Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Another Monday Adventure: Biosphere2


Every Monday, Adam and I try and go on an "adventure" that we've never done before and can only experience while we're out West here. Today, we ventured to Tucson, Arizona to visit the University of Arizona's Biosphere2. This Biosphere2 (Biosphere 1 is our planet Earth) is the largest of its kind in the world. Within the glass structure (created to simulate environmental behavior without human interruption) there are 5 different natural habitats: savanna, coastal fog desert, tropical ocean, rain forest, and agricultural. It was quite an experience traveling from one area with 80% humidity to another with just 15% humidity (yet 95 degrees) within a matter of steps. The history of Biosphere2 is intriguing, especially facts on the September of 1991-September of 1993 experiment in which 8 researchers lived within the sphere without leaving once for a span of two years. Take a look at the pictures! We really had a blast. I'm blessed that I get to share my life with someone who loves adventure so much. Speaking of, this week should be a short week, as we leave Thursday for the Grand Canyon! If you're interested in learning more about Biosphere2, check out the website!

Above: Biosphere2 from an outside view. The structure is completed composed from glass and steel rods to allow the sunlight to stimulate and sustain growth. It's mind-boggling!
Above: Pictures of a few of the different types of atmospheres, including ocean, rain forest and savanna.
Above: Biosphere2 is snuggled within Tuscon's Santa Catalina Mountain Range. What a view!

Saturday, June 27, 2009

One Month Down, One Month to Go!



I can't believe that the month of June is almost over! One month has seemed to go a lot quicker than I imagined when saying goodbye to my family before taking flight back to Arizona. After July, Adam and I will only be out here until August 8th, and then we start trekking back across the country to return home.

Since we're pretty settled in now, let me share with you all who are used to seeing us so frequently our "somewhat weekly schedule" of how time passes so quickly around here!

Mondays: Mondays are beautiful. They are the only days that we get completely off, start to finish. Usually Adam and I will try to venture to some place "new" on a Monday. Whether it be somewhere close like the Phoenix Zoo or a friend's pool or somewhere a bit more adventurous like Sedona, we thoroughly enjoy our Mondays to regroup from the hectic weekends.

Tuesdays-Fridays: The remaining days of the week are "office days." During these days, Adam, I, and the CCV Family Ministries staff will head into the office from roughly 8:30am-5pm each day. Here we connect with volunteers through phone calls, emails, and personal luncheons. Frequently, we'll complete pre and post summer camp work, and attend dozens of meetings to establish plans for upcoming weekends, series, and events. If we're lucky, we get
Tuesdays-Fridays each off their own special occasion.

On Tuesdays, Adam's host family, the Simpsons (yes, the television family, you're all so wise) provide a "family dinner" for any intern that isn't from Arizona. It's always fun to join with 7-9 other people to celebrate life together. These dinners are always fun-and the food is wonderful, too!

Wednesdays are often a day when I tackle "1:1s" (personal meetings with individual staff members) over lunch and/or coffee breaks. I'll admit, these trips are my favorite-after all, how can one be in ministry and not love to socialize.

On Thursdays, all the summer and year long interns at CCV (total there are roughly 15) gather together for "Leadership Institute" class at 8:45am. The classes are always a wonderful way to start off the day, and the topics, whether discussing organization, spiritual development, or theology, are helpful for our leadership skills.

Finally, Fridays always come as a relief, and much to Adam and my enjoyment, it's "date night." Establishing some time for us two to spend together out to dinner, watching a movie, or exploring a new date idea is important as we're constantly busy between church services, outreach events, and individual schedules.

Saturday-Sunday: And finally, the WEEKEND! These are the moments we work for! CCV has services both on Saturday nights (4:30pm + 6:15pm) and Sunday mornings (9:30am + 11:15am), so naturally, you can see where MUCH of our time is spent. It's here though that Adam and my schedule differ, too.

Saturday
mornings are nice and relaxing. I'll immediately change into my bathing suit, usually spend some time "working out" on the Wii Fit (oh, yea!), and enjoy much time lounging around the pool, reading, and spending time with my host family. It's a real Sabbath-at least for a bit. Around 3pm, I'm off to work-to church-getting ready to prepare for the evening services. After serving at both 4:30pm and 6:15pm, I'll often meet Adam and some friends for dinner, (we get free "cafe passes" if we work all four services) where we'll stay until about 9pm at night. (It's a genius idea for building community at church-everyone does it!)

