God Speaks through Wise Men

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
-Jer. 29:11

I know that this verse is, in context, Jeremiah speaking to the survivors of the group exiled from Jerusalem by King "Neb." He talks of how God will bring them back to Jerusalem after a time in Babylon. He tells the people of their mistakes and comforts them with God's saving grace by explaining that it's all in his plans. However so many people take it out of context and apply it to their lives, without knowing the true meaning of the verse. I don't believe it's wrong to do this, as long as we know where it came from. God said it, knowing and meaning for it to reach us when we need it most. But I still hesitate every time this verse comes to mind. As it crept into my thoughts today, I found myself doing this very thing.

The reality of leaving this December is slowly catching up with me. The "to do" lists are piling high, and along with that is the competing short time I have here at home with the people I love. I have been juggling writing letters and essays, doing paperwork, and packing up my so short 21 years here in America along with the desire to live all the adventures out I can with the people I enjoy most before I leave. The lack of time vs the load of preparation is beginning to eat away at my human desire to be completely in control at all times. So today, when talking to my father, a man that I cherish more then he realizes, I broke down. He then proceeded to tell me things that I knew all too well, however needed very much to hear them. They all lead me back to thinking of Jer. 29:11. Thank you, Dad.

But as I began to think more deeply about the meaning and the context of this verse, I began to smile at the irony of God. Jeremiah talks of the people being banished from the place God had originally called them. God then took them to a place where He could teach them the specific lessons they needed to learn and challenged them in order to further their spiritual growth. Then Jeremiah tells them of God's great plans for their future and how it's more amazing then they could have ever imagined. "God sees the big picture" as my father told me today. He's right... and even we can't understand how true that is.

So there I sat. Completely in awe of God, wanting to laugh at Him for not showing me sooner, that this is very similar to the road I have been down. Though I was not "banished," I believe I have taken a detour from the road I was to be on simply to teach me a lesson. I have grown so much in the last year... two years... or even three to realize all that has changed, but I do know that if it wasn't for this "banishment," I would not be about to leap into the future that is before me.

However, that thinking brought me back to the present. Instead of thinking of all that God has done in my life in the past, I was forced to focus on the future... and the preparations that lay in the present. Once again, I began to feel overloaded. Although now I knew that this was all in God's greater plan for me and He had more control over it then I could even comprehend, I still felt stressed. How do I balance all that needs to get done and all that there is to do in the limited time ahead?

I quickly wanted to forget these thoughts and chose to put all this aside temporarily. So I began to distract myself with opening my email. Here I found an email that hadn't been read all day. I didn't recognize the name but I opened it anyway. I suddenly was frozen with anticipation. It was the youth director from Keynsham, who other then our one interview, I have not had much contact with. He was offering to answer some of my questions, knowing that this can be a confusing, crazy time. I knew exactly what he was talking about... But then I got to the end of the email and he said something that threw my whole day for a loop. He was talking about how excited the leaders were to have me join their team and then...

"I can also assure you that the young people are also incredibly excited - I hope this encourages you."

Suddenly, I had no more nerves, no more questioning, no more thoughts of irony or stress. Instead I wanted nothing more then for the days to fly into fast forward. At that moment, I knew exactly where I needed to be. It was like gravity pulling me forward, knowing I had no more strength to keep going myself. My thoughts from the day ran through my head. There's too much to do. I'll never get done. God is in control, just keep telling yourself that. God knows the bigger picture. He's taken you this far, just imagine what's ahead. But look at the reality. Why am I even going? Are you really ready for this? And in one second, they were gone. This one sentince told me exactly why I was going... and yes, I am ready. The answers were all there: God's plan from Jeremiah 29, my own father's words, and finally, Dan's encouraging email. It was the call I felt in my life to teenagers. I would follow that call anywhere. God has set me apart so that I may go in His name. I dedicated my life to serving Him, so this is where he has called me. I said "Take me Lord." And now here I go...

"Then Jesus said to his disciples, 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.'"
-Matt 16:24

Finally!!!

Ok, I know that it has been forever! However, I still don't have time for a full update! I'm hoping to sit down and write the details of my life soon! I tend to get my every minute filled up quickly these days ;-) I guess that happens when you only have a month or so left in this country!

I had my interview today with the church in Keynsham, England. It went really well! I have been praying about the different things I was looking for in a church, such as a strong leadership, driven teens, positive and effective ministry, a strong emphasis on outreach, and a good music and drama program. I also knew I didn't want a very large church, however I wasn't particularly picky about that, lol. I knew this was a lot to pray for but then again, God can do anything, right?

Right! This church is exactly what I was looking for. And after out talk today, I've realized that they were really interested in me too! They said that they would contact me in the next couple of days... so I was expecting to have to wait at least a day or so...

But when I got home this afternoon, I got an email from John. He works with the local churches in Keynsham.

"Dear Shelley,

That was an excellent use of the webcam!! We were very, very encouraged with our meeting and believe you have a lot to offer to what the Lord is doing here.

I have contacted Kyle and he will be sending a contract form to us to complete and when ICY have agreed it they will send you a copy to look at.

Be assured of our prayers for you - please pray for us as we speak to the Church Council on Tuesday evening to agree the way forward.

Have a good w/e.

Blessings,

John"

I'm not sure if this gives a for sure "Yes." It sounds like there are a few more people to ok it before being permanent, but it certainly sounds close! I'll keep you all updated as soon as I know more!

New information!!!

So I know it's been a long time! and I have much to write about when I get time to do so... however I wanted to drop a quick note for you all to see... I just got home from work (culvers... before heading to the church) and I found this email...

