Who is Cafe 1040 and what is your mission?

Mission:  Cafe 1040 is leading a generation to tell the story of Jesus where it has never been told before!

Cafe 1040’s mission was formed around the reality that the majority of unreached people groups all live in one area of the world – the 10/40 Window.  But 95% of all missionaries live and work outside the 10/40 Window.  So we asked, what can we do to help get more missionaries in the places where they are most needed? And who will these missionaries be?

We believe young adults have a strong desire and unique ability to complete the Great Commission. Because of this, everything we do is focused toward mobilizing the emerging generation of missionaries from the pews of our churches to unreached peoples all over the world.

This generation needs to see it for themselves, so we invite young adults to come walk alongside long-term missionaries to see what their life could look like telling the story of Jesus among an unreached people group. We run our overseas mentorship program inside the 10/40 Window at one of our three overseas locations: North Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. While there, students are immersed in cross-cultural living, language, history, religion, and spiritual discipleship – all for the purpose of equipping the next generation of missionaries with the clarity and confidence needed for long-term work among the unreached people groups of the world.

Please tell us why millennials have a unique gifted offering for missions work today?

The millennial generation is passionate.  They want to change the world and they are willing to leverage their own lives to accomplish that. They deeply care about making an impact that outlasts themselves. We intersect this generations’ lives at a time when they are asking, “God, what do I do with my life?” and we take an approach that values the experiential learning processes of this generation and their need for practical, forward-thinking mentoring.  We get to simply create space in their life for God to show off. And put a face “unreached” for the first time.

Please share a testimonial about Cafe 1040.

In my first year at Café 1040, we had a student go through our program that reminded us the reason we existed. This student embodied all that Café 1040 is about and to this day is serving long-term among unreached people groups. We’ll call her D. D was a student that was passionate for missions and really sensed God was putting a calling on her life to be a missionary. She had the hunger. She had the passion. But she didn’t know where to begin. How do you move your life overseas? Who sends you? And what does life look like once you’re there? She didn’t even realize the obstacles that were in her way.

After hearing about Cafe 1040, D decided to apply for our program and shortly there after, spent three months inside the 1040 window being mentored by the Cafe 1040 staff. During those three months she realized that God had shaped her for this type of work.  The romantic idea of missions she started with was replaced with a real-world, hands-on experience of what long-term work really looks like overseas. She went home confirmed of the calling God had for her and ready to take next steps to move her life to long-term work among the unreached.

D is a great example of why we do what we do. There are LOTS of missions minded young adults in America who are passionate for missions and wondering if God is calling them into the mission field. But most of them are unaware of the many obstacles in their way and don’t have a great way to explore their calling and figure out if missions is, in fact, what God has for them. Many of them get swept away into the American culture and never explore that long-term calling. Cafe 1040 exists to help those young adults overcome their obstacles, address their fears, and continue to move towards a long-term calling among the unreached.

How can local churches get involved with Cafe 1040 and what are the investment/participation opportunities?

Cafe 1040 loves to serve local churches by helping mobilize and equip their young adults toward missions. We have Cafe 1040 staff dedicated to strengthening partnership which churches who are looking to mobilize the young adults in their church body.  If there are young adults that are considering a life of missions in your church, we’d love to talk with them.

How can someone who is interested in Cafe 1040 contact your organization to get more information?  Who can they talk to?

Visit the Cafe 1040 website:  www.cafe1040.com/contact

Email Rebekah, Church Partnerships for Cafe 1040:  rebekah@cafe1040.com

Thank you Cafe 1040!  Don’t miss our upcoming webinar with Cafe 1040 on February 21, 2018, 12 Noon MT, “Mobilizing The Emerging Generation of Missionaries”  Go to 1615’s events page to register!