Motiv8 will be launched in the UK on 29th June, Dave Barker, who has been involved in the motiv8 vision from its establishment, encourages more young people to engage in world mission.

Motiv8 is an expo/road show/conference that will help mobilise more than 10,000 UK young people into world mission every three years. It is for young Christians aged 16-25 from across the UK to build and extend the kingdom of God throughout the nation and overseas.

The programme of events will run different streams and tracks from different areas of mission around the world. By bringing young people into contact with Christian organisations and mission agencies, it encourages them to "pray, give, go, do" for local and global mission.

Pray - for their friends, neighbours, towns, country, the world
Give - time, support, money
Go - local, short term and long term mission
Do - above all – Do something

The proposed events over the coming three years are:
-Autumn 2004 run two motiv8 expo/conference days – one each in the North and South of England. Venues have already been booked in the North at Emanuel College, Gateshead and the South at Moorlands College, Christchurch.

-2005 a big event over 3 days (similar to TEMA or Urbana) + 3 or 4 expo events (all UK).

-2006 - run 6 expo/conference one day events as in 2004 (all UK).

The Motiv8 vision was born from two significant sources, What4 and Monkton Combe School, both sharing similar concerns and aspirations for mission.

The work of What4 has included modelling mission with young people locally, in Kent, and globally, in Europe, Asia and Africa. For nearly ten years now it has been active in envisioning and equipping young people for mission.

Monkton Combe School has a long history of pupils going on to enter the mission field. In March 2003, 34 mission organisations participated and over 600 young people attended this one day event at the school near Bath. Subsequently a 'post Motiv8' conference was held to consider the next steps and it was decided by the 42 mission organisations present that there was a need to develop the Motiv8 idea and hold more events in the future.

The motiv8 consortium will be launched to allow mission organisations and churches working together to share resources and experiences in order support one another.

"Today the church and its missions are in jeopardy, the recent research shows the attitudes and values of young people and Church are in decline in the West. The reason is a failure to effectively engaging young people in mission, therefore the urgent need is to re-engage young people in mission and reverse their exit from the church – possibly even to initiate the same zeal and effectiveness of those young early 20th century Welsh revivalists." Dave Barker, the Director of What4 and a member of the motiv8 planning team shared the vision of Motiv8.

For more information, see http://www.what4.org.uk/motiv8