Experiencing Apex (Sean)

The APEX Experience

One of the ministries we were able to help with at Challenge 2018 was called the APEX Experience. This experience is generally designed to help raise awareness of things that are happening around the world and potentially plant seeds to serve as missionaries in this areas. This year, the focus was on the Middle East and the refugee crisis that has been growing in recent years. Our team was able to work with teams from Lebanon, Pennsylvania and Crisis Response to transform a ballroom in the convention center into a walkthrough of the Middle East where students were given a taste of the culture, introduced to the refugee crisis and went through a simulation to get a small taste of what refugees experience. The walkthrough ended with a series of reflection spaces to help students let go of some earthly "security blankets" and to rely on Jesus Christ as their firm foundation. We were in awe of the work that others had put in to make this experience possible and to physically transform the ballroom into the Middle East, including some walls that were 16 feet tall!

Tyler and I were able to stay with the APEX team all week and help lead groups through this Middle East experience. My position changed from time to time, but I was usually towards the end of the walkthrough in the reflection spaces. It was honestly a rough start for me since I was given my role and a rough outline about 30 minutes before the first group started. I also didn't fully understand how my section fit into the entire walkthrough and didn't really know what to say. Others were sharing stories about the great responses they were seeing from the youth that were coming through, and I didn't really see much happening in my station. As groups continued to come, however, we continued to make adjustments and I began to see the big picture. I was reminded of the body of Christ having different uparts that play their specific role in the body. Even though some parts may seem more important than others at first glance, every part is vital to the body. I didn't always get to talk with many students or see their responses to their experience, but each station was important for the whole overall experience.

By the end of the week, I was able to see the impact the APEX Experience had on students and even youth leaders. I saw students in deep reflection over what it means to rely on Jesus Christ as their firm foundation and got to read some of the earthly things they had been called to surrender to God, and even saw students in tears as they prayed and reflected. It was amazing to see God take a simulation of being a refugee in the Middle East to not only educuate the youth of the trials people around the world face, but also challenge students on a personal level to think about their faith and their reliance on earthly things. - Sean