CHARGE THE DARKNESS

BY: KYLE ZUIDEMA

It is this sentence that took hold of me at 17 years old. It ignited a spark in which God grabbed hold of my heart and laid out a new trajectory for my life.

To set your expectations on-course, my current story is one that is six years in the making (and still being written). It’s a story that might resonate with your own - evolving with time; with patience; and you don’t necessarily see the ‘whole picture’ until you’ve already arrived.

This story has God revealing Himself in unusual ways to keep a candle flickering for something I didn’t quite know. As you read the ‘birds eye’ view of my life over the last six years, just keep reading. God’s story is always worth it.

August 2017: It was 2017. I was sitting in the balcony of Faith Dyer next to my dad, who had invited me to attend the Global Leadership Summit. It was the very last session of a two day conference - and if you’ve attended a conference before, no matter how great it is, your energy is draining and your attention span is almost non-existent at the end. But it’s a pivotal moment to pull out the ‘big guns’ when you want to end with a bang. And in 2017 that person was Gary Haugen, Founder and CEO of International Justice Mission (IJM).

Gary shared the jaw-dropping statistic that ‘over 40 million people are living in slavery today, globally [as reported in 2017]; there are more slaves today than during the transatlantic slave trade.’ He spoke of IJM charging the darkness - Sex trafficking. Labor trafficking. Police abuse of power. Sexual violence against women and children. Online sexual exploitation. I left the Summit with Gary’s book in hand and a new passion ignited in me for an organization called IJM.

International Justice Mission is a global organization that protects people in poverty from violence by rescuing victims, bringing criminals to justice, restoring survivors to safety and strength, and helping local law enforcement build a safe future that lasts.

School Year 2018-2019: Like most seniors in high school, I was trying to determine ‘what I want to do with the rest of my life.’ And as much as I wanted to tie-in the mission of IJM, I was finding it difficult to see what God’s calling might be in my life. What I did know was that I had an interest in biochemistry and language came naturally to me, so biochemistry and Spanish became my majors. While I didn’t recognize it, God was already planting seeds.

School Year 2019-2020: I started my freshman year at Calvin University. And it’s in this year (with the goal of becoming a doctor) that I attended a medical missions conference. The keynote speaker spoke on the topic of sex trafficking - and identifying the signs and symptoms. It felt like a God wink, a comforting assurance, that there was a reason why He ignited the IJM spark and that in due time, I’d understand why.

School Year 2020-2021: It’s in this year that I began to realize that I may not actually want to be a doctor. As I uncovered more and more about IJM’s mission and work, I began to wonder if I should be a lawyer. But as I brainstormed this potential path, I’m told time and again, “the market is saturated,” “don’t be a lawyer,” “that’s a pipe dream; don’t get a law degree to change the world.”

I decided to apply for a summer remote internship with IJM (remote because of COVID protocols), supporting a team in the Dominican Republic. After a couple rounds of interviews, I learned that IJM decided to make it an in-person internship for someone living in the country. While I was disappointed, I was thankful to have built a relationship with one of IJM’s intern recruiters, Lucas, who I follow on LinkedIn.

Summer 2021: Since IJM didn’t work out, I work to secure an internship that will give me ‘law-ish’ experience without actually having to be on the law-degree journey, yet. I end up working in Intellectual Property (IP). I learn all about how IP law governs creation and innovation through patents, copyright and trademarks. It’s during this internship I also learn that I can apply my background in biochemistry to a future career in IP law. It becomes apparent in this season how God is forming a potential future for me.

School Year 2021-2022: In the fall of 2022, I was in the hiring process for a fully remote, part-time internship with IJM, but eventually (and very begrudgingly) had to remove myself from candidacy due to my school schedule. In my last semester of college, I completed a study abroad program to finish my Spanish major. I was able to practice my Spanish first-hand in my day-to-day living, and the experience also lent itself to learning what it was like to live so far from home.

“The Real World”: After graduating from Calvin, I secured a position with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois doing internal management consulting. In a nutshell, I worked on creating and reporting metrics for initiatives set forth by the company (for example: building and reporting metrics on the financial value of our cyber resiliency). I really liked this job as it challenged me and I learned a lot. But I was still incessantly asking, “God, what’s the plan here?” as I felt there was more to what I was doing…there was Kingdom work to be done.

I didn’t have to wait much longer for my answer.

Six months into my job, I saw a LinkedIn post from Lucas at IJM that applications were being accepted for their Global Fellowship Program! And after completing my own (with no hesitancy), I learned that:

•  I was fit for a position in Bolivia as it was a requirement that the applicant knew Spanish. (Puzzle pieces: Spanish major - check; living abroad - check)

•  My position will be with the ‘Monitoring, Evaluating, Researching & Learning’ Team, which correlates to the work I was doing at Blue Cross, Blue Shield. (Puzzle piece: metrics job - check)

•  I would need to attend a required training & orientation in Washington D.C. in June. It was at this event that I would have a providential moment. The keynote speaker was a member of IJM’s Board of Directors. And do you know what she does for a living? She’s a Harvard Law Professor who is a scholar in Intellectual Property Law.
  
  Goosebumps on my arms, that tingling feeling up my spine. God whispers clear as day, “I’m here. I’ve been here. You are on the right path.” (Puzzle piece: biochemistry major - check; IP law internship - check)

Finally! All the puzzle pieces of the last six years have come together. It became clear how IJM fit into His plan for me. IJM’s Global Fellowship Program will be for one year. And while I am well aware that I don’t know what’s to come during or at the end of it, I’ve decided that in the meantime, I would apply to law school, to equip myself to practice Intellectual Property Law and champion the rule of law for those vulnerable to unspeakable violence, knowing that God will use the gifts He’s given me for His greater purpose.

But God: Charge the darkness. In Gary’s talk at the 2017 Summit, he spoke of fear being a destroyer of dreams. He spoke of advancing into what is broken and being courageous. God doesn’t promise us an easy life; He never promised following Him would be. It’s in our moments of uncertainty, weariness, weakness that we become fully reliant on Him. And here I am boldly in Jesus’ name taking my steps to Bolivia with IJM in September 2023.

My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. 2 Corinthians 12:9