Life Happens in the Transitions

I haven't quite figured out how to put into words the countless things I've been processing lately. There seem to just be too many things from too many places happening at once.

Enough that I just spent 5 minutes trying to figure out how to write or explain them, concluding only that I can't. So I guess that says something in itself.

It turns out when you're the
photographer, you aren't in many
photos: this is the best I have from GC!

The thing is: they all intersect. Every piece of my life is in flux right now, and yet they are all fluidly and undeniably interconnected. My work life is chaotic as I move from General Conference into Annual Conference season... but processing these things personally have been more difficult than the countless hours at work I have spent on them.

Oh, and Annual Conferences? Lets not forget that in the middle of the ones I'm traveling to for work, is the Dakotas Annual Conference: where I will be commissioned as a provisional elder! That's right folks, I'm finally doing it: I have an appointment in the Dakotas Conference this fall!

So there's that. Not just the appointment part, but the whole "OH MY GOSH: I'M ACTUALLY FINALLY TAKING AN APPOINTMENT!!!" part. I mean this both with great excitement, and with great intimidation, and mostly with great anticipation that holds both in what I think is a well-balanced tension.

Of course, with that also comes other changes. Some are obvious: I need to buy a car. I will miss the easy access to buses and trains but will be grateful to be able to drive my groceries home instead having to walk with them! That trades off too, though: I'll no longer have access to a Whole Foods or Trader Joes. Then there's that other big thing that sticks out: right now, I practically live on the road and out of a suitcase since I travel so much for work. But as a pastor, I'll stay put. A lot. I'm REALLY looking forward to settling in one place - in my own HOME! - but also a bit intimidated by what it may feel like to no longer have a need to monitor those plane ticket prices...

But before I can get that far, I have to wrap up my other pieces of life. I'm going to miss DC, the friends I've made, and cycling!! Oh, the cycling! I have not only a great training/riding partner who lives right above me, but we have access to some of the best trail systems in the country - and weather that lets us ride for extra long seasons!!

Not that I see them much these days, since I've been (and will be) traveling for General and Annual Conferences. Which will conclude for me by a week of debriefing in NYC as my Mission Intern position with GBGM draws near its end. Which, takes me full circle and...

and I find myself thinking and feeling and confused in these circles a lot these days.

Which is why I'm grateful my neighbor and cycling partner recently asked me to go to Yoga with her.

Yep: Yoga.

Never in my life have I been interested in yoga, but something about it just felt right this week. So I went. and on Monday night, we had a theme that has stuck with me all week:

Life happens in the transitions.

If that's not my life right now, I don't know what is.

I am transitioning in every aspect of my life. With my friends, my job, my vocation, my lifestyle. All of it. Every last piece of it is changing drastically. Not just my life, but I am "transitioning."

This week, I appreciate the reminder to stop thinking about all the transitions I'm experiencing and expecting, always anticipating the next one. Instead, I'm moving forward one day at a time, not just existing in the midst of these transitions, but truly living into them.

Because when we think about it, my yoga instructor is right: life is always transitioning. and Life happens in the transitions.

Namaste.

Announcement

Well friends: it is now official! My US-based placement as a missionary has now been confirmed, and it is with great joy and excitement that I get to share it with you today!

Are you ready… ?

I am moving to…
       Washington, DC!

I will be working for…
       The Methodist Federation for Social Action (MFSA)!

My job title will be…
       “Associate for Movement Building” - with an emphasis on young people!

Which is a fancy way of saying…
       My focus will be on participating and leading events that foster theological reflection on social justice work… including but not limited to planning national events, working with social media outlets, engaging in education and witness of social justice issues...

Basically, I’m going to get to do three of my favorite things: invite and engage in dialogue, share theological reflections, and figure out how to turn those in to actual change and do-ing of social justice. And not just locally, but across the United Methodist denomination.

For lack of a better word to describe this job description I come up with only: AWESOME.

