Tuesday, April 5, 2016

Transition and Direction for Helen



It's been a long time since there's been an update on here, but this update is very exciting and we're pumped to share about this new transition that Helen is making!! 

In August, I (Helen) will be transitioning to be the College Community Resident on staff with McKinney Church. For the past year and a half, I have served part-time as the administrative intern for the college ministry. My work as the intern has included organizing volunteers, planning logistics for events, and a few discipleship opportunities. Throughout this time serving with Encounter, the Lord has put a passion and a call on my heart to work in ministry developing and discipling believers long-term. Specifically, I want to pursue outdoor, experiential education and ministry. I will explain more about that passion and how the Lord has opened my eyes to the power of outdoor ministry below. However, I am very excited to step into this role at McKinney as a resident as it will give me opportunities to further develop in this passion and calling.

My role as the College Community Resident
As the resident next year, I will be in charge of vision and planning over three areas of our college ministry: 
  • Discipleship/community- the heart beat of Encounter's ministry is our leadership team. Currently composed of 30 leaders, these students are responsible for leading community groups on their college campus throughout the week. We meet to train and equip these leaders every Sunday, and I will be responsible for the program and planning behind these meetings. Our goal is to equip, shepherd, empower, and develop these students to be leaders for Christ on their college campuses and for the rest of their lives!
  • Freshman Missions Week- this happens the week before the fall semester kicks off in August. Our entire leadership team will arrive five days before classes start and be split into squads to focus on the 7 freshman dorms on campus. We will spend those days helping freshman move into their dorms, invite them to explore Ft. Worth with us, help them buy their books, etc. Anything to meet these new freshman and help them get plugged into community. My role will be to plan the logistics, training, and the vision behind this week. I will work to set up our leaders for success and they reach out to the 2,000 new freshman on campus. 
  • Campus Outreaches- finally, I will oversee the mobilization and outreach of college students to the college campus. Outreaches include football tailgates, camping trips, sand volleyball games, Sweet Sammies runs (local ice cream favorite)- any event that gets new students involved in community and provides opportunities for Gospel conversations. In this role, I will essentially be a missionary to TCU's campus. I am excited to both mobilize and get to participate in evangelistic events to reach the 90% of students attending TCU who are not believers.
Outdoor, Experiential Ministry
How does this relate to my passion for using the outdoors to teach? Let me tell you!
I am passionate about discipleship and spiritual development. I am gifted in teaching and shepherding and working for the past two years at McKinney has used my gifts and confirmed my passion. Additionally, throughout my college years at TCU I worked part time at the Rec Center leading outdoor trips. I fell in love with the backpacking, paddling, and everything outdoors! Any time I led a trip, I would talk about how I could "feel my blood pressure lowering as I drove out of the city". Those four years of experience taught me that being outside is restful physically, emotionally, and spiritually for people. Outdoors, experiential ministry combines these two passions of mine into one.
Experiential ministry is based on the premise that we learn best through experience. I believe that nature is one of life's best teachers, in it we must immediately face the consequences of our decisions, and we deeply experience each moment. If it's climbing up a rock face all day and then sitting around the fire to talk about trust, or paddling on a river against the wind all day to later debrief about obstacles and perseverance, the outdoors presents multitudes of real life opportunities to learn from.
I want to create programming and opportunities for outdoors adventures that help students of all ages grasp Biblical truths on a heart level. Moving into the position as a resident at McKinney will provide me with even more ministry and discipleship experience as I move towards this goal. I am excited to find ways to include outdoor adventures in outreach events and leadership training weekends as I learn about myself and develop the passion God has given me.

Your Part
I will be serving in a part-time position as a resident, so my goal is to raise $1,900/month in support. As I begin this new role at McKinney, there are several ways that you can partner with me:
  • Prayer. Please pray for provision and favor! I am spending time in April and May support raising before we leave for another 7 weeks leading a summer project to China. When we return in July, I hope to finish support raising and start the new school year in August fully funded!
  • Financial support. I would ask that you prayerfully consider coming on my support team. If God has laid this on your heart please don't hesitate to send me an email or visit our "How to Give" page and I can give you instructions on how to set up giving to me!