...thanksgiving.....

With it being Thanksgiving and all I wanted to share a few of the things I am thankful for....

• My missional family.  Being a part of a wonderful community that encourages each other, laughs with (and at) each other,  cries together and loves others together.  It is beautiful.  The friends that have become family since I have moved to KCK are priceless, they support me in so many ways.  Being on mission and in community is unique and so incredibly wonderful. 
• My kids.   Wait a second I have kids?  Yes, about 40 of them depending on the day, and if you count some of my teenagers that number jumps to about 60.  Being in the lives of my Kids' Club kids is great.  It has its goods, bads and uglies.  Some of my favorite things have included:
• Washing headlice, I know...really?  Yes, there is something really personal about picking lice out of someone hair.  It gives me a chance to serve families in a tangible way.  I might also say I feel blessed in that I haven't gotten it yet, even though there have been some false alarms.  
• Getting phone calls from kids, they could need help with homework, a ride somewhere, have a question or just be tired (bored) and be looking for something to do or someone to hangout with.  I love that they feel that they can call me and count on me if they need something. 
• Laughing together.  According to one of my kids I laugh like a chipmunk and her friends, and little sister have taken to calling me chipmunk laugh as of recently.  Laughing together is beautiful and shows how much fun we get to have together.
• Deep conversations.  Kids ask the best questions, they challenge your faith and keep you on your toes.  No amount of study or classes could have ever prepared me to answer some of the zingers these kids can come up with.  The Spirit though, is really good at providing words.  \
• Watching them grow.  It is hard to believe that it has been 2 years since we started walking with some of these kids.  They are growing up so incredibly fast.  I pray continually that as they grow they continue to be lights in  their schools and families. 
• My family.  They are pretty cool.  I mean they let me without much question move to a fairly rough neighborhood, and have found many ways to support me. 
• The chance to grow.  I can not begin to put in to words the ways that the Lord has worked in my life over the past year.  He has shown me his faithfulness in so many ways.  He has demonstrated His abundant provision in providing supporters to fun the ministry to the kids, when my faith was small and slow.  He has shown me that letting others in on your struggles isn't a sign of weakness, but a chance to grow.  He has shown me a better way to live life, with me being open to His leading, and honest with myself about what He is calling me to.  

I hope that you have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Interns

This past summer we were blessed with some great interns.  They had an amazing impact on our community. 

In college I had the chance to spend several summers interning at Northlake and being developed as a leader.  I am so thankful for that time, and am so excited about the chance to invest in interns myself.  If you know of any college students or young professionals that have a heart for cross cultural ministry encourage them to check out our summer internship.  The application deadline is February 15th!

Internship Interest Form

Just another week...

I don’t know if I have mentioned it lately but, I love what I do.  I am beyond blessed to be in a place where I get to love kids, exerience a different culture, and serve others in the name of the Lord. All in all it is a pretty sweet deal. One of my favorite things is that no two days look the same.  I wanted to take some time and show you what I might get to do during any given week. 

 Mondays….

That is my crazy and somewhat chaotic desk that I share with Lauren at Mission Adelante.  I usually spend some quality time with my desk on Monday afternoons responding to emails, entering attendance data, and making copies.  Depending on the evening I might go and visit a family by myself or with one of the Kids’ Club mentors.

Tuesdays….            

I get to spend all day on Tuesdays at Mission Adelante.  My days are filled with getting stuff ready for Kids’ Club.  I write lessons, make more copies, and get group boxes ready.  We also have staff meeting on Tuesdays where we get together as a whole staff and share what the Lord is doing. 

 Wednesdays…

Wednesday afternoons I spend time with a few of the 4^th grade girls from Kids’ Club.  We do homework, and hang out.  A few weeks ago we carved pumpkins.  I love these girls and am so blessed to get to spend time with them each week.

Thursdays…

Thursday afternoons I get stuff ready for our Bible Study that meets on Saturday mornings.  In the evening our Missional Family gathers for a meal and prayer.  The members of our Missional Family have commited to serving the Bhutanese in an extravagant way.  Many have purcahsed homes in our target neighborhood, or are looking towards making that transition.  I love getting to spend time with them and enjoy getting the chance to catch up with them about what is going on in the community. 






Fridays...

Most Fridays are Sabbath but this past week our friend Chris Hale who sings with a group called Aradhna came and taught us how to worship Jesus in Nepali cultural music.  To hear more about it check out David's article in the Adelante Express.

Saturdays...

On Saturday morning I put on my Children's Minister hat.  I don't have a big room, or fancy projector, or even a classroom. I'm one of very few people there who speaks English as their first language.  I meet with the kids in an upstairs bedroom of a duplex, while the adults study downstairs.   It is beautiful.  Please pray for these gatherings if you think about it.

