International Newsletter November 2020

Steiger North America’s new regional director, Filipe Machado, spoke these words at their Regional Gathering in Minneapolis in early October. Around fifty Steiger team members from the U.S. were there, and they were in full agreement.

In lieu of our annual worldwide Steiger Gathering in Krӧgis, Germany, our Steiger family met in smaller local groups to reflect, take stock, give thanks, and cast vision for the year to come. In addition to North America, teams gathered in Europe, Latin America, Brazil, New Zealand, and the Russian Speaking World. At each one, they spent much of their time seeking God through prayer and worship. How could they not?

"The mission to which we are called isn’t hard. It’s impossible!"

After the first three quarters of this year, no one could deny that fact. We’ve seen a global pandemic that kept people at home and filled many with fear for months on end. We’ve seen socio-political unrest and violence on the streets. We’ve seen large scale disasters and people in crisis. We’ve seen a Global Youth Culture continue to walk away from the Church, rather than towards it. This is the environment in which we’ve been called to communicate the Gospel. Impossible. And yet…

At the European Gathering, we celebrated the pioneering of seven new City Teams, all of which started after the COVID lockdowns went into effect. Steiger Brazil shared how their online Bible studies have been growing and are leading towards the start of an in-person study in Rio de Janeiro - a city we’ve long been praying for and sowing into. In the Russian Speaking World, we are in the process of building four new City Teams while in Latin America and North America, more City Teams are being birthed, even in the midst of economic and socio-political turmoil. The fact that there were thirty-five SMS students at the North American Gathering was a miracle!

You see, if the mission were hard, we could do it on our own. A little elbow grease and some dedicated teamwork, and we’d get the job done. But the fact that it is impossible requires us to rely fully on God and on His hope, wisdom, and power that live in us. And that has made all the difference. Because Jesus has already won.

So when we gather together as a family - even one spread out across seven regions of the world - we know we are collectively seeking God, leaning in to understand Him and His greatness just a fraction more. Together, we celebrate what God has done and what He’s allowing us to be a part of. And when we set our sights on big, impossible goals for the year to come, we do it in the full knowledge that the One who has called us to this impossible mission, the One who is worthy of all worship, will be faithful to complete it.

Students in Lisbon, Portugal learn to relevantly share Jesus with global youth

Planting Seeds with the Hope for the GYC Tour

Even with increasing COVID restrictions in many countries over the past few months, God opened doors for us to take the Hope for the Global Youth Culture Tour to key European cities. We held seminars in Prague, Linz, Wels, Olhāo, Lisbon and A Coruña. As we shared the plight of the Global Youth Culture, we could see God breaking the hearts of those new to our mission. Our cries became theirs. How can we let this generation go on living without the hope of the Gospel? We can’t. So after sharing how to use relevant creative outreach, along with being present in the scene, to form discipleship relationships and communicate the truth and hope of Jesus, we took participants out to get some practical experience!

For many, engaging in outreach opened their eyes to the spiritual hunger countless global youth have. Nicolas Fontana, who came to our Lisbon seminar, put it this way: “Evangelism served as a turning point for me. After all we learned during the morning session, putting it into practice showed me that sharing the Gospel is actually simple, and people are longing to hear it.” The Prague seminar was so impactful that two of the young men who participated in it later came to the European Regional Gathering, expressing a desire to start a new City Team in their city.

Students in Lisbon, Portugal learn to relevantly share Jesus with global youth

We are confident that God will be faithful to water the seeds planted during our Hope for the Global Youth Culture Tour. And if this year is any indication of what’s ahead, nothing will stop Him from growing His Kingdom. We are blessed to be a part of it.

Our vision is to establish 20 Steiger City Teams in North America by the year 2025! But we need your help to make it happen. Is God calling you to partner with us?

For more information and to donate, visit: www.steiger.org/cityteamexpansion

Applications for Steiger Missions School 2021 are now open!

The SMS is a time to unhook, seek God, and prepare to reach the Global Youth Culture.

Steiger Missions School is intended for people with a wide variety of gifting and backgrounds, who feel called to join Steiger’s mission to reach and disciple the Global Youth Culture for Jesus. It is a requirement for those who want to be Steiger missionaries.

Join us for intense contemplative seeking, deep reflective study, and powerful engaging action.

Applications are already rolling in and we are so excited to see all the people God is bringing together for this lifechanging missions training. We want you to be a part of it!

Apply now! To learn more, visit: www.steiger.org/sms