"Shelly,

I just wanted to drop you a quick note to say that there is a church outside of bath that has looked at your application and is keen to talk with you. They will be emailing or calling you in the next couple of days to set up a skype chat. This is more of an informal interview but a way basically for them to get to know you more and for you to get to know more about them. It is quite exciting and we are praying that you will be able to be placed with a church in the next month or so.

if you have any questions please drop me an email.

kyle"

Praise God!!!

I'll fill you in on the details later!

Ohio Travels!

Well, our Ohio excursion is complete! It was a great trip! taking it with Grandma and Stacey was a great idea... and Grandma loved the "road trip" feel. I'll give you a short overview of the weekend and try to explain a little about the interview. It all flew by so fast... but it got me really excited about everything!

We left Illinois around 7:45 Saturday morning, the drove went well and we only stopped a few times for breaks. The drive was fun... however the scenery wasn't very exciting until we got into the southern part of Indiana where there are more trees. We arrived in Piqua, IN around 4:30 and checked into the hotel. It was earlier then we expected so we headed over to eat dinner at one of my favorite restaurants: Bob Evans. Stacey and Grandma had never been and they thoroughly enjoyed it!

After the wonderful dinner, we went back to the hotel and spend the evening relaxing and enjoying the surroundings. Stacey and Grandma headed downstairs to venture out into the mall that the hotel was connected to. The hotel was in a perfect area, connected to a mall, surrounded by food and close to the interstate.

It wasn't until 9:30 when I finally heard from Colin. He was really excited to meet me and invited us to church with him the next day. Stacey didn't want to leave the dog, so Grandma and I went instead.

When we met them in the morning downstairs (we were staying in the same hotel so we met in the lobby for the hotels breakfast), they were just as I expected them to be. They were absolutely the sweetest people I have met. Colin and his wife, Melissa were in Ohio meeting with a man named Randall, who was planning on moving to Africa to join them with ICY as the executive director of the Africa branch. After breakfast, we met Randall, piled into their cars and headed off to church... which was very exciting. His church is the growing process. They were having a ground breaking ceremony that afternoon for their new building. However, the church service was really good! After church, we headed back to the hotel and met up with Stacey, and her and Grandma went to lunch while I had my interview with Colin and Melissa.

The interview was amazing! At first, we just talked... they answered a few more of my questions and told me some things that I didn't know or thought to ask questions about. Then Colin turned on the camera... and made a video interview of me to send to the others in the UK. He then was going to email it to them and they were going to put a packet together and send it out to the churches. He said that with the churches having my info, I could hear anything starting tomorrow... wow. He also told me that I will for sure know whether or not I'm going in January by the end of october, or the middle of november at the latest... so please be praying about the church placement.

Then when Stacey and Grandma got back, we left and headed home. It made for a great trip! Even the ride home was smooth! We only got detoured one time because of the closed road but the gps that we borrowed from Shannon and Josh helped a lot! Stacey wants one now. And Grandma sure enjoyed the whole trip! Even the long drive!




Anyway, if anyone has any questions, just let me know! There was so much more to explain about the interview and if you still have any questions about the program, I may be able to answer them now!

All the way to Ohio?

Oh wow! Things have been so busy!!! I feel like a have so much to say and so little time... but let me just update you on this weekend.

Stacey, Grandma, and I are taking off on a weekend trip to Ohio. Colin (from the UK) is going to be in the Dayton area and that is the closest he'll be to me while visiting the US. I wasn't planning on going that far for this interview but know that it is important for them to meet me in person. I hope to fill you all in on the details after our meeting. Things should be much more finalized after that (or at least I hope!)

That's all for now... I'll explain more after the weekend!

Finally! Another Update!

Ok! Finally I have more information to pass along to you! there's a lot of it so please bare with me if you want to know!

Preparation
-Stacey and I had some interest this weekend from a lady about my cat. However, we didn't hear from her after the initial phone call so we're not sure what is happening now...
-I have two friends interested in my car. Both of which know they wont get it until I leave and fine with this agreement. I feel pretty confident that my car will be in good hands.
-I have begun gong through all that is in storage in Grandma's basement. It's a bigger job then I thought it would be... I'm glad I started early!
-Pat Noble and I talked on Thursday. She is having surgery in the month of january and is worried that my leaving will put her behind more then she already will be. We both decided that if I began training someone now (she already has someone in mind) then the both of us plus Pat will have her not only caught up but ahead enough for her to take some time off for her surgery. I should begin training my replacement soon!

Fund Raising
-Last Sunday, while at the ministry fair, I stopped by the missions board table. Sandra and Tom Matthews were there and were very interested when I told them about my plans. In the beginning I didn't think about going to the missions board to help with funds, but they both seemed very eager to help. Then on Thursday, at choir, Sandra told me that the missions board, even though it is for an academic program would be happy to help. Also that I should send out support letters. I'm not really sure which road to take, considering that I had decided against this but they seem to think because it is a missions related program that it is still acceptable. Any feedback on this one?


Emails!!!

First of all, I sent an email to Colin and Darin asking a few major questions... however the most important one was responded to this morning... regarding how to handle health insurance while overseas :-/

Hi Shelley,
Darin here again. I think you have a variety of people responding to your
questions, so I hope you are getting the ones answered that you are really
wondering about. If time goes by and you find one of us hasn't picked up on
a question, feel free to ask again!

So far, I think the only question you have raised that has been left
unanswered is the health insurance one.

The short answer is that if you receive a UK Visa, which you will have to
have in order to gain entry to the country, then you are eligible for free
health care under the NHS (National Health Service).
So when you come, you register for a GP (General Practitioner...aka family
dr) and that is the first person you go to see when you get sick, etc, etc.
Usually you have to pay about $12 for a prescription, but other than that,
the visit is free. If you need any treatment, that as well is covered under
the NHS scheme.

