It is now just under two weeks until I leave for TREK. I am so, so excited as it draws near. I've been reviewing my internship syllabus for the year, getting to know the people I will be serving alongside for the next ten months (facebook can be a wonderful tool!), and just generally trying not to go crazy waiting.
I have recently been reading a book by Eric and Leslie Ludy entitled Wrestling Prayer. I read the book about a year and a half ago, and as I've been preparing for TREK I've been re-reading it. The beginning chapters have thus far been about dying to self, rejecting the flesh, and battling in prayer - persistently, praying without ceasing. Prayer is one of the spiritual disciplines I wish to deepen in my life over the course of TREK. When I was on SOAR, one of our sessions was on fighting the giants in our lives. These two topics have become intrinsically connected in my spiritual life - in prayer we not only worship and draw closer to God, we also fight back against that which seeks to destroy us and stand firm the ground God has given us. I have been challenged to pray more, and to pray harder - to grapple and wrestle in prayer as Jacob did with the angel - refusing to let go until the angel blessed him. Along with this has been the challenge to faith - that God will do what he says he will.
I want to invite you to support me financially and in prayer over these next months. As a part of my TREK experience, I am required to fundraise the cost of my program. The total cost is $11,850 and so far God has provided me with $1421.42. This means I still have $10,428.58 to raise, or $1042.86 a month. This amount needs to be fundraised before I can leave for assignment, but it is my goal to be fully funded before the program begins, enabling me to focus more fully and without distraction on my training. Please prayerfully consider whether you would partner with me in this season of ministry, and what God is doing around the world. $10,428.58 may seem like an insurmountable amount of money, so let’s put it into perspective: if 105 people donated a onetime gift of $100, I would be done. If 50 people pledged $20 a month, or 100 people pledged $10 per month, I would be done. Every gift that God sends is important and so, so appreciated. Whether is $20 or $2000, God uses each and every gift. If you feel led to support me, any amount is meaningful and important. We serve a big God, and nothing is impossible with him!
Prayer Requests:
- Please pray for the development of a strong prayer team. This is such a crucial part of ministry! If you wish to be a part of this team please let me know, I would be thrilled!*
- Please pray for God to provide full financial support for me by the beginning of training.**
- Once again, for God’s continued blessing on MB Mission, and thanks for the work he is already doing through that organization and all their long and short term missionaries.
*If you would like to be a part of my prayer team, please contact me via phone at 604-226-4083 or email at brittany.reddicopp@gmail.com, and I will send you information and a commitment form, as well as regular updates and prayer requests.
**If you would like to support me financially, you can donate online at https://secure.mbmission.org/donate/cdn/C7739 for Canadian donations or at https://secure.mbmission.org/donate/us/C7739 for US donations (select Brittany Reddicopp under "participants", or in person to me or directly to the MB Mission offices. Please contact me via phone at 604-226-4083 or email at brittany.reddicopp@gmail.com if I can help you with any more information.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Monday, August 13, 2012
SOAR Vancouver
Yesterday I arrived home after spending ten days on a short term mission’s trip called SOAR Vancouver with MB Mission. Thank you so much to everyone who was praying for me during this time, it was an incredible opportunity. I was the assistant team leader on a team of 9, and we worked alongside Vancouver Chinese MB Church. I arrived on Thursday with a few other staff and volunteers to set up at Richmond Bethel MB Church, where we were staying, and Friday evening the participants arrived. Saturday – Monday were spent in a focused training time, with great worship and amazing sessions from speakers like Luke Haidle, Sam Dick, John Best, and Randy Friesen. These are all speakers I had when I was on TREK, and who I look forward to hearing from again in the fall. I was very blessed to be able to learn from them. Tuesday – Friday was spent on assignment, where we partnered with Vancouver Chinese MB Church in their day camps, and heard from different Vancouver church planters in the evening. We had about twenty kids each day, ranging in age from 5 – 12. We spent time sharing why we loved Jesus with them, leading worship and games, and helping with crafts and other activities. It was a great experience to serve in such a missional way in our own city. Saturday was a day of debriefing, and Sunday we attended church at our host site.
It was a powerful experience for me to be on a mission’s trip so close to home. It was definitely a lot different than any of the mission’s trips I have been on before, and I was really blessed by seeing God move. One day at our day camp, we were having a water fight, but I had to sit out because I had cut my knee quite badly the day before. There was one other young boy who had to sit out as well, and so we went and hung out at the playground. God really opened a door, and he ended up sharing with me a lot of really difficult things he was going through with his family, mainly surrounding his Dad’s death earlier this year. It was hard to hear, but it was really a chance to connect with him and show Christ’s love to him on a deeper level. This in and of itself was a great opportunity from God, but it became even more powerful when, after sharing about it with my team, my team leader later shared with us how she, after the first day of assignment, had felt God place it strongly on her heart to pray for this boy. So without knowing anything about his situation, she began praying for him daily.
