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Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
It's been a long time...
It has been brought to my attention that this blog hasn't been updated in a really long time. That's true, since it's almost been 4 months.
Anyway, if you are tracking with me and my ministry world, you know that a lot has happened over the past few months: I'm leading both KCF and the multi-ethnic fellowship at McMaster, I spent a few days in Mexico City debriefing my Bangladesh GP experience, there was a Bangladesh GP reunion where a lot of good reconciliation happened, and God is doing some incredible things among my students.
It has also been a tough few months, with my grandma being diagnosed with cancer and having surgery and Dan's (my boyfriend) grandfather passed away in September.
I also had the opportunity of a lifetime to travel to Asia solo for 3 weeks, spending 1 week in Hong Kong and 2 weeks in Seoul with a dear friend and MacKCF alumni. All in all, it's been quite the few months.
I promise better and more frequent updates over the next few months. There's a lot happening here at McMaster and God is on the move. If you remember this ministry in prayer, please pray for the non-believers we are inviting to study Scripture with us over the next 2 weeks. There are a few special Bible studies starting specifically for non-believing students and we are excited to see these friends come to know Jesus!
Anyway, if you are tracking with me and my ministry world, you know that a lot has happened over the past few months: I'm leading both KCF and the multi-ethnic fellowship at McMaster, I spent a few days in Mexico City debriefing my Bangladesh GP experience, there was a Bangladesh GP reunion where a lot of good reconciliation happened, and God is doing some incredible things among my students.
It has also been a tough few months, with my grandma being diagnosed with cancer and having surgery and Dan's (my boyfriend) grandfather passed away in September.
I also had the opportunity of a lifetime to travel to Asia solo for 3 weeks, spending 1 week in Hong Kong and 2 weeks in Seoul with a dear friend and MacKCF alumni. All in all, it's been quite the few months.
I promise better and more frequent updates over the next few months. There's a lot happening here at McMaster and God is on the move. If you remember this ministry in prayer, please pray for the non-believers we are inviting to study Scripture with us over the next 2 weeks. There are a few special Bible studies starting specifically for non-believing students and we are excited to see these friends come to know Jesus!
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Here we go again...
Year 5 of campus ministry. Oh my, how time flies. There's more work and more responsibilities, but it comes with more fun too. I've learned a few lessons over the past 4 years and I will apply it to what I do in the next year. Mainly, I'm going to try group discipleship since I have more students to disciple and develop into Kingdom leaders.
As I get older, there's also more to do in terms of my life. Friends are getting married this year, I have 3 new housemates, I'm in a long distance relationship and thinking about marriage, and I have sick grandparents. All in all, nothing is simpler and easier. As life goes on, everything gets a bit more complicated and more challenging.
Yet, it does get more fun and I'm thankful for that. Despite all that I have to do this year, I have set a goal to have fun. Whether it's with my housemates, my students, with my family, or with Dan, we're going to have fun!
So stay tuned. There will be stories of joy, suffering, and fun on this blog for the upcoming year.
As I get older, there's also more to do in terms of my life. Friends are getting married this year, I have 3 new housemates, I'm in a long distance relationship and thinking about marriage, and I have sick grandparents. All in all, nothing is simpler and easier. As life goes on, everything gets a bit more complicated and more challenging.
Yet, it does get more fun and I'm thankful for that. Despite all that I have to do this year, I have set a goal to have fun. Whether it's with my housemates, my students, with my family, or with Dan, we're going to have fun!
So stay tuned. There will be stories of joy, suffering, and fun on this blog for the upcoming year.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Campus Minister = Interpreter
As I was cleaning my bathroom today, I was reflecting a lot on Bangladesh, what happened, and my role as the director. My staff team and I, along with last year's director, met yesterday to debrief what we did well and what we need to improve on. It was a great time and I learned a lot about myself, how I lead, and the areas I need to grow in.
Back to today. I was washing the shower, very focused on scrubbing the walls. Out of nowhere, a thought pops into my head: "My job as a director, and as a campus minister, is to re-interpret situations for my team and my students". This thought never crossed my mind while I was in Bangladesh. I wish that it did, because it would have helped me focus on what I needed to do.
When you're leading a Global Partnership, there's always 37 things on your mind, plus another 4 people asking questions. It's hard to take space, gain perspective, and lead well. That was my downfall this time and it made me lead from a reactionary posture, rather than leading with vision and having others follow me.
That's probably why I forgot my job was to re-interpret situations for my team, in their placements, in the people they saw, and in the thoughts going through their mind. This led to a lot of confusion and questions of what we were doing and why. Nevertheless, God used our team to make an impact on the Bangladeshi people and He certainly impacted us.
I will spend more time thinking about what it means that my job is to re-interpret experiences and situations for my students on campus. For now, though, I marvel again at how God uses imperfect people, like me. to do His will.
Back to today. I was washing the shower, very focused on scrubbing the walls. Out of nowhere, a thought pops into my head: "My job as a director, and as a campus minister, is to re-interpret situations for my team and my students". This thought never crossed my mind while I was in Bangladesh. I wish that it did, because it would have helped me focus on what I needed to do.
When you're leading a Global Partnership, there's always 37 things on your mind, plus another 4 people asking questions. It's hard to take space, gain perspective, and lead well. That was my downfall this time and it made me lead from a reactionary posture, rather than leading with vision and having others follow me.
That's probably why I forgot my job was to re-interpret situations for my team, in their placements, in the people they saw, and in the thoughts going through their mind. This led to a lot of confusion and questions of what we were doing and why. Nevertheless, God used our team to make an impact on the Bangladeshi people and He certainly impacted us.