So the upsides of socialized medicine are readily apparent! Apart from the
downside of living with 17% sales tax among lots of other taxes...some
people do carry private health insurance in addition to the free care they
receive. This is because at times people have to go on long waiting lists
for 'non-emergency' procedures. So if you needed a knee replacement or back
treatment or something, you could wait months. My wife and I have been here
5 years and have been more than happy with the NHS. I would say unless you
have some extensive medical history, I wouldn't even consider carrying
private insurance.

If however, you want to look into this more, I can dig up some more
information for you on this. We had a colleague who carried insurance from
the US that covered her over her...VERY expensive, though.

Hope this helps!
- darin

ps- Our plans are to be in the US from 2 October to 5 November. We're up in New York state and Ohio for the first week, and we'd be keen to connect then if possible.


This is great! I have been worrying about the health inssurance ever since I started thinking about it and I also finally got the dates to when they'll be in the US. Now we can set up our appointment and get things ready for the next step!

You want me to do what, God?!

I know that I haven't written in a few days... ok, maybe more then a few ;) but I've been busy... not much has to be updated when I'm just sitting around for the first week of October to come around (that's when I'm meeting with the ICY guys in Bloomington). However, today, while I was on facebook, I read something that I new I couldn't keep to myself. This is a note (kind of like a blog post, for those of you that don't know facebook) that my best friend Alicia wrote yesterday. She is an amazing writer, and while yes, that does make the story interesting, that's not the reason I loved it. Mark 16 says to "Go into all the world." And if you're like me, and have a passion for the mission that God has placed before you... you will appreciate this. However, if your kind of "Go" means your home, community, school, work, etc.... then you will also appreciate this, because you still know how it feels to be called to witness, even if it isn't on the other side of the world. God can use us anywhere, at anytime, in any circumstance. All we have to do is be ready for the call. Alicia, for instance, found called to the homeless... the people we usually ignore and walk by... in the middle of the busy streets of Chicago.

I Have Nothing
~By Alicia Moreland~

“Excuse me, we want something to eat now.” She decided that waiting more than a minute for a Subway sandwich was uncalled for. The lady said it in such a demeaning tone towards the ones serving her that I shuddered. Is our American society so set on materialism and instant gratification that we choose to forget to treat those serving us as equal human beings?

I guess it would be appropriate to rewind and give the context for sharing this story. I was walking down the streets of one of the most populated cities in the world, Mexico City. An older woman came up to me and begged me to buy one of her rice cakes because she had no money to feed her family. I first tried to ignore the present situation. She persisted. I tried saying No, thank you. I said I didn’t have a lot of money (lie). She kept trying until eventually I told her I did not really speak Spanish (also a lie). I still to this day regret the way that I treated her.

Fast forward to approximately a year and a half later which would lead you to…well it ultimately would lead you tonight. Slightly apprehensive, I wondered if I was making the right choice, but I trusted God had his purpose for what was about to be done and would give us safety. It was a Friday night and I was able to go to downtown Chicago with two amazing women of God with the only goal of serving and forming friendships with the homeless. My prayer is that this will be as eye opening for you as the experience was for me. And here begins my story…

We reached Union Station and after prayer, proceeded to make our way towards Michigan Avenue. We strolled down Millennium Park until we met Mike from New Orleans. He sat on the steps with his crutch (which after observation, I realized was broken) at his side. He had hurt his leg falling down stairs and had been walking all day…with a broken crutch. It was so swollen. If ever I had wished for a non-broken crutch to magically fall from the sky, today was the day. We had small talk until he finally asked if he could have food. His eyes lit up as soon as we responded yes. As we left to get him Subway, not knowing if we would keep our word, he looked at us with a mixture of anticipation and doubt.

This leads me to where I began. As I waited in line to get this man food and heard the reaction of the lady in front of us, I was yet again convicted of that one day in Mexico City again. While I did not exactly behave the way the woman did, I still was guilty of being completely self-centered and lacked empathy for those who had less than I did. Repulsed, I realized that if I were to ask myself if I had displayed the mercy that Christ has shown me to the woman in Mexico, I would have to answer no. Motivated, I saw this as a teachable moment for change in my own actions and perspective. We continued to meet more people. The more I saw, the more the need for not only social justice, but also the great need for Christians to serve and get to know the homeless became real to me.

*If there is anything out of all of this that I wish you to read, it would be this.* I read the sign that stated the following: “Please help. I have nothing. Please help.” Wearing a hooded sweatshirt with the hood draped over his head and slightly covering his face, kneeling with his face towards the ground, I saw a man on the streets with a bible sitting right next to him. As we attempted to start a conversation, he lifted up his head and when I looked in his eyes it looked as though he had tears in them. All he wanted was to take a shower and a place to sleep. We began a conversation and asked him his favorite verse. He replied that he loved Psalms and Proverbs and tries to underline verses so he can find them. What got me the most was that he said he is thankful for God because he knows that there are people that have it worse than him. As we prayed for him before we left, I found it hard not to have tears in my eyes myself.

The phrase “I have nothing” has been stuck in my head ever since. Lyrics from worship songs such as lines that say “I have nothing without you” start playing in my mind. I feel conflicted because I feel so grateful for what I have, but at the same time, I feel so much sorrow for what they have to go through everyday. Something needs to be done.

I feel he is the perfect example of what it is like to come to fully accept Grace. To be on our knees and humbly realize that without him we have nothing. Everything I have comes from him and could all be gone tomorrow. I am in so much awe of how God has opened my eyes tonight.

So I encourage that if this resonates within your heart, get a group together and go to Chicago. Be a light where many do not get to see.




