GME? What's that?

Long time, no... type!

With the days winding down until GME, I feel like it's about time to get this blog up and running again. I hope that if you're reading this, you've been praying for this year's Global Missions Experience already! If not, I hope you soon realize what a large undertaking it is and begin to add it to your prayers, for something this big can only come together under God's guiding hand.

Let me use this post to explain what GME is. I feel like many people simply don't know what it is (and that's okay, I didn't either before this year!). This year, it will be held at Camp Tahkodah and HUT (Harding University Tahkodah) about 45 minutes from Searcy. The location varies among Christian colleges from year to year, but Harding has the reigns in 2015. It will be September 17-20. This year's theme is Relentless. Formerly known as the World Mission Workshop, the Global Missions Experience is an extended weekend, Thursday afternoon through Sunday morning, full of learning, growing, and experiencing! We expect over 1,000 participants consisting of mostly college students (but younger and older people are welcome too) from numerous Christian universities around the country. The goal of GME is to inspire within young people the desire, and ultimately the commitment, to serve as long-term foreign missionaries for some of their life. Whether you're initially interested in the foreign mission field or not doesn't really matter; what matters is that you've got a desire and drive to see God at work in the world and want to know how you can better play a part in that. Our God relentlessly pursues us, His children. Because of that, we are called to relentlessly pursue not only Him, but all of His children in the world as well. Come experience God's never-ending mission! 

At GME, there will be classes geared toward all areas of interest and majors, helping students the learn how to live missionally with whatever gifts, skills, talents, abilities, and interests God has given them. And of course, they'll be taught by experts in their field. 
The weekend will consist of several renowned keynote speakers who have served as missionaries in different parts of the world. They will be speaking on different aspects of "Relentless." 
Throughout the day, different groups of students will participate in different activities, including the aforementioned classes, Discovery Bible Studies, Learning Stations (hands-on skills learning that will be beneficial in the mission field), and even an opportunity to shop for food in a market simulation and prep a meal with a "family." 
The nights will wrap up with Campfires, a time in which students will go to different places based on where they may be interested in serving and hear from missionaries who have served in these places. This will be a great time for inspiration, conversation, and networking. 
There will be daily worship time together in the morning and evening with the services led by students of varying Universities.
The weekend will conclude with a worship and communion service on Sunday morning, and everyone will be sent their separate ways, hopefully with a new mission field and relentless pursuit of God and His people in their minds.

I hope this has helped you get a better grasp of what the Global Missions Experience is all about. And, of course, I hope this has inspired you to register! There will be lots of promotion going on at Harding and other schools in the coming weeks, so get excited. We've got a HUGE crew of committee members and volunteers who all want to help make this a success. You can register at globalmissionsexperience.com If you have any desire to help or have any questions, feel free to email us at gme@harding.edu! Please share this post to help get the word out... More blogs to come soon!

May you be blessed & bless others.