Meeting a disciple 12 years later

AIM has a ministry that sends teams of individual young people ministering around the world for a month. Since sending our first team to Costa Rica in 1994, hundreds
of young people have gone through the Ambassador program as it has grown.

Recently I learned that Diana Rarich applied to be a leader for the Ambassador trip to the Amazon Jungle. She was very persistent; last week she went through the interview portion, which, as it happened, my daughter Talia conducted. Talia asked a standard question, “How did you first hear about AIM?”

Diana’s answer was classic: “In 1993, I attended Urbana and connected with AIM. The following summer, as an 18 year-old, I went on an Ambassador trip to Costa Rica – the first Ambassador trip ever, with Kristy Bell, John Rose and his wife. That summer radicalized my life and helped me grow a lot in my faith. I saw God work in exciting ways – I saw an arm grow before my very eyes. God’s been calling me to missions. Remembering my experience with AIM, I found you on the web, so here I am 12 years later applying to lead a trip!”

Friday I met Diana face-to-face at our leader training weekend. What a thrill to see the impact of ministry 12 years later (granted, my own investment was limited). She has turned out to be a fantastic woman of God. Those of us who make disciples one at a time over years need to see the Dianas in our lives to see the great value of our investment.