More on Our Return to The States

You may remember us stating in our previous posts that we are preparing to move overseas once again. In August of this year, our family will be transitioning back to the United States to pursue a new role within Campus Crusade for Christ, working out of the Great Plains Regional Office in Colorado.

Our passion to see students’ lives transformed for Christ hasn’t changed, but the way in which we see it happening through us has. It has been a privilege for us to serve in New Zealand and lead the local campus movement. But it has also become clear to us over the past four years that there are some very strong gifts that both of us have that are not being used to their full potential. We feel that if we stayed in our current position and location that we would not really be able to exercise these gifts for the greatest impact in God’s Kingdom. So, with a desire to be good stewards of what God has given us, we are pursuing a change that will allow us to impact more students for Christ in a wider reaching role.

I will be taking on multiple responsibilities within the Operations Division of the Great Plains Regional Office. One key area that I will be working on is Partnership Development. In this role I will help give vision and direction for how CCC partners with local churches and other Christian organizations in the Great Commission, as well as developing a framework for these partnerships to exist in. Other areas include Resource Stewardship, Creative Media Development, and managing the production process of Regional Conferences & Events. With my management background, campus field experience, and growing expertise in these areas, I hope this transition will prove to be a great asset for the Great Plains as they pursue their scope of reaching over 1 million university students in a 6 state region with the Gospel of Truth.

Jill will be dabbling in some areas that employ her deep heart of compassion and hospitality. These could include, but are not limited to, the ministries of Hope for Orphans and GAIN (both ministries under CCC), staff team care and development, and team profiling using assessment tests like the Birkman and Strengths Finder. With Jill’s extensive staff experience in multiple locations around the world and in different roles, she will be great at helping staff and students know how to relate to and care for one another.

With our hearts turned toward home, we are eager to begin a new chapter in the mission God has called us to. But in order for us to finish this chapter well and “turn the page,” we face some considerable financial obstacles. Moving our family home and shipping necessary items from our household does not come without some significant cost. We are trusting the Lord to provide what we are lacking to help us make this transition.

Despite the costs that come with serving the Lord overseas, we are so incredibly grateful for all we’ve seen Him do in our ministry and for all the ways He has blessed us. We rejoice that Studentlife in Wellington will continue to have an eternal impact on the lives of university students in this nation’s capital—and all of this could not have happened without the faithful partnership of those who stand behind us!

As at other times in our mission and now, as we prepare for this major transition, we of course are thankful for anyone willing to give us a special, one-time gift to help us in our times of need. We recognize that many others may be facing financial challenges as well, so if helping us at this time is not possible, we understand. God has always been faithful in providing for our needs.

If you would like to help us, here is where you can Donate.
Above all, know that we remember you fondly and are incredibly grateful for all you already do! Your prayers, financial gifts, and friendship are vital to the success of our ongoing mission.

Sincerely,
Josh & Jill

Homecoming :: We are returning to the United States

[The Felix Family, Wellington Botanical Gardens - 2010]

