Great Commission Project Partners with Local Schools, Impacting Lives for Christ
April 25, 2024
Nearly 50 students from two ACSI-affiliated Christian schools recently returned from a transformative trip to the Dominican Republic with the ACSI Great Commission Project (GCP). Lake Country Christian in Fort Worth, Texas, sent 37 travelers while Madison-Ridgeland Academy in Madison, Mississippi, sent 10 travelers to minister to students from two Christian schools and two public schools in the D.R. The two American schools are among the six schools that will participate in the GCP by the end of July.
The GCP empowers students to gain cultural experiences overseas while serving alongside local students as they share the Gospel. For this trip to the D.R., students with the GCP interacted with a variety of grade levels, including ministering to elementary and middle school students with songs, games, and crafts with Gospel themes.
With older students, GCP travelers used outdoor games and sports clinics, along with spending time in classrooms to interact with and learn about each other's respective cultures and share testimonies of what God has done in their lives.
Students from the U.S. and D.R. were partnered together and traveled to a neighboring public school, going classroom to classroom to share the Gospel and personal testimonies and pray over each group. They also spent a day at a sister elementary and middle school, ministering through songs and skits to share the Gospel.
At least nine students from the D.R. made commitments to Christ, with follow-up support provided by local school leadership.
The integration of cultures was palpable throughout the experience, with students from diverse backgrounds coming together to serve a common purpose. One U.S. student bound for the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in Texas next school year met a peer from the D.R. who will attend Baylor University just 40 minutes away, and the pair exchanged contact information to reconnect this fall.
The scope of the project extended across multiple schools, including Colegio Bautista Cristiano Palabras Vivas, Escuela Basica Jesus Maestro, Colegio Bautista Cristiano, and a Sister Outreach School, Colegio Bautista Cristiano Belen. The collective outreach touched the lives of over 1,000 students, reinforcing GCP's mission to spread the message of Christ's love and redemption.
"It has been inspiring to see schools from different countries partner to allow their students to share Christ, see people make commitments for Christ, experience cultures together, and have Kingdom impact,” said Scott Forsythe, ACSI Great Commission Liaison. “These trips provide the opportunity for schools to go beyond the one-time mission trip to develop long-term partnerships and relationships."
ACSI’s mission with the GCP is to immerse high school students in cultural travel and ministry experiences at strategic ACSI global locations.
"The Great Commission Project is an incredible opportunity for students to exemplify what it means to be a servant leader,” said Emily Pigott, ACSI Director of Student Leadership & Learning. “The relationships cultivated last beyond the trip as Jesus' love shines through the students to truly impact their culture for Christ."
For more information on the Great Commission Project, please visit https://www.acsi.org/greatcommission.