"If faith could fit in a frame, the way a painting does, then we might get tired of looking at it after a couple of years. But faith, as it grows, keeps demanding a new and larger frame to be housed in. I think the Lord loves to do things that are unexpected, things that are beyond what we can control or predict. It forces our canvas to get bigger. These days I just try to expand first and wait till later to figure it all out.
Ultimately, God moves me. He consistently breaks the boundaries (my frame) with which I've surrounded Him. It means admitting my finiteness and rigidity. It means he is dangerously greater than I can define or even understand."It inspired an end of year project last May as the girls were finishing up their sophomore year and I was getting ready to go home for the summer. Without too much planning, except to decide who was doing which letters, we came up with this...
 |
Things I praise God for:
New youth volunteers! We now have 15+ adults to help lead small discussion groups on Sundays and various other activities during the week! This was a huge request coming into the new school year. The first 20 minutes or so of the youth service is spent playing games and praising God in music, but for the majority of the time we break into discussion groups to study the Bible. It makes such a difference when there are enough adults to help out with leading, getting to know newbies, administrative stuff, etc. Yesterday we had 56 teenagers! Praise to God for directing these adults to join the youth ministry and for their willingness to respond to His call.
The Gospel of Matthew! This year in the youth program we are studying the New Testament book of Matthew. When I came to Indonesia and started in youth ministry, the previous style for the youth service had been to invite different speakers to share with the youth on a topic relevant to their lives using Biblical principles. We continued with this format for a while, but grew increasingly unhappy with the results. The teens are stuck in school all week listening to lectures. There was no continuity from week to week because none of the speakers had the opportunity to hear the sermon from the previous week.
One major role change for me this year has been the shift from finding Sunday speakers for the youth service to writing small group lessons based on the book of Matthew. Since we have such a large group of kids, break-out groups seem to be the best way to develop relationships, find out what the youth know, and answer questions. They also provide the opportunity for students to get involved, instead of just being consumers.
Despite being well accustomed to writing lesson plans, I was a bit apprehensive about writing lessons this year. First of all, I am the only person who has ever had to follow my own lesson plans (except for substitute teachers, but that's a different dynamic). Writing a plan for someone else to follow is much more complicated. Secondly, I have never written Bible studies and don't consider myself very experienced or knowledgeable when it comes to theology.
However, I have really enjoyed this new part of my job! Even though I am the one who undoubtedly learns the most, I think I'm starting to get the hang of the whole thing. My plans are just a guide, with possible discussion questions, and tidbits of background context and interesting facts that help understanding. Some of the volunteers follow the plan, and others don't rely on it so much because they have their own ideas to bring to the group. It all works out well and I'm loving it! Pray that I will be sensitive to the Holy Spirit in this task.
Adjusting to life without a roommate! Although I would prefer having Jessica back, I am adjusting to living alone. The biggest worry for me (and maybe my mom) was food. I just never seemed to develop that sixth sense for throwing together a meal using fresh ingredients. I'm really good at mac n cheese and spaghetti sauce from a jar as noted in my previous post. Apparently, it has been good for me to be forced out of my cooking comfort zone! One by one, have learned (mostly from youtube) about storing, cutting, preparing, and seasoning vegetables and incorporating them into my cooking. Here is the latest successful dish made for small group...
 |
Finances! One of the biggest steps of faith for this coming year was knowing that I would not have enough money to pay my student loans while living in Indonesia. While the church is very generous in covering my expenses here, those monthly loan payments back in the States are the problem. While I was home, my church took a love offering for me. That, combined with other generous contributions from people at home as well as a donor here in Jakarta, totals to more than what I need to make my loan payments for the next year! I was overwhelmed with God's faithfulness!
My prayer requests:
An opportunity to see my parents. My parents will be in Thailand in a few weeks ministering with other friends from home. When my "bosses" here at the church found out, they insisted I grab the opportunity to see Mom and Dad. It is an incredibly inexpensive, 3 hour plane ride to Thailand, where I'll be able to enjoy the beach during the day and see Mom and Dad in the evenings. I'm thankful for the chance to see them and for the means with which to do it. Pray for their team's preparations for working with the kiddos there and for God to bless our time together.
Alone time. I am an introvert. I'm fairly certain that is not a surprise to you. Not having a roommate means that I have more time to myself. I have found that the more me-time I have, the more selfishly I guard it. Isn't that strange? Yes, it does allow me to get a lot done, be more reflective and prepared. But I want to make sure that I'm using my time wisely. Is this how God wants me to spend it? Pray that I will be sensitive to what He wants and be willing to change if needed.
The teens. It is the same all over the world. Teenagers are looking for acceptance and love. My continual prayer is that the youth will learn how to place their identity in God alone instead of getting fulfillment from grades, friends, media, etc. Those three things are the biggest competition. Pray that through this study of Matthew, the youth will be able to grasp the overall themes such as Jesus as Son of God, being "heavenly minded" and thinking about the coming Kingdom, the double-love ethic (love God, love others), and the great commission.
So many of them are perfectionists. As a recovering perfectionist, I can relate. Pray that they will understand that God's glory is made manifest in their weaknesses. That they cannot be perfect for teachers, friends, parents, or God, but that they can claim a perfect Jesus who makes them acceptable in God's eyes.
Thank you for partnering with me in prayer. I would love to read your comments here or emails at sally.b.thompson@gmail.com!