I was tears by the end, simply because I too felt convicted of my own actions, heartbroken for the lost, filled with joy from her experience, and guilty for the things I take for granted.

But I also found this to have another lesson that I'm not sure Alicia knew she was putting in there. "Is our American society so set on materialism and instant gratification that we choose to forget to treat those serving us as equal human beings?" Maybe, Alicia... but we as Christians shouldn't. However, I see many Christians today acting the same way this lady did in Subway. They think they have the right to better because of who they believe in... The I AM. But should we continually have an attitude of hierarchy towards others? Let's take a moment to look back on the actions of the God that we follow. So often did our Jesus, the King of Kings, humble himself and make himself a servant. Yet, all the while still was the Son of God!

Last summer while at training camp, one of my students asked why we were called Royal Servants. I told her that I wasn't exactly sure but that I believed there were two possibilities. The first (and less likely, I believe) is that we as children of God are royalty... and we are here serve in the world. But the second is the one that I believe is the true meaning of a Royal Servant. And it that we, as Christians are called, whether it be down the street or the other side of the world. Obeying this call is to serve the Lord, which makes us servants. However we are not just any servant. We are servants of the most high God, the one who spoke creation into being, the Alpha and the Omega... We serve Royalty. Christ said, "what ever you do for the least of these you do for me." Royal Servants taught me to take this seriously. Serving the Lord, although some of us don't have servants hearts (like your truly lol), is where we truly become like Christ. Serve the world on behalf of serving Royalty, the same Royalty that once knelt before his closest friends and made himself the lowest of all and washed their feet. We need to offer up our time (oh and our time is precious...) because it wasn't ours in the first place. Give it all back to God. Remember, we have nothing... without God.

So next time you are walking down a busy street, buy the ladies rice cakes, and have a heart of love towards her. In fact, take some time and change her life, serve her... be like Christ.

Sunday Sunday Sunday!!!

I love fall... It's always my favorite season. And this weekend, I've definitely had a "fall" weekend.

First, on Saturday Stacey, Shannon, and I took Lydia and Joshua to the apple orchard... which really gave me the "fall" feeling. But Sunday is what really made the weekend for me.

After church, my friends and I decided that it was such a nice day, we should have a cook out. (I didn't have my camera with me, otherwise I would have pictures!) We stopped by hilander and got stuff to cook and then headed over to the Knaul's house, where Trisha lent us her house for the afternoon. Steven and I prepared the food inside while Matt and Michael headed up the grill outside. It was a lot of fun to cook with them again... it's been a long time since we all cooked together (it used to be a usual get together activity!) Everyone enjoyed the food, even Beth, whose a vegetarian!

Then we headed to church for Jr. High youth group where we prepared the kids for the assignment for the night. After a few instructions, we took them over the Roscoe Fall Fest, where we challenged them to the "Ten Commandment Challenge." It was great to go, but way out of the comfort zone for some of the kids. So, what is the "Ten Commandment Challenge?"

You walk up to a group of people... introduce yourselves and ask them if they would like to take part in a documentary. If they agree, then you proceed with a video camera. The first question you ask, is if they can name the ten commandments. After letting them answer with as many as they know, you then ask how many brands of beer/liquor they can name. Depending on how the conversation goes, ask them more questions... Where was Jesus born? Where did he die? Does God make mistakes? How was the earth created?... If you're really bold, like some of us were, you may even ask them to explain their belief system and challenge them with questions that lead to a spiritual conversation... but that's only if your willing to enter into the walk through the plan of salvation.

Most of the kids were way to shy to talk to kids their own age, if not older. Andy started with a group of kids that obviously didn't know anything about God. They got into a very heated discussion with Andy about Christianity and everyone was glad that Andy was doing the interview... not many of the kids could have answered their questions. Then, Andy split the groups up. I took a group of younger females. The first group we approached, none of the girls wanted to speak, so I told them I would help... and with my extroverted personality, I had no problem (this was no different then street evangelism, that I have done many times before). The kids we talked to were all catholic... and knew most of the religious questions. It was hard to get to the specifics when they were in a group of about 15 and really distracted. Then, we approached a group of older teens, who actually turned out to be slightly intoxicated... so the girls and I didn't stay long. (Not that I would have a problem, just didn't want the younger girls to be around that.) And for our last attempt, we approached a pair of cops that were working the fair. They stayed very neutral and avoided all religious questions.

It was a very hard setting with the loud music and many distractions. Andy wants to eventually take us to the mall, and wanted the kids to get some practice locally before they ventured out. It was a good night and very exciting to see the younger ones getting out and speaking up! I'm looking forward to our next attempt and am praying that God will open many door for us to minister!

This is a picture (the only one I took...) of Beth and I with Chris, who was working the Culver's booth at the fall fest... we stopped to talk to him as we were all closing up.



It really was a great day... I look forward to many more fall days just like this one! But what can I say, there's just something about this time of year for me!

Phone Interview!!!

I finally got the phone interview with Colin that I had been waiting on yesterday during my break at work. It all went really well! (he had a great British accent!)

The very first thing he told me was how excited he was to get my application. They get a lot of applications in but because of the overseas opportunity that ICY gives, not very often do they get one that seems completely sincere. Then he asked me some questions, some harder to answer then others. We talked for a little while about the calling that I felt and how he program would suit me.

Then he asked if I had any questions... so I brought up the question about financial aid, which he said they didn't accept. I kind of figured this would happen but I was also hoping that they would give me an alternative to the financial issue... however his answer was the same. They need the full payment of the year before the sessions for that year begin. I told him that this was my biggest worry and knew that if this was were God was calling me, it wouldn't be a problem and not even worth the worry time, but I couldn't help thinking about it.