At the time of writing this blog, it will be less than 100 days until our family will be back on U.S. soil again! It is with both excitement and bittersweet sentiments that we share this news with you.
It was shortly after our marriage in 2005 that Jill and I believed God was calling us to leave the United States and move to New Zealand in order to pioneer a new Campus Crusade for Christ movement. In September of 2006, we landed in Wellington with our 4 month old son (Isaac) to embark upon that mission. We committed to give the next 3-5 years of our lives to sowing the seeds of the Gospel, seeing lost students come to know the Lord, and raising up Christ-centered Kiwi students who would lead their peers and nation in the pursuit of God and the Great Commission.
In August of this year, our family will transition back to the United States to pursue a new role within Campus Crusade for Christ, working out of the Great Plains Regional Office in Colorado. There are many factors and reasons that have influenced this decision, but ultimately, God has made it clear that He has plans for us to serve Him in a greater capacity than we are now. We’ve greatly enjoyed serving the Lord in New Zealand and have become very fond of each one of the students who makes up the Campus Movement here. Still, our hearts grow eager to discover the ways in which God will choose to use us to build His Kingdom as we return to our own country.
What does this mean for Wellington Studentlife? It is our prayer that after laboring here for the past four years that God has helped us to build a solid foundation that will allow the movement to continue on far beyond our time. In the midst of our transition, the students will continue to be shepherded by the amazing staff team that is currently in place. By the end of 2010 there will be another STINT team coming from the United States to serve throughout the next year. Arriving with that team will be another married staff couple (Ryan & Katie Sawrie, Purdue graduates) who are committed to taking over the leadership role for the next year or longer. We will share more with you about this staff couple in the coming months. But, I can tell you presently that they are very excited for the opportunity to lead here in New Zealand!
Again, we are so grateful to the Lord for the opportunity that He has given to us to be a part of His mission here in New Zealand. It has been a privilege and an honor to work amongst and beside so many amazing Kiwi brothers and sisters in Christ. We have seen lives transformed and have labored to make Christ known! We would appreciate your prayers for our family as we prepare to move back overseas. Please pray for our boys to transition well. We will keep you updated on all the changes that will be taking place for us personally and with our mission, as well as how you can continue to partner with us in the midst of them. We also look forward to the opportunity to connect with many of you upon our return home. God bless.

New Zealand Creative Media Project 2009

For the second year now, our organization offered NZ students to take part in a creative media project. Last year, students spent their time and creative talents on making three short films that addressed relevant topics in current university culture. This past year, participants were split into two teams - one to revamp our ministry’s website, the other to launch a new “ministry” area known as GodMedia.
The following updates are taken from the newsletter update of Aaron Thomson, the Director of the Creative Media Project.


Reconstruction for Studentlife’s Website

“The website team had both designers and programmers chugging away to bring the fresh and funky new website to life. The site is now more integrated and user friendly, allowing both staff members and students access to the information and resources they need. It has a very interactive feel and will engage the visitor as they explore who Student Life is and learn about what a personal relationship with God looks like. Integration with campus specific Facebook, Twitter, Flicker and YouTube accounts has improved the ease of updating site material and contributes to a much more ‘alive’ atmosphere on the website. The majority of users will be immediately presented with campus relevant information and the campus location can be changed simply and easily with a couple of clicks. Check out the new URL, www.studentlife.org.nz”


The Inception of GodMedia




“GodMedia is the newest ministry of 'Tandem NZ' and the entity behind the tools we produced and developed on project. “God Media” will live on beyond the project as a collaboration of industry professionals across the creative disciplines of film, print design, software, and web development. The goal is to work together to create cutting edge tools that the wider Church can utilize to connect with those yet to discover the life changing experience of discovering Christ. Our goal is to deliver content free where ever possible. We developed a Gospel tool called God App, and a web based chat tool called God chat which can easily be embedded into any Christian website. Check out www.godmedia.org.nz and www.Godapp.org”

Adam Got Baptized!

[Steve, Adam, Me]

“You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”(Galatians 3:26-28)
Hopefully you remember reading last year about Adam Li who came to faith. I’m so excited to tell you that he decided to get baptized and publicly show his heart’s desire to follow Christ! It is awesome to realize that God has made us all sons and daughters in his family through His Son. What an amazing thing to be a part of a heavenly family composed of people from every tribe, tongue, and nation!

[Below :: Taking the "Plunge" for Jesus!]

