Whether You’re 16 or 60

Whether You’re 16 or 60

One of the things that I love about being a part of Four12 is the opportunity to build relationships with God’s family across the world. There is something so beautiful about spending time with our brothers and sisters in Christ from across the globe. We may be from different countries, have different cultures and speak different languages, but we all have one thing in common: Jesus. I’ve never experienced this more than on our recent youth mission trip (outreach) to Estacao 337, in beautiful Brazil. Despite so many differences, we were treated like family and I was blown away by the hosting and those who just loved on us.

…there isn’t an age restriction on telling people about Jesus. GO…and proclaim the gospel, no matter how old you are!

Caitlin far right with youth in Brazil

It was amazing to spend 7 days in the loud, vibrant city of Sao Paulo with a team that mainly consisted of young people from a quiet, little island in the middle of the Irish sea. Although the Isle of Man may be known for being small and quiet, the voices of the Manx (what we call people from the Isle of Man) teenagers on this outreach were filled with courage, boldness and authority in Jesus. I was blown away to see one of our previously timid youth girls step out and prophesy over individuals for the first time, and it reminded me that sometimes we must step out of our comfort zones to see the amazing things God can do through us. My spirit was so stirred up in witnessing our young people being confident and obedient to GO into the nations and be a shining light to all they encountered.

In Mark 16 Jesus says to His disciples, ‘Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation’. We are Christs’ disciples, so this call is still relevant to us today. The Bible doesn’t say when you reach a certain age or finish school – it simply says to go into all the world and proclaim the gospel, to tell people about Jesus. This is a call for all believers, and so there isn’t an age restriction on telling people about Jesus. GO and be a light and proclaim the gospel, no matter how old you are!

‘God does not begin by asking for our ability, only our availability, and if we prove our dependability, He will increase our capacity’.

Evangelism in Brazil
Evangelism in Brazil

‘God does not begin by asking for our ability, only our availability, and if we prove our dependability, He will increase our capacity’. We had so many opportunities to evangelise, but one of my highlights was when we spent an afternoon evangelising around the busy train station. I was in a team with a few of the youth from Estacao 337, and for most of them, this experience took them out of their comfort zones, but they didn’t let that stop them stepping out and being available to be used by God. One Brazilian youth was translating for us and was nervous as he had only learned English from watching Netflix, but through his obedience, we were able to prophesy over many people and tell them about Jesus. Another one of the Brazilian youth had such a gift for evangelism, he would approach people who looked miserable and uninterested, then suddenly they would be smiling and want to hear about Jesus and would ask us to pray with them. Seeing these guys step out really encouraged others in the team to also step out, and both the youth from Brazil and the Isle of Man grew so much in their boldness and zeal for Jesus. It was great to see that while we went there to encourage the Brazilian youth, we were equally as encouraged by their boldness and faith.

I am so grateful to be apart of Four12 and to experience what God is doing throughout the globe and see Him move powerfully in and through myself and others. So whether you’re 16 or 60, if you’re willing and available: GO!

Caitlin lives on the Isle of Man, is a ‘pastor’s kid’ and the eldest of four girls. She’s a part of Living Hope Community Church and is passionate about worship, youth and evangelism.

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