Go Now student missionaries commissioned to serve from Arlington to Zambia

“The genius of the Great Commission is that every one of us is entrusted with the Gospel, and we can share it and teach others to share it,” Gary Stidham, BSM Director at the University of Texas at Arlington, shared with a room filled with Go Now student missionaries and their family members on May 21.

Two hundred thirty students were commissioned during the Go Now Missions Commissioning service, held at Dallas Baptist University, with a total of 278 students to serve on mission trips during the summer. The Go Now students completed a weekend of training and orientation in advance of the commissioning.

"It is amazing to see what God is doing with Texas college students,” said Brenda Sanders, Go Now Missions director. “They continue to answer the call to take the Gospel to the peoples of the world. This year, we are scattering them as close as Arlington and as far as Zambia. At our orientation, we focused on our theme verses, 2 Corinthians 5:14-15. The emphasis was on ‘but for Him.’ It is a reminder that as Christ-followers, we no longer live for self, but for Him. This is a lesson we hope becomes a way of life, way beyond their summer or semester of service.”

As Joe Schmidt, BSM Director at Texas A&M University-Commerce, shared his experiences serving as chair of the Go Now sending team this year, he discussed the goal of sending 500 students to serve. This year, through teams sent over Christmas, through special impact teams and summer missions, Go Now will send a total of 538 students, exceeding the year’s goal and marking this the largest number ever sent out.

“God loves the whole world and wants the whole world to know Him,” Schmidt said as he shared how the love of Christ compels Christians to go forth to share the Gospel.

Reflecting on how Go Now missionaries will serve during the summer, Robert Rueda, BSM director at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley, encouraged students to, “Talk less and speak more about Jesus. Always choose God’s power over anything you can do.”

The first group of student missionaries began serving on the field at 5:20 p.m. that day at Mission Arlington in Arlington, Texas. Others loaded vans and headed to the airport to fly out around the world.

“Please pray for our students as they go representing Jesus and Texas Baptists. They are your missionaries.” said Sanders.