Next, he walked me through the next steps of the application process. First, they get a hold of my references, and put me in touch with Darin and Kyle (the leaders of the UK division and also former Royal Servants Alumni). The next big step is to meet with one of them to put the application packet together to send to the churches. He said that one of them should be coming into the area(they are both from Illinois) around the beginning of October. This is when we'll make the DVD interview and talk a little more in person about the program and what's to be expected. Then, we sent the church packet to all of the available churches and wait for one to be interested. Meanwhile, prayer is a major part of this. Everyone should be praying about the right church placement, right timing, etc. If everything should work out, the next session begins the beginning of January. But as Colin said, "there are lots of hoops to jump through!"

There are still lots of things to be praying about. I'll give you the main points:
The right timing for our meeting here in the US
The right church placement
Finances and other expenses
Finding a way to sell what I need to sell (or someone to take my cat...)

At the end of our conversation, Colin asked if i had any more questions. When I said I couldn't think of any off the top of my head, his answer made me laugh. "Thats ok, because actually the best people to talk to are the others (meaning Darin and Kyle), because, well... they're American." ;)

He then made a few last points and told me to keep praying about the whole process, because in the end, it's not up to us: "All we do is rejoice to the Lords speaking and leading, it's not our call."

Talking to him made me feel very excited, apprehensive, and content that I'm following God's call all at the same time. He answered lot's of questions and brought up some new ones. I'm looking forward to the meeting in October but know it will be hard being patient until then. Thank you all who are praying and if you have any questions, let me know!

Livin' on a Prayer!

"Woah, we're half way there
Woah, livin' on a prayer
Take my hand, We'll make it I swear
Woah, livin on a prayer!"

Ok, it's official... I have hit "the waiting stage." It's been a few days now since I have heard anything from ICY, which isn't a bad thing, but it's me being patient that's tough. As you recall, last Saturday I was supposed to have a phone interview with Colin, but as he also predicted, the day was full for him and we weren't able to fit it in. Now, we have rescheduled for tomorrow around 10:45. I'm praying that it all works out, considering that I wont have much time to talk to him.

Although, even with the waiting time, I will be keeping busy. Pastor Andy and I had a very good talk this weekend and he is looking forward to stepping up my leadership opportunities now that he knows my future goals. He said he has lots of training he could go through with me, but doesn't know how much time we'll have. We're also looking at lots of new things he has planned for the school year. Depending on how long I will be here, I am planning on heading up the first Freeway Youth group Drama team. Pastor Andy has a big plan for this (and more) and we're all looking forward to how it's going to pan out. We will also be preparing to add a puppet team and full coffee shop in the hebrew's cafe. The plans are already in action and I can't wait to see the end result! I'm so thankful for Andy and how he's really pushing our Youth group to focus more on ministry and less on entertaining the kids... :( I'll keep you updated on all the new stuff coming up!

Last week, at the monthly, "Wednesday Night Live" my dear friend, Greg Speck, spoke to the teens about "an alternative to dating: friendships that grow." As always, he did a great job and everyone loved him. It was so exciting to see him getting to know and interacting with my home youth group. Pastor Andy was very impressed and wants to have him back in the winter for a talk about "God in our lives: is He enough?" If you've ever heard him speak, (especially to teens) you'll understand how much fun he is to listen too. Teens love comedy... and Greg definitely has it.

Not to mention that Awana's is starting in the next few weeks! Woohoo!!! This year, they have moved me up again. Three years ago, I started helping with the music and Drama for the older kids (T&T), which they saw that this was one of my gifts. So the next year, they had me running the drama and working with Jo Ott to take over the music. Then last year, I was heading up the music (for T&T and the sparks), drama and speaking on occasion (just T&T) whenever they had a free night. Now, this year, they has asked me to step up to over see the the music/drama for the whole program. I also have been specifically asked to speak to the kids (of all ages). Of course, I don't want to take credit for this... It's God who uses me to speak in a way the kids will understand. I'm looking very forward to this year... I will be working equally with both the T&T and the sparks. I can't wait to see all the kids again and watch them benefit from Awana, the same way I know I did. It's such a great program!

Also, the choirs will be starting up pretty soon. Which means that my schedule will be quite full. This year, we will be putting on the Christmas program "I'll be home for Christmas." It's the same program put on about 5 years ago. It takes place in the mid 50's and centers around a normal American family. We've already started on the preparations for it and soon will launch the music and drama! I will once again be working as the assistant under Pat and head Drama coach. My Christmas season will be full, but so rewarding! Everyone seems to be involved in this on including the Adult choir, teen choir, and the big band. It's going to be a great show!

So, ask you can see, my schedule is quite full for the next couple of months... If the ICY program works out, I'll be working right up until Christmas time, and then it will be off to Texas to visit Mom and Dad and then I'll have a small break before my big adventure. I'm taking delight in the fact that right now, I still have free time ;) Soon, I'll be juggling 2 jobs, youth group, awana, choir/the christmas program, and the preparation for ICY. It will be hard to find the free time in there... but for now I'm just livin' on a prayer!

More emails!

This is the next email I received... this one from Darin, also a fellow Royal Servant and head over the UK branch of ICY. I sent him the same email I sent Colin a few days ago and this was his response:


Hi Shelley!
Really good to hear from you. I know that Colin emailed you back some answers to your questions so I hope that was helpful. But I also just wanted to say hi as a fellow Royal Servant alum and put a few more thoughts out there. God actually used RS in a big way to get us over here...we worked with churches in Glasgow and saw the total lack of young people in the church. Less than 1% of teenagers in the UK go to church!

