Great Commission Congress 2016

DR. WES & JOY GRIFFIN –
Co-Founders, International Leadership Institute
Dr. Wes and Joy Griffin co-founded the International Leadership Institute (ILI) in 1998 to accelerate the spread of the life-transforming power of the Gospel through training and mobilizing leaders around the world. Christian leaders are strategically selected and equipped in leadership, evangelism, and multiplication. In 2006, a special track for young leaders was created called History Makers. Today, over 60,000 alumni in more than sixty-five nations serve on the cutting edge of Christian leadership around the world.

Prior to establishing the International Leadership Institute, the Griffins served on the front-lines of Christian leadership development in the former Soviet Union. In 1994, they served on the team that established the Baltic Methodist Theological Seminary. Joy served on the faculty and Wes served as the founding dean.

Wes is a graduate of the University of Colorado where he was a three year letterman in tennis. Joy is a graduate of West Georgia University. Wes and Joy both received Master of Divinity degrees from Asbury Theological Seminary. Wes also received the Doctor of Ministry Degree from Asbury Theological Seminary, where his doctoral dissertation on Christian Conversion in Postcommunist Estonia was chosen for the acclaimed 1995 Distinguished Dissertation Award. In 2004, Asbury Theological Seminary honored the Griffins with a Distinguished Alumni Award. Previously given to individuals, Wes and Joy are Asbury’s first couple to receive this honor.

Wes and Joy are dynamic communicators particularly in the areas of leadership, spiritual formation, and world missions. They are joined in ministry by their two children, Hannah and Caleb.

GCC 2016 POSTER

PRESS RELEASE:

Great Commission Congress Highlights Missions at Asbury

November 08, 2016

WILMORE, KY – At Asbury University, a conversation about missions is never far away. Whether through campus ministries, community outreach, or national and international mission trips, Asbury students are committed to sharing the good news of Jesus. Once a year, though, the Asbury community devotes a whole week to engaging missions during Great Commission Congress.

This year’s speakers were Wes and Joy Griffin, directors of the International Leadership Institute and parents of alumnus Caleb Griffin ’14. In Chapel and special evening services, the Griffins challenged the Asbury community to pray, give, and go in order to fulfill the Great Commission.

“Is it possible that you are the answer to a prayer that Jesus prayed?” Wes Griffin asked during Chapel, referencing Jesus’ words in Matthew 9:38. “Could it be that today you would say ‘Yes,’ becoming a worker in the harvest?”

Every year during Great Commission Congress, the Asbury community takes up an offering supporting a mission. This year’s giving initiative supported The Seed Company, helping provide a translation of the book of Galatians for an unreached group in East Asia.

Asbury’s global outlook was reflected in a special way during Great Commission Congress. Flags from international students’ home countries decorated Hughes Auditorium, and the University hosted 22 mission organizations on campus, including Wycliffe Bible Translators, World Gospel Mission, The Salvation Army, and One Mission Society. During a missions expo in the Student Center, organizations shared what God is doing throughout the U.S. and around the world, and invited students to get involved.

Brianna Boggs ’18 is one student who has been impacted by Great Commission Congress. This time last year, Great Commission Congress introduced her to an opportunity called Volunteers in Action (VIA), administered through World Gospel Mission. Designed for young people, the program matches volunteers with an established missionary family, allowing students to serve in countries around the world.

Boggs volunteered 11 weeks in Mexico, serving in youth groups and Vacation Bible School programs, helping lead women’s groups, tutoring English at a bilingual school and much more.

“Sharing the good news is what we’re called to do,” Boggs said. “If we’re not sharing with other people, we’re not living up to our calling. Jesus went out and made disciples, and if we’re going to be like Him, we will too.”

On Friday, Joy Griffin closed the last Chapel of Great Commission Congress by challenging students to live out the Great Commission in their daily lives.