Ministry Update – November 2018

Israel – Mount Arbel

Israel – Mount Arbel

Hey everybody! It is November 30th today. Not only does that mean it’s time for another ministry update, but it also means that it’s my sister Heidi’s birthday today! Happy Birthday Heidi! I hope your day is wonderful! Speaking of birthdays, my birthday was this past week. It was great just receiving all of the birthday wishes. I appreciate people doing that. Honestly, I am a person that loves any gesture of thoughtfulness. It doesn’t have to be anything big. It can simply be a kind act, a word of encouragement, or a birthday wish. It means a lot to me, so thank you everybody who wished me a Happy Birthday! Speaking of thoughtful gestures, I encourage you to do something thoughtful for somebody today. Make someone’s day!

Ministry Update:

November really has flown by! Before getting into any details, I just want to wholeheartedly thank all of you out there that have supported me in finances and in prayer. It has been a tremendous blessing to see God provide through the generosity and thoughtfulness of people. I am very thankful and have been blessed greatly in my time working with Word of Life. Thank you to all of you who support me in prayer. Prayer cannot be emphasized enough in its importance as it is Almighty God who hears and answers prayer. One of the greatest ways you can help a person is to pray for them because God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and can work in any situation. When I think about all of the people praying for me, it humbles me. Always remember that your prayers for people mean A LOT! With that being said, I would like to share with you how God has been working through this month at Word of Life.

– Academics: My main job as the Academic Coordinator continues to go well. I might have said it before, but I am seriously considering getting into teaching. I am really enjoying this position and it has been fun at the same time. I get to communicate and interact with all of the guest teachers that come on property each week to teach a book of the Bible. This month, the students completed a Theology essay and a Bible Survey essay which I had the opportunity to help grade. The last couple of weeks, the students have also been going through the book of Acts. In addition, since my last update, they have completed Galatians, Daniel, Colossians, and Philemon.

– Praise Team: Campus Praise Team is great! I get to help lead the group. It has been a great privilege and learning experience at the same time. I am very thankful for this opportunity as I get to grow in experience for leading a worship team. Currently, I am the piano player on the team. As a team, we strive for excellence as we lead people each week in worshiping God through songs. A few of the songs we have done are: “Who You Say I Am”, “Great Are You Lord”, “Lay Me Down”, “I Surrender All”, among others. This past week, we also started Christmas music which is exciting!

– Book Study: The past several weeks, we have been doing a Christian book study on the book, “How People Change”. I have been co-leading the study. It has been very relevant and discussions have been good when we bring them to a personal, heart level. Change needs to be intentional, on the inside, and consistent. Sometimes, it requires sacrifice, hard decisions, and other challenges. However, it is all worth it as it is the path to joy and bringing glory to God. It has been encouraging to see the students reflect upon and think about the thoughts raised during our time together. We wrap up the study this Sunday.

– Harvest Bash: Near the beginning of the month, we held an event called “Harvest Bash”. It was a fun night filled with fall decorations, great food, and fellowship. We also played a number of games including a pumpkin carving competition, balloon pop, candy hunt, and dress-up. It was a great time!

– Concert: Yesterday, I had the opportunity of going with a couple of Word of Life staff to a church where we had fellowship with people over a Christmas meal and then put on a concert for them. I played the piano and even had the privilege of singing for one of the songs! The people there really enjoyed the concert, and it was just such a blessing to be able to encourage and uplift them in this way. It was also a lot of fun! I love Christmas events!

That kind of sums up the month of November. It has been a great month filled again with God’s blessings. I have also written a number of blog posts this month which has been great! I love sharing with people my thoughts, ideas, and hopefully just some practical ways you can grow personally, bless other people, and glorify God.

Prayer:

– Please pray that God would open doors and lead me going forward into His plan for my life next year.

– Please pray that God would help me to continue to strive to bless others and honour Him in my life.

– Please pray for the students as they prepare for Recharge coming up in the new year. Recharge is our snow camp ministry which we host on weekends during the winter here at Word of Life.

– Please pray that God would be glorified in every area of ministry here at Word of Life.

– Finally, please pray for Christians all around the world that our hearts would be fully given to God and that we would love others and love Him.

Bible Verse:

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16

This has become my theme verse for the year. It is also an area where I need to grow. I don’t want to do anything simply based on my own agenda or lifting myself up. However, I still sometimes struggle with this and it is sin. I am praying that God would help me to do everything in a way that brings glory to His Name. I don’t need recognition. It’s all about God. That’s the mindset and goal that I want to continue to strive toward this year. Perhaps, it’s an area you need to grow in as well. It’s worth it!

That’s all for this post! Until next time!

(Remember, do something thoughtful for someone today! Make their day! You won’t regret it!)