Really, truly: I could NOT be more excited about this placement! In so many ways, I feel it is perfect for the place God has been calling me to, and the ways God has been speaking to me: not just lately, but over the past several years.

The moment I read the email inviting me to consider this as a placement, a smile washed across my face and I was instantly excited about how apparently perfect this placement seemed. As time has passed and I have had time to further consider this placement over email and phone conversations with staff at mfsa, I have only grown more confident in this assignment.

Indeed, God’s hand has been with me in my journey to here, and indeed God continues to bless and encourage me. After a couple of years of chaos and confusion, I am exuberant as I consider the new direction my path is taking me, and it is with great anticipation that I prepare for what shall be written in the next few chapters of this crazy book I call my life.

I hope you’ll join me and continue to follow me here as I make my transition and enter into a new form of ministry over the next couple of years.

For Every Thing There is a Season...

As I sit to write this, I realize I should be packing. However, I remain true to the procrastinator within, and think this is as good of a time as any to write a blog that has been a long time coming.

The past few months of my life have been anything but stable. If I told you all of the stories of my life from these last few months, I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t believe me. I’m not sure I would, if I hadn’t lived it. The good news is this: I have had a couple of weeks and some really great friends who have helped me to process many of the events, and life is slowly but surely turning around.

This is my attempt at a “short” version of what I have been up to the past few months.

First, the good news: Our (SHADE’s) Education Centre closed at the end of June. It was a bitter-sweet closing. I truly loved my time teaching and getting to know each of our students, and was sad to see them go. I also experienced for the first time the joy of a teacher when she (or he) sees her students succeed. In many ways, I felt like I was more proud on graduation day than they were, and I have an entirely new appreciation for the teachers who helped me along my journey. I had no idea the work, hope, love and joy that come not just from teaching, but from watching students succeed or walk across the state. To all of the students of Espoir Centre: Congratulations!

The week after graduation was when the whirlwind of my life began to pick up. SHADE has undergone a lot of changes since moving to Johannesburg in January. As the Training Centre prepared to close, concerns about SHADE had begun to grow. Is the work (and financial need) of SHADE sustainable? Will there be enough work for THREE Mission Interns to keep busy? Would it perhaps be in the better interest of SHADE to not have Missionaries they needed to be concerned with while they were also undergoing other large changes that had little to do with us, but that would affect our work? One of the biggest questions had little to do with our work, but with growing concerns over our housing situation: it was increasingly clear that it would be best if we could move to a safer, healthier place near people, especially as tensions grew with our landlord. Basically, all of the concerns for SHADE we have had over the past several months boiled down to one big question: is the best place for us (Mission Interns) really at SHADE?

As Hannah, Rachel and I each took time to pray and reflect on some of these questions, so did some of the staff at GBGM. In the end, the decision GBGM came to was that it would be best for all parties if the three of us were re-appointed to work with other ministries for the rest of the duration of our international placements. This means we were looking for work within the Methodist Church of Southern Africa and preparing to begin placements all over again. In many ways, it was reminiscent of the anxiety over my placement I had while waiting to hear in June and July of 2009, or again in September 2009 when it was changed last minute.

This decision was not an easy one. The days that followed, the questions that have been asked and addressed, the move that took place: these are the encounters that create the unbelievable stories that are now to be tallied in my crazy book of life. We have new memories of the sad day we packed up our desks. We have crazy stories about the day we moved all of our personal belongings out of our house in 15 minutes. Stories of adrenaline, of joy, of sorrow. Stories that make me sad, bring me joy, or just make be laugh in unbelief.

One of our biggest concerns was free time: we had already wrapped up our work at SHADE. The World Cup ended two days after we told Papa David we were leaving. Would we waste away with no work to do for the next month?