Sundays...
Sundays look different depending on the week.  Some weeks I gather with a group of ladies from the Gathering Network to learn about leadership, other weeks I go visit partner churches to talk about the work going on at Mission Adelante, and occasionally I just need to take a break. 

David and Holly shared a few weeks ago how the Lord has grown them and used them in their work with the Bhutanese. 

newsletter

Hey friends, I am getting ready to send out my end of the year newsletter.  It will feature some great stories not seen on my blog, and some wonderful pictures.  Let me know if you want one to come to your mailbox! 

partnership

Kids' Club couldn't happen without our partners.  We have 4 main types of partners that make such a huge difference in the lives of these kids: 

Mentors: Mentors give of their time every Tuesday night to come serve the kids of Kids' Club.  They lead the kids, play with them and love on them.  Their words and character show the love of Christ to the little ones they have befriended.  Many mentors are involved outside of Tuesday nights, you can often find them in the neighborhood play soccer, drinking chai or helping with homework.  We are so thankful for our mentors, Kids' Club wouldn't be the same without them!  If you are interested in serving as a mentor please check out http://www.missionadelante.org/volunteer.

Prayer Partners:  We have prayer partners scattered literally all over the world.  These people are in ongoing prayer for the ministry going on and the lives of our little friends.  We are so thankful for our prayer partners and the support that they provide us.  Can you remember us in your prayers?

Church Partners:  We have several church partners in the Kansas City area.  They have invested in Mission Adelante in a significant way.  Some churches have sent staff members, some support the ministry financially, many send volunteers to help on a regular basis.  They are on board with the mission and vision of Mission Adelante and encourage their body to join in it.  Recently Christ Community Church and Heartland Community Church hosted coat drives and our students benefited from them.  Check out some pictures below of our kids decked out in their new coats!  We send a big thank you to Christ Community and Heartland!

Financial Partners: Staff members at Mission Adelante are funded through individuals and churches who support them in the same manner that they support overseas missionaries.  Mission Adelante as a whole also has individuals and churches who support the General Fund which pays for the different program related expenses for both the Bhutanese and Latino ministres and operations exepenses including operations staff.  The general fund also pays the salary of the Executive director of Mission Adelante.  When you set out to raise funds, especially to support you full time it can be a daunting task.  I am so thankful for the people the Lord has sent to support this ministry so far, and the people he is going to send over the next weeks and months.  The end of the year is a big time for us in terms of raising support for the ministry.  Will you join me in praying for the Lord's abundant provision in this?

A few pictures of last week's Kid's Club 

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community

I've been learning a lot about community lately, more specifically what it means to live in community.  When you live in community you don't get to do things in isolation, and it is a beautiful thing.  When  you live in Biblical community you have a responsibility towards the other members of the community, and they have the same one towards you.  You have to require growth from the members, and sometimes it is tough.  You have to listen and allow others to speak truth in to your life out of love.  You understand that your common goal is Christ-likeness.

I am so thankful for friends in my community that have become my family.  They hold me accountable.  The challenge me to grow.  They make me open up, even if it is painful and sometimes it involves tears.They invite me in to their homes, and come and visit mine. They feed me, and let me love on their kids.

Yesterday, I was in Hobby Lobby and was listening to a middle-aged woman talk for about 5 minutes about her dog.  Now, there is nothing wrong about loving your dog.  (Trust me, I have grown up with dogs, have one now, and yes sometimes I treat them like they are human)  But, it got me thinking and my attitude shifted from fear (of not wanting to be the woman with the dog), to thankfulness.  I am so thankful, because I have the chance to invest in and love on other peoples kids like they are my own and will be able to share stories about them, not just my dog. 

I know this is kind of rambling, and many not make 100% sense, but I am just overwhelming thankful for the community the Lord has put me in. 

Halloween

Most of my friends that I do life with and serve with here in KCK live within a few blocks of me.  It is so much fun to be able to walk to their houses.  For Halloween we all went over to the Stetler's house on 17th street.  The only way to describe Halloween on 17th street is CRAZY.  Their block goes all out, from haunted houses to people giving out thousands of pieces of candy.  Over the course of the night we saw at least 2000 trick-or-treaters. I know, crazy. I am so thankful for the Stetlers and their leadership of our community, friendship and willingness to constantly open their door to us.  I can't forget to mention that Halloween doubled as their son Isaac's 1st birthday party.  Happy Birthday Buddy!

The Quality of a Leader

I mentioned in a previous post that we were blessed to spend a week at the Christian Community Development Association Conference, we had the chance to go and learn from people who have walked the paths we are walking.  It was encouraging to hear the testimonies of how God is moving in cities around the world. 

CCDA was started by a man named John Perkins, who along with his wife moved to Mississippi over 35 years ago to live out the gospel among the people there.  They founded CCDA which has grown from just 200 people to over 2000 people.  They are wonderful testimonies to people walking the walk, not just talking. 

