Introducing our New Youth Missions Enabler

By Cassie Lee
NZCMS Youth Missions Enabler

Kia ora koutou,

Cassie here the new NZCMS youth enabler. I have now been working with the NZCMS team for one month so we thought it would be a good idea to intro­duce myself.

My ancest­ors are from Scot­land, England and Ireland, my Grandad was a gold miner on the West Coast and with a family full of hard-working and loving wahine. I was born in Christ­ch­urch, spend­ing some of my child­hood in Nelson, but I call Hokitika on the West Coast home and the place that formed me as a young person.

My Mother Robyn, was dia­gnosed with kidney failure when I was young. This meant that from a young age I knew my way around hos­pit­als, how to talk with doctors and loved to care for people, espe­cially those strug­gling with illness.

As a 21-year-old, my Mum had just received her second kidney transplant. We were in the hospital but there were some complications. My Anglican Grandmother invited the hospital Chaplain to pray with us and it was then that I had a life-changing encounter with God. This led me on a journey of wonder where I discovered God’s love, saving grace, protection, and the hope of the Gospel story. A hope, love, salvation and protection that I became passionate about everyone knowing, receiving and saying yes to, especially young people.

I became a Youth Pastor at Sumner Red­cliffs Anglican church, where I stayed for four years. From there, I dis­cerned that God was invit­ing me to train as a can­did­ate for ordin­a­tion to become a Preist within the Christ­ch­urch Diocese. I am cur­rently in my fourth year of study at St John’s Theo­lo­gical College in Auckland.

While I was study­ing during the time of Covid restric­tions, I was blessed with meeting my now fiancé, Takape, who is a Fijian living in Fiji. We have now been in this long-dis­tance, cross-cul­tural rela­tion­ship for two years, dis­cern­ing where and what God has next for us as a couple who share a passion and hope that all young people would know God. Last year I spent six months living in Fiji with Takape and his family in Fiji and what an abso­lute gift and joy that time was. The way that Fijian people live out of a place of joy, thank­ful­ness and grat­it­ude is infectious.

It is an abso­lute priv­ilege and honour to be in this role and working with the NZCMS team. I am excited to be jour­ney­ing with the young people of Aotearoa and helping them to exper­i­ence God in new and dif­fer­ent ways and hope­fully through dif­fer­ent cul­tural lenses.

I believe that as Chris­ti­ans, we are all called to be sent out into the world to share God’s all-power­ful story and Good News. I look forward to helping young people discern what that might look like for them.

NZCMS has a rich history and story of sharing the hope of Jesus and being God’s hands and feet. My prayer is that we can help stir a passion in our young to participate in this mission.

I am pas­sion­ate about learn­ing and prac­tising how to be a good partner with tangata whenua and uphold­ing our Te Tiriti o Wait­angi com­mit­ments, espe­cially within the church and within our out­reach. I also believe this is some­thing that our young people in Aotearoa care deeply about and are leading the way for all of us. I feel excited to be jour­ney­ing with young people and learn­ing from their passion and prayer for break­through in these areas of injustice in Aotearoa and the world.

If you are a young person and want to be involved in mission, you want to support people that are out being the hands and feet of Jesus or you have ques­tions about mission, I would so love to connect with you. Oth­er­wise, I invite you all to join me in prayer as I travel the country and connect with the young people of Aotearoa, dis­cern­ing God’s invit­a­tion to par­ti­cip­ate in His mission together.

Vinaka vaka levu,
Cassie