Thursday, October 27, 2011

Youth Weekend Residential


The leaders (except for Clare)
This past weekend, I went on a residential (retreat) to Crawfordsburn Scout Centre with WhY (Whitehouse Youth).  As I have taken part in many lock-ins and youth weekends in the past, I knew the weekend would be filled with a lot of fun games and activities, loads of laughter, junk food galore and very little sleep.  Let me just say that my expectations were not let down!

We took thirteen kids and five leaders, including myself, on the residential.  This was a great opportunity for me to get to know the youth and my fellow leaders better.  We arrived at the scout centre around 19:00 and got the kids settled into their rooms.  We stayed in a chalet that had dorm style rooms with common toilet and shower areas.  After getting settled and unpacked a bit, we played some icebreaker games and then ventured out in the dark on a night hike.  The scout centre is very near Helen's Bay, which has a nice walkway along the beach, so we set out in that direction.  We ended up taking a very long route to get to the beach, but we eventually got there and enjoyed some time running around on the beach in the moonlight.  After returning to the chalet, around 23:00, we fixed a supper of pancakes and soda farls.  We were all very hungry after our very long walk!
By the time we finished our supper, we (and when I say we, I mean the leaders) were ready to get some shut eye.  The youth had other ideas in mind.  The leaders stayed up until about 1:30 a.m. with them and decided to call it a night.  Once the leaders went away to our rooms, all of the kids stayed in the common area and played truth or dare until about 6:00 in the morning!  We were up for breakfast at 8:00 that morning, so the kids got very little sleep.

For the majority of the time on Saturday, we participated in activities ran by the scout centre.  We did an assault course, grass sledding, a climbing wall, and crate climbing.  We had loads of fun, but were quite exhausted by the end.  That being said, we came back to the chalet, put on Avatar and took naps until dinner time.  After dinner, we played minute-to-win it games that Jonny (another WhY leader) and I planned and watched a DVD until everyone fell asleep.


3 Photos of the Assault Course

Grass Sledding

Climbing Wall

Jonny and I ready to climb

Crate Climbing

 
We had a great worship time on Sunday morning with our small group.  Jonny planned a great devotional time for us all to take part in.  We talked about how we are all ordinary individuals, but if we let God work in our lives we have extraordinary potential (using an acorn and oak tree as an example).  We also talked about being comfortable in our own skin - not conforming to our circles of friends and being the people that God created us to be.  The youth were very engaged in our devotional time, which was very nice to see.  A lot of times they get very distracted and disengaged when we do our bible talks.  I think being away in a different place helped them to connect better. 

It is always nice to get away on weekends for retreats with individuals of the church.  I love getting to goof around and participate in games and activities that I normally do not have the chance to do.  Although the weekend was physically tiring, it was rejuvenating spiritually and emotionally.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Sing Along

Every Thursday, I go to Friends and Neighbours at Whitehouse.  This is a time where members of the community, both Catholics and protestants, come together to share tea and coffee, participate in an afternoon activity and share a meal.  A lot of people come for the lunch at the end of the Friends and Neighbors, but there is a group of about 15 ladies that come every week to the tea and coffee and afternoon activity.  Over the past six weeks I have gotten to know the ladies quite well, and I enjoy getting to see them each week.  The simple gathering of cross community women speaks volumes for how God is working through the luncheon ministry and for His presence in this place.  Take today’s meeting for example:
Fourteen ladies, me included, were sitting in a semi-circle turned towards a keyboard.  Sitting at the keyboard was an exceptional woman named Minty.  Minty has recently suffered a stroke and has been working over the past 10 months to relearn how to do simple life tasks – writing, walking, reading, etc.  Minty is also a very talented musician, and she has been patiently leaning on Christ through relearning and remembering how to play the piano. 
Everyone was gathered around Minty, ready for her to play some fun and familiar songs on the keyboard.  She started out playing a few songs that the women simply sat and listened to; her music was absolutely beautiful.  Then she started to play some songs that the group knew the words to, and everyone started to sing along.  As Minty ran out of songs to play, the group started requesting old songs that the majority of the group knew.  Minty was able to play most of the songs requested, and she was doing so by memory.  I did not know a lot of the songs that were being played, but I was so happy to be sitting in that room listening and witnessing the presence of God.  Multiple times during the sing along I had chills and could not help but to sit there and smile.
Looking back on today’s meeting, I am overwhelmed with the power of coming together as one community.  The ladies who came together today were not concerned with what church each other went to or what neighborhood they lived in when growing up, they were concerned with fellowshipping together as believers in Christ and experiencing the wonderful healing powers of God through Minty. 

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Visit to Holy Cross Monastery

Riding the Mini-Bus to Rostrevor
On Monday our YAV group travelled south of Belfast through the rain and wind to a town called Rostrevor.  We visited the Holy Cross Monastery in Rostrevor, where we joined the Benedictine Monks for their Eucharist and their afternoon prayers.  In between the prayer services we had the opportunity to visit with Brother Thierry about his background of becoming a monk, his lifestyle as a monk, his beliefs on reconciliation and ecumenical worship, and his thoughts on Christianity.  His words were truly inspirational and sent me away thinking about a lot of things.

