In the months that lie before the beginning of a LaunchPad term there are always lots of ideas floating around the LaunchPad office and this month was no exception. During our pursuit of excellence and as we strive to better fulfill the Great Commission, we are always looking for new and creative ways to serve God better. We’re very excited as this month comes to a close and some of those new ideas are about to bear fruit. This term we’ve restructured LaunchPad so that every curriculum includes a time for small group discussion. A novel idea, you might think, but boy is there a lot of logistics that go with a new idea!

After much prayer and seeking (of both the Lord and people) we’ve found a pool of local Basotho students whom are know to be leaders in their schools. This week Kelly, our LaunchPad Director, gets to train them to become Small Group Leaders. As LaunchPad kicks off in a few weeks, they will become known as part of our class leadership and we know God will use them and stretch them mightily!

We’re definitely looking forward to all that God has in store for this second term of the year! So many changes are taking place and I know that God is up to something good!

Matt P., one of our interns, really enjoys connecting with his students at LaunchPad.

There is a guy in my class named Sylvester; he’s a fairly laid back guy and seems pretty quiet. What I like about him though is the questions he asks me when there is time after class. After the first class he attended, he came up to me afterwards and asked what the proper day to do the Sabbath on was. Pretty intense question, but I loved it. Here’s a kid who is really thinking about his faith and wants to understand it.

I think what I like most about Sylvester’s questions is that they are exactly like the ones I asked when I was in high school. I had my dad to give me answers back then and those answers solidified my faith during that time and helped me to keep it through today. I don’t know Sylvester’s parents—I do not even know if he has his parents around—but it is incredibly humbling to be playing, in some small way, the same role my dad did and in so doing, helping a young man from Qwa Qwa grow in his faith.

Although LaunchPad is on winter break, Jody wanted to share about one of her last few classes of the term:

The lesson was about healing. Going into it, I was not as prepared as I normally am or as much as I wanted to be. I had so much going on personally in my mind and heart that it was hard to focus. The entire way to LaunchPad and then while Matt was teaching the first part of the lesson, I was praying that God would just send His Holy Spirit and give me power, boldness, wisdom, passion, and the words to say.

I began teaching my part of the lesson, and God did just that—He filled me with a huge passion for healing. Words were jumping off the page at me left and right. Finally, I reached a point where I honestly did not know what to say next. My mind went completely blank—I didn’t even know what concept I was trying to get across. So while Rabel finished translating my previous sentence, I said a quick prayer: “God, I’m going to step out in faith, open my mouth, and speak. Fill it with what You want said, because I don’t know what to say.” Boy, did He. I did not even know what the end of the sentence was going to look or sound like; God just put the sentence in my mouth word-by-word. And after that, the words kept coming with power! I was humbled and amazed. God doesn’t need my plan. He needs my willingness, obedience, and faith in Him.

I could feel my faith in Him stretching. As scary as it was, it was a good lesson for me to learn.

Term 2 of our internship is quickly coming to an end. As we’re finishing the term we’re also saying goodbye to our LaunchPad students. We’ve been with them for just over 10 weeks and even though we’re excited that they’re graduating, we’ll all miss our classes intensely. Though we won’t be seeing our students anymore, we’ll still be involved in the Basotho community.

Beginning June 2nd, all of the interns will be going to either Intabazwe or Khalengyoni for Relationship Evangelism once a week. We’re all excited, and not just for the opportunity to get to know local people better, but also because we’re immensely more prepared and comfortable now than when we had Relationship Evangelism the second week we were here. Instead of waiting for an interpreter to translate our “hello”s, we can carry on a basic Sesotho conversation on our own. Instead of awkward lulls, we’ll be asking non-stop genuine questions we would have been too shy to ask in the beginning.

This should prove to be a rewarding experience for everyone and I cannot wait to recount the stories I’m sure we’ll be collecting daily.

One student in our LaunchPad discipleship classes has stood out as a young man who truly wants to grow in God. Pat (whose Sesotho name is Bongani) has attended his Foundations of Faith class consistently since it started in February. Every week he is actively involved in the lesson, and he often shares about studying further in the Scriptures on his own throughout the week.

Once, when there wasn’t a translator for class, Pat stepped up and interpreted the entire lesson. Although he was a little unsure of himself at first, he worked hard and became more comfortable with translating as he went along.

Our interns teach the majority of our LaunchPad classes. Jody, who teaches Pat’s Foundations of Faith course, has really connected with Pat. She is excited to see him grow as a leader and to use his influence in the class to minister to others.

We believe strongly in Jesus’ command to “Go and make disciples”. Pat and so many others remind us that we are on the right track.