So often we can only see a small piece of what God is doing. We only see the things that are right in front of us – and it takes faith to trust that God is working behind the scenes to do things we aren’t aware of. It was so encouraging to me to be able to see a bit of the bigger picture. At the time, all I knew was that God was opening a door for me to talk with this boy, but really, he had been preparing for it through a teammate of mine long before we even began our conversation. I was reminded that God is always at work, and he is doing so much that I can’t see. In 1 Corinthians 3, Paul talks about how one believer plants the seed, another waters it and it is God who makes all things grow. I definitely saw that this week, as God worked through both my teammate and I to really reach out to this boy.
On a different note, it is now less than a month until I begin TREK, and I am getting more and more excited. Being at SOAR really put me back in the “mission’s” frame of mind, and gave me a taste of what is to come. I am so excited to spend two months in training, learning from such gifted, godly leaders. Two weeks into training I will find out my assignment location, where I will spend 7.5 months. This will be by far the longest mission’s trip I have done, a thought which brings both excitement and nervousness! Over the course of SOAR, I spent some time thinking and praying about this upcoming season, and what God would want me to accomplish. I have three different goals for this season: one practical goal, one personal goal, and one ministry goal.
Practical Goal: My practical goal is that I want to gain a greater understanding of how to do ministry, and to become better prepared for long-term missions.
Personal Goal: My personal goal is that I want to gain a deeper level of solidarity in my faith and in my calling. A few months ago, I met a couple preparing to begin their ten year church planting term with MB Mission, and there was something about them that just stood out to me. I didn’t know what it was and I couldn’t pinpoint it but I knew I needed it. During SOAR I met another man also preparing to begin his ten year church planting term with MB Mission and I got to same sense. After praying about it, I can only describe it as solidarity: a deep sense of maturity and confidence in faith and in calling. That is something I want to develop on a deeper level in my life.
Ministry Goal: This is still something I need to spend more time praying about and will shape more as I find out what my ministry assignment will be, but I do know that I want to bless and encourage whatever missionaries I work with, and the local church in whatever country I am placed in. I pray that God will give me opportunities directly from him, and that I will truly be able to be a part of building his kingdom.
As a part of my TREK experience, I am required to fundraise the cost of my program. The total cost is $11,850 and so far God has provided me with $421.42. This means I still have $11,428.58 to raise. This amount needs to be fundraised before I can leave for assignment, but it is my goal to be fully funded before the program begins, enabling me to focus more fully and without distraction on my training. Please prayerfully consider whether you would partner with me in this season of ministry, and what God is doing around the world. $11,428.58 may seem like an insurmountable amount of money, so let’s put it into perspective: if 115 people donated a onetime gift of $100, I would be done. If 50 people pledged $24 a month, or 100 people pledged $12 per month, I would be done. God is a big God, and nothing is impossible with him!
Well this has been a very long blog post, so congratulations if you are still reading! Here are a few prayer items to finish off:
- Thank you for praying for my schooling! I am now done all my course work for the summer, and look forward to this next month of no academic work, before starting in the fall. I feel that I finished well, and am grateful for all your prayer and for the endurance God gave me.
- Please pray for the development of a strong prayer team. This is such a crucial part of ministry! If you wish to be a part of this team please let me know, I would be thrilled!*
- Please pray for God to provide full financial support for me by the beginning of training.
- Once again, for God’s continued blessing on MB Mission, and thanks for the work he is already doing through that organization and all their long and short term missionaries. I have been so blessed by this organization, and I am so thankful for the great work they are doing.
*If you would like to be a part of my prayer team, please contact me via phone at 604-226-4083 or email at brittany.reddicopp@gmail.com, and I will send you information and a commitment form, as well as regular updates and prayer requests.
*If you would like to support me financially, you can donate online at https://secure.mbmission.org/donate/cdn/C7739 for Canadian donations or at https://secure.mbmission.org/donate/us/C7739 for US donations (select Brittany Reddicopp under "participants", or in person to me or directly to the MB Mission offices. Please contact me via phone at 604-226-4083 or email at brittany.reddicopp@gmail.com if I can help you with any more information.
