HEAR FROM OTHER PARENTS OF PAST IT STUDENTS:

JEFF AND DENISE WHITE

Our daughter attended IT Project after her senior year of high school. She was so excited to attend the summer project. We had no idea how much of an impact 7 weeks would make on our daughter until he came home. She had plans to attend Biola University but after IT Project, the doors opened for her to attend the University of Arkansas. She wanted to go to a school where there were lost students and international students. Her desire to make Christ known was contagious. She joined a ministry on campus where she began reaching international students. She didn’t just gain knowledge from the IT Project, but she was equipped with the tools to do something about it. Not only did her heart for the world grow, but so did her heart for Christ. This was a life changing summer project and we would recommend it to any young adult!

PAM AND CARY SCHULZ

From Pam Schulz:  "My husband and I were fortunate to be at the University of Texas visiting my daughter, Kristin, when The Traveling Team was on campus. Their heartfelt message on missions made me think about the unreached world in a new light. I was also impressed with the way they connected with the college students. That night Kristin expressed that she would like to attend the IT Project and take the Perspectives course on missions. I was unsure as to what this summer experience would be for Kristin.

Kristin gained knowledge and compassion for those people not blessed to live in the United States where we are free to worship. I think she became more focused to bring her fellow students to Christ. It is hard to explain but she had a new peace about her. Kristin said she had a new purpose after completing the IT Project and taking the Perspectives course. Kristin has made a difference in my life as I now want to live more outside my own little world. That summer she became more comfortable witnessing to others. The summer at the IT Project Kristin also gained new leadership skills. I have never seen Kristin as excited about anything like she was when she returned.
Upon her return from that summer, she did not hesitate to tell others to attend the IT Project and how it made a huge difference in her life as a college student. As a mom I get emotional when I think of Kristin’s heart for those people who have not come to Jesus."

From Cary Schulz:   "The Intensive Training project is God's way to give a young person a great understanding of God's World and how different peoples are all important to Him. My daughter went to the project the summer after meeting the Traveling Team. It seemed like a lot of money to me, to not only pay for the summer project, but also for my daughter to not have a job for the summer (a double whammy financially - so to speak). However, you can't put a price on how God will use an investment like this in a person's life. If you believe God and take him at His word, He will reward those who follow Him and invest in His kingdom. Jesus tells the disciples they will receive more than 100 times over for giving their time and allegiance to Him.

By letting or helping your student attend the IT project, you are trusting God and showing Him that you care about what He cares about, the salvation and discipleship of peoples all over the world. The fact that your student has found out about the IT project and has a desire to go is evidence that God is interested in your student becoming involved in missions.

My daughter has benefited from the project in many tangible ways, she has learned about all the major world religions and how they are different. She has spent time and made lasting friends with other committed students interested in missions. She now knows how to talk to international students about their own religion and culture, and she can pray for countries and peoples with firsthand knowledge of their situation. Beyond that, she has grown closer to God and understands His heart for the world so much better. You often can't measure spiritual growth easily, and a seed may germinate a long time before it sprouts and brings forth its plant life to the world. I believe God will use this summer project as a seed to grow spiritual life into your son or daughter, just as He has to mine.

DAWN JACKSON  

Early in the spring semester of her sophomore year of college, my daughter expressed interest in something called “IT Project.” Never heard of it. She had learned of it through The Traveling Team. Never heard of it. It would be held at the U.S. Center for World Missions. Never heard of it. They would be studying something called Perspective on the World Christian Movement. Never heard of it. It was in Los Angeles, California!! Now, that – I had heard of. What I had heard did not make me anxious to send my daughter out there for 50 days.

Were all of these organizations and training for real? Were they legitimate ministries? I checked them out online. I found a ministry I was familiar with on the endorsement list and emailed them to see if they really did support The Traveling Team. Indeed, they did.    But, the real clincher came when God reminded me that He would be in Los Angeles, that He was leading her to go there, and that He loved her even more than I did. We paid the deposit and began making plans for her to go to “IT Project.”

“It rocked my world!” were her words when she returned. As the next few weeks unfolded, I found out just how true those words were. Her hunger to know God more intimately was immediately apparent. She had adopted a new vision to bring honor and glory to Jesus Christ in her daily life, as well as lead others to a personal relationship with Jesus, so that His glory would be further increased. (Her outlook on spending had certainly changed. Money that would normally be spent for clothes, jewelry, or shoes could be put to a much better use if it helped to send missionaries to unreached people groups around the world.)

Sometimes, this kind of experience is a “mountain-top” experience and the “new” wears off. But, the knowledge and training she gained at the IT Project has not worn off, but instead has grown stronger. It was truly a life-changing experience!

TIM AND CAROL SIMPSON

Our son, Jeff, is a Business Major at the University of Maryland. During the summer of 2009 he participated in the IT Project in Pasadena, California. He learned of the opportunity through Campus Crusade for Christ. We have watched him respond passionately to God’s call to care about the nations of the world for several years. He sensed the need to learn more about missions in an academic setting that included learning via cultural experiences. He loves that kind of intellectual and spiritual challenge. His experience in California provided both. As we talked with him during and after the IT Project, his grasp of God’s concern for the world expanded. The up-close encounter with world religions in the greater Los Angeles area put faces on the nations. He came home at the end of the summer enthusiastic about how God will use his life in the future.