First year students - git outtatown!
Boring. That's what Alexandra Hiebert of Winnipeg thought it would be like when it was time for classroom instruction at Outtatown, the Canadian Mennonite University school of adventure and discipleship.
"I thought the week was going to drag on," she says. "But the speaker, Jamie Howison, pastor of St. Benedict's Table in Winnipeg, answered questions to things I never even thought of asking. We talked about how Jesus marked the end of all religion, that religion is not about doing things to win God's favour or love, but that we should do things in response to the love that God shows us."
"When the week came to an end, I wanted more," she said. "Everything I learned just makes me want to be more godly. I just want to know and get deeper with Jesus."
For Alisha Ewald of Waterloo, Ontario, listening to Nathan Reiger, pastor of the Winnipeg Vineyard Church, was an important experience. "Nathan talked to us about the idols in our lives.ÊThrough what he said many people were able to discover how they can make changes in their own lives and start to eliminate idols of value, power and pleasure."
"Outtatown is an adventure school, and we have a lot of adventures while canoeing, camping, body surfing, mountain climbing, bungee jumping and skiing, among other things," says director Paul Kroeker of the months the students spend in Canada before heading off to Guatemala and South Africa.
"But it's also a discipleship school, where students can deepen their relationship with God, and an opportunity to do service in Canada and in the developing world."
The instructors, says Kroeker, "are incredible teachers, extremely passionate about young adults, and each one sharing a common goal of wanting too help them know God better." Topics covered the Bible, theology and ethics, church history, worship and witness.Ê
Another part of the Outtatown experience in Canada is learning about and working with Aboriginal people. Brad Weber of Drayton, Ontario described the experience as life changing and eye opening. "I know my attitude towards First Nations' culture was not in the right place," he said of his attitudes prior to meeting Aboriginal people in B.C. "I was expecting to have an impact on them. But while we were learning about their culture, our own preconceived ideas and views were being smashed. Every one of us came out with a better understanding of a culture that unfortunately today has been misunderstood by so many. The week made me realize that before you decide to take part in ministry you need to study and understand the culture you will be working in. I realize now that it was quite shallow of me to think that I could have a huge impact on their lives without even knowing about their culture."
Students also participated in an urban plunge in Vancouver, learning about issues related to poverty and homelessness. "It was very sobering to see that kind of poverty," says Kate Schellenberg of Fredericton, New Brunswick. "Yet it was also very inspiring to see all the ways God can and does use us to show his love to the people who need it the most. It opened my eyes to the fact that God is present no matter where you are, and He loves you no matter where you live."
Looking back on the first semester, leader Dale Giesbrecht of Thompson, Manitoba says that "transformation is the word that most accurately describes what has happened. I can just picture the delight on God's face as shame and arrogance are replaced by love, acceptance, cultural awareness and trust. The power of God is the only thing that can explain how students from all over Canada and the U.S. can come together and share things they have never shared before with people who, just a few weeks before, were total strangers."