Men Committed to Following Christ :: A Proverbs 27:17 Environment

[Here is one of the groups of men I have the privilege of
leading in discipleship & Bible study on campus.
From Left to Right :: Me, Geoff, Adam, Cody, Will, Jonathan]

I’m sure that I’ve said this on many occasions before, but one of the reasons I love the mission that God has called me to is the chance to see young men give their lives to Christ, grow in their knowledge of the Lord, serve God day by day, and teach others to do the same! Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” I’ve discovered the deep truth of this Scripture as I’ve been meeting with some of the men I lead and disciple this year. I’ll just mention a few of these good men now. I met Geoff at the beginning of this year as a result of our campus outreach. I met up with him at a café on campus. He told me he was interested to find out more about God because some of his family and friends back home had started going to church. I obviously used this opportunity to share the Gospel with him. Right there in the café, he put his faith in Christ! He is now coming to one of our Bible studies on campus and learning heaps! Adam Li came to faith last year with a teammate of mine. He decided to be baptized this year and continues to grow in his faith. Cody and Will have been around our movement for 3 years now and are leading other men in Bible studies on campus. It’s so cool to see them sharing their faith and teaching others about God. I also met Jonathan as a result of our campus outreach. Already a Christian, he was really excited to find Studentlife and really desires to grow in his walk with Christ while at university. I praise God for these men!

On the Journey :: 2010 Outreach Campaign

Before the start of this year, our annual Studentlife outreach campaign had a major makeover. It became “On The Journey.” Our desire was to visibly come along side university students around New Zealand and help them start the academic year in “putting their best foot forward.” To practically assist them with this, we gave away thousands of pairs of jandals (what Kiwis call flip-flop sandals). In Wellington alone, we gave away 1,200 pairs to Victoria students! Through our tagline of “On The Journey,” our hope has been to communicate to students that we are a Christian group on campus who is on a journey toward knowing who God is and walking with Jesus Christ. It was so neat to see how excited students were to get a pair of free jandals from us. We had many great conversations with students around our table and subsequently as we followed up spiritual interest surveys. As a result, we connected with a lot of students who wanted to know more about our group and what it means to follow Jesus. Through all this I met two men, Evaristo and Geoff one day on campus during separate appointments. As I shared the gospel with them, they each expressed a sincere desire to know God and follow Christ. Each of these men paused right in the café we met at on campus and asked Christ to take control of their lives! Evaristo came from Tanzania to study here in New Zealand. He’s been attending a local church with some of my team mates now. Geoff is a Maori (indigenous people of NZ) student and is already taking part in a Bible study on campus. Please pray for these two men as they continue on the journey.

The 2010 Wellington Team

[Left to Right: Ashley, Sarah, Josh, Jill, Leigh, Steve]

We are extremely grateful that the Lord has finally brought together our Wellington staff team for 2010. Toward the end of last year, we weren’t sure that we would actually have much of a team on campus this year. Ashley was to be the only new member we would receive from the United States this year, but her arrival was uncertain as she had a slow support raising process in the USA. Steve & Leigh (both New Zealanders), were also engaged in the support raising process. Well, God showed up and faithfully answered our prayers and then some! In a matter of a couple weeks before her deadline, Ashley saw the remainder of her support needs come in. Steve and Leigh also saw God provide for them what they needed financially to start on campus at the beginning of this year. In addition to all of that, we’ve been blessed to have Kara back for a 3rd year here in Wellington! She was able to return because an incredible Kiwi guy she’d been dating over the last year flew over to the States and asked her to marry him. She gets a husband and we get a great co-laborer in Christ for another year! Kara, isn’t in the team picture above as she had just returned to NZ while we were on that trip. All that to say, we are excited to have a full team that we really enjoy. God surely does work in amazing and unexpected ways.

NZ Staff Conference 2010

[NZ Studentlife Staff Photo]

