Youth With A Mission Northern Ireland

This weekend we’re receiving ten new members to our YWAM Ireland team, arriving from a few different countries to take part in the Discipleship Training School which starts this coming Monday in Closkelt and runs through until the end of March next year. During that time, they will work along side us in our ministries, as well as receive training and guidance in missionary work and their relationship with Christ.

With only hours left to prepare, the staff in Closkelt are busy with the preparations for their arrival, cleaning and painting and typing and praying a week’s worth of work into the little time remaining. The students are essentially doubling the size of the team in Closkelt while they’re here, so the community is buzzing with the excitement of impending new arrivals.

We’re currently operating with lower numbers in Closkelt than usual, and thus also a smaller DTS, but we’re excited to continue to be a participatory part in what the Lord is desiring for our local community and around the island. Through training of teams for outreach, individuals for missions, and in reaching the local area, we’re happy to continue serving in His vision to reach all people with His gospel of forgiveness, love, and reconciliation. This coming DTS will be participating in kids’ ministry in our local area (rural Co. Down), as well as working with Outreach N.I. in Banbridge, reaching out to weekend party-goers through the local Nightreach initiative. Come January, the DTS team will also spend two months in South Africa, working alongside YWAM and local ministry contacts of ours, the latest in a string of outreaches we’ve sent there over the last few years. In this, we hope to continue to build important bridges between Northern Ireland and South Africa, recognizing our shared experience of conflict and of trying to answer questions of forgiveness and reconciliation.

This past week, our Closkelt DTS staff have been doing their training in preparation for the DTS starting on September 29th. Steve Sullivan, from YWAM Harpenden, flew over to Northern Ireland for the week to lead the week of training. Thanks, Steve!

As my role here is in Communications, I am not on DTS staff. My office, however, is across the hall from the training room where the DTS staff were meeting with Steve…and I’ve never heard that much laughter coming out of a training seminar in my life! Its good to know that in the midst of preparations and training, YWAMers still like to have a fun time!

The Belfast DTS staff also came down to Closkelt to join in some of the training seminars and activities in preparation for the Reconciliation DTS starting in early November. Take a look at the Closkelt and Belfast DTS staff posing with Steve for a lovely team shot…