Woodland’s School of Everyday Mission (SEM) is a place where students learn to love together, with all their hearts and minds. A few students told us what this experience has meant to them.
How’d you get connected to SEM?
Amy: I was first introduced to SEM through my husband, Josh, who served as a facilitator during the early years of another discipleship program at Woodland, and had been encouraging me for quite some time to join. Kevin Callaghan was also a strong and consistent voice, encouraging me to step into this experience—and I’m so grateful I did.
Juston: I started noticing that a surprising number of people I knew were going through SEM. One person in particular really encouraged me to attend so I enquired about the program. I heard so many good things about it that I turned around and pushed someone else to join, who is now going through it with me.
Megan: I’ve attended Woodland Hills my whole life, so I’d heard about SEM through the usual announcements, but it was my mom who really encouraged me to give it a try. She knows how passionate I am about theology and scripture. As always, I’m ever so grateful I took her advice.
What are some SEM highlights?
Amy: Some of the most meaningful parts of SEM for me have been the retreats, which created space to truly know and be known by others, and to experience the vulnerability people shared in their life stories. This year’s healing journey has been especially powerful, and the teaching from Paul, Greg, and Kevin has had a lasting impact on me.
Juston: The letter-writing assignments to our younger selves and to God stand out. They opened up exploratory questions about my history in ways I hadn’t thought to ask before. Those assignments gave me a structured reflection on specific life stages and a framework for revisiting things I’d just always left alone.
Megan: The SEM retreat is a highlight every year. I’m such an introvert but I absolutely love spending multiple packed days with my SEM family! We laugh, we cry, we sing and we bask in the presence of the Spirit together. I feel confident in saying that I have created lifelong friends in SEM. I cannot wait to journey with these people even after our time in the program ends.
How has SEM changed you?
Amy: One idea I keep returning to is Paul Eddy’s teaching that we are not ultimately citizens of any earthly nation, power or empire—we are citizens of God’s Kingdom. And as citizens of the Kingdom, we are called to be his ambassadors wherever we are planted. That truth has taken on even deeper meaning for me in light of the turmoil in the world, and especially here in Minneapolis over the past several months. Remembering my identity as a citizen of God’s Kingdom has been a steady source of hope and grounding.
Juston: My default mode has always been to move forward without paying much attention to the past. SEM disrupted that in a healthy way and it gave me the tools to look backwards. It’s easier, too, to understand other’s struggles when you do the work of examining your own story.
Megan: SEM has started to open my eyes to just how loved I am by God. The course material, the teachers and my classmates make me feel seen, heard and cherished, and it’s creating ripple effects in my life for how I see myself, how I interact with others and how I lean on God at all times.
How would you describe SEM in three words?
Amy: Transformative, Kingdom-centered, safe
Juston: Framework for growth
Megan: Wrestling, growing, peace
Thank you Amy, Juston and Megan, and may the rest of your time in SEM be equally encouraging!
Applications are open for SEM 2026. You can learn more about SEM here and find the application here.
