The official launch of iMap (Irish Mission Agencies Partnership) took place on Saturday, March 1 during the monthly "DV8" worship gathering in Newbridge, Co Kildare, Republic of Ireland.

Resourcing World Mission Together

iMap is a partnership that has been growing since 2006, thanks to the efforts of SIM Ireland Director Ian Grant and other mission leaders. Grant serves as the chair of the iMap board and spoke to the crowd of 200 gathered at DV8.

Explaining the five goals of iMap, he introduced the 17 member agencies, which include AIM, AWM, Frontiers Ireland, Interserve Ireland, Latin Link, OMF, and others. At "Your Move," a mission mobilization event held in Dublin the following day, Grant was able to introduce iMap to 150 more people.

Still a Mission Field

"Every time iMap takes a step forward," says Ian, "God works to remind us that Ireland is still as much a mission field as it is a missionary-sending nation."

One woman who attended the launch gave her life to Christ at the end of the program. She had been particularly impacted by the message from Adam Jones, the IFES Ireland Director, and by the story of 19-year-old James who was interviewed about his time serving on an Operation Mobilization ship.

	At the "Your Move" event in Dublin, Edwina Dewart, from Cavan, Republic of Ireland, spoke about her two and a half years of service with SIM in Ethiopia.

James had come from an inner city Dublin background. By the time he was 15, both of his parents had died of AIDS, and his sister had committed suicide. He encountered the love of Christ through the ministry of ACET (AIDS, Counselling, Education, and Training) in Dublin and committed his life to following Jesus.

To coincide with the launch of iMap, Tentmaker Publications published a new book by Ian Grant entitled The Missionary Vision of the Irish Church—Where Do We Go From Here?

"We are so delighted that Europe can be involved in SIM's New Initiatives in Missions," said SIM-UK Director Keith Walker. "Do pray that very soon iMap will be sending out their first missionaries."