CHR I ST • • •
ME G AN BR OW N IN IR EL AND
CHANGED PERSPECTIVE S T U DEN T S I N M I S S I ON S
C
BY CH ER Y L C R OU C H ( '91 )
hange your perspective by changing your location. This is the challenge Deanna Thomason, Director of SIMS (SNU in Missions), offers SNU students as she encourages them to spend a part of their summers overseas. She knows God can speak anywhere, but she realizes we often hear better when we are removed from our usual circumstances. SNU student Nathan Cummings agrees. At a dinner for the SNU Board of Trustees and Foundation Board, Nathan shared that participating in SIMS trips to New Zealand and Albania unlocked part of his heart to the plight of refugees. Because the areas where he served had refugees from many nations, he interacted with people from 21 cultures. “Being with people so different from me taught me a lot about myself, and about God’s love,” he said. Nathan reflected that it is one thing to search online for the population of Albania. It is entirely different to live with Albanians and interact with them. He no longer sees numbers, but instead he sees people who deserve the love of Christ. Megan Brown, who served in Ireland and Brazil, commented, “Through SIMS I’m able to love people, and while I’m doing that, I learn about different cultures in the midst of all these things I otherwise would not be able to experience.” Hope Salzman adds, “My SIMS trip to Germany wrecked me in such a good way. It’s a different culture. They’re different people and we have different outlooks on life. It’s super beneficial to go—to experience new people, new food, new music, new culture, new environments, and then come back here and look for those parallels.” Thomason loves seeing students’ worldviews expand through participation in SIMS. That growth often begins before they ever board a plane, as they struggle to raise funds. “For many of these students, $3,000 feels like an impossible goal,” she explains. As they work and save and watch God provide, their faith stretches and grows. Much
HOPE S AL ZMAN & GE OF F MILLER ('18) IN GERMANY
"IT’S SUPER BENEFICIAL TO GO – TO EXPERIENCE NEW PEOPLE, NEW FOOD, NEW MUSIC, NEW CULTURE, NEW ENVIRONMENTS, AND THEN COME BACK HERE AND LOOK FOR THOSE PARALLELS.”
of that provision comes from alumni who understand the value of mission trips. In fact, an endowment has been established to provide ongoing funding. Thomason’s hope is that the endowment will eventually provide $15,000 in SIMS scholarship money each year. SIMS expands worldviews and grows faith, and it also strengthens students’ appreciation for the church. Thomason is passionate about connecting SNU students with the global Church of the Nazarene. Partnering with established Nazarene ministries allows SIMS teams to have a meaningful, lasting impact while opening students’ eyes to our worldwide denomination. This year, teams will serve in every one of the six world regions where the church exists. As our university students work alongside Nazarene missionaries, pastors, and lay people in Kenya, eSwatini, New Zealand, South Africa, Costa Rica, Cambodia, Ukraine, Ecuador, and Brazil, they learn that the Church of the Nazarene reaches far beyond the borders of the United States. As Hope said of her time serving internationally, “Yes, we’re there two weeks, but we learn so much that we’re able to apply the other fifty weeks we are here!” Actually, the applications will last much longer than fifty weeks. Changing location through SIMS results in a lifetime of changed perspective. SNU MAGAZINE | Summer 2019 15
