VALLEY FORGE, PA (ABNS 9/6/12)—Jennifer (Jeni) Pedzinski has been named as American Baptist International Ministries (IM) first Mission Apprentice. She will serve from September 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013. Jeni, a candidate for future long-term service as an IM missionary, is currently enrolled in a dual Masters of Divinity/Masters in International Development program at Palmer Theological Seminary and Eastern University.
Pedzinski’s initial consideration of God’s call to international mission service came at age 11 through IM missionaries she met at her hometown church, First Baptist Church of Niles, Michigan. She again met IM missionaries when she and her family attended annual World Mission Conferences at Green Lake and stayed in dialog with them over the course of her teenage years.
Her sense of call was nurtured as she sought out educational opportunities and short-term mission experiences with the specific intent of preparing herself to serve God cross-culturally. A graduate of Bethany College of Missions, Pedzinski has served short-term in the Philippines, Guatemala, Cambodia, and Thailand.
Jeni will be IM’s first “Mission Apprentice.” This new mission apprentice initiative is intended to engage IM proactively in the preparation of young adults for cross-cultural service. Jim Bell, IM’s director of Recruitment, explains: “One of our guiding principles is that we send qualified personnel to serve alongside our international partners. The apprenticeship experience offers the opportunity to develop those qualifications in the context of IM missiology and in relationship with IM missionary and staff mentors.”
“Jeni brings great enthusiasm for mission service and has demonstrated a delightful eagerness to learn in her work at Palmer Theological Seminary,” commented Dr. Ben Hartley, associate professor of Christian Mission, Palmer Seminary. “That eagerness to learn will serve her well as an IM apprentice. It is wonderful to see the decades-long tradition of the seminary’s connection to IM be strengthened in this new apprenticeship program. May it re-ignite other ways of working together for the sake of God’s mission in the years to come!”
As a Mission Apprentice, Pedzinski will work in relationship with IM’s Volunteers in Global Mission (VIGM) Coordinator Angela Sudermann and Global Consultant Dan Buttry with the preparation and ministry of IM’s IGNITE Team, which will serve in the Republic of Georgia in June of 2013. IGNITE is a short-term mission opportunity for young adults ages 19-29 sponsored by IM. (For more information, go to www.internationalministries.org)
Individuals and churches interested in supporting Jeni may visit her profile on the IM website http://www.internationalministries.org/give/284, or contact her at jenapickle@gmail.com. On the Mission Apprentice program contact Jim Bell: jim.bell@abc-usa.org.
American Baptist International Ministries (IM) was organized in 1814 as the first Baptist international mission agency in America. It began its pioneer mission work in Burma and today works in Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East and the Americas serving more than 1,800 long-term and short-term missionaries. Its central mission is to help people come to faith in Jesus, grow in their relationship with God, and change their worlds through the power of the Spirit. It works with respected partners in over 70 countries in ministries that meet human need.
American Baptist Churches USA is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with 5,500 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.