Seekers in the City

Young people in their 20s are flocking to the cities in the United States. These young college graduates are seeking jobs and social interaction. Most of these young people don’t know Jesus. They may or may not actively be seeking Him—but will they find Him there?

Mike Jordahl, who heads up CityLife, a ministry of The Navigators 20s Mission, believes they can. And he believes young people trained by The Navigators can help that happen.

“We’re asking God to raise up a generation of men and women,” says Mike, “who will purposely move to the cities to reach their peers for Christ. That’s really at the heart of what CityLife is all about.”

The whole concept of CityLife is built around a group of friends who make a commitment to each other and to the Lord to move to a city and to:

• Pursue Christ and walk with Him with all their heart
• Pursue excellence in their workplace and profession
• Live and disciple among the lost—especially their peers
• Do all of the above with a team comprised of people of like mind and heart

So, how does The Navigators fit into this? “When a team comes together,” says Mike, “we’ll provide a mentor—someone who has been around the block. We’ll make sure there is someone there to help them and mentor them so that they can do what God is calling them to do.”

While the CityLife team originally had some specific cities in mind where they wanted to begin, they soon realized that CityLife ministry can happen anywhere—in any city or town. To this point there are about 100 individuals comprising 25 CityLife teams in 22 different cities. Mike is encouraging young people with Navigator training to pray about forming more CityLife teams in additional cities.

As Mike encourages young people who are transitioning out of campus life into the workplace to consider CityLife, he asks them to do four things:

1. Keep praying about this opportunity and ask God what He thinks of this idea.
2. Get counsel from people they trust.
3. Talk to other likeminded individuals and start dreaming together to see if they think this is something God wants them to do together.
4. Talk to a Navigator 20s leader to get some help processing how to move forward.

“Mostly,” says Mike, “what we want these young people to do is to follow Jesus and love Him with everything they have. That’s what we’re praying for them today.”