Global Legacy Missions - Red Frogs

Speaker: Ray Thomson, National Coordinator of RED FROGS NZ

Ray Thomson: Hi. My name is Ray Thompson. I am the national coordinator for Red Frogs here in New Zealand. Red Frogs Mission is to provide a positive peer presence to young people. We're in the business of changing culture. We're a support programme for young people between 13 and 30. And so our mission is to provide a positive peer presence in, party environments wherever young people gather, and to educate young people in safe partying behaviours, and then look at diversionary activities to help provide a different pathway for our future doctors, lawyers, leaders.

Ray Thomson: We had an absolutely incredible 2023 start of 2024, and one of the things to celebrate is that we've been able to activate over 40 churches nationally, in order for local volunteers from local churches to be able to engage in missions in their own local context and off the back of that, that means that now, that seven of the 8 universities in New Zealand are covered by Red Frogs teams, that over the New Year's period, between Safe Zone Activations where we set up safe spaces for young people to receive support, to receive pastoral care, to have a pancake and a chat, and have a place that they could be referred on to for further support if they need it. And then festivals where we did the same thing. But in the festival environment, we were actually able to, to support 7.5% of New Zealand's population over a 10 day period, which I think is absolutely incredible. Off the back of the festival season. we moved into our O week season and I'm so, so pleased to report that it was the first time that Red Frogs Waikato was operating at O Week for The University of Waikato. And they did an incredible, had an incredible response where for three nights over the busiest nights of O Week here in Hamilton, they set up a tent, they set up a tent with support with, being able to feed food and pancakes to the new-to-town students. And off the back of that, I hear that there's been multiple people engage with Activate Hamilton as a result of that, which I think is absolutely incredible. As part of that O Week response, 7 of the 8 major universities had O Week responses from Red Frogs in those spaces, there were seven universities supported. There were 39 events that Red Frog supported. There were seven Leadership Programmes that were given, and as a result of that, 354 people were activated in mission, with 1,973 volunteer hours just over that one week, O Week period. Out of those spaces, there were over 70,000 people at events that Red Frogs were at over that time, and there were 32,000 interactions with people. That's conversations, that support, provided, we were able to provide support for 297 people. That means that they had assistance from Red Frogs. They were being looked after when they couldn't necessarily look after themselves. We handed out over 100 and 37 KGS of Red Frogs. We provided 23,000 cups of water, 11,762 pancakes and then handed out a whole range of other stuff. Now, these stats are impressive, but what that actually means is that that's care, comfort, support provided for, for like, a significant portion of the university population over a one week period. And who knows what impact that's gonna have as we continue through the years. It's absolutely amazing to see what God is doing in this space. It's amazing to see local, faith communities being activated on mission in a variety of different ways. And I'm so, so excited to see, where we go to from here. So I just wanted to say thank you so much to our Activate Community. Thank you so much to partnering with Red Frogs here in New Zealand. So excited to see the Waikato Red Frogs crew being pioneered and birthed out of the mission that Activate is doing and really, really excited to partner in the future.

Ray Thomson: We have so many stories that we that we could use... One of the really great testimonies that we have is what's happening in a Massey campus down in Palmerston North. Over the course of a year, we've had 130 young people go from the point of first interacting with the Red Frogs crew, to engaging in a church environment. And from that space at the start of the year, where there was 137 people that have gone through and gone to a Service or a Young Adults Camp, there's been 27 salvations. And off the back of that there was seven baptisms at the end of last year, down at the church that partners with Red Frogs down there. There's so many other incredible stories of people receiving help as they as they needed it. For example, in Waikato, there were several examples of people that were able to be supported after suspected drink spikings, which I think is just an incredible, incredible Harm Prevention

Ray Thomson: I think one of the things that's really important to know is that Red Frogs is not a para-church organisation. We're not separate to the church. Red Frogs is, it's a local church-driven programme where local churches can be engaged in local mission to impact their world for God and for good. And so Red Frogs doesn't exist without the volunteers. It's not separate to what's happening locally. It's actually a great another pathway for people to encounter and engage with a God that loves them and cares for them.

Ray Thomson: I think one of the things that I love about my local context with particularly with the mission of Red Frogs, is it encourages you to walk towards the messes in your world. I think one of the things is that when it comes to being willing to stand in the gap for a generation, particularly amongst young people, what we're doing is we're both preserving who they are at the moment, while at the same time ensuring that one, you know, one bad decision, one poor night, one season of their life doesn't actually define their life forever. These are our future doctors, our future lawyers, our future politicians, our future teachers, our future. You know, these this generation is our future. And so if we are willing to be ones that go into some of those spaces that we wouldn't normally go to as a result of that, that's both a testimony to those people that even in those darker spaces that there's that there's people that love them that care for them that have a faith for them and that have a hope and a hope for their future as well. So as as Christians, Jesus calls us to be Light in the Darkness. We are called to be a City on a Hill and a light that shouldn't be hidden. And so as a result of that, I genuinely think that both for local mission and for overseas mission, it's generally an opportunity for us to serve in a way that doesn't just impact the local, the local context. But actually it impacts us as well. And so one of the reasons that I'd consider overseas mission for anyone is there would be a catalyst for change in your own world as well, because when you go into someone else's context and serve their heart, their mission, you go back into your own local space and you're just not the same, as Red Frogs. One of the things that we do is we provide spaces for people to operate that are outside the four walls of the church, and as a result of that, they'll go back into their local context. They might serve it in New Year's and, you know, hold someone's hair back when they when they vomit, sit with someone while they're sleeping and can't look after themselves. Provide support for someone that, that can't support themselves at that point. And you take that experience, you take that knowledge and that learning and then go back into your local context, whether it's the Waikato, whether it's Hamilton, whether it's your university, your workspace and there's something that changes within you, and as a result of that change, you're going to be one that's willing to stand in the gap for a generation. You're going to be people that are are willing to walk towards the messes. And so I genuinely believe that that's, that's one of the real benefits of getting outside your own local context and and going into some of those spaces where you wouldn't normally go.

Ray Thomson: I mean, absolutely one of our one of our best prayer needs, at the moment is you know, the harvest is ready, but the workers are few. We are looking to continue to engage with, great local churches and great local people that would be keen to go on mission both in a local context and then in some of those, larger spaces like festivals, New Year, all of that kind of stuff as well. Alongside that, as a one of the things that would be wonderful to pray for is that, there's a spiritual cost to what we do when we, put the shirt on. We're going to spaces that you wouldn't normally go into, you know, whether that's, you know, 1 o'clock in the morning down the centre of town, whether that's out at the halls while there's people that are drinking around or, you know, in a festival space where, you know, people might be engaging in behaviour that you might not necessarily engage in yourself. But actually, you're being a Light in the Darkness, so just, so just prayer covering for us as we go into some of these spaces. Favour with both, favour with both, organisations and, the ability to build relationships with specific stakeholders that are actually gonna open opportunities for us. One of the other things for us in Red Frog space is, is sustainability, as an organisation. We're still being established where at the moment, we're an organisation with skinny legs and broad shoulders. The impact that we're having is incredible, but we're looking at different ways of making it sustainable, long term. We so appreciate your prayer covering. Thank you for everything that you you do. And yeah, just keep us in your prayers.