I think Colin was right when he said that all the different tracks (Bth, MA and missional leaders) are all practical. A lot of the credit you get for your Bth is earned by doing youth ministry. The way it works is that you sit in on your class lectures for a week every two months...so 6 times/year. Then you are working on reading and essays on your own time. One of cool things with the whole scheme is that you are put into a cluster of trainees...people who are doing the same thing as you in different churches. You meet up weekly and do lots of ministry things together. And this is where you also learn and practice a lot of the basic ministry skills.
I guess I would say the benefit of actually doing the Bth is that you come out with a proper degree...so when you go to get a job people can see that you have taken the time to get the professional training. Plus, it forces you to think through things theologically, ministry and church that you don’t normally force yourself to wrestle with.

The degree is really affordable. It’s about $4400/year and it’s a 3 year degree (all Bachelors degrees in UK/Europe are 3 years). All of your other expenses are covered (food, housing, weekly allowance, ministry expenses) except for your plane ticket to and from here. So you can get a degree without having huge debt...especially if you have saved up for it or your family helps out. And hopefully, in the meantime, God breaks your heart for teenagers in the UK and you want to stay long-term to minister with us!

I wrote this same paragraph to Becca, but I think it’s helpful to start to get a feel for what kinds of ministry things you would be doing...
Most of the churches we work with take on a trainee because they really have a heart to reach young people, but do not have a lot of money to put towards paying someone (youth ministry as a profession is fairly new here) and do not have the expertise to raise somebody up. So most in our ICY family are pioneering youth ministry in churches that do not have a large existing youth group. So if you think missionary to a jungle tribe that hasn’t been reached before it’s probably a lot closer to reality than American church youth pastor...well, without the snakes and strange diseases!
You can do ministry in schools here as a Christian youth worker. So most of the trainees spend a few hours a week in the school, building relationships through outreach groups or mentoring. Then if there are a few teenagers in the church, it’s starting to bring them together to grow in their faith and form a group identity. Usually it’s helping out on a Sunday morning with youth or slightly younger than youth. Then finding ways to start groups for kids from the schools-work to come and hear the gospel and transitioning those who make commitments into small groups that will help them keep growing in their faith.
Our vision is to raise up the next generation of youth ministers who will build youth disciple-making movements...so raising up young people and creating ministries who will make disciples...who make disciples...who make disciples...which should sound pretty familiar from your summer and is the only way the huge population of non-Christian young people here will ever encounter Jesus!


It’s really exciting to talk with RS alumni about this Shelley!! As you can imagine, this is a challenging experience and it’s hard to find people who are cut out for it. We just feel like with fellow RS people, we know who we are getting and we know they have already experienced some key ministry forming things.

Hope this helps and wasn’t too long. Let’s keep talking!

- darin

God is Good!

I sent my application in to ICY last night... I was so glad to finally take the step of getting the show on the road. Then this morning, I woke up to find an email from Colin, the Director. He really stays on top of the applications, I guess.

Dear Shelley,

It was really good to get your application to come to the UK. I've
copied our Uk leader in on it, and can tell you his interest will be
particularly strong given he was sent over here by Royal Servants.

What I'd like to suggest is that I give you a call as soon as we can fit
it in. I'm six hours ahead of you here so would need to call mornings
your time but can do this any day next week except Wednesday. If you
give me a prefered number and time, I'll fit in!

Keep praying into this Shelley. When I put you on to the Americans over
here, they will tell you this isn't always the easiest place to live and
minister. But if you know in your heart this is where the Lord has
called you, it is the only place to live and minister.

Every blessing,

Colin

confusion in the simplest state

Have you ever noticed that Christians pray selfish prayers? We're so funny when it comes down to it. "God, please heal my mothers cancer." "God I really want this job" "God, help our house to sell" but then we end it off with a simple phrase that makes it sound like we're not really as bad as we sound... "if it be Your will."

The reason I mention this, is because I have found myself praying these prayers a lot lately. When Jordan and I started looking for a place to move to, everyone kept asking me if I had been praying about it. And, honestly, I would answer yes. However, my prayers where selfish prayers. "Lord, please let this next place be the one. Jordan and I really need a place to live and this place seems perfect. I pray that all the paperwork will go through and the time frame is what we need.... if it be Your will."

But then suddenly, when the ICY opportunity was brought to my attention, I found myself praying a different type of prayer. "Lord, show me which way to go. If this is Your plan for me, God, open doors and shut the others." Slowly, over just this last week, I've seen some doors close and many others open. The ICY doors were open from the first day, however I was terrified to step through them. I had to cling to the faith that this was where God was leading me. A couple of days ago, I started filling out the application, and strangely enough I'm already almost done. The questions (which were actually pretty difficult) seemed to be fairly easy to answer. However, that isn't all.

All the while, Jordan and I were still looking for apartments. We wanted so badly to get out on our own and live in our own place that we were pushing the idea even when the doors all around us were closing. Then tonight, Jordan and I finally talked about the fact that we didn't see this happening. After a long discussion and a few other plans on what to do next (not that there was much to discuss, considering her only other option is to move back home, and my other option was to move to Texas), we decided to let go of the moving out idea for now.

Then I started thinking, why would God be shutting this door for me? Well, what about ICY? I wasn't planning on going for another year, but what if I were to put my application in now? What if God was wanting me overseas sooner then in a year? And what do I do until then? Now that's confusion in the simplest state...

Email!

I got an email back from Colin (the director of ICY) today. He answered a few of my questions I had and I'm still waiting on an email back from Darin (the director of the UK branch) in the next few days. But I thought I'd put this up for you guys to read too.

Dear Shelley,

It was really good to hear from you. I will do my best to answwr your questions briefly by email but if you'd like a call to chat them through some more I'd be very happy to do this too.