Of course, God has this all under control. On Tuesday, 13 July, 4 days after we were officially done with our work at SHADE, I wrote this blog about meeting my friends Emily and Joanne for the first time. Little did we know this would not be a one-time pastoral visit. Quite the contrary, we returned the next morning to greet and pray with their newly arrived family from the US, and basically, we never left. We took so well to Jen and Matt (Emily’s parents, Joanne’s son and daughter-in-law) that they were soon telling the nurses we were immediate family so we could spend more time with them in the ICU. They were in South Africa nearly a month, during which time we saw them every day, blessed with opportunities to love, laugh, pray, sing, watch movies, share meals, etc. with them. We even took our turns staying overnight with Emily; Emily had become like a little sister to me, and it was as if I had known them my entire life.

As they prepared to leave, it was only then that I realized how much we needed each other during this time. God really did have it under control: we could not have made it through that trying, difficult month of change without them and without another ministry to keep us busy. As the Kerstetters packed up to go home, I made may way to Durban (a much needed vacation I wrote about below). Another week at home in Johannesburg to pack and get ready to go, and here I am: Saturday I move to Cape Town, where a new chapter of my life and work will begin. I am moving nearly 2 months after serious conversations of moving began, and I somehow do not feel like I have had enough “down” time to even process all of these changes. Yet I am grateful to be moving forward before I have begun to feel stagnant. Balance is everything, so though I am not yet sure if I am ready to go, I move forward this week, leaving Rachel and Hannah in Johannesburg, where they still await their appointments.

Though I know this “update” is long, vague and nondescript, I hope it also serves as a small window into some of the changes that have occurred. My next updates will be from Cape Town, where I slowly put the pieces of my life and work together again, hopefully gleaning valuable lessons from the challenges of the past several months. As I do so, and as Rachel and Hannah continue in a state of transition and uncertainty, I ask your continued prayers and support. For if there is anything that can be said with absolute certainty from the past 10 months, it is that we would not have made it through without prayer.

Update

I am truly out of words tonight but wish to thank any of you who have been praying with and for those suffering as a result of the Haiti earthquake, and specifically for the Rabb family. Only a couple of hours ago, we received word that Rev. Clinton Rabb, Director of Volunteers in Mission (VIM) for the General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM), has passed away from injuries he sustained during the Haiti earthquake a few days ago.

Really, truly, I have no words and a very heavy heart. I leave you, therefore, with words of wisdom Clint has spoken to me. I thought them wise enough to quote him at the time, and tonight am grateful to have these words to remember him by.

“We are sent. Not to do something. But Sent. We will know when we get there what we are called to do.”

“Jesus claims he is sent - be careful what you claim.”

Haiti

I first got word about the earthquake on Wednesday afternoon. I sat at my computer on a lunch break at work and read an email from the Dakotas Conference asking for prayer and financial support. Immediately flashed before me were images of Haiti, of the work so many of my friends have gone to do or are doing, of the great need already evident before such a tragedy, and of how many people I know that have been or even could be there. Where are they? Are they accounted for? Didn’t I hear something about missions teams being sent there in January - is that now?

While these questions came to mind I simultaneously allowed my fingers to type Haiti into google in search of more information and let my voice cry out for my roommate Hannah, who I knew would want to know right away. Over the next couple of days, information flowed in slowly and took us on a roller-coaster of emotions. We misread information, were fed wrong information, were left without any information. I am especially grateful for those who have gone out of their way to share any information with us, as has proven difficult to keep up with any news in real time from here.

My heart is heavy. It has been heavy for days as I have been thinking about, praying for, and reflecting as I read others’ reactions to this tragedy. To be honest, in the past when a tragedy such as this has struck someplace around the world, I usually join them in prayer and think about it for a day or so, then feel guilty about going back to life as I know it while people are suffering. The guilt has come this time too, but its different this time.

This time, the guilt isn’t that I have forgotten them, failed to keep them in my prayers, or not “done” something. Rather, it the guilt has been about how lavishly I live my life and how easily I take it for granted. The guilt has been linked to how I can spend hours thinking about this, but at the end of the day still not be ready to give up certain luxuries I know I have.

