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Mission 2020 Resources

In January 2020, 225 people gathered in Orlando, Florida, for a festival to the goodness of God. This event, Mission 2020, celebrated RCA Global Mission’s rich heritage and the thousands of people who have been reached with the love of Christ through RCA mission efforts. Attendees were invited into dozens of stories from mission areas around the world, and they were encouraged to pray, give, and go in response to God’s work around the world today.

During Mission 2020, participants attended one of several workshops and took part in discussions particular to that topic. Together, they imagined the future of RCA Global Mission. The feedback gleaned from Mission 2020, available here in a PDF report, is shaping the future of mission and how RCA Global Mission continues to engage the world.

Whether or not you attended Mission 2020, we’ve gathered videos, resources, and snapshots here for you so that, together, we can continue to imagine God’s future for RCA Global Mission and live out Christ’s call to go and make disciples of all nations.

Mission 2020—Celebrate our past. Imagine God’s future.

Three great days. Watch the highlights.

Keynote: The Puff of Dust

JP Sundararajan, previous director of RCA Global Mission, shared that every great RCA Global Mission story, from the very beginning, has involved tragedy, pain, and great suffering. But through the dust that the world has and continues to spew at us—the obstacles trying to thwart the gospel—God has been and is still at work.

“Stand with us, squint into the puff of dust, and from it watch our God breathe new life into this valley of dry bones—377 years and counting,” said Sundararajan.

Collaborative Artwork

Woven into the storytelling at Mission 2020 was the creativity of Joel Schoon-Tanis, an artist from Holland, Michigan, whose own family history includes serving with RCA Global Mission. Through a collaborative art experience, Schoon-Tanis helped Mission 2020 attendees visually represent what makes mission possible and why we do it. The pieces, available here, paint a beautiful representation of sowing seeds and reaping a harvest, while representing that there is still more work to be done.

Plenary Videos

During Mission 2020, 38 missionaries, partners, and experts in their field representing 18 countries shared stories, lead workshops, or spoke on stage. You can watch—or re-watch—plenary sessions here. Then, be sure to check out the next steps section below to discover ways you can get involved.

Mission 2020 Photo Album

There’s lots of joy captured here. Click through to see friendly faces and glimpses of Mission 2020.

Want to learn more about specific RCA Global Mission projects or missionaries? Wondering how you can get involved? Contact mission@rca.org.

Next Steps

Vulnerable Children

Pray: Pray for the staff of Setshabelo Family and Child Services. They sow their lives daily and sacrifice much to place children in loving families and their own communities. Pray for children to receive healing from trauma, abuse, and resource scarcity. Pray for local churches in Botshabelo, South Africa, who are committed to inspire and mobilize the community to be agents of the good news.

Give: For the average cost of a daily visit to Starbucks ($3.05) for 2.5 years, you can give a child a stable family for a lifetime. Consider becoming a Partner in Mission to support the work of Denise Kingdom Grier in Botshabelo. Your church can commit to a Partnership-in-Mission (PIM) share, which provides ongoing support for an RCA Global Mission missionary or partner. Contact Gael at guwera@rca.org to commit to a PIM share or if you have questions.

Go: Join Denise for a vision, learning, and mission trip to South Africa. Experience the history and culture of sisters and brothers who will inspire you to see God at work and return home with a living passion for orphans and vulnerable children. Contact Denise for more information.

Human Trafficking

Pray: For the 40+ million slaves around the world. Pray the Lord would grant them freedom, if not in a physical sense, an emotional and spiritual freedom in the midst of the horror they live in. Pray for the exploiters, perpetrators, and those who purchase sexual services, that their eyes may be opened to the injustice and harm they perpetuate. Pray that they seek a life of restoration and reparation and experience God’s grace in their lives.

Give: Support Jennifer Lucking’s and Bob Abel’s work to help end sex slavery and human trafficking globally. Give time to missionaries and leaders of local organizations to speak to your church and its leaders about the issue of human trafficking.

Sponsor a room in Restorations’ new home by hosting a fundraiser to cover the costs of renovating a specific room in the house. Contact Jennifer for more information.

Go: Become aware of what trafficking looks like in your community and go to gas stations, hotels, and truck stops, etc. to train employees to identify the signs of human trafficking in their context. Establish a group dedicated to specific and regular prayer. Coordinate a volunteer work team to help work on the renovations of Restorations’ first home.

Global Church Planting

Pray: Pray for church planters around the world. Pray for open hearts, open countries, and endurance through the church planting process. Pray that the churches they are planting will help their members continue to experience the transforming love of Christ. May there be a revival for Christ globally in countries experiencing corruption, social injustice, leadership transition, and political instability.

Give: Support global church planting efforts through RCA Global Mission. We are currently planting churches in Brazil, Nepal, Romania, Thailand, the Netherlands, Hungary, Kenya, and beyond. Give your gift today!

Go: Several of our church planters host vision and mission trips each year. Learn more about these opportunities.

Do you feel called to church planting? Pray with your church and see how God might lead you to be a missionary with the RCA. Contact mission@rca.org for more information.

Disaster Relief

Pray: Pray for individuals who are still recovering from natural disasters. The reality is that it can take years to recover from hurricanes, floods, tornados, and more. Pray that God would provide volunteers to help in relief efforts and the funding to restore homes and communities.

Give: When a natural disaster strikes, the RCA works with our trusted partners domestically and around the world to financially support the rebuilding efforts. Support disaster relief or contact Scott Engelsman for immediate needs.

Go: RCA Short-Term Mission is your connection to serving in areas affected by natural disasters.

Whether you desire to help with the ongoing hurricane rebuilding efforts at St. Thomas Reformed Church or elsewhere, contact the Short-Term Mission team or check out more opportunities.

Least Reached

Pray: Pray for people on the margins who are least reached with the gospel. Pray that those who have no access to a Bible or the gospel would receive it in a way they can understand, and pray that God can use us to help reach them in their heart language. Pray that the church in North America is welcoming and encourages involvement from all believers.

Give: Support the work of WCOI and Chris Briggs at the Caribbean Christian Centre for the Deaf (CCCD).

Go: Visit CCCD and experience mission to the least reached population in Jamaica. Learn more about a trip. Seek opportunities in your own community to reach people who might not have access to the gospel. Be an inviting and intentional church with accessible and inclusive mission. Connect with Terry DeYoung on disability concerns for your church.

Short-Term Mission and Next Generation Engagement

Pray: Pray for God to raise up the next generation of leaders for mission and leadership within the church.

Give: Give to the Next Generation Missional Engagement Fund, which provides scholarships for young people to serve locally and globally. Give to support the Cultivate program. Learn more at www.cultivate.rca.org.

Go: Invite young people to lead in your church. Join a Growing Young cohort through the RCA to create systemic changes in your church. Encourage a young person you know to serve in mission with Cultivate.

Refugees and Displaced People

Pray: Pray for God’s peace in conflicted nations and regions in the world and for safety of every person who is forced to flee their home. Pray that the body of Christ in every part of the world will extend hospitality to refugees and displaced people.

Give: Financially support RCA missionaries ministering with refugees and displaced people, including JJ TenClay  and Nancy and Shelvis Smith-Mather.

Donate new and gently used clothing and housewares to local refugee resettlement agencies.

Go: Volunteer with agencies who provide services to immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. Work with JJ TenClay to discern how God might be calling you, your congregation, classis, regional synod, or community to care for refugees and displaced people. (Contact: jjtenclay@rca.org.)

Advocate for your neighbors and welcome refugees, immigrants, and asylum seekers. Discover specific ways to do that.