Sundays
are similar, as I'm back at work by 9am, often finishing by 1pm, just in time to head back to my host family's house for a special "Sunday dinner." Together, usually around 1:30pm or so, we feast to a FANTASTIC MEAL and enjoy each other's company for some time. Afterwards, around 3:30pm or so, Adam heads off to High School ministry, where he's committed with service and post-service activities until 10pm or so. Sometimes I choose to join (the after-parties are quite fun), although other times, it's nice to relax a bit after the weekend frenzy.

And then, it starts all over! The weeks are exhausting, but with set days to celebrate "Sabbath," it's easy to keep up our much needed energy. Sometimes it takes getting away from "home" for a bit to appreciate how to discipline your time for your best efforts.

One month down, one month to go! It's shocking. The summer is flying, and it doesn't help; we're enjoying ourselves and learning so much! We know that it's safe to say that we're confident that this is where we needed to be this summer.

Stay posted for a schedule of upcoming trips, including one to the GRAND CANYON this Thursday, July 2nd-4th!

Friday, June 26, 2009

Transformation Groups

Here at CCV Arizona I've quickly gotten involved with a great small-group like ministry called Transformation Groups. Each Friday, two interns, one children's ministry staff and myself meet for lunch to discuss personal accountability, spiritual growth, and development.

Thus far, the group has been an incredible opportunity to discipline my daily morning scripture readings, discuss biblical questions and insights, and share praises and struggles with a few women.

Here a few facts about "T-Groups" that I grabbed off CCV's website. Take a look, it may need to be the next step you need to make in your journey with Christ!


What is a Transformation Group?

If you want to go deeper, then a T-Group is perfect for you. A T-Group is made up of three to four people, all of the same gender, who meet weekly for personal accountability for their spiritual growth and development. The goal is to become like Christ and also help others become spiritual disciples who can in turn reproduce others. Groups that have four participants should start to look at starting two new groups.

* It meets weekly for approximately one hour
* It is not co-ed, but gender specific
* It uses the Bible as the only curriculum
* A leader gives direction to the group
* Leadership may be rotated within the group
* Multiplication is expected
* T-group is not a replacement for participation in a Neighborhood group (small groups, similar to CCV PA's "home teams")

If you're interested in more information about T-Groups, view a downloadable brochure from CCV's website. This brochure shares what is accomplished in T-Groups, what the three main tasks are, and even includes a list of accountability questions! You don't have to be a member at CCV Arizona to pursue spiritual development with a few close friends. If you feel a conviction to get something started, pray about it and see where it leads! It won't be a journey that you'll regret!

Monday, June 15, 2009

First Speaking Weekend!

My voice is soar and I'm exhausted, but boy, has this past weekend been a joy!


For four services (two on Saturday night and two on Sunday morning), I taught the message in the 2nd/3rd grade classroom. (Classroom is an understatement, these rooms are MASSIVE!)

Needless to say, it was a refreshing experience. I was reminded all over again how passionate I am about speaking, and how God's gifted me with energy-especially energy to relate to children.

Before speaking, I pried around the children's department at CCV to get a better understand of the history of women's speakers for large group. History: there is none, at least for the past few years. All of the "pastors" in children's ministry from 2nd-6th grade are men, and as far as the teaching rotation, I was told that there have been no women who have voiced a desire to teach. "Perhaps women feel inadequate of teaching at that level or feel that they're too much of a mom to relate to the students in large group," one woman shared with me. "Nonetheless, besides an intern or two, there hasn't really been any women teaching on stage."


Interesting.

When I stepped into the run-through rehearsal, I was not alone as a "newbie" for speaking. That weekend, two other male speakers, one for 4th/5th grade and one for 6th grade were also speaking for the first times. Although I was a bit comforted by the company, I couldn't ignore the nerves that I felt for speaking at a new place, to a new crowd, with new expectations, regulations, and procedures.


Nerves? Me?


Not for long.

Some favorite feedback, conversations, and memories included:


1. Receiving positive commentary from the children's staff during run-through. I was told that for my first time, I did a great job. Even better, afterward, I was able to collect some tips from some of the male pastors and programming team, which helped me animate my stories even more. After speaking with the staff, I was encouraged and inspired to be goofy with the lesson so to connect with the kids while having killer teaching moments.