Every morning we had the chance to participate in a Bible study with John Perkins. One morning he focused a lot on leadership and I wanted to share this quote with you:

  "We need to measure the quality of a leader by the amount of growth the people he is leading are experiencing."

That quote has really stayed with me since we left CCDA, and has really reoriented my thoughts on leading others.  I think oftentimes we look at the quality of a leader by what he gets done, or the amount of people who show up.  We don't always look at the potential fruit, or the growth that the leader is encouraging in us the followers.  I just wanted to share that with you and give you a chance to evaluate how you look at the leaders you follow and the people you lead. 

Kisses from Katie...

I have so much on my heart and there are so many exciting things going on in the community now, and I can't wait to share them with you as they unfold over the next couple of weeks.  This past week we went to the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA) conference in Indianapolis.  It was a really great chance to get away with the staff of Mission Adelante, spend time together and learn about the Kingdom Work that is happening all over the country and around the world.  We flew to Indianapolis and I got the chance to read, which is something I rarely have time for. 

I read the book Kisses from Katie on the way to the conference and just had to share about it.  I had heard of Katie and her ministry in Africa before, and was really excited to read the book.  What got me even more excited was in the description on the back cover Katie talked about essentially living between two worlds and the struggles that go with that.  Being caught between the way you envisioned your life to be, and the plan God has for you.

The book did not let me down.  Katie was honest in describing the struggles that she faced.  Figuring out what was her new normal, and accepting the fact that the Lord's plan for her life was dramatically different than anyone, including her could have imagined.  Her story resonated with me in a very strong way.  The life I live now isn't one I could have ever imagined for myself, and even though I live in Kansas City, Kansas and not Africa I have some of the same feelings and struggles.  Feeling the same emotions of being caught between two worlds, and looking back at an old life that seems both foreign and comfortable all at the same time.  Yet, being able to rest in an unrelenting peace that the Lord has directed your steps in a way you wouldn't be able to imagine.   

So basically, I highly recommend this book and had to share with you my favorite quote from it. 

 It was Katie's response as to why she cared so much and why the Lord cares so much for us: 

"Because the Lord who created you loves you, because he created you for a purpose and He wants you to fulfill that purpose.  Because the God who knows every hair on your head desires to lift you out of the dust and in to His glory."

Katie's ministry: http://www.amazima.org/

The Lord doesn't waste anything...

A theme that our Missional Family has picked up lately is that the Lord doesn't waste anything.  He doesn't waste the wait, He doesn't waste the meantime.  He doesn't waste the easy and he doesn't waste the hard.  These past few days the Lord has made His lack of wasting so abundantly clear to me.  

This past Wednesday I had the chance to address the teachers and staff at one of the local elementary school.  This school has 7 or so of our kids, who make up about 15% of our Tuesday night program.  I got the chance to share with them a little bit about what it means to be a refugee, the process that these families go through, and a little bit about Nepali culture.  It was wonderful to get to share with the teachers who spend everyday with the kids, and help the teachers understand the kids better.  It was weird being the one presenting at a Wednesday in-service, when I spent a year on the teacher side. 

If you knew me during the year I taught in KCK you probably knew that I strongly disliked my job most days.  The kids were for the most part difficult, I didn't feel supported by my principal, and I was new back to Kansas City with few friends or connections outside of work.  I had no idea why the Lord had me doing what I was doing, most weeks I wanted to quit.  Now I know why I didn't.  Teaching in the district has given me the knowledge of what it is like to be there, as a teacher or student.  I know what our kids need to be successful, and how to build a bridge between teachers and my Nepali friends.  I could have never imagined when I was teaching how the Lord would use a time that was so difficult for me.  

This week the Lord didn't waste my illness(an upper respiratory infection).  He used it to give me a chance to tell a Nurse Practitioner what I did for a living, and how God works in my life and community.  The Lord then used that NP to teach me a lesson in humbly accepting help from others (in this case a free visit to the doctor), which has been a big struggle for me. But in this case all I could do was say thank you.  There was no way for me to argue about it, no way for me to say no, and nothing that this person expected in return.  The most I could give was a thank you.  The Lord used a cough to teach me to let Him bless me through others.  

I went to a private Christian College, the type of school notorious for marrying couples off shortly after graduation.  Obviously, I'm not a girl that fell into that category.  I would be lying if I said I never cared, sometimes it was tough to watch most of my close girlfriends walk that path, and wonder what the Lord's plan was for me.  Over and over I have seen God's answer to that question.  His plan was for me to be here, doing what I am doing and loving my Nepali friends.  He has given me the chance to serve them in a way that would only be possible as a single person.  He isn't wasting my wait on that one, he is using the wait and allowing me to see Kingdom life in action, in a beautiful way.  I feel so blessed that God filled me in on what He created me to do at such a young age.  

Look at your life, look at the good and bad, the easy and hard.  How is God using them?  

Remember that the Lord doesn't waste anything.