In January, we attended our annual NZ Staff Conference in Auckland. The theme for this year’s time together was “Joy on the Journey.” This was inspired by our study on the Book of Philippians throughout the conference. In four chapters, Paul mentions the word “joy” five times… and this from a letter written from prison! As we unpacked the letter Paul wrote to the believers at Philippi, it is clear that the joy he is referring to is NOT found in his circumstances. Instead, he finds his joy in the gospel, in their faith, their unity, and their salvation. We’d encourage you to revisit Philippians yourself and be reminded, with us, that the source of our joy is ultimately found in the eternal joy of knowing Christ Jesus, our Lord!
Besides our time in the Word, we really enjoyed connecting with the other NZ staff we serve with across the nation of New Zealand. It was encouraging to hear updates of what God has been doing on campuses over the past year and we are also really excited for some of the national outreaches we have planned for 2010. We really pray that God would allow us to use these outreaches to connect the hearts of lost students to their loving Savior, Jesus.
We were also really blessed to have our newest US STINT team member, Ashley Kohl, arrive in Wellington just before the start of conference. God finally supplied the rest of her support to get her here in time for campus, which starts March 1st.
Finally, another great highlight for our whole family at conference was the family fun afternoon, that included games, sports, and bouncy castles. You can check out some photos of our day to the left (and maybe see a bit of our competitive streak)!

Josh’s South Island Trip

[Franz Joseph Glacier]

One of my huge personal highlights for this summer was getting to take a once-in-a-lifetime trip around the South Island. In early January I started off on a 10-day journey of camping and seeing the breathtaking sights of God’s creation on this unique island. Along the way, I got to see some spectacular places which included the Pancake Rocks, Franz Joseph Glacier, Queenstown, the Fiordlands National Park, Milford Sound, and Arthur's Pass. Not only did I enjoy the sights, but I really valued some time to myself, reading, and connecting with God. I was so very grateful that Jill stayed home to “hold down the fort” and allowed me to embark on my solo adventure down south.
To the right you can see a few of my favorite photos from thetrip, including the Church of the Good Shepherd, a historical stone church on the shores of Lake Tekapo.


[Camping in the Fiordlands]

[Mirror Lakes, Fiordlands]

[Church of the Good Shepherd, Tekapo]

Two Student Testimonies

Christmas Update :: 2009

Greetings Dear Friends in Christ,

Our hearts continue to be drawn to the mission God has called us to - placing the Gospel within arm’s reach of every university student, so that ultimately everyone would know someone who truly follows Jesus Christ. That’s what we’ve labored for. Beginning in New Zealand, we long to see God’s glory revealed and the Good News about Jesus spread to the far corners of the earth.

By God’s grace, we recently saw a beautiful snapshot of this very thing happening. It is one of those significant God Moments we experience in pursuit of the Great Commission.

I [Josh] was meeting with Adam Li, an exchange student from China who came to faith in our movement earlier this year. He was preparing to go back to China for the summer. We met so that I could give him a Chinese Bible and encourage him to continue growing in his faith during his time at home. Toward the end of our time together, he asked me if I’d stick around to meet a new friend of his, Allen. I said I’d love to meet him. Adam had met Allen, an exchange student from Belgium, through one of his classes this year.

We all met for gelato at one of our favorite cafes in Wellington. I marveled as I watched Adam, a young believer, befriending Allen and bravely talking to him about his faith in Christ. As we continued to have this spiritual conversation, I thought to myself, “God, how amazing it is that You would bring an American missionary, A Chinese convert, and a student from Belgium all together to a café in New Zealand to talk about the forgiveness You offer through Your Son!”

Your partnership with us is what allows us to experience such God Moments and continue to passionately pursue lost students with the desire to disciple them into life-long, Christ-centered laborers.

We joyfully celebrate the spiritual growth that we’ve seen in our ministry this past year. But for us, 2008 & 2009 have been very challenging financially. Perhaps it has been for you also. We have lost around 25% of our monthly financial support. Realizing this has only made us appreciate, even more so, your faithful partnership with us!

As we face this reality, we wish to challenge you to prayerfully consider one of two things. Would you be willing to give us a special, year-end gift to help us make up for our shortfall in support? Or would you be willing to increase your monthly support if you are in a position to do so? As you take these requests before the Lord, we recognize that you may be facing financial challenges as well, so if neither of these are possible, we understand.

Above all, know that we remember you all fondly and are incredibly grateful for all you already do! Your prayers, financial gifts, and friendship are vital to the success of our mission.

If you would like to help us, you can give to online following this donate link.

