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"We are God's workmanship...
...created in Christ Jesus to do good works,
which God prepared in advance for us to do."
Ephesians 2:10
Meet Jay Dawson
March 4, 2007
"Christ is not looking to see who has their doctrine straight. but whose heart is His.
That is the focus of Crossover: transforming these guys' hearts into hearts of servants
and leaders. The idea is to take risks, not in the name of adventure, but in the name of
Jesus."
About 5½ years ago at a men's retreat, Jay Dawson got an idea, a vision so real that it
felt like, "Got had fingered me and said, 'This is for you.'" It was so clear and got
him so charged up, he says, that, "I was just stupid enough to say, 'whatever You
want! I will do anything, go anywhere, start, finish, join, whatever You want me to
do, I will do.' I begged to have the opportunity to do what I am doing." In fact, Jay
says, "I made a vow," one he has since been fulfilling with faithful determination.
Through the Crossover program he began, Jay vowed that he would help call out the next generation of young men to
lead through their faith in Jesus Christ. He vowed that he would
challenge young men to go places that the church has not gone - whether around the
corner or around the world - and teach them to bring the love of Jesus Christ into the
lives of others. He vowed that he would teach bold young men to rescue from behind
enemy lines those he likes to call the "the church yet to be."
From Jay's first, inspired brainstorm, the Crossover discipleship program has gone
international. In 2003, Jay's first "student," who happened to be from Thailand,
helped Jay run a program in Uganda as part of his Crossover
training. Later that year, one of those Ugandan students invited Jay to hold a class in
Kenya. Over time, word has traveled, and Crossover has now been to Uganda, Kenya,
Nigeria, Sudan and Ethiopia.
When asked about the curriculum, Jay explains that it's not that elaborate. Basically,
it's Bibles. "It's not a Bible college; it's not intended to give great knowledge, though
they do get that. It's about changing the heart and
creating disciples." Jay felt that God actually, "challenged me not to fall in love with
the method but to fall in love with the message." The message is to live like Christ.
"What I do is discipleship. It is a heart-based, relational
program. It is about the heart."
In the process of creating and implementing the Crossover program, Jay has grown
and discovered an unquenchable joy that comes from serving the
Savior. For him the joy is two-fold. For one, "It's great to watch guys' lives transformed
in front of your very eyes. You can point to almost the minute when their
lives change, and they are never the same. [It's great] to see them make a quantum
leap toward servanthood from wherever they are."
Secondly, "This is freeing [for me]. To be able to walk in the destiny that God has for
me is huge. I am not anything special. It [Crossover] is not about me or what I know."
It simply means, he says, "I am a son."
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