2. Receiving a number of positive comments from students, "You were awesome!" or "You're so funny!" or "Are you really from Pennsylvania?" Even some of the little boys wanted to give me high-fives! (I'm always touched when boys can enjoy my teaching, too. That way I'm comforted that I can connect with both genders!)

3. Having a mom approach me to ask, "Are you the young girl who taught for the 2nd/3rd grade services this weekend? My high school boy volunteers in that room and he told me that a 'young girl taught today. She was really good and really funny. She did a great job!'" (Best of all, this boy told his mom that he thought that I was in high school, too! No matter, any time that I can connect with a high school boy during a children's class is a success to me!)


Needless to say, I'm extremely excited to speak again for both the 4th/5th grade services and the 6th grade services. I am so grateful for the staff that is investing in us interns so that we can better share the gospel. There are so many people here that are skilled speakers and teachers; it's so inspiring! I can't wait to spend some more time with these gifted people to continue learning.

Below are two more pictures of the children's building (3yrs-6th grade). I apologize for not posting these earlier! More pictures to come!

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Strengths Finder Test


As part of the CCV internship training class, all interns are required to take the Clifton Strengths Finder Test, a web based assessment measuring an individual's top five "signature themes." The online quiz can only be accessed with the purchase of Albert Winseman, Donald Clifton, and Curt Lifesveld's book Living your Strengths.

The book explains how to discover your God-given talents to inspire your community. In it, it describes the difference between strengths, talents, knowledge, and skill, in which a strength (the ability to provide consistent, near perfect performance in a given activity) is made up of talents, knowledge, and skill.

While knowledge is "what you know through education or training," skills are "the basic ability to move through the fundamental steps of a task." Talents are "naturally reoccurring patterns of thought, feeling, or behavior that can be productively applied." Signature Themes are the five categories in which your talents are the greatest.

The book lists 34 possible "Signature Themes." Of them, your "'top five' are unique to you." In fact, one's strengths are so unique that the book boldly states that "your chances of meeting someone with your same Signature Themes, regardless of order, are less than 1 in 275,000. And, incredible as it may seem, there is only 1 in 33 million chance that you will meet someone whose Signature Themes match yours and are in the same order."

Below, I've included a list of the 34 possible themes.
My "top five" themes follow afterwards with a short description of each.

34 Themes:
Achiever, Activator, Adaptability, Analytical, Arranger, Belief, Command, Communication, Competition, Connectedness, Consistency, Context, Deliberative, Developer, Discipline, Empathy, Focus, Futuristic, Harmony, Ideation, Includer, Individualization, Input, Intellection, Learner, Maximizer, Positivity, Relator, Responsibility, Restorative, Self-Assurance, Significance, Strategic, Woo

My Top Five (in order):