We are grateful for you prayers. If there are any specific ways we can be praying for you, please let us know.

We hope you have a very Merry Christmas!
With all our Love, Josh & Jill Felix

Year in Review :: Celebrating the Lord’s Work in 2009

2009 Statistics of Our Local Movement:
4,775 Students given the opportunity to hear Gospel
949 Spiritual Conversations with students
327 Students heard the Gospel with chance to respond
16 Students indicated decisions to follow Christ
68 Students involved locally on a discipleship level



This past year has been a year of several firsts for us here. As God has increased both the size of our movement and the involvement of our students, we’ve been able to add new elements to Wellington Student Life to continue to develop our students and help them grow in to life-time Christ-centered laborers. 2009 has brought about our first Autumn Retreat, our first fully integrated US Summer Project Team, the start of weekly training times for our key student leaders, and our first kiwi student intern (Leigh Proctor) from our local movement! In addition to this, it has been really rewarding to see a handful of students really take the initiative to lead in areas like our monthly Fuse meeting, leading men’s and women’s times, and leading other students in Action Groups (small group Bible studies). And as I look at our statistics, I’m encouraged to see that the Gospel is being sown broadly here in Wellington (and that brings glory to God!), but also realizing that the soil of students’ hearts is hard and they are far from knowing God. Continue to join with us in praying that God will soften the hearts of students in 2010 to hear and respond to the message of God’s forgiveness through Jesus Christ. Also pray for us as we lead our team and the students, that we might be able to connect well with the Lost in light of the culture and spiritual climate on the university campuses here. As we reflect on God’s work here, we know that the prayers and committments of our partners are a part of what has made all of this possible! Thanks.

Men’s Time :: Not Shrinking Back

[Me near turbine with Wellington Harbour below.]

I enjoy getting together with the men of faith in our movement and really picking apart how we can continue to spur each other on in our walks with Christ and lead others in life and faith by example. At our most recent time together, we went on a tramp to the Wellington wind turbine. As the school year is drawing to a close, I spent time talking to the guys about Hebrews 10:38-39, which says, “’But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.’ But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.” Often summers can be challenging for university students as they leave campus and close Christian friendships and networks. My reminder and encouragement to them was that summers don’t have to be and shouldn’t be a time for us to shrink back in our faith, putting God to the side or our spiritual growth on the back burner. Instead, I challenged them to consider how to “redeem” their summer, continue to walk in faith, and believe God for the preservation of their spiritual lives over the break. My prayer is that these men will take the initiative to stay connected to each other and stand firm throughout the summer holidays. It is also my desire that when they get back to university next autumn that they can see how they’ve experienced great growth and are even having a stronger walk with the Lord as we begin to take the gospel together to next years’ students!

You Are So Loved :: An Outreach Serving the Campus

As students walk on to campus one Wednesday morning, they happen to notice large hearts chalked on the footpath with the words next to it “You are so loved…” As they lift their eyes and walk a few meters further up the path, they are greeted by someone with Student Life who smiles warmly and says, “Good morning! Would you like a free cookie?” The students excitedly accept a little white bag with a heart-shaped sugar cookie enclosed. On the outside of the bag they again read the words, “You are so loved.” Along with it, a note of encouragement from Student Life and the verse “For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.” [2Corinthians 5:14,15]. Students would have also noticed our cookie laden table and billboard in the Quad with John 13:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”The You are so loved outreach was an effort to show students at Victoria University that they are truly loved by God and that we, as Christians, are so compelled by Christ’s love that we would demonstrate it not only by our words but by our actions as well. Our gesture and the cookies (of course) were very well received by the students. We enlisted the help of the US Summer Project team that was in town, some other Christians, and our local church to bake cookies. We gave away between 1600-1700 heart-shaped sugar cookies in the course of 2 hours! In addition, we took plates of cookies to several of the campus faculty and staff who were blown away and felt very appreciated by our group. We believe this is just one more way we can build tangible connections to the campus we serve at and provide students with the opportunity to be within arm’s reach of the Gospel!

