By Sio Suat Kheng, Bethel Presbyterian Church

You may wonder – what is Gap Year?  Or, I have left school long ago, what has Gap Year to do with me?  Or, why should I get involved in missions in the Gap Year when I have already gone for several week-long missions trips?

Using anecdotal stories from personal encounters and illustrations from the Scriptures,Jonathan Fuller gave interesting insights into these and other questions.  Jonathan was speaking to an audience of over 70 people at the English Presbytery Missions Consultation #14 held at PSPC on 25 February 2012. 

According to Jonathan, Gap Year is not merely the interval between graduation and progression to the next educational level or National Service or entry into the job market; it entails not just a few months or even a year.  The gap of brokenness and need in the world requires a whole lifetime to fill. 
The challenge to Christians as serious followers of Jesus, then, is to get involved in the world through missions and to stand in the gap for the needy.  This challenge is for both the young and the old.  It is a challenge to let God use each of us in missions for not just a few days or even a few months.  Being a serious follower of Christ may sometimes mean a longer-term commitment to stay in a foreign country and stand in the gap for the people there.

In Jonathan view, standing in the gap through missions fulfils God’s will in three ways:  obedience to make disciples, effectiveness when we are willing to let God place us where He wills, and relationship that is close to God when we follow Him and depend on Him in difficult missions situations.  In practical terms, Christians are called to give up our rights to destination in missions, to risk getting hurt by people and having a change in our life direction, and to pray.

“Go, Send, Pray, Welcome, Mobilize and Learn” are the final words of advice from Jonathan.  Each of us can, at different times, perform these different roles when we stand in the gap for missions. 

Indeed, two young adults were exemplary in taking the step of faith through their intentional undertaking of missions in the Gap Year – Timothy Chua who spent three months in the Philippines after his National Service and Marianne Hui who deferred her university studies for a year and volunteered in Africa for ten months.  Both served with Operation Mobilisation.

Why I would like to encourage everyone to go for missions in the Gap Year:
- Opportunity to be away from a busy city like Singapore;
- Help to focus on God and experience God in an amazing way.
Timothy Chua (Hope PC.)

Timothy’s stint in the Philippines saw him leaving his comfort zone and persevering in a new environment that was physically and mentally demanding.  He was involved in the Global challenge, Hingyon church and other outreaches, children’s program, daily vacation bible school, and night market and feeding program.  Several unexpected incidents helped Timothy to learn to depend on God, such as being asked to preach for the first time and for 1½ hours with just one night’s preparation, and experiencing God’s provision when he ran out of money to help a local teenager in need.

The most precious lesson I’ve learnt is that I can plan a great life for myself, full of aspirations and good causes, but only by doing exactly what God calls me to do will I ever experience the best life He has in store.
Marianne Hui (Katong PC)

In Africa, Marianne had to reckon with cultural adjustments and language problems.  God’s love saw her through the different programs at different places.  She participated in the Ultimate Goal Challenge (a World Cup outreach) and served at Nakoli Community School which took in children from the slums, Good News Orphans’ School, and Door of Hope which cared for abandoned babies. While Marianne experienced many “firsts”, such as feeding and bathing babies, she enjoyed the joys of sharing God’s love and learned to experience God in a different way.   

For those who were interested to learn more about missions in the Gap Year, there were opportunities at the end of Missions Consultation #14 for interaction with mission agencies.  Operation Mobilisation (OM), OMF, SIM (Serving in Mission) and Worldwide Evangelisation for Christ (WEC) hosted buzz groups and shared about their missions programs.

Whether young or old, you can be involved in missions by standing in the gap.  Will you go, send or pray?