LCM at work: Phil Moore on short-term

In 1999, I took over the task of leading the LCM Youth Department and recruiting the City Vision (CV) gap year team. We recruited quickly and constantly, and packed people into an ageing building with up to seven sharing a room. The team shared one computer and were given £10 a week pocket money; pre-packed meals were ordered in bulk; applicants were assigned to placements, rather than given a choice. The teams today live in Nasmith Court, a new multi-purpose building erected on the site of the old building. The building provides flats for four, with people having one room-mate. Fresh food is delivered to the door, and the team are educated in food hygiene and preparation. Team members have fortnightly mentoring sessions, and placements are now training venues with full and varied programmes. Applicants have the opportunity to choose a placement and challenge us to meet their expectations. Since 2007, applicants have been asked to raise £2,000 towards the cost of their housing, meals and travel fares. This has not stopped us recruiting, and has enabled many team members to see God provide for them in many special ways. So much has changed in my ten years. I have worked with three directors, seven team leaders, eleven City Vision teams and five PAs, and managed around forty teams, including the summer teams (Capital Kids and Tell a Tourist). What hasn’t changed is that while the schemes have been short-term, God has been faithful in producing long-lasting results in many individuals who have shaped a significant part of LCM’s work. Former CVs are now serving as pastors, teachers, youth workers, social workers, missionaries, doctors, nurses, care workers and in other similar professions. They have taken their ministries to South Africa, USA, Germany, the Philippines, Switzerland, Spain, Italy and the Netherlands, as well as the UK. A significant number have gone on to serve with LCM longer-term: my first City Vision team included Ania Cannon and Emmanuel Gill, who are both now part of our team of full-time workers. A recent message from an ex-CV on Facebook told me how grateful she was to have been challenged and trained on CV in ways that continued to equip her in her life and work. A young man spoke of how he had set up mentoring systems in his church based on those he had learnt while on CV. Another young woman said that CV had given her the confidence to share her faith, a challenge to see why she believed and the knowledge to understand what she believed. This all enabled her to grow up and face university rather than struggle to ever establish herself as a Christian. City Vision has gone through a lot of changes, but it has remained faithful since 1976 to training and equipping young people in urban evangelism. The year serves as an opportunity for young people to be moulded by God’s Spirit for a lifetime of witness. Personally, I thank God for all the City Vision teams and short-term volunteers I have worked with over the last ten years. They have challenged and encouraged me to seek God and be his servant, and have influenced my young family as they have grown up and been involved in small ways in the work. As my hairline recedes and the colour of my hair fades, I pray that God will continue to inspire and equip me for the fresh challenges of the years ahead. In 2009 we face increasing challenges in bringing young people into short-term mission. The challenges in our homes, churches, city and nation are enormous, but I would pray that LCM will continue to see young people volunteering, raising support and bringing a passion to mission in London. I’ve always believed that God provides the right people and the right numbers at the right time, and we need God’s wisdom to be adaptable in working this through. Pray that the next ten years will see many young people developing the confidence to share the reason for the hope that they have with gentleness and respect (1 Peter 3:15). As you will read elsewhere in the magazine, the economic climate has had an impact on our full-time recruitment programme. We are still looking to recruit into our short-term programmes, however. The first applications for the City Vision team forming this September are already being processed, and we pray for many more; we are looking to recruit people to specific ministries, as detailed on the website (printed brochures are also available for churches from our Youth Department). We would also welcome applications for church teams to come for a week or more to serve at one or more of our centres; in particular, we would like to see UK churches bringing teams of ten young people (minimum age 16) to serve with us. And if you want to test whether urban mission is really for you, you can come for a taster week between October and June. Our summer teams are Capital Kids (28 July – 12 August) and Tell a Tourist (26 July – 2 August). The deadlines are 30 April for City Vision and Capital Kids applications and 31 May for Tell a Tourist applications. There is more information on our website (www.lcm.org.uk/gapyear) on these and other short-term opportunities, including application forms (which are also available from Personnel at LCM HQ). We have an open door to a wide variety of opportunities, and I ask you to pray about walking through it, whether it be for a week or a year. Tell your friends, children, grandchildren and fellow church members that London is waiting to receive those God calls to be volunteers in bringing the good news of Jesus to many nations here.