Daron :: Finding Faith & Becoming a Disciple

Following the Tune In outreach we ran once again at the beginning of 3rd Term, I had the opportunity to meet up with a Massey student called Daron. I met Daron in the university cafeteria to give him a Tune In magazine and to share about how he could know God personally. Daron is of Maori descent and had no real spiritual background. I asked him if I could share with him how he could know God personally and he was very eager to hear. He listened very intently as I explained how Jesus came to die in for our sins and how we receive Christ through faith. I asked Daron if he wanted to entrust his life to Christ. He enthusiastically said, “Yes!” He proceeded to bow his head right on the spot and pray out loud (in the cafeteria), asking Jesus to come into his life and forgive him his sins and to direct his life. It was so incredible! I’ve been meeting with Daron for about 3 weeks now in order to disciple him and help him grow. He graduates at the end of this next term. Pray that he’d be developed through God’s Word and become a life-time laborer for Christ! (I hope to have a picture of him for our next newsletter)

Farewell to the 2009 US Summer Project

Above is a photo of the eleven Summer Project members that joined us in Wellington from July 1—August 7. This project integrated with our current staff and proved to be an invaluable extension of our campus team. This was a new approach to the NZ Summer Project and done in order to give the students a clearer picture of what it would be like to serve God long-term overseas. It worked very well and two students already have plans to return for a STINT in 2010!

Jill's Journal

For the two years now we have been living in our neighborhood and I have been looking for ways to get to know my neighbors better. Honestly, it has been a slower process than I had hoped and I was starting to wonder if anything would come of these friendships. On the surface, three of my neighbors seemed to have it “all sorted”...they seemed “emotionally unavailable” to developing a new relationship, so I had in a way become stagnant in pursuing them. But I could sense the Spirit telling me not to give up. To persevere. To reach out to them again. So, I did. With each neighbor I did something different depending on what God was asking me to do...for one it was baking muffins and writing a note, for another it was dropping by to give her some baby clothes, and with the last, I simply stopped by for a chat. The most amazing thing occurred. Each person was struggling in a different way when I showed up and God used me in their lives to meet a need. It was glorious! It was so wonderful for me to see that just as God is patient with us and continues to pursue us, that in a similar way we should be patient with each other and continue to be available, open, and approachable in our relationships. God’s timing is not our timing. God also taught me that as human beings we really need community and within community it pays to be vulnerable. People can help meet our needs when we are honest about how we are really doing. I mean really doing. The past few months many painful events have unfolded in the lives of friends in New Zealand and in the U.S. and it has been amazing to see the body of Christ come around them, help them; and heal them. Being honest with others about struggles in my own life has opened up ways for them to reach out to me and show me that I am not alone. You see, we are all more alike than we might think. We ALL have something that we struggle with and we all need a heavenly Father to heal us. [From Jill]

NZSP09 Farewell Video

Laborers of the Harvest :: Saying Goodbye & Hello

On July 13th, we said goodbye to our teammate Nathan. He is the first of the 2009 to leave New Zealand. His early departure is due to the pretty sweet fact that he’s getting married this September. He also has plans to go on to medical school after getting married. We are excited for all that God has in store for him as he returns home, but he will also be missed by our team. Goodonya Nate!


[Our family with Nate at the airport to see him off]


[The guys on the team seeing Nate off]

[Adam, whom Nate led to Christ, says his sentimental goodbye]


Leigh has been involved with Student Life since he arrived at Victoria University in 2007. He has been committed as a student and faithfully served the Student Life community. He has grown in his relationship with the Lord and in his desire to see others come to know Christ. I’m happy to share with you that Leigh has seen the need for laborers on this campus and has decided to apply for an internship with our team after he graduates this year! He will be our first laborer to come out of our local campus movement! We are thrilled to have him come on board and make our team a little more… well… Kiwi.


[Leigh, winning a pizza eating contest on campus!]