It has also been different because this time, I can’t forget or move on. Something about this tragedy struck me deeply, and has left me without words. This has been true before, but never has it been true without the media constantly feeding me pictures, videos, stories so that I felt connected and was reminded of the crisis. This time, I have had only minimal access to media, and with the exception of occasional emails from my Conference, I could easily have forgotten it or moved on.

Friday morning, I discovered one of the unknown connections that perhaps kept me so closely tied (prayerfully, emotionally, etc) to Haiti. In a matter of hours, I discovered that 3 GBGM/UMCOR officials were in Haiti and were last seen entering a building that collapsed in the earthquake. Misunderstandings and a passing of wrong information led us to believe they were found but fine, then not found, then one walked away with bruises and the other two were pinned for 55 hours but then found alive and would be okay. It was a rollercoaster, to be sure, especially since the two pinned men, Clint Rabb and Sam Dixon, are two men who I have worked with (Sam indirectly) over the years and who I know to do incredible work. I also know that they are two of the men within the UMC that would know the most about how to get relief to Haiti in the quickest and most efficient way possible - Clint is the Director of Volunteers in Mission (short term missions) and Sam the director of UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief).

Tonight, we are not greeted with such great news. We finally have confirmed information, and know for sure that these reports offered to us before were not entirely true. It is true that the third man, Jim Gulley, an UMCOR consultant, is okay and walked away with cuts and bruises. It is also true that Clint and Sam were trapped for 55 hours under a pile of debris that was once the hotel. Tonight’s confirmed report tells us that Clint Rabb was found alive and has since been transported to a hospital in Florida, where he remains in Intensive Care.

Another report updates us on Rev. Sam Dixon. Unfortunately, Sam did not make it out of that pile alive, and today, thousands are grieving the loss of an incredible man.

Around the world, Sam Dixon was a loved servant and friend. With great hesitancy and difficulty, we (Hannah, Rachel and I) shared this update with Mama Tembo, our boss whose home we were at following an incredible evening of celebrations. We knew from conversations the past couple of days that Mama Tembo had known Sam well, and she was relieved to hear positive reports as we received them yesterday. Today, however, we had not such good news, and our celebrations quickly ended as we took time to mourn together.

Life is such a delicate thing, and we sat around the table rotating between moments of needed silence, tears, or opportunities to share stories about Sam and the incredible difference he made in the world - in our worlds. As we did so, I began to also reflect on this delicacy of life, and how incredible it really is that Sam truly lived his life as a fun, joyful, hardworking and passionate servant of God. He truly loved his work and was great at it, blessing millions along the way. Sam was in Haiti on business, and I like to imagine there was no other place he’d rather have been.

As I sit rambling and writing this post, it is nearly 4am and I am sleepless. It has indeed been a full and exhausting week, and yet I know it is far from over. I remember Sam’s family, friends, and extended community around the world, a community I cannot quickly forget as Mama Tembo tells us of what an integral role Sam Dixon played in getting funding for SHADE early on. I also think of and pray with and for Clint, who lies in ICU in Florida, and for Suzanne (his wife) and their large family, and pray for ease of pain, for healing, for comfort and patience. I hope they can feel the thousands of prayers flowing for them, can feel the incredible love and support being poured out to them though it is only minute compared to what they have first offered to their communities.

As I prepare to try again to get a bit of sleep tonight, I remember and pray for the thousands of people still missing or still suffering in Haiti. I pray for the millions of people in Haiti - and around the world - who are grieving following this terrible tragedy. May we continue to be aware of the many ways God is with us in these difficult days.

(I also encourage you to give, to donate what you can to support relief efforts in Haiti. Perhaps in honor of the incredible work Sam Dixon has done, I recommend giving through UMCOR, which you can do here.)

Arrival in South Africa

It took walking off of the plane and into the international airport in Johannesburg to make this move seem real.

