Mission 101 The Basics of Ministry

The gospel commission is a call to ministry and is the reason Walla Walla Valley Academy (WWVA) started its Mission 101 class, taught by Gayle Norton. The purpose of the class is to cover the basics of mission work.

Students must obtain recommendations and apply to join the class. The class includes a weekend trip to WWVA lodge and a mission trip to the All Nations Center in Wapato, Wash.

The trip to WWVA lodge at the start of the semester is a time for the group to bond, to set goals and to have personal devotional times for rebirth and renewal. During the weekend, the students discuss the class goals, like the upcoming trip to Wapato, the weeks of prayer for the Rogers Adventist School and the Milton-Stateline school, and the community services projects at SonBridge.

Then the class begins planning the weeks of prayer, working on the content, music, settings and public relations for the students at the Rogers and Stateline schools.

In the middle of the semester, the entire class goes on a four- to five-day trip to the Indian Reservation at Wapato where the students work diligently on various service activities in the area. Every day the class meets with children in the community to play in the park, sing songs, and tell Bible stories.

During the second half of the semester, the class goes out twice a week for community service. This year they worked at the SonBridge Community Center.

The Mission 101 class shapes students into the kind of people who truly know how to live for Christ, fulfilling the gospel commission to take action.

Featured in: July 2006