I will spend more time thinking about what it means that my job is to re-interpret experiences and situations for my students on campus. For now, though, I marvel again at how God uses imperfect people, like me. to do His will.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
All we need is love...
It's been 6 weeks since I've returned from Bangladesh. I've had time to rest, but I've also had time to think. And through it all, God has been faithful and speaking very clearly to me, but very patiently too. In the past 2 weeks, He's showing me how I need to work on loving others, especially those who are hard to love.
This is scary, but it's also exciting. It's something I've struggled with for a long time and I always admire my friends who are so loving to everyone they meet. I want to be like that, I want to be love because God first loved us. I don't want to withhold love. I want it to change relationships and change the world.
I don't want to love someone because they are lovable or they do something to deserve my love. I want to love because that's what we do as Christians. This will be hard, but I can foresee numerous opportunities to learn this lesson. This is definitely very gracious of God, and for that, I am thankful.
This is scary, but it's also exciting. It's something I've struggled with for a long time and I always admire my friends who are so loving to everyone they meet. I want to be like that, I want to be love because God first loved us. I don't want to withhold love. I want it to change relationships and change the world.
I don't want to love someone because they are lovable or they do something to deserve my love. I want to love because that's what we do as Christians. This will be hard, but I can foresee numerous opportunities to learn this lesson. This is definitely very gracious of God, and for that, I am thankful.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
A Great Story...
On vacation, I was reading a book by Donald Miller called A Million Miles in a Thousand Years. This book documents his life as he was writing the screenplay to his much more famous book, Blue Like Jazz. As he was writing his life into a movie, he realized how boring it had become. He reflects on life and what makes a story great and captivating.
This made me think a lot about the story of my life and the stories of those around me. What would our life story look like if it was made into a movie? Would is be a hit at the box office? Would it put audiences to sleep? Would it be so boring that no one would ever want to make a movie out of it?
Reading this book has made me think about ministry and the stories I want my students to tell. I want them to live a life so incredible that people would be dying to watch the screenplay. I want our whole KCF community to live out a story so amazing this upcoming school year that we'll think it's a dream, but it's actually a reality.
There are some key components to a great story and if you're curious as to what they are, I'll let you brainstorm or read the book. All I know is that I want my life to be a great story and I want my students and MacKCF to create and live a great story this year.
This made me think a lot about the story of my life and the stories of those around me. What would our life story look like if it was made into a movie? Would is be a hit at the box office? Would it put audiences to sleep? Would it be so boring that no one would ever want to make a movie out of it?
Reading this book has made me think about ministry and the stories I want my students to tell. I want them to live a life so incredible that people would be dying to watch the screenplay. I want our whole KCF community to live out a story so amazing this upcoming school year that we'll think it's a dream, but it's actually a reality.
There are some key components to a great story and if you're curious as to what they are, I'll let you brainstorm or read the book. All I know is that I want my life to be a great story and I want my students and MacKCF to create and live a great story this year.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
True joy...
Bangladesh was not what I expected. Well, the country of Bangladesh was the same, except it was a lot cleaner and nicer looking because of the Cricket World Cup. My experience was Bangladesh was not what I expected. Looking back, if I knew what would have happened, I would have not said yes. Luckily, God knew that, so He convicted me in October 2010 that I had to lead, no matter the circumstance.
What a journey it has been. Those of you who receive e-mails from me know that it was a hard time, with numerous medical issues and spiritual heart issues, but God was faithful and we came together as a team to form an incredible family. There's still a lot of work and reconciliation to be done, but we're on our way.
One lesson I learned was God's relentless love for me and for our team. We would repent and turn away from our sins, but we would turn back to them, again and again. Just as faithfully, God would give us opportunities to turn and seek true repentance. It was Day 40 when we had our minds and hearts fully changed and chose a different option.
We pursued trust for one another, speaking with grace and truth, honesty, and true love, rather than suspicion, fear, and lies. There was an incredible change as I witnessed an undeniable joy that filled the room. It came because we went through suffering. We went through hard work. We went through the wilderness and we were ready to do the mission of God and proclaim the Good News.
Being on this journey gives me an immense hope that this won't be the only time I witness something so profound. Paul's words ring true that the Gospel brings about suffering and joy (see 2 Timothy). When we really suffer, we understand joy in a way we wouldn't have before. I am glad we suffered because we won't settle for lame joy anymore. We want a joy that comes from God, one that can't be taken away when life brings hardships.
What a journey it has been. Those of you who receive e-mails from me know that it was a hard time, with numerous medical issues and spiritual heart issues, but God was faithful and we came together as a team to form an incredible family. There's still a lot of work and reconciliation to be done, but we're on our way.
One lesson I learned was God's relentless love for me and for our team. We would repent and turn away from our sins, but we would turn back to them, again and again. Just as faithfully, God would give us opportunities to turn and seek true repentance. It was Day 40 when we had our minds and hearts fully changed and chose a different option.
We pursued trust for one another, speaking with grace and truth, honesty, and true love, rather than suspicion, fear, and lies. There was an incredible change as I witnessed an undeniable joy that filled the room. It came because we went through suffering. We went through hard work. We went through the wilderness and we were ready to do the mission of God and proclaim the Good News.
Being on this journey gives me an immense hope that this won't be the only time I witness something so profound. Paul's words ring true that the Gospel brings about suffering and joy (see 2 Timothy). When we really suffer, we understand joy in a way we wouldn't have before. I am glad we suffered because we won't settle for lame joy anymore. We want a joy that comes from God, one that can't be taken away when life brings hardships.
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