Christ in Youth—Southeast's Mission Partner

You see it in students’ eyes when they step off the bus after Bible & Beach. It’s glowing on the faces of middle schoolers when they come home from Believe. One word: awakening. That’s what Christ in Youth (CIY) is all about.

For the past ten years, Southeast has partnered with CIY to develop life-changing trips and events like these, awakening a generation to God’s glory and raising up Kingdom workers who will live out Christ’s love wherever they go.

Based in Joplin, Missouri, Christ in Youth has been serving churches for nearly 50 years, providing more than 100 annual events for students and leaders across America and in ten other countries worldwide. Within the next decade, CIY hopes to impact more than a million students and leaders globally with its programs, resources, and curriculum.

Chase Allcott, a Christ in Youth staff member, says, “It’s in everything we do. We believe that every leader, every student, every person has unique gifts and passions. So we challenge them to start asking themselves, ‘How can I leverage those gifts for the Kingdom? How do I become a Kingdom worker here and now?’”

In June of 2016, 1,600 high school students and leaders drove down to Daytona Beach, Florida for Bible & Beach. But it wasn’t just a trip to sand and the sun. Each day, students had leaders and volunteers pouring into them, encouraging and awakening them to their own calling as Kingdom workers. Every night, the focus was worship— passionate, powerful, hearts-on-fire kind of worship! Students got baptized right in the Atlantic—lives turned upside down. The Kingdom broke through with torrential force, and God started a movement there that’s shaping the hearts of high school students for a lifetime.

These CIY-partnered programs aren’t simply one-time events or fun retreats to break up the monotony of the school cycle. They’re sacred moments when the Holy Spirit moves and God calls students to a life of purpose as His ambassadors. Chase Allcott explained, “We want students asking, ‘What can we do to become Kingdom workers? How can we go back home and have it apply for the rest of the year?’”

That’s what Kingdom work is all about: taking your talents and abilities, leveraging your influence, and using your everyday work to spread the message of Jesus in your world. CIY exists to amplify that call, equipping the next generation to live by example.

Get Connected

To learn more about Christ in Youth, go to ciy.com.