It was a powerful experience for me to be on a mission’s trip so close to home. It was definitely a lot different than any of the mission’s trips I have been on before, and I was really blessed by seeing God move. One day at our day camp, we were having a water fight, but I had to sit out because I had cut my knee quite badly the day before. There was one other young boy who had to sit out as well, and so we went and hung out at the playground. God really opened a door, and he ended up sharing with me a lot of really difficult things he was going through with his family, mainly surrounding his Dad’s death earlier this year. It was hard to hear, but it was really a chance to connect with him and show Christ’s love to him on a deeper level. This in and of itself was a great opportunity from God, but it became even more powerful when, after sharing about it with my team, my team leader later shared with us how she, after the first day of assignment, had felt God place it strongly on her heart to pray for this boy. So without knowing anything about his situation, she began praying for him daily.
So often we can only see a small piece of what God is doing. We only see the things that are right in front of us – and it takes faith to trust that God is working behind the scenes to do things we aren’t aware of. It was so encouraging to me to be able to see a bit of the bigger picture. At the time, all I knew was that God was opening a door for me to talk with this boy, but really, he had been preparing for it through a teammate of mine long before we even began our conversation. I was reminded that God is always at work, and he is doing so much that I can’t see. In 1 Corinthians 3, Paul talks about how one believer plants the seed, another waters it and it is God who makes all things grow. I definitely saw that this week, as God worked through both my teammate and I to really reach out to this boy.
On a different note, it is now less than a month until I begin TREK, and I am getting more and more excited. Being at SOAR really put me back in the “mission’s” frame of mind, and gave me a taste of what is to come. I am so excited to spend two months in training, learning from such gifted, godly leaders. Two weeks into training I will find out my assignment location, where I will spend 7.5 months. This will be by far the longest mission’s trip I have done, a thought which brings both excitement and nervousness! Over the course of SOAR, I spent some time thinking and praying about this upcoming season, and what God would want me to accomplish. I have three different goals for this season: one practical goal, one personal goal, and one ministry goal.
Practical Goal: My practical goal is that I want to gain a greater understanding of how to do ministry, and to become better prepared for long-term missions.
Personal Goal: My personal goal is that I want to gain a deeper level of solidarity in my faith and in my calling. A few months ago, I met a couple preparing to begin their ten year church planting term with MB Mission, and there was something about them that just stood out to me. I didn’t know what it was and I couldn’t pinpoint it but I knew I needed it. During SOAR I met another man also preparing to begin his ten year church planting term with MB Mission and I got to same sense. After praying about it, I can only describe it as solidarity: a deep sense of maturity and confidence in faith and in calling. That is something I want to develop on a deeper level in my life.
Ministry Goal: This is still something I need to spend more time praying about and will shape more as I find out what my ministry assignment will be, but I do know that I want to bless and encourage whatever missionaries I work with, and the local church in whatever country I am placed in. I pray that God will give me opportunities directly from him, and that I will truly be able to be a part of building his kingdom.
As a part of my TREK experience, I am required to fundraise the cost of my program. The total cost is $11,850 and so far God has provided me with $421.42. This means I still have $11,428.58 to raise. This amount needs to be fundraised before I can leave for assignment, but it is my goal to be fully funded before the program begins, enabling me to focus more fully and without distraction on my training. Please prayerfully consider whether you would partner with me in this season of ministry, and what God is doing around the world. $11,428.58 may seem like an insurmountable amount of money, so let’s put it into perspective: if 115 people donated a onetime gift of $100, I would be done. If 50 people pledged $24 a month, or 100 people pledged $12 per month, I would be done. God is a big God, and nothing is impossible with him!
Well this has been a very long blog post, so congratulations if you are still reading! Here are a few prayer items to finish off:
- Thank you for praying for my schooling! I am now done all my course work for the summer, and look forward to this next month of no academic work, before starting in the fall. I feel that I finished well, and am grateful for all your prayer and for the endurance God gave me.
- Please pray for the development of a strong prayer team. This is such a crucial part of ministry! If you wish to be a part of this team please let me know, I would be thrilled!*
- Please pray for God to provide full financial support for me by the beginning of training.
- Once again, for God’s continued blessing on MB Mission, and thanks for the work he is already doing through that organization and all their long and short term missionaries. I have been so blessed by this organization, and I am so thankful for the great work they are doing.
*If you would like to be a part of my prayer team, please contact me via phone at 604-226-4083 or email at brittany.reddicopp@gmail.com, and I will send you information and a commitment form, as well as regular updates and prayer requests.
*If you would like to support me financially, you can donate online at https://secure.mbmission.org/donate/cdn/C7739 for Canadian donations or at https://secure.mbmission.org/donate/us/C7739 for US donations (select Brittany Reddicopp under "participants", or in person to me or directly to the MB Mission offices. Please contact me via phone at 604-226-4083 or email at brittany.reddicopp@gmail.com if I can help you with any more information.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)