Crystal, one of our interns, shares her thoughts on teaching LaunchPad:

When I stepped into LaunchPad for the first time, my heart dropped to see no students anxiously waiting to start class. I spent my time outside with some kids from the village, hoping that the students would begin to pour into the church and start learning. A half hour went by, with only one student who had arrived. Then an hour went by, and I began to wonder, “Are they ever going to come?” Full of disappointment, we left our first LaunchPad class with unexpected excitement, knowing that our class could only grow from where it was.

The past few months, we have grown from our small one-student class to a class that is overflowing in numbers. Since the first week, we have not stopped growing with new students joining every week. It is a privilege to see our class grow in numbers, participation, and most of all, their faith in God.

At a recent LaunchPad class, the interns were teaching about the importance of the Word of God. At the end, one of them asked, “When should you read the Bible?” When one of the students answered, he blew the interns away. “Everyday. Our bodies need food to live, and our spirits need food as well. So we need to read the Bible everyday.”

A lot of the time, the interns wonder if their students understand what the’re teaching. They hope it goes deep into their hearts, but sometimes you just can’t tell. This student’s response helped them see how much of an impact they are having on students’ lives.

Recently, Jennifer was walking through Setsing, the busy and active “downtown” part of Qwa Qwa, when she heard her name.

“Jennifer! Jennifer!”

A boy, dressed brightly in his school uniform, walked up beside her. Phillimon flashed his green Save Sex bracelet, the one we gave him after he successfully finished the Leadership Summit classes on the importance of saving sex for marriage.

“Look,” he said. “I’m still wearing my bracelet. My coach gave it to me last year. I really learned a lot from Leadership Summit!”

They continued to chat as they walked through the busy shopping area. Phillimon told Jenn about his studies and how he wants to do something with his life. He said that he wants to learn more about God so he can share more with others. Jenn was on her way to a LaunchPad class, so she told him all about it as he walked there with her. Phillimon was so excited to discover that he could learn more about God each week on his way home from school.

He really enjoyed the class. He jumped right in, volunteering to read the Bible, answering questions about the lesson, and talking with other students in just the first 45 minutes he was there.

“I will be back next week,” he told Jenn. “Thank you so much for letting me come to this class to learn more about God. I am excited to learn more about Him!”

One of our ministry goals this year is to do a better job of bridging the gap between Leadership Summit and LaunchPad, so we were all pretty excited to hear this story!

Last week we began our LaunchPad discipleship classes for the year. Kelly, our LaunchPad Director, shared this story with our team at staff meeting yesterday morning:

This term we started a new class in a village called Mmakwane. I love starting new classes. Like many things in ministry, there are a lot of “what ifs?” that come with planning a new class. It’s really exciting for me to pray for direction and then walk forward and just know that God will make it all work out.

So as I pulled up to the building where we were hosting the introduction class in Mmakwane, I couldn’t help but hold my breath. I saw a few people gathered out front. I got out of the car and introduced myself to them, using the little bit of Sesotho that I know. As we exchanged pleasantries, I heard singing begin inside the building. I was a little surprised; I hadn’t even poked my head inside yet so I didn’t know how many people were in there.

I smiled at Amanda – my co-teacher and interpreter – and in the second that we caught glances, we knew each other’s thought: “People came!” We might as well have been kids in a candy store when we walked through the doors and saw over 40 people excited to be there and ready to learn.

The intro class was peppered with “Amens” and “Halleluiahs” from our new students. And we were only going over the class outline! On my way out the door after class, one lady grabbed my arm and said, “We are not satisfied!”

Oh no.

Sentences like that don’t normally end well. I braced myself for whatever was coming next. “We want to hear the Word of God NOW!” she said, and then her face burst into a huge smile. I explained that we would be going in-depth during lesson one this next week. She seemed very eager to come back and start learning what God’s Word has to say. I think she is almost more excited than I am about these classes!

In just a few weeks we’ll be kicking off the new term of LaunchPad with 7 classes a week. To maximize our impact, we’re combining two of our existing classes and starting two brand-new ones. We’re excited for the opportunity to reach more young people!

Our staff and interns will be teaching Foundations of Faith, Becoming a Contagious Christian, and Christ in You. (You can read more about our curriculums here.) Many of our new interns are nervous about teaching, yet we know from years past that this will end up being one of their favorite parts of the year. God is going to stretch them out of their comfort zones as He works through them.

Some of our LaunchPad students shared with us why they were glad they attended last year:

God has opened my heart to learn more about His Word so that I can pass His Word to the next generation.

Being in this course made me into a new person who knows God is alive and residing in my heart. I now believe God is watching over me day and night.