Holy Cross Monastery
The lives of the monks are centered on three things:  community, prayer and work.  These are three aspects of life that we all should focus on as Christians and as human beings.  Living in community is about living in harmony with the people around you and acknowledging that we cannot live on our own.  Brother Thierry stressed that we should treat everyone whom we come in contact with as Christ and realize that everyone has something to offer to a relationship.  We cannot try to be self sufficient, only then will we stop growing and learning from others.  This concept of self sufficiency being the end of growth can also be applied to the church.  Brother Thierry said, “Self sufficiency is the death of the church.”  I agree with his statement.  If the church insists on using only the resources and individuals it has here and now and is not open to having conversations with those who are different, it will cease to grow spiritually and physically.  We must reach out to the people and resources around us in order to live as one body in Christ.
Sanctuary
Prayer and work are the other pillars of the monks’ lives in the monastery.  They spend their days working to sustain their living quarters and are diligent about breaking for prayer at set times throughout the day.  Prayer is vital to their daily lives, as it allows them to bring themselves back to God and to confront who they are and with what they are struggling each day.  As people of faith, we must be able to be comfortable in ourselves as God has made us and be able to dwell within ourselves – prayer helps us to do so.
Brother Thierry also addressed some questions of ours about conflicts between different faiths.  Conflict and differences of faith will always be present in our world.  The major conflict between churches isn’t theology, it is about learning to love one another and be able to accept each others’ differences.  When we are able to love and respect one another, then we may open up in dialogue about differences in theology.
Brother Thierry answered many other questions of ours and was very passionate about what he was sharing.  The issues I wrote about today really resonated within me, and I wanted to share a bit about my reflections on the visit.  It was wonderful to be able to escape from the busyness of work and the city of Belfast to worship and join in conversation with the monks at Holy Cross Monastery.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

I am one of those people...

It has been almost two weeks since my last post - sorry for the lapse in time.  Things are continuing to go really well here.  Karl and I are enjoying the work at our placements and are starting to feel pretty settled in our new congregations.  We are so thankful for the support that we are receiving from friends and family all over the world! 

This post is not so much about things I have been doing over the past weeks, but is more of a reflection of who I am and how I am living in this world:

I Am One of Those People
I am one of those people who grew up in Wyoming.  I love the wide open spaces and blue skies that the state has to offer.  There is nothing more enjoyable than being in the mountains of Wyoming:  smelling the fresh air, hearing the breeze blow by and the birds chirping, looking at the magnificent views created by our Father.  I love Wyoming because of the genuinely nice people it contains.  The state is so small and the residents look out for each other as fellow ‘Wyomingites.’ 
I am one of those people who loves running.  The feeling of moving swiftly through the landscape, seeing the surroundings pass by and hearing the activity around you is irreplaceable.  Running allows for the perfect pace of exploring the outdoors (or even cities and towns) – moving slow enough to notice the things around you, but fast enough to want to return later to notice more.  I love running by myself because it is just me, the outdoors and God.  My best reflection and prayer happens when I am running.  Something about being by myself in that motion allows me to think clearly and openly with God. 
I am one of those people who is from the United States of America.  I enjoy the freedoms that America has to offer:  freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of petition, freedom of religion and freedom of press.  Freedom of religion is the best freedom that Americans have.  To be able live a life based upon whichever belief system you choose, without the fear of being beaten, arrested or even killed is astonishing. 
I am one of those people who is at times ashamed to be an American.  America is one of the most wasteful and overindulging countries in the world.  The amount of things that people possess in excess in America is disgusting.  Not everyone in America chooses to live this type of lifestyle, but enough do to give the country that stereotype.  I try to be one of those people who lives a lifestyle to counter the actions of those who overindulge.  I consciously make efforts to live more simply:  take shorter and/or less frequent showers, wear my clothes multiple times between washing, recycle and reuse, put on extra layers of clothing instead of turning up the heat, take public transportation and walk to get places. 
I am one of those people who enjoys being in the kitchen.  There is something about preparing food and sitting down with others to partake which brings people together.  Some of the best conversations and moments happen whilst preparing or eating a meal.  Growing up, my family made dinner and ate together almost every night of the week.  This was the time when we could check in with each other and reminisce about good times and bad.  Christ shared many meals with the people closest to him, and I find value in doing so also.
I am one of those people who is married and is so thankful to have someone to share lifelong love.  In my husband, I have found a best friend to share life experiences, a person whom I can be completely open to, someone to laugh and cry with and a companion to be by my side through hard times. 
I am one of those people living in a new culture.  I have ventured away from the home in which I feel comfortable in order to follow a call to experience God and my faith in a new context.  Living in a new culture has shown me how God is at work in areas unfamiliar to me.  He is present everywhere, and I am encountering his existence in new ways.  Daily I experience people who speak differently than me, sites that are unfamiliar and political issues which differ from those at home.  I am learning about the importance of reconciliation between groups and sides of people who have lived in tension for so long and also learning how this applies to my life and the world as a whole.  God has called us to live as one, breaking down barriers and making peace.   
So, I strive to be one of those people who does not conform, but stands up for their beliefs; one of those people who is filled with the Holy Spirit and lets it work through them; one of those people who challenges the barriers set up between those with conflicting ideals and beliefs; one of those people who enables change; one of those people who follow Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 2:14-18  "For He himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. "
Karl and I at the top of Cavehill

Patrick and I dishing up some grub....we had dinner with all of the YAV's at our place

A dragon from a dance we saw during Belfast Culture Night