Category Archives: #lifeinasia

A Summer of Learning

11232027_1609281972653475_1813605448349787972_oThank you all for your prayers over these last few months since our new students have arrived! We have had an incredible few months of orientation and our most intensive training of the year which we call Foundations. During this time, we offered 99 different classes and activities to our students, teaching them things from industrial sewing (they went over to STREAM to learn that!), leadership, the 5 love languages, teaching strategies, classroom management, geography, hikes up volcanos and waterfalls…..the list goes on and on. The theme of our Foundations this year was “Reap what you Sow”, and as an illustration of that each student planted a seed at the beginning of the term and were tasked with caring for and growing their plant. It was an incredible summer and our TransformNation students truly attacked it with courage, initiative, and a desire to learn and grow.

2015-08-30 08.34.14The amazing ways God is moving and working here are so many that sometimes I forget to stop and realize just how incredible it is. About 6 months ago I took on the position of leading our TransformNation program. It’s been a huge blessing and joy to get to lead what is now 33 students in their quest and pursuit to be the most incredible, influential teachers this nation has ever seen. I’m so excited to be a part of this movement. God willing, we will be opening our own university next year, allowing for students from all over Indonesia to come and study here. Check out some photos from this summer, and please keep us in your prayers!

Photo Gallery:

Sharing a Cup of Java

My dear friends and supporters,

My students teaching me how to cook
My students teaching me how to cook.

I can’t believe how many months have flown by since the last time I sent you an update. God is so alive, moving, and as His work is moving forward. Each morning I wake up feeling overwhelmingly blessed that today I get to run alongside my Savior, follow Him, serve Him, and serve His people.

Here in Indonesia their favorite coffee is called “3in1”. It’s instant coffee mixed with dry creamer and sugar, packaged in one little packet ready to go. I must admit it’s difficult for me to call that coffee, let alone consent to swallowing it. In my office I keep an Aeropress, a most precise coffee making device which produces a delicious, aromatic, bold, smooth cup of the most delicious black liquid in the world. I’m so thankful for this device.

I love it when visitors stop by my office, but each time this happens I’m faced with this puzzling decision. Do I share my precious Starbucks beans, which I drove 3 hours on my motorbike to retrieve, and press them with my Aeropress making them a delectable cup of coffee they probably won’t even appreciate? Or do I simply stir up some 3in1, hope they don’t notice my coffee making materials, and get past the meeting? A petty question, perhaps, but questions concerning coffee can quickly become wrestles of the heart.

“And if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile.”

2014-12-27 10.03.06We talk so often about giving our best for God, but are we giving the best we have to those around us? “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”

I’ve been so convicted lately. Am I giving my absolute best to everyone around me? Can I give more? Can I give better? What can I give today, that I didn’t give yesterday? Recently I heard a pastor say, “On this earth, the beginning is birth, and at the end is death. In between, there is only service. We can always serve God more.”

I’m challenged today. Serve more. Give more. Love more.

1 Teacher is Worth 400 Souls

Have you ever stopped to think about the people who have been instrumental in shaping you to be who you are today? The way you think, your ability to solve problems, overcome challenges, breathe creativity? I’m not sure I truly appreciated that until I came here. I’m a graphic designer, not a teacher. My first few weeks in the classroom, I felt way out of my league. What could I possibly teach my students? But I quickly realized, I had already experienced years of teachers pouring into me. The teachers in my life had already equipped me with knowledge and skills, and it was time I gave what I had back to my students.

Teachers are some of the most pivotal, instrumental influencers a child has in his or her life.

If one teacher teaches 20 students in his or her class, and that teacher teaches for 20 years, that teacher is worth 400 souls.

I’m convinced that the classroom isn’t just a place for education. No, the classroom is a laboratory for discipleship. I estimate (conservatively) that a child spends 16,800 hours between Kindergarten and 12th grade in the classroom. That’s 16,800 hours a teacher has to influence, disciple, train up, and prepare a child for his or her future.

I love what I do. Why? Because in TransformNation, our teacher development program, we are preparing, discipling, and empowering future teachers to go out into the most remote areas of Indonesia and train up the next generation of leaders. After four years of training, we send our teachers to under-resourced villages to be salt and light. Just last month, we sent the first graduates of our program out. Check out this video of our celebration of how God is transforming this nation through teachers!

Volcanos, Rappelling, and Tribal Villages

  • IMG_1447On February 13, 2014 Mt. Kelud, a volcano located less than 40km away from our city, erupted. Due to favorable winds, our city did not experience any effects. Shortly after the eruption we brought several of our teachers in training into the effected area to deliver food, water, and dust masks. View the photo album here. Please continue to pray for the people of Kelud as they rebuild.

teambuilding

  • One of my highlights of the past months was a day of team building we did with our students. The day started with a series of problem solving group exercises, and ended with rappelling off of a 100ft bridge. I watched as many students learned to face and overcome their fears, grow in leadership, and depend on one another for help. Click here to view the photo album.
  • papuaThis fall we will graduate three students from our teacher training program, and they will go out to villages in Indonesia and become teachers who teach with heart. Over this past month I had the privilege of taking these three teachers in training to a remote village to see what their life is going to look like next year. It was a joy for me to walk alongside them as we grew and learned together. Check out the photo album here, and watch this amazing video of our experience of a new school being opened in the middle of a very remote village.

Live Well

Have you ever had one of those days where you woke up and the whole day seemed to be against you? Your alarm didn’t go off, your coffee maker was broken, and already the day seemed to have more problems running at you than you’re ready to face.

The thing is, life is just a series of problems. How well you live is how well you respond to them.

IMG_0010_smThis past Christmas was the first Christmas most of our students in our teacher training program spent away from home. My eyes popped wide open at 4am. The house was quiet but Christmas lights dimly lit the living room and I curled up on the couch thinking through all that God has done over the last year. Last Christmas there were only 7 students in our program. This year, with 18, I just couldn’t believe the amount of fast growth that has occurred. As I sat there sipping my coffee, I wondered what new students would enter my life in this coming year, capturing my heart.

The girls slowly woke up and I saw them start to peak their sleepy heads outside of their doors. I knew today would be difficult–we all missed our families dearly today. How would they choose to respond? My own family had sent presents from America for each girl, and the squealed with delight as I handed them a little bit of love from America. Many had never opened a present on Christmas morning before.

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As I look back over 2013 I’m so grateful for the many problems and challenges that I faced–from my visa, students in the hospital, support raising, to relationships, each challenge was an opportunity to respond and an opportunity to live well. And while I know I failed many times, I look forward to 2014 knowing there will be many problems and challenges to come–more opportunities.

In just two weeks I will be bringing a few students to the eastern most island of West Papua in order to visit some schools and build some relationships with some people there. This is a pretty expensive trip that I have been trying to take for a long time now. Please pray for my team and I as I lead this trip.

This week our students finish their semester one final exams, and in the coming weeks will begin semester two at their university. Please pray for them as they continue their studies.

2014-01-04 18.30.55Over the next few weeks and months we will be recruiting a group of students to admit into our teacher training program beginning this summer. Please pray for wisdom, guidance, and direction as we choose our future students.

This morning I woke up to a pile of wood cravings near my bathroom door. The termites are back. The hot water heater wouldn’t turn on, so I dragged myself into the cold shower. How well will I choose to live today? I asked myself. The choice is mine. Every problem is an opportunity. How well I live is how well I respond to them.