It seems quite strange to say it, but there is a strange comfort that comes from a familiar smell, and as I walked off the plane and into the terminal this morning, I was welcomed with a familiar smell I had not sensed in two years. It was a delightful sensation that came over me as I began processing this move in a whole new way. It is becoming a reality, this calling I have sought after for so long. I am not just on a short-term mission journey as in the past, but I have finally made a move overseas for mission work. I shall reside in South Africa for the next 16 months. While I am certain I will someday look back and understand this as short-term as well, it is a huge step for today. What a great blessing to be able to share in this work in this beautiful country!

I have now arrived in Cape Town, and in a couple of hours my two sisters and roommates - Hannah and Rachel - will also arrive. I am excited for their arrival, and looking forward to settling in together. And yes - also looking forward to finding internet and phone so that I may let everyone (both folks at home and my friends I am excited to greet here!) know I have arrived safely. (this has been posted and back-dated to when written).

The Great Visa Expedition

New Blog - Visa Expedition

Good news, friends - we have visas!

Up until an hour before closing time of the South African Consolate’s office yesterday, there was no certainty as to whether all three of us would have visas to depart today. The good news we had was that Hannah and Rachel were likely going to have theirs and would thus have no difficulty departing the next afternoon. The bad news was that the same was not true for me.

As a result of the previous story I shared about them going home to get proper background checks with their State Police offices and me getting mine only over the phone, there was question as to whether or not mine would be adequate enough. From the way the letters were written, it was clear to the Consulate that I had not presented myself as requested. I was also missing the fingerprints the other two had turned in. This did not mean I would be turned down permanently, but it did mean I may have to return home after all to make up for these missing pieces.

Fortunately, our beloved Gail who is our Regional Executive (based in NYC) and who is from South Africa, decided she was going to do everything possible to get me that visa in a timely manner. So she gave up on such conversations over the phone and presented herself in person, even saying she would camp out (and that we would join her) until we got that visa. Oh, how we love her!!!

So down to the office Gail went, and when they told her she would surely receive two but maybe not three visas that day, she voiced to them how and why that was absolutely unacceptable. Gail tells us that rather than take no for an answer, she proceeded to yell (as much as Gail yells) at them, insisting they were wrong. It went something like, this:

(Gail) “Jen Tyler? You aren’t really going to turn down Jen Tyler, are you? You’ve got the wrong gal! If anyone should be allowed into South Africa, its Jen Tyler! Do you know that she rode her bicycle all the way from California to Delaware to raise over $100,000 so that people in southern Africa could have clean water? She of all people should be allowed into our country!”

(Consulate Secretary) “Is that true?”

(Gail) “Of course it is, I can’t make this stuff up!”

The she walks away. Sure enough, when she returned, we had three visas!! That’s right, friends, they decided I’m not a criminal and that I am in fact worthy of a visitor’s visa because of that epic bike tour called the Ride:Well Tour I embarked on the past two summers.

I would always have been the first to tell you Venture Expeditions and the Ride:Well Tour changed my life for the better in monumental and indescribable ways, but who would have thought it would also be the gateway that literally allowed me a visa to move overseas as a missionary? Thanks be to God!

Commissioning!

It is now official. I am a commissioned missionary for The United Methodist Church, and praise be to God, everything is now in order and visas now in hand, so I will be leaving in only a few hours to fly out to Cape Town, South Africa!

The commissioning service yesterday went beautifully. We worshiped, we laughed, we cried, and we were prayed over one at a time and officially sent for by Bishop Ough. There was a full crowd in the room to watch, and thousands more from 4 continents and all over the US watched via live stream on the internet. It was a great moment not just for those of us long anticipating this moment as missionaries, but more so for the global church. What an incredible gift that so many from all over the world were able to share in this moment with us.

Among the many blessings from this service was the opportunity to be commissioned with my brother in Christ Jonathan McCurley. He and I attended seminary together, have discussed our calls at length, and perhaps most importantly have really worked together to challenge one another on the many things we disagree on, yet maintaining our relationship due to the nature of love and the uniting power of our similarities. I believe the two of us being commissioned after this long road to be a beautiful display of the theological diversity of our Church, and I am honored to be a part of that.