First of all, I was looking into either the Bachelors or the Missions Leaders Course... The missions leaders course actually sounds more appealing to me, but I'm not quite sure on the difference. It sounds like the missions leaders course is more hands on and on the field where as the bachelors is more study and classes... but the classes sound like ones I would be very interested in. Are any of those classes included in the missions leaders course (or does the missions leader course even take classes)? Also, does the missions leaders course give you a degree or diploma if it's unaccredited? I'm definitely more interested in the ministry and missions of it all, so would the missions leader course be better?

This is a really hard one. You have summed up everything about the two courses, except I should say that the missional course does have cleasses and from time to time merges with the Bachelors. We offer a diploma for it but this is in house and therefore doesn't carry the same weight the B(Th) and masters qualifications do. If your focus is ministry then the Missional course may be better for you, but to be honest we only really want those who are ministry focused on the Bachelors too. You can of course join in and make up your mind once here. Your registration for the B(Th) might be delayed by a couple of months but that isn't a big deal.

Second, as for the funding, how do people usually raise all the money? The website mentioned something about fund raising, so do they usually raise it all themselves or ask for donations? Do they pay their own way through, like college, or have supporters? And for the missions leaders course, I know it's cheaper, (only $1000) but does that mean that's all you pay or do you pay the whole $2200 and give the rest to missions experiences? Does that money have to be paid up front or can it be paid over time?

The prices quoted are the prices you pay per year. You don't pay any more, and actually of course do receive a small weekly allowance. How you raise that funding is up to you. Some fund raise, (and we do have a scheme to help with that!), some have savings. Because you are on the field, fund raising is very valid and possible. We prefer the money up front because we need to pass it on. However we can make exceptions to this as long as we have a plan in palce in advance.

Also, once you've been accepted, and it's time for the church placement, what if they don't find on for you? Do they just wait until one becomes available or are you automatically taken out of the program? What is the average time frame from the time someone sends in an application to the time they start?

Again an excellent question. We try to only accept folk we know will be accepted by a church placement and we constantly get better at this. However there are blips. We tend not to throw you out of the program, unless we sense that we really aren't going to find you a palcement and then it would be wrong to keep you waiting. We take folk on in September, January and May, and normally would need an application processed at least two months before the next start date if we are realistically to sort a placement. The process can therefore take between 3-6 months.

What kind of hands on experience do you get? Ministering to other cultures or just in your local church? And while in the local church, are you working with children, teens, or young adults? I know it probably depends on the situation and the church, but what kind of opportunities do they have in their local church (speaking, leading, discipling, etc.)?

We are local church focused, and as far as we can try to match placement with gifts, although this doesn't always work as smoothly as we would like. You will need to be a bit of an all rounder when it comes to youth ministry. As far as the cross cultural element is concerned, if you are coming to the UK, you will discover it is all pretty cross cultural, although some of our placements are more so than others.

Where in the UK are people placed? The website mentioned some places (London, Oxford, etc.) but is it just in those cities or are there other churches in smaller places?

We do have a mix of rural and suburban.

I know the churches supply the housing but where do they live? Do they have host families, live on their own, or have college housing type buildings?

Again it is varied, but most live with host families.

Shelley, thanks for these questions. We'll pray hte Lord leads you very clearly as you seek Him for His way ahead. Don't hesitate to contact me if you want to know more.

Every blessing,

Colin

The first big step

So, the search for more answers continues as I chug along the journey to serve God. I sent an email to Colin, the director of ICY, and have not heard anything back quite yet. However, after talking to my family, friends, and people at church, I feel very positive about this opportunity. I have decided to go ahead and take the first big step and fill out an application. I don't know if I will get accepted (I heard the application process is long and difficult, here's an explanation of it) but I am willing to give it a try. I began filling out the application tonight. I got most of the basic stuff filled out... but then I came to a question about my gifts and passions. This took some time to think (I don't like writing about myself). After a lot of of writing and rewriting, and a long talk with my mom, I got it figured out. Now, I have the rest to finish... thankfully I have a while before I have to turn it in.

If you have anymore questions, there is a page of frequently asked Q/A. It really gave me some good answers to my questions (even ones that I didn't know I had.)

Thanks for the prayers and I'll keep you updated!

Some more information...

This is an email from the guy incharge of ICY. My friend Becca (one of my students from last summer in Scotland, who went on another Royal Servants trip this year and found out about ICY over the summer when the met Darin and his wife. She was the one that brought it to my attention and has also been looking into it) forwarded this to me so I could see what answers to her questions he gave. I'm planning on sending him an email from myself in the next few days to answer some of my own questions.

