As most of you probably know by now, I have accepted an intern position with the Carlisle Diocese of the Church of England from August '14-June '15. I've been getting a lot of questions from friends and family about this new adventure and figured that there was no better place to address them than on my support blog.
How it all came to be:
Last year , I was able to join about 12 other people from Christian Fellowship Church for a 2 week mission trip to Whitehaven, England. The ultimate goal of the trip was to build relationships with the youth of the community through several different concerts and events at schools and our sponsor church.
Why England:
Before leaving for England last June, I honestly didn't have a decent answer to this question. But while on-field, God clearly answered it for me. During our time in the schools, we gave about 15 presentations to the students-ranging from 1st to12th grade -in their Religious Ed. class. During these presentations, about 3 of us would stand up and share why we believe in Christ and then allow the students to ask questions.
Many of the students were too timid to say what they were thinking, but a few brave souls would stand up in every class. Most of the questions indicated that these kids knew very little about the actual hope that we have. In training for the trip, we were all told of the extreme complacency in regards to religion of any kind and other social issues that wreck England (divorce, children being abandoned by one or both parents, alcoholism, to name a few). But the time in the schools brought these facts to light and broke my heart.
In our down-time, I was able to form friendships and share stories with several different kids. By the end of the trip I was certain that God had led me to England last year for a specific reason. He put a burning passion in my heart several years ago for hurting people, and I was surrounded by a broken and hurting culture that has turned to anything but the love of God to heal their hearts. As I boarded the plane to come back home in June, my heart broke for those that I knew still didn't have the hope of Christ.
I'm going back for the Dylan's who will sit around for hours on end questioning and challenging our beliefs because nobody has taken the time to explain them before. I'm going back for the Jessica's whose culture has her so convinced that she isn't good enough that it is impossible for her to believe that the King says otherwise. I'm going back simply because I know of a culture in need of revival and I am being called to be a part of it.
My assignment:
The Dioceses Internship Program has a goal of helping young people to become better disciples. They do so by placing interns with sponsor churches where they will get first-hand ministerial experience as well as go through a specialized course in disciple making.
I will be working with St. James Church of England parish in Carlisle, England. The mission of St. James is to provide a place of growth for Christians within the community as well as to reach out to the un-churched in ways that appeal to them.
During my time with St. James, I will work closely with the technical and youth ministries of the church. I am most excited, however, for working with the ministries outside of the church walls. St. James owns and operates a coffee shop with the purpose of creating a non intimidating space within the community for people to feel comfortable hanging out, whether they are Believers or not. Throughout the week, St. James also hosts several clubs and meetings at the coffee shop to provide the opportunity for people to attend an event without the pressure they may feel about entering a church building. Below you will find the website for St. James. Please check it out and see for yourself all of the cool things this parish is doing for the expansion of the Kingdom.
St. James Home Page
Cornerstone Coffee Shop
How you can get involved
There are a couple of ways for you to be involved on my support team, and I am equally grateful for whichever way you choose to be involved.
1) Prayer Team: It would be impossible for me to take this leap of faith without a team of people praying for me along the way. I will be updating my blog both as I prepare to leave and while I am on-field, so check back for updates as to how you can pray for me.
2) One-time Financial Donation: My goal is to have half of my fundraising (about $3,000) completed by June 1. Donations can be mailed to Christian Fellowship Church, 4100 Millersburg Road, Evansville IN 47725. Make sure to write "Keys on the memo line of your check. You can also give online here. When giving online, please specify in the comment box that you are donating to my account.
Thank you all so much for all of your love and support throughout this process!
How it all came to be:
Last year , I was able to join about 12 other people from Christian Fellowship Church for a 2 week mission trip to Whitehaven, England. The ultimate goal of the trip was to build relationships with the youth of the community through several different concerts and events at schools and our sponsor church.
Why England:
Before leaving for England last June, I honestly didn't have a decent answer to this question. But while on-field, God clearly answered it for me. During our time in the schools, we gave about 15 presentations to the students-ranging from 1st to12th grade -in their Religious Ed. class. During these presentations, about 3 of us would stand up and share why we believe in Christ and then allow the students to ask questions.
Many of the students were too timid to say what they were thinking, but a few brave souls would stand up in every class. Most of the questions indicated that these kids knew very little about the actual hope that we have. In training for the trip, we were all told of the extreme complacency in regards to religion of any kind and other social issues that wreck England (divorce, children being abandoned by one or both parents, alcoholism, to name a few). But the time in the schools brought these facts to light and broke my heart.
In our down-time, I was able to form friendships and share stories with several different kids. By the end of the trip I was certain that God had led me to England last year for a specific reason. He put a burning passion in my heart several years ago for hurting people, and I was surrounded by a broken and hurting culture that has turned to anything but the love of God to heal their hearts. As I boarded the plane to come back home in June, my heart broke for those that I knew still didn't have the hope of Christ.
I'm going back for the Dylan's who will sit around for hours on end questioning and challenging our beliefs because nobody has taken the time to explain them before. I'm going back for the Jessica's whose culture has her so convinced that she isn't good enough that it is impossible for her to believe that the King says otherwise. I'm going back simply because I know of a culture in need of revival and I am being called to be a part of it.
My assignment:
The Dioceses Internship Program has a goal of helping young people to become better disciples. They do so by placing interns with sponsor churches where they will get first-hand ministerial experience as well as go through a specialized course in disciple making.
I will be working with St. James Church of England parish in Carlisle, England. The mission of St. James is to provide a place of growth for Christians within the community as well as to reach out to the un-churched in ways that appeal to them.
During my time with St. James, I will work closely with the technical and youth ministries of the church. I am most excited, however, for working with the ministries outside of the church walls. St. James owns and operates a coffee shop with the purpose of creating a non intimidating space within the community for people to feel comfortable hanging out, whether they are Believers or not. Throughout the week, St. James also hosts several clubs and meetings at the coffee shop to provide the opportunity for people to attend an event without the pressure they may feel about entering a church building. Below you will find the website for St. James. Please check it out and see for yourself all of the cool things this parish is doing for the expansion of the Kingdom.
St. James Home Page
Cornerstone Coffee Shop
How you can get involved
There are a couple of ways for you to be involved on my support team, and I am equally grateful for whichever way you choose to be involved.
1) Prayer Team: It would be impossible for me to take this leap of faith without a team of people praying for me along the way. I will be updating my blog both as I prepare to leave and while I am on-field, so check back for updates as to how you can pray for me.
2) One-time Financial Donation: My goal is to have half of my fundraising (about $3,000) completed by June 1. Donations can be mailed to Christian Fellowship Church, 4100 Millersburg Road, Evansville IN 47725. Make sure to write "Keys on the memo line of your check. You can also give online here. When giving online, please specify in the comment box that you are donating to my account.
Thank you all so much for all of your love and support throughout this process!