To my huge and incredibly pleasant surprise, one of Jonathan and I’s classmates at Garrett came to see him be commissioned, having no idea I would also be there. Mike Rudd is a blessing to every life he touches, and was kind of the grandpa of the seminary during his time there. It brought such an added burst of joy to the night, and I definitely wish to say thank you to Mike for the incredible support over the years and for standing with me when my name was called - it was great to see you there.

Perhaps my favorite part of the evening was just after the service ended. All of those newly commissioned were led into the room next door where we would wait for photos to be taken, and immediately as we gathered in, the Mission Interns and US-2s circled up, holding one another and singing “Amen!” in great joy and with laughter. Soon, most of the room was joining us, and it truly was a witness to one another of the overcoming of struggles we have come to get this far and how very much it was worth it. God is indeed good, and it was great to celebrate in that together.

These are all of the missionaries with Bishop Ough immediately following our commissioning.

Last-Minute Changes

If you have traveled on long-term journeys before, you know there are countless things to do in preparation for such a trip. That was definitely true as I prepared for South Africa. I just lived out of one suitcase (and a bin!) for three months, surely I would have no problem packing, right? Maybe... except for that tiny little detail that I was not just going on a trip this time - I am moving.

Something about that word is intimidating and reminds me of the many things to pack that I usually wouldn’t, such as certain books I want to keep on my shelf. It also meant I had to pack for four season, which was not a simple task with the goal of one suitcase for all of my clothes. Somehow I managed, though, so here I sit mid-flight with everything I need to live in a cargo hold underneath me. It is actually a bit liberating to know that I really can live on the things I packed in those suitcases, or even less if need be.

Some of the most challenging things to take care of pre-departure had nothing to do with getting everything into those suitcases, though. The biggest challenge was one that our dear regional executive Gail dealt with on our behalf: Visas.

Less than one week before our flights were set to depart, the three of us going to South Africa were pulled from a meeting and sat down. There was a problem with our Visas. It was unclear where the root of the problem was, but there was some sort of misunderstanding or miscommunication between our office and the South African Embassy issuing our visas. We had a problem, and it required our urgent attention.

While we submitted required background checks with our visa applications, they were now requesting that we have background checks from our state police or local FBI. The problem with this (beyond time, of course) was that to have these reports in time for our visas to be filed, we had to present ourselves in person at said offices that we may show ID and sign for them. It was already Thursday and Monday was a holiday, so this required leaving within an hour or so to get home that evening and get the paperwork filed the next morning. This was not painless but was at least simple enough for Hannah and Rachel who could jump on a train to their homes in VA and PA. I, however, would have to fly home, and there were evidently no flights to get me home that evening. Therefore, I was told I would not leave until Wednesday to go (for I couldn’t miss commissioning on Tuesday, the next business day), and would definitely miss my flight and be asked to reschedule.

Naturally, I was not excited about this plan, so I immediately set to work. My first instinct reminded me of people I know and the great fortune I have of being from a small town/state. So I started making calls, the first to the police chief in my hometown. He was more than willing to help me out and agreed to send the requested letter to our office in NYC. Next I got on the phone with the FBI, who was far from sure what I needed, but were helpful all the same.

Finally, I called our state police office in Pierre, South Dakota, and again they were not sure exactly what I was looking for. I talked to a few different people before finally finding someone who was still uncertain, but who was willing to help me out. It never occured to them that I would need to be there in person to make such a request, they just trusted that with such an unusual request, I was probably who I said I was - thank goodness for being from a small, trusting, friendly state! The officer even called back THREE TIMES to make sure he had the right thing, and to make sure I knew it had been sent next-day air, and should arrive first thing the next morning. THANK YOU!!

