World Race Gap Year
In May, we sent Gap participants to our AIM base in Fort Myers, Florida. They worked alongside our Disaster Relief ministry which brought restoration to well over 100 homes last year. The teams saw not only homes restored but also many lives changed as they hit the streets evangelizing and having worship nights on the beach. We even had an on-looker sign up for the Race after meeting the teams on the beach!
In October, Gap Year launched another 97 Racers and leaders to the nations after six weeks of training at our headquarters in Gainesville, GA and with our domestic partners in Kentucky and Florida. We continue to see great fruit with our extended training model! Through teaching, team building, debriefing, and discipleship, Gap Racers are more equipped to serve globally.
World Race Semesters
Semesters also had an incredible year and saw some amazing fruit from their ministry. Our participants have continued to come open and hungry for God to move both in their lives and also among those they serve.
The Semesters program continues to grow. In 2022, Semesters made up 20% of all World Racers launched. In 2023, Semesters jumped to almost 45% of all participants! Gen Z wants to go on missions with Jesus. We’re finding that they may just need a shorter trip to experiment with missions first. Praise God!
Another highlight for Semesters is our Alumni 10/40 trips. These have been hugely successful both in participant interest but also in Kingdom fruit. We now launch these trips twice a year due to an increase in our alumni wanting to continue their mission training. Even more specifically, they are wanting to work within unreached people groups.
238 World Racers sent to 16 locations!
Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Romania, Albania, Turkey, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Egypt, Eswatini, South Africa, Lesotho, Thailand, Cambodia, India, Nepal, & Vietnam.
Egypt
Dominican Republic
Guatemala
Romania
Albania
Turkey
Jordan
Kyrgyzstan
Eswatini
South Africa
Lesotho
Thailand
Cambodia
India
Nepal
Vietnam
Continuing Ministry in South Asia
Our team in South Asia continued to work alongside local staff to encourage, support, and lead our nearly 400 National Missionaries who continue planting churches in this region. As religious tensions have grown, the NMs lessened their use of street evangelism and started hosting more Bible studies in people’s homes. This has allowed them to minister unreached people with the Gospel as safely as possible. We opened 3 more Care Points, making a total of 4 for now. At these locations, more than 100 children receive daily tutoring, meals, and discipleship. We also re-vamped our partnership with a local church to take local teams on monthly mission trips to the villages.
Family Strengthening at Adventures in Missions Eswatini
Adventures in Missions’ Eswatini Base is broadening its focus beyond our Care Points and individual survival care. Our efforts now aim to enhance the lasting holistic well-being of the children we support by empowering and strengthening each participating family.
At our Umdoni Campus, we are dedicated to making a positive impact on communities by offering comprehensive family empowerment initiatives. Here, families, caregivers, and community members can access a secure and enriching learning environment that fosters personal development and provides practical training opportunities, ultimately paving the way for brighter futures.
We hosted our Eswatini Partners Conference in November at our main offices in Gainesville, GA. The theme of the conference was “Bigger Dreams”. Partners came from all over the U.S. and we even had a few from Canada! It felt like a family reunion and it was neat to see people connecting through their common passion for Eswatini.
There were so many stories shared as we not only celebrated what God has done, but also dreamed together of what the future may hold. Our conference guests were the first to see a sneak preview of a heartwarming documentary about one of our beloved staff members that grew up attending a Care Point. The film gave a glimpse of this young man’s struggles and dreams. This young man, as well as six of our Swazi leaders were able to attend the conference.
Our Eswatini Base Director, Bheki Motsa, and his wife were also in attendance. It was such a highlight to hear our Swazi leader’s perspectives about ministry and to get to know them on a more personal level.
Students from the Swaziland Leadership Academy were asked to compile an essay of God’s dream for their lives. Many of these essays, along with a picture of the student, were displayed at the conference. Partners enjoyed reading the dreams of these
amazing students.
We know that God is able to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we ask or think.
(Ephesians 3:20). We believe in His Bigger Dreams for Eswatini!
Hineni Immersion in Missions at Adventures Guatemala
In Guatemala, a dedicated group of Christians is on a mission to transform their nation from being recipients of missions to becoming active senders.
Adventures Guatemala has launched the Hineni Immersion in Missions program, an 18-month mission training initiative. This program not only equips participants with knowledge about missions but also nurtures their spiritual growth. It provides a unique opportunity for them to apply what they learn in real-time.
In 2021, the inaugural class of Hineni began with just five students, marking the beginning of a remarkable journey. The impact of God’s work among these emerging missionaries is evident, and it marks a promising start, setting the stage for a bright future.
