As students returned to California Baptist University for the fall 2025 semester, Summer Service Project applications became available for new and returning students until October 15.
Summer Service Projects provided two opportunities: the International Service Project and GenSend. International Service Projects (ISPs) are overseas missions that either span two to three weeks, called Encounter, or four to eight weeks, called Immersion. GenSends, coordinated with the North American Mission Board, are six to eight week national missions that focus on serving alongside a developing church plant.
Kris Smith, assistant director for global service, explained the purpose and value of Summer Service Projects.
“We want to help… Christian students learn how to become disciple makers,” Smith said. “[We’re] teaching them about God’s global mission. We’re teaching them about how God cares for his people.”
Jasmine Macias, sophomore elementary education major, served three weeks in Southeast Asia on an ISP Encounter this past summer. Macias recounted the difficulties of changing schedules, jet lag and feeling unqualified.
“… [Physically]… it was very hot and we would have long days without getting much sleep,” Macias said. “It was also hard to process all… the wickedness we would hear and witness… and hearing hard stories from people.”
Through the good and bad, Macias said she learned a valuable lesson. “The Lord uses anything… You might be uncomfortable, but the Lord is good.”
Hearing testimonies from Christians and non-Christian teachers in Southeast Asia expanded Macias’s worldview on the reality of Christ and lostness among the nations. Macias learned how her faith struggles as a Christian living in the West were not so different from those of Christians in Asia.
She also witnessed a non-believer’s heart soften toward the gospel after she and her team shared with him; he attended church the following week.
“It really changes your whole perspective when you go to another nation and see how big the world is,” Macias said, “it just really made my heart hurt because… many of these people follow Buddhism. That’s what they’re told; that’s what they’re taught; that’s all they’ve known.”
Smith shared SSPs not only revealed God’s heart for the lost, but also aimed to cultivate humility and curiosity.
Sierra Stenson, sophomore elementary education major, initially applied for an ISP but went on a GenSend to Logan, Utah, witnessing to a Mormon population. With a team of six students from across the United States, Stenson visited a Mormon university, institution, church and local markets, evangelizing to the people around them.
Before GenSend, Stenson said she did not understand the importance of applying apologetics to her life. With only a day and a half of training and no set schedule, Stenson and her team were challenged by the conversations they held with Mormons.
“… I think being in that setting kind of shows that at any point you could be asked to defend your faith,” Stenson said, “and you need to be able to, one, be grounded in what you believe, but also be able to point people back to what God says in his word.”
By listening to her teammates share the Gospel and learning one-on-one how to defend the faith, Stenson developed apologetic tools to apply to her life.
“[If] you’re actively going out to share the gospel,” Stenson said, “you need to understand what you believe and be able to articulate that to someone who might not be as familiar in that setting.”
Ultimately, Stenson said she realized missions were not just a seasonal occurrence, but a life-long commitment that “… doesn’t stop when you get back or when you get off the plane.”
“Every student who is a follower of Christ should do ISP… during their time in college,” Smith said. “To me, it’s catalytic for many students… It’s the moment where they actually… see people like God sees them.”
As Macias and Stenson experienced, Summer Service Projects, whether ISP or GenSend, were a chance to learn and grow as disciples. Despite challenges, they said they relied on God’s faithfulness to equip them for what He called them to do.
“There’s no commitment to doing the initial application,” Smith said, “and all that does is get you to the next step, so we can talk to you about it.”