The paperwork did come through, and the only difference in mine and the other two girls was that it was requested of them to give fingerprints at the same time. I did not do this, obviously, so I am hoping this does not come back to be a bad thing. Only time will tell, though, as we will find out if what we have is sufficient on Tuesday. The good news is that I didn’t have to go home, but that there is still a good chance I will be able to depart on time on Thursday. We are hoping this is indeed the case, if for no other reason than to save the changing fees on the flight! I’ll be sure to keep you updated - thanks for the extra prayers it will work out!

Watch the Missionary Commissioning Service!

Training is progressing and we are covering our basis as we talked about forms of communication this morning, then safe sanctuaries and theological diversity this afternoon. Over lunch, someone mentioned that we are more than half done with training, which is a bit overwhelming when we think about what that means.

Our commissioning as United Methodist Missionaries will take place in only 6 days: on Tuesday, October 13 at 7pm ET at the Marriott in Stamford, Connecticut. If you are in the area, it is an open event and we would love to have you with us!

As most of you are not in the area, I would still like to take this opportunity to invite you to watch the service. For the first time, this service will be broadcast live over the internet! I am really excited about this opportunity for so many people from so many places to watch, pray and celebrate together! To watch, you can follow this link or visit www.ummissionaries.org

This is the press release offered on the website, and has been prepared as a bulletin insert for anyone wanting to invite their congregations. This insert is available for free download on the website in either color or black and white- please feel free to use it!

The day after the service, we will make our way from this retreat center at which our training is being held and back to New York City. The three of us moving to South Africa will then have one day to wrap up packing and preparations, and will fly out on the 15th. The time is drawing near, friends!

A New Journey Begins

Mission Intern Update!

The planned site I was to be working at in Johannesburg ended up not working out, and at the last minute (the day before I was set to fly to NYC for training - I was already almost done packing, even!), I received a phone call telling me such. It came as a huge surprise to me - and certainly not a welcome one. I was informed my site would change, but that I would remain in South Africa. Instead, I would be working with an organization called SHADE (Sojourners: Health, Advocacy, Development, Education) alongside two other Mission Interns. We would will be roommates, travel and work together. Quite a change!

That was eight days ago, and I am already feeling significantly better about this change. It has certainly taken some adjustment for while it may not seem significant, this is indeed quite a change for me to take in. I am shifting from what would have been a role on pastoral staff serving Zimbabwean Refugees in the areas of community development and pastoral care, into a role that will mostly be fulfilled through an office.

My new position will be to work for SHADE as the "Health and Spirituality Facilitator for Satellite Projects in Mozambique, Lesotho, and Namibia." Quite a title, huh? I am not quite sure exactly what this will entail, but I do know our office base will be in Cape Town through January, at which time all of SHADE's offices are moving to Johannesburg, and so we will to. I also know this position will involve some traveling, including a conference in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in November and a visit to each of the satellite projects I will be working with.

I have been simultaneously grieving the loss of the position I was so excited about in Johannesburg, and growing in excitement over the great potential this new position with SHADE holds. While this process is not yet through, I am pleased to say that the overwhelming excitement is taking over, especially as I get to know the two girls with whom I will be living and working. We're very different, and oh-so-alike, all at the same time. I think it will prove for a lot of adventures and laughs in our time as roommates, and I'm really looking forward to it!

Before we know it, our training will conclude and on the 16th, we will arrive in Cape Town (though on different flights, as I had already booked a flight to Johannesburg).

I intend to keep updating this blog throughout the next three years as a missionary, effective immediately. Perhaps there will even be further updates from training in the next few days!

Mission Placement Update

I sent this email out last week, and suppose it is past time I also update here. I was hoping to have more details to share before doing so, but I am realizing that at this rate, I may be boarding an international flight before I know much more! So here is what I do know...

It is with great joy and celebration that I write and am able to share an update today! After months of waiting, I finally have received a definitive placement through The United Methodist Church’s Mission Intern program. Following two weeks of training in September and October, I will be moving to Johannesburg, South Africa, where I will be serving at Central Methodist Church for the next year and a half. The details about what my duties will entail while serving at Central Methodist are still being worked out, but as the ministry opportunities there are so vast, I am more excited than anything to learn of the ways I will be invited to serve.

