Get to Know the McIvor Family

Ministry Description

Through the Word of Life organization in New Zealand, we help lead an internship program for young adults. Our desire for the internship is to provide an environment that develops young adults in their relationship with God and in their ministry skills, with a strong emphasis on evangelism and discipleship. We carry this out through the platform of ministry that Word of Life provides and through a four year program that is based on fifty percent ministry and fifty percent study. Ultimately, we want them to reproduce in others what they learn in their time with us. Our roles are to manage and oversee the training and development of each intern, while also walking alongside of them through each of their individual journeys.

Learn more about the ministry in New Zealand.

About Josh

Kia ora, my name is Josh McIvor and I was born and raised in New Zealand. I was adopted from a young age into a missionary family that worked for Word of Life New Zealand and have grown up being the son of faithful full-time missionaries to this day. I believe God has blessed my life in many ways as I have grown up, but ultimately by the sacrifice of His perfect Son Jesus, sent to earth to die on the cross for my wrongdoing. In doing this, Jesus overpowered death rising from the grave 3 days later, providing a way to all who believe in Him to have the gift of eternal life with Him in Heaven. After believing and receiving this gift when I was 7 years old, I had confidence where I was going to go when I died; but at age 18 my purpose became focused on serving God with my life. At age 18, I went on a life-changing missions trip led by Word of Life, and from that trip my eyes were opened to what God had desired for us on earth. In 2014, I joined Word of Life New Zealand to serve as a missionary before deciding to go to the Word of Life Bible Institute in New York to study for 2 years in fall 2015. This is where I met Madi, who 4 years later became my beautiful amazing wife! In 2018, I participated in an internship run by Word of Life New York called the 'Cross-Cultural Internship' that sent me to Word of Life Belem, Brazil. This internship was 2 fantastic years of gaining valuable ministry experience, learning language and culture, and finishing my BS in Business Leadership online with Calvary University. Through the different places God took me and the lessons and experiences gained in my internship, God was placing in me great passion and vision for developing other future ministry leaders. In 2020, God directed Madi and I back to where I was raised in New Zealand, to lead and develop an internship program directed at developing future ministry leaders. Through the amazing opportunities God has given me to learn and grow, I desire to provide a program for others to have the same opportunities that will equip them to do incredible things for God wherever they may go.

About Madi

Hey everyone! My name is Madi Schake and I was born and raised in Palm Coast, Florida. My dad became a pastor when I was young, and my mom has been involved with children’s ministry ever since I can remember. That being said, I had the privilege of being raised in a Christian home. My parents have always made it a priority to teach their children to understand the power of the gospel and what it meant to have a relationship with the Lord. Through my parent’s guidance I chose to accept Christ as my Lord and Savior at a very young age. As I got older, the memory and assurance of making that decision began to fade away and I started to base my salvation off of what my parents would say or the memories they would recall. When I was nine years old, I remember prompting my parents with questions about salvation. It was through those conversations that I came to the conclusion that I couldn’t base my own salvation on other people, I needed to know for myself that I had chosen accept Christ on my own. In that moment I decided to rededicate myself to the Lord and have committed to live for him ever since. It was in that same year that my family’s world flipped upside down. My mom became gravely ill and our lives became consumed with doctors’ appointments. It felt like we were playing a game of musical chairs, going from one doctor to the next trying to get answers for unsolved questions. During this time, my family was also in the middle of planting a church. These trials that we were facing led me to question God. I wondered why in the world he would allow this to happen, especially when we were trying to reach people for him. Through a long and meaningful discussion with my dad, he was able to help me understand God’s promises and plans for our lives. This led our family to take on the mindset of trusting that He would use our circumstances even if we didn’t fully understand. Eventually, we were able to get connected with a doctor who managed to diagnose my mom and help her receive the care and medication she needed. Not long after that, each member of my family, including myself, was diagnosed with the same disease. Currently we are all receiving treatment for our illness and I am proud to share that our church that we planted many years ago just celebrated its ten-year anniversary. When I reached my senior year of high school, I had no plans to attend the Word of Life bible institute the following year, but through consistent prayer I felt as though that was the place God needed me to be. The bible institute was an amazing experience. I learned and grew so much, however as the experience came to an end, I was still completely puzzled of what God had next for me. Through different opportunities and experiences, God has been revealing in my heart a genuine love for others and a desire to live my life according to his purpose. I am so excited at the chance to do exactly that in this internship with CCI, alongside of my amazing husband. My prayer throughout these entire two years is that the Lord would use my life to shine his light and that it would ultimately be used for his glory.

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:19-20

Contact Information

joshuamcivor@wol.org.nz

Address:
Josh McIvor
Word of Life New Zealand
PO Box 600
Schroon Lake, NY 12870