“Push out into deeper water, and let down your nets for a catch.”

In Luke 5, these are the instructions Jesus gives His disciples as they struggle to catch fish. Although they were skeptical at first, they eventually followed through. They went into deeper water and let their nets down on the other side of their boats.

They pulled in a historic catch that day.

Last year, God called us to expand our vision. Project 117 became One 17 International as we committed to working in Cambodia and began fundraising for the opening of Campus Two in Haiti.

We are going deeper in Cambodia by forging partnerships with organizations already working on the ground. By determining a specific location to begin operating where God will use our organization to make a big impact. By forming a Development Committee to advocate for Cambodia’s story, people, and the work to be done there.

We are going deeper in Haiti by pushing to open Campus Two next September, which will allow us to serve a broader community of left behind students. By developing metrics to track student performance, staff satisfaction, parent engagement, and conversations our teachers are having about students’ faith, their relationship with God, and their place in His story. By equipping our staff to lead with confidence and from a place of wholeness through trainings and seminars. By training our teachers to engage students emotionally to facilitate deeper learning experiences.

For the disciples, going out into deeper water was a risk. They stepped out in faith and had to put complete trust in Jesus’ call into deeper water, and they experienced God’s provision in new ways. We are approaching our work this year in the same way. This time next year, we’ll be telling stories of how God provides in unique, surprising, and incredible ways.