If you are reading this, it is likely that you have played a role in my life that has helped to make me who I am - Thank you! I have felt called to go and serve in the mission field for years, and today I am working out the final details of that coming to be. There are many preparations yet to be made, many changes about to be undergone, and many prayers that will continue to be needed in the years to come. As I prepare to enter into this new chapter of my life, I do so with joy and excitement, knowing that this is truly the place to which only God could have led me. The journey to this place has certainly been an adventurous one, and I hope you will join me in the adventures yet to follow.

Small but Important Steps

Exciting progression in the world of the unknown future that lies ahead.

I am not sure I have mentioned it here before, but a large part of my anxiety about post-graduation plans has come from a long period of waiting. Waiting is not always an easy thing to do. After praying about it for several months, at the end of last year, I put in an application to The United Methodist Churchs' General Board of Global Ministries Mission Intern Program. (How's that for a mouthful?) You can read more about the program here, but the short of it is that it is a 3-year commitment during which I will be placed to engage in full-time ministry in a mission setting. The first half of the program will be spent abroad, the second half in a setting within the United States.

Since the application was completed, I have been anxious for a word on it. After dates being changed and pushed back, their budgets reviewed and facing losses, and my own anxiety and uncertainty moving from one end of the spectrum to the other, I have landed back in the place I was when I excitedly began the application process: it feels overwhelmingly perfect, and just the transition I am looking for beyond completion of school in May.

So. It has been a long and painful few months of waiting for any word on their review of applications. FINALLY, it is moving along. I have been invited to attend a weekend of young adult interviews in New York City. I couldn't be happier or more relieved for the word that I've made it through the first filtering of applicants, though I must also confess that even this brings more restlessness. The interview weekend will take place the third weekend in April: April 17-20. While I am excited (and a bit nervous) about this weekend of interviews, I am also a bit weary about how late it is! As the interviews will take place near the end of April, it will likely be May until I know whether or not I am accepted into the program... which means I'll be within weeks (or days) of graduation before I know whether or not I have a plan for ministry post-graduation. If it works out - PERFECT and AMAZING and I'll have a few months to prepare!!! If not... I'll be walking across the stage with no idea what lies ahead. eek!

Everything about this feels right, though, and I have always been one to trust my instinct. Even if I'm two months from the next step, I'm excited to be on to what is "next," and trying to let the excitement be the overwhelming factor rather than the anxiety or fear of the unknown!
(now... on to decide on summer plans...)

Inching In

I promised to update on this here, and so I will.

For better or worse (I think better), I am a step closer to making summer plans. It has officially been decided that I will not be going for the summer with the Mission Volunteers

So my options are narrowed (good!), while others are continuing to arise. I am still waiting for a detailed response to questions I have for the Ride:Well folks, and am still trying to decide if I want to spend my "spring break" working on applications for last-minute CPE positions. So many options... so little time... :)

Baby Steps: Summer 2008

I interviewed with those running the Ride:Well Bike Tour with Blood:Water Mission today. It went really well, feeling like more of an (almost casual) conversation than an interview. They're pretty much 100% excited for me to take the opportunity to go with them for the summer. Before any decisions are made on my side, though, I am waiting for answers to some of my questions. I hope it works out well, as it really does sound like a phenomenal opportunity, and will certainly be a great experience. Some of the questions I was uneasy about with the trip in general, we were able to talk about in vague terms, and I feel a lot better about them.

I am still waiting to hear from GBGM with any news on this summer's Global Justice Volunteers Program.

If offered both positions, I am not yet sure which I will choose. There are a LOT of variables still out there, though. BOTH are great options, and I will NOT be disappointed either way. I'm getting anxious to make a decision, though... as if I need to fundraise (likely!), I need to get going soon. I'll be sure to keep you updated as I pray and discern about which path I will be going down this summer. Then, of course, I'll also be seeking donations in order for it to take place... I'll let you know where they can be sent. ;)