We are currently in Chico, California for about 10 days of conferncing and workshops. The last 6 days have been for our Discipleship Training Schools(DTS), and then the next four days are our west coast staff conferences.
As I sit here in the lobby waiting for all our friends from other YWAM locations to show up and the rest of our staff I've been thinking alot about continued discipleship after students leave our schools. This was a topic that came up during our DTS workshop. As YWAM we have been so good at training students and "ruining them for the ordinary", but we have been horrible at seeing them continue in discipleship after they leave our little green house environment. We set up this super cozy super unrealistic environment for 5 to 6 months and then release them to the hounds once they leave our staff. We have them in 12 hours of lectures, 3 hours of intercession, worship 3 times a week, small groups, tons of accountability. Then we send them home to people that sometimes don't understand what has changed in them or how their worldview has been insanely changed.
So we are trying to create ways to have them flow into continued discipleship after they leave our base, and that we don't just drop them after they leave. We are going to try connecting with their pastor before they leave, what they expect, ways they can help them when they come home. Sending them materials when they get home. It's been really cool. It's something i'm going to try committing to see changed at our base and the way we run our DTS's in Pismo!
I'd upload some new pictures but we are in the middle of nowhere. So it would take forever. I may put some new pics on this weekend when we go to starbucks or something.
Friday, August 25, 2006
Monday, August 14, 2006
We're Alive
Well...It's been a crazy summer so far. We've gone from Portland, to Vegas, to Oakland, to Louisianna, and then this week to Northern California and then on the 8th I'm going to Nicaragua for 2 weeks.
We've been super busy. But I've been loving it for the most part. We started out this crazy summer with a staff outreach to Portland, Oregon. We worked with the Portland Rescue mission and also got to do some ministry over at the world famous, Burnside skate park. It was a really great time. We were also scouting out the area for one of our staff that is heading up there to start a new YWAM base in Portland.
We headed from there to Las Vegas where we helped lead some groups with the Mission Adventures program there. We worked with two groups for 10 days in the blasting heat of the Las Vegas desert. It was stinking hot. We go to do some cool ministry there on the Las Vegas strip. I also got to lead worship for the week and also spoke on a thing called the committment service. It's a time challenging the students on Lordship and having them listen for God's voice.
We also went to Oakland to train a youth group that we took to Louisianna to help with Hurricane Rita clean up. Hurricane Rita is the forgotten stom down there. It was a good time both in Oakland and when we took them to Louisianna. We were able to bless the family that we worked with and it was a great trip.
Will is going to Nicaragua for two weeks with some of our staff. There are 4 new staff that have joined our base and part of their orientation is to go on a outreach. So will is going with them to Nicaragua and help facilitate their trip. He will be back by the 22nd of September. So have no fears. Unless the baby comes 6 weeks early there is nothing to worry about. Lori is doing good, and we are like 29 weeks along. We are both really looking forward to the baby coming. We are going with Elijah, but we don't have a middle name yet.
We've been super busy. But I've been loving it for the most part. We started out this crazy summer with a staff outreach to Portland, Oregon. We worked with the Portland Rescue mission and also got to do some ministry over at the world famous, Burnside skate park. It was a really great time. We were also scouting out the area for one of our staff that is heading up there to start a new YWAM base in Portland.
We headed from there to Las Vegas where we helped lead some groups with the Mission Adventures program there. We worked with two groups for 10 days in the blasting heat of the Las Vegas desert. It was stinking hot. We go to do some cool ministry there on the Las Vegas strip. I also got to lead worship for the week and also spoke on a thing called the committment service. It's a time challenging the students on Lordship and having them listen for God's voice.
We also went to Oakland to train a youth group that we took to Louisianna to help with Hurricane Rita clean up. Hurricane Rita is the forgotten stom down there. It was a good time both in Oakland and when we took them to Louisianna. We were able to bless the family that we worked with and it was a great trip.
Will is going to Nicaragua for two weeks with some of our staff. There are 4 new staff that have joined our base and part of their orientation is to go on a outreach. So will is going with them to Nicaragua and help facilitate their trip. He will be back by the 22nd of September. So have no fears. Unless the baby comes 6 weeks early there is nothing to worry about. Lori is doing good, and we are like 29 weeks along. We are both really looking forward to the baby coming. We are going with Elijah, but we don't have a middle name yet.
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