The mission field is in our midst. America’s cities are now home to the greatest concentration of under-reached and under-served people in the United States. That’s why The Navigators is reaching New York City and other metro areas with a powerful new strategy to advance the Gospel in urban America as never before. Learn what our new Cities Initiative is and why it’s so desperately needed now.
This video serves as a call to action and a vision statement for The Navigators ministry, emphasizing the essential human need for community and the organization's purpose: "to know Christ and to make him known."
The speaker highlights the biblical model of pouring into individuals and making disciples who make disciples, which The Navigators aims to replicate in America's cities, particularly New York City, recognizing it as a global center of influence and great Brokenness.
The vision for NYC is to significantly impact its diverse people groups (140 nationalities, 800 languages) with the gospel by integrating their various missions to create a movement. The video concludes with an urgent plea for viewers to invest and partner with them now to raise up laborers and strategically meet the challenges of city ministry head-on.
The Navigators NYC want to see a city transformed through life-to-life discipleship. See how that is happening right now.
This video advocates for The Navigators' distinctive approach to ministry in New York City, a global center of influence where the majority of its 8.5 million residents are unreached and Christians face unique challenges like isolation, anxiety, and a focus on "building a brand."
The video argues that traditional, large-group ministries often fail to provide the one-to-one investment necessary for deep spiritual growth, leaving a critical gap. The Navigators address this by focusing on "life-to-life" personal discipleship, which allows people to feel truly known and loved by offering the gospel's message of acceptance combined with a call to growth.
By building a network of ministries aimed at transforming the city person by person, this intentional, sacrificial investment not only plants deep gospel roots but also scales exponentially as those discipled are equipped to become mentors and make new disciples themselves.
Not only is God working in the city through The Navigators in NYC, He is also moving in the greater metro area…
This video features a speaker sharing his journey of coming to Christ through the ministry of The Navigators, highlighting the power of personalized, intentional relationships. The key to spiritual growth and perseverance is one-on-one investment, a method which he contrasts with traditional ministry models.
The speaker shares that Navigator mentors made her feel known and understood by being intentionally involved in her daily struggles, teaching her the gospel message not as a rejection of her imperfections, but as a commitment to love her where she was while guiding her toward transformation.
This personal discipleship, rooted in Scripture, not only helped her overcome anger and low self-confidence but also inspired her to begin discipling and mentoring others, showcasing the exponential, life-to-life impact of The Navigators' work.
Kenny Cox, an associate staff member with The Navigators' Workplace Missions in the Bronx, shares his concern that many new believers focus on continuous celebration without intentionally developing themselves to be able to "out birth generations of disciples."
His ministry targets the vast New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), which employs around 16,000 staff and manages over 300 large housing developments, both by reaching residents and staff. His work at the 250 Broadway NYCHA office led to the establishment of Bible studies where, to ensure sound doctrine and spiritual maturity, he introduced the use of EFD (Effective for Discipleship) booklets for systematic teaching.
The video emphasizes the need to move beyond simple gatherings to build a firm, biblical foundation for believers, acknowledging that while 200-250 people are actively involved, the "harvest is great," driving the mission to continue developing new laborers for the field.
The speaker recounts her arrival at NYU in 2001, just two weeks before September 11th, a shocking event that led a fellow student to invite her to pray, ultimately guiding her to the Word of God.
She found the initial New York environment isolating, but quickly found the transformative, non-judgmental community she craved in The Navigators, where a small group of students "lets you put everything forward and loves you." She emphasizes that the Navigator staff's intentional pursuit and relational investment, particularly as someone from a divorced household, provided a deeply needed support system.
Her experience taught her the essentials of disciple-making and Scripture memory, equipping her to eventually join the staff and, using the skills learned, witness the salvation of her entire family. She concludes with her current passion to implement the "life-to-life discipleship" culture in her church, encouraging every member to be a vital influence in making disciples.
The biomedical engineer shares his 14-year continuous involvement with Navigators Bible Clubs, which began in the third grade with engaging videos and snacks that established his initial faith foundation.
His high school experience solidified his faith through the "hand illustration" for Scripture engagement (hearing, reading, studying, memorization, meditation) and extensive apologetics training to combat the statistic that 80% of high school students lose their faith in college.
At the college level, a professor reinforced these same principles, focusing on using Scripture to defend against common challenges like the problem of evil and using illustrations like the "tornado in a junkyard."
He emphasizes that this long-term, intentional discipleship has instilled practices like daily devotion and Scripture memory, and he plans to continue living out and passing on these core Navigators' principles in his future life.
The speaker is pastor of a 145-member church in Freeport, shares the transformative impact of coaching and The Navigators' discipleship process on his personal life and ministry. He details how his one-on-one coaching has significantly elevated his devotional life and spiritual leadership.
Though his church had a previous "recess" from the process, he is now seeing a "new life" ignited, as 24 core leaders have committed to building relationships and participating in new discipleship series.
This discipleship model is creating a "domino effect" with small groups forming and younger leaders emerging, a movement that is not only expanding across his local church and the 26 churches in his New York assembly, but which he sees spreading throughout the Church of God denomination across the entire United States.
Watch and participate in this on-demand annual NYC Prayer Walk in virtual format.
A virtual prayer walk is a form of intercessory prayer where an individual or group uses digital tools, such as online maps and Street View, to virtually travel through a specific area, like a neighborhood or city, to pray for its people, places, and needs.
Participants can explore locations from their homes, pausing at virtual landmarks to intercede for spiritual, physical, and emotional well-being, and to ask God how they can be involved in His work.