> Hi Becca!
> Glad to hear that you are back home and that you are
> interested in chatting
> some more about ICY. Whooohooo!
>
> I'm sure it was weird the first morning you woke up at
> home without 40 other
> teammates around you? I remember those days were not fun
> to re-adjust.
>
> ICY...you can always go to the website (www.icy.org.uk) to
> get more info but
> the UK specific stuff is a few clicks away. (we¹re still
> working on a UK
> specific website) To make it easier, here is a simple
> breakdown:
>
> It's for people who want to train in youth ministry and
> who have a heart to
> work with teenagers in a local church context. Much of the
> ministry will be
> aimed at non-Christian teenagers because less than 1% of
> teens here in the
> UK go to church. Can you say mission field?!
> * Trainees can undertake a 3 year Bachelors degree in
> practical theology
> or an MA in Missional Leadership
> * the courses are taught at 6 different week-long
> conferences throughout
> the year (approx every 2 months)
> * This allows the trainees to work in a local church
> setting in a nearly
> full-time setup whilst doing their degree
> * In between conferences you read and write essays on
> your own with
> feedback available from tutors
> * Much of the degree is earned by doing practical youth
> ministry
> * The church covers room, board, ministry expenses, and
> a bit of pocket
> money
> * Students have to pay £2200/year (approx $4400)
> tuition fees and
> purchase their plane ticket over here
> * Trainees are placed in a Œcluster¹ of trainees in
> the same
> geographical area who are doing the same thing
> * A cluster leader oversees the support and training
> development
> * Students apply and churches apply. Churches
> interview accepted
> applicants and we try to match up with Œbest fit¹
>
> Your specific question about Œhow do you know if you will
> get put with a
> host family or a place of your own?¹ is a good one. You
> can¹t really
> dictate that. Each church makes their own decision on
> this. Most of the
> trainees live with a host family. And the question about
> allowance is good
> too. This money is in addition to your food budget. So
> the church covers
> your housing and food and gives you some pocket money on
> top of that.
> (usually around $200-$250/month) You will not get rich, but
> at least you
> will not come out with big debts from a degree.
>
> What would you do in a church?
> Most of the churches we work with take on a trainee because
> they really have
> a heart to reach young people, but do not have a lot of
> money to put towards
> paying someone (youth ministry as a profession is fairly
> new here) and do
> not have the expertise to raise somebody up. So most in
> our ICY family are
> pioneering youth ministry in churches that do not have a
> large existing
> youth group. So if you think missionary to a jungle tribe
> that hasn¹t been
> reached before it¹s probably a lot closer to reality than
> American church
> youth pastor...well, without the snakes and strange
> diseases!
> You can do ministry in schools here as a Christian youth
> worker. So most of
> the trainees spend a few hours a week in the school,
> building relationships
> through outreach groups or mentoring. Then if there are a
> few teenagers in
> the church, it¹s starting to bring them together to grow
> in their faith and
> form a group identity. Usually it¹s helping out on a
> Sunday morning with
> youth or slightly younger than youth. Then finding ways to
> start groups for
> kids from the schools-work to come and hear the gospel and
> transitioning
> those who make commitments into small groups that will help
> them keep
> growing in their faith.
> Our vision is to raise up the next generation of youth
> ministers who will
> build youth disciple-making movements...so raising up young
> people and
> creating ministries who will make disciples...who make
> disciples...who make
> disciples...which should sound pretty familiar from your
> summer and is the
> only way the huge population of non-Christian young people
> here will ever
> encounter Jesus!
>
> Hope this helps and shows you the opportunities for God to
> use you here and
> get some good training at the same time.
>
> Let¹s keep talking and keep asking questions,
> - darin

I know it's a lot to think about (I'm a little overwhelmed myself) but I just wanted to give you the same information that I was getting. If you have any questions let me know so that I can possibly put them in my email to Darin. This really means a lot to me to get the input of my family and friends... and the prayer support too!

The facts of life

I must admit I feel a bit lost in life right now... Let me explain...

A year ago, I had everything figured out. I had a good job, good place to live, however I had nothing in my future because I was simply just waiting around for Andrew... To me, everything here was temporary. Then a year later, my world came shattering into pieces when I realized that to him, there was no future. Little did I know that this was going to be a blessing. God has shown me lately that I need to become my own person in Him and find out who I am fully in Christ before He can give me the fullness of His will. So I began searching for myself in Christ. After some road blocks and many wrong turns, I finally landed on the answer that I had always known was there. I found out a long time ago that God was calling into missions... At first, I didn't want anything to do with it... I knew it would be a hard life and honestly didn't want to live it. But slowly over the years and the experiences in missions that I have had, God has shown me the rewards that come from living this life, whether it be long term or temporary. And although I had stopped listening to this call for a while because of things people were telling me and other things that I wanted in life, I began to think about it again these last few months. Now, I have no idea where God is calling me, but I know I have been called. Is it here in the U.S. or overseas? Am I going to Canada or all the way to China? A little while ago, I took a big step in this journey to follow Christ and applied to Moody, and as much as I would like the achievement of getting into Moody, I also know that the odds aren't in my favor. Then tonight I talked to a friend... This was a trusted friend, one that knows me, I dare say, better then I know myself. She told me of a program overseas that is a youth ministry training program. It's a three year program and it will earn you a degree... now, the only problem is, three years?! Overseas?! Already?! I don't know if I'm ready for that yet... And maybe I'm not. She just thought I'd like to look into it... Even if I don't want to even think about something like that. But just in case it is where God is calling me, I'll learn up on it and get some more information... who knows, maybe a year from now I'll be heading off to another country for a few years.

"It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ." Ephesians 4:11-14

Please be praying with me about this decision... It may or not be right for me... but either way, it's worth leaving the door open. If you would like to look into this with me, the website is http://icy.org.uk/ and I would love to hear what you think. Thank you all!

I love it when the Sun Shines!

Early morning, July 7th God decided to bring a miracle into this world...

He is by far the most precious thing I have ever seen... except Lydia ;)
However, he's tiny... almost as small as I was! He was born at 4lb 12oz and was 16 in long. Pray that he gains weight and strength... and pray for mom and dad too as they welcome this new joy into their lives.




*sigh* He will always have a piece of my heart!

Woohoo!

And we're finally rolling!

For about a year and half now, I have been doing all of computer type jobs on an already "busted before it became mine" computer. This made it very hard to get anything done :-( And now it's been about 6 months that I have been waiting to get my new computer... well, actually this one is old too, but not by much and it's in really good shape! So, yesterday, I claimed into my possessions and am now a happy owner of a new computer! Now, I don't have to wait 20 minutes for the thing to turn on or even when it does, hope it works long enough for me to get anything done... I won't have to worry about it shutting off at random times or freezing and then freaking out... *sigh* technology is supposed to make life easy, so why is it so difficult?

ps~ that means that I'll get to post now!