Orientation

September Staff Orientation 2012

Orientation, Passions and 24/7 Prayer

I also had to do staff orientation last month. That involved a lot of listening to the different leaders/elders of YWAM Harpenden explaining the different values of the base. We got a full tour of the base, had lunch with the Leadership Team (LT), had a scavenger hunt around Harpenden (Liesel and I won), and going out to the pub with the base leaders and some national leaders of YWAM.

The week after that, we had ‘At Home Days’ here at the Oval. Every day, there were teachings, ministry times with each other (praying for and encouraging one another), lunches made by people around the base, a time when everyone took something of their own belongings and gave it to someone else (I got a cool black dress and I am cleaning/organizing someone’s flat for them) and we prayed for the nations and for the future renovations plans for the Oval.

This past Monday, Laura Mudd came in to talk to us about our passions and how do we properly communicate that. It was extremely useful as I never know what to tell people when they ask what my passions are but when looking through all of the major events of my life, prophetic words, any spiritual gifts, using StrengthsFinders and the Myers-Briggs test, there was a common theme of being someone who comes alongside others and seeks to restore, relate to, develop and encourage others. And that is something I have been learning a lot about since I’ve gotten here; what kind of person do I want to be and how can my passions be used to develop my own character.

This week also marked the first week where my schedule is how it is supposed to be. Monday and Thursdays, I am in the office prepping for January which usually consists of praying for the trainees, updating any database information, emailing the students and contacting possible local outreach opportunities. In the afternoons, I am also overseeing work duties and then going on local outreach on Thursday. Tuesdays and Fridays, I am in the classroom and involved with small groups and tea breaks. Wednesdays is a kitchen day as I have to have certain amount of hours of work duties for the base every week.

This week was a 24/7 week of prayer here at the base to celebrate everything that happened during the Olympics (people coming to Jesus, healings, having nations come to the base for different events). I was a gatekeeper, which means that every day from 0:00am to 1:00am, I was in the prayer room to cover the shift. People on the base could come and go as they pleased to come pray. There were 24 of us who made sure that there was always someone in the prayer room, ensuring it was 24/7.

The weather is holding up pretty good here (although there are days where it absolutely downpours) and even right now the sun is shining (yesterday there was hail). But the coldness gives me hope for snow this year.

First Month

So, I finally have a few minutes for a quick update about life back in England… and a lot has happened already. When I first arrived in London airport, I was picked up by a member of the DTS Core Leadership Team, Jon Judge. I got to the Oval safe and sound and met my roommate, Liesel, who is from Tennessee and is working in the café. I was given a few days to settle in which ended up meaning staying in bed with sickness. The next week or two was spent working prepping the September DTS and then supporting the school when the trainees started to come. There was a lot of practical work to be done and also lots of praying for the students and writing their welcome cards.

I know I’m an introverted person but I never realised just how introverted I really am. When the students came, the entire week was spent talking to people, listening and hanging out. I would leave my flat at 9am and not come back till 10pm. I was constantly meeting someone new, getting tea break ready, working in the kitchen or just hanging out in the lounge. I thought I was doing pretty well until after the weekend. I felt like I needed a whole other week just to recharge after that super busy week where there had really been no rest (7 day working week!) or no downtime. Most people would probably be tired as well but there was such an emotional tiredness that I felt. I’ve bounced back to normal now.

I’m slowly (but surely) getting used to being here. Sometimes it’s a bit hard to believe. But things have definitely picked up in terms of the September DTS being here and having classes every day. This is part 1 of my update of the past month (and almost a half) of being in England and hopefully I’ll get the rest done this week.