This week, I've been finalizing some stuff with my friend Ryan who lives in Myanmar for me to be able to go over there this coming summer. We worked together on putting a job description together, which I will include later on. It sounds like it's going to be an amazing trip where I will learn a ton and also contribute a ton to the cause. He also mentioned that if I could raise an extra $500 to go than I could sponsor one of the students with their micro loan to start their own business. How cool is that?! Not only do I get to go and see firsthand what God has been doing through Ryan, but I also get to have people support me and in the process support one of the students in the school who will be using a micro loan to launch their business. If you couldn't already tell, I'm super excited about this opportunity!
Ryan has started an entrepreneurship school in Myanmar to address the unemployment problem, in particular among the youth there. I should probably explain here that youth in developing countries means people aged 16-30. Just so we're clear that youth doesn't mean 10 year olds, not sure they should be starting their own businesses, quite yet anyways. When he first told me about this I was super excited for him and was telling everyone about it. Then another friend of mine, also named Ryan ironically, talked to me and asked me the pointed question, "If money wasn't an issue, what would you do with your life?" To this I answered that I would open an entrepreneurship school in Haiti. As of now, that's my big 3-5 year goal in my life. It may not be an entrepreneurship school exactly, but I want to do something to provide jobs in developing countries. It may not even be Haiti, I really don't know at this point, and this leads me to my next thought.
At church this morning, my friends were talking about how we are a sent people. We gather together to be sent out again. I told them it really resonated with me because of all the stuff with Myanmar and Haiti that I had been thinking through and asking God to send me and use me mightily. There's a cheesy Christian cliche that I remember that seems to fit what I'm going through right now. God doesn't call the equipped, but He equips the called. On the outside looking in, this school idea doesn't make any practical sense. I know practically nothing about business, except that I know I didn't want to go into it after growing up with my dad always being in the business world and working his tail off every day. When I graduated high school, I didn't know what I wanted to be when I grew up, I just knew I didn't want to be in the business world. God has a good sense of humor though, as that seems to be exactly where He's leading me lately. And who knows, I may keep teaching during the school year and go down to Haiti or wherever on breaks and such and have a manager in place for when I'm not there, I'm really not sure at this point.
What I do know is that God calls us to be faithful, wherever we're at and in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in. Right now, I need to focus on being the best teacher I can be for my students. I need to get involved with some local ministries which I'm trying to do and serve those around me. Not everyone is called to go to Haiti or some developing country. As another friend of mine said in church today, senders are just as important as goers. Both are equally needed.
In the past, I've always paid my own way for my mission trips when I go overseas in the summer. This time around though, I'm going to raise support and rely on God to move His people's hearts towards giving to support me in this. I think it will help hold me accountable in reporting what I'm learning about while I'm there as well as give people a chance to be a sender. I'll go and you send. And next time, you go and I'll send. It's beautiful how the body of Christ works, isn't it? I raised support for my position at church when I was on staff (which I had to give up recently due to needing to focus on my primary job more) and that was a humbling/faith building time. I have no doubt God will allow me to raise the funds to go to Myanmar this time around as well since I've seen Him be so faithful in the past.
So, there you have it. You have the opportunity to send me to Myanmar and to invest in what God's doing in my life. I'd love it if you wanted to come alongside me on my journey and support me prayerfully and financially. Maybe you can't give a lot but maybe you could give a little each month until I leave for Myanmar in June and it would really add up over time. Or maybe you can give a bigger one-time donation. I would be hugely thankful either way. Below is a link to my donation page on Paypal which is how I'm raising money for this trip. Please prayerfully consider coming alongside me either prayerfully or financially or ideally both. Below that link, I've also included my job description for when I'm there in case you're wondering what all I'm going to be doing while I'm there.
Job
Description
Justin
Hemming
Learning
- Getting
an Entrepreneurship Program off the Ground
From idea
creation to implementation you will get a chance to hear how you can begin an entrepreneurship
program from simple tasks to creating partnerships.
- Creating
programs that impact
You will
understand how to use indicators of impact in an entrepreneurship program. Measuring success can be difficult but real
measures of success must be found. This
all includes evaluative tools and implementing what’s learned through trial and
error.
- School
management and processes
1. Understanding staff development and managing
them
2. Creating processes that help with efficiency
3. Project management: timelines, budgets,
reporting
Teaching and Mentoring
- Teach
English 2 hours a week to staff (business English)
Every
Wednesday Afternoon for 2 hours teaching our 4 staff business English.
- Teach
Business English Class once a week for Myanmar Business Professionals
Every
Thursday Evening teach Myanmar Business Professionals an English Class
- Mentor
Students in Business Plan Creation
Some
afternoons spend time with ON students helping them work through their business
plans
Curriculum Development
- Read through
Opportunities NOW curriculum
Become
familiar with ON curriculum and why we have the curriculum the way we do
Ryan will
sit down and explain how the curriculum meets the specific needs of youth in
Myanmar
- Create a
class for Opportunities NOW 3 month program
Once the
curriculum and students level is understood you will have the chance to create
a 5 session class for ON’s future programs.
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