  • Discipline
    Your world needs to be predictable. It needs to be ordered and planned. So you instinctively impose structure on your world. You set up routines. You focus on timelines and deadlines. You break long-term projects into a series of specific short-term plans, and you work through each plan diligently. You are not necessarily neat and clean, but you do need precision. Faced with the inherent messiness of life, you want to feel in control. The routines, the timelines, the structure, all of these help create this feeling of control. Lacking this theme of Discipline, others may sometimes resent your need for order, but there need not be conflict. You must understand that not everyone feels your urge for predictability; they have other ways of getting things done. Likewise, you can help them understand and even appreciate your need for structure. Your dislike of surprises, your impatience with errors, your routines, and your detail orientation don’t need to be misinterpreted as controlling behaviors that box people in. Rather, these behaviors can be understood as your instinctive method for maintaining your progress and your productivity in the face of life’s many distractions.
  • Maximizer
    Excellence, not average, is your measure. Taking something from below average to slightly above average takes a great deal of effort and in your opinion is not very rewarding. Transforming something strong into something superb takes just as much effort but is much more thrilling. Strengths, whether yours or someone else’s, fascinate you. Like a diver after pearls, you search them out, watching for the telltale signs of a strength. A glimpse of untutored excellence, rapid learning, a skill mastered without recourse to steps—all these are clues that a strength may be in play. And having found a strength, you feel compelled to nurture it, refine it, and stretch it toward excellence. You polish the pearl until it shines. This natural sorting of strengths means that others see you as discriminating. You choose to spend time with people who appreciate your particular strengths. Likewise, you are attracted to others who seem to have found and cultivated their own strengths. You tend to avoid those who want to fix you and make you well rounded. You don’t want to spend your life bemoaning what you lack. Rather, you want to capitalize on the gifts with which you are blessed. It’s more fun. It’s more productive. And, counterintuitively, it is more demanding.
  • Futuristic
    Wouldn’t it be great if . . .” You are the kind of person who loves to peer over the horizon. The future fascinates you. As if it were projected on the wall, you see in detail what the future might hold, and this detailed picture keeps pulling you forward, into tomorrow. While the exact content of the picture will depend on your other strengths and interests—a better product, a better team, a better life, or a better world—it will always be inspirational to you. You are a dreamer who sees visions of what could be and who cherishes those visions. When the present proves too frustrating and the people around you too pragmatic, you conjure up your visions of the future and they energize you. They can energize others, too. In fact, very often people look to you to describe your visions of the future. They want a picture that can raise their sights and thereby their spirits. You can paint it for them. Practice. Choose your words carefully. Make the picture as vivid as possible. People will want to latch on to the hope you bring.
  • Developer
    You see the potential in others. Very often, in fact, potential is all you see. In your view no individual is fully formed. On the contrary, each individual is a work in progress, alive with possibilities. And you are drawn toward people for this very reason. When you interact with others, your goal is to help them experience success. You look for ways to challenge them. You devise interesting experiences that can stretch them and help them grow. And all the while you are on the lookout for the signs of growth—a new behavior learned or modified, a slight improvement in a skill, a glimpse of excellence or of “flow” where previously there were only halting steps. For you these small increments—invisible to some—are clear signs of potential being realized. These signs of growth in others are your fuel. They bring you strength and satisfaction. Over time many will seek you out for help and encouragement because on some level they know that your helpfulness is both genuine and fulfilling to you.
  • Achiever
    Your Achiever theme helps explain your drive. Achiever describes a constant need for achievement. You feel as if every day starts at zero. By the end of the day you must achieve something tangible in order to feel good about yourself. And by “every day” you mean every single day—workdays, weekends, vacations. No matter how much you may feel you deserve a day of rest, if the day passes without some form of achievement, no matter how small, you will feel dissatisfied. You have an internal fire burning inside you. It pushes you to do more, to achieve more. After each accomplishment is reached, the fire dwindles for a moment, but very soon it rekindles itself, forcing you toward the next accomplishment. Your relentless need for achievement might not be logical. It might not even be focused. But it will always be with you. As an Achiever you must learn to live with this whisper of discontent. It does have its benefits. It brings you the energy you need to work long hours without burning out. It is the jolt you can always count on to get you started on new tasks, new challenges. It is the power supply that causes you to set the pace and define the levels of productivity for your work group. It is the theme that keeps you moving.

I must admit that I don't necessarily agree with all of them. There are definitely others that I desire and that I believe could potentially fit as a "top 5" strength. Nonetheless, I can certainly learn from the above information, as well as that which is given in the book. It's a great resource for leaders. Browse the website and check it out for yourself!


Saturday, June 6, 2009

UCYC Camp

This past week, after the craze of driving and flying back and forth between Arizona and Pennsylvania for a very important retreat, graduation, and wedding, Adam and I finally returned back to Phoenix at 11pm (2am Eastern-Standard time) Sunday, May 31st.

Needless to say, we were exhausted.

And at 9:15am that Monday morning, I left for UCYC, United Christian Youth Camp, the camp every 4th-6th grader at CCV in Arizona was talking about.
No break for me, not quite yet.

Quickly immersing myself in the 4th-6th grade culture, I enjoyed getting to know both the students and their counselors! We'd wake up early and stay up late to "do hair," share stories, and reveal interesting facts about ourselves. We particpated in everything from rock climbing, zip lining, and field games to hiking, swimming, and "geo cache"ing. The girls were completely thrilled that I was engaged, and asked me every question in the book! (This seems to always be a common theme.) Beyond the "fun" time, however, some of my favorite memories, take-away moments, and reflections came from the Chapel services and small group times. It was incredible how much information the students learned about Jesus in a manner that captured their inquisitive minds.

A small list of my favorite moments at camp included:

1. Watching the 5th and 6th grade boys worship.
5th and 6th grade boys don't worship. They're too cool. They're always the kids standing in the back of the room with a scowl on their face and their arms crosssed. Not this time. I watched these boys worship: genuinely dancing, shouting, lifting their hands up in praise to their God. It was beautiful. (Although I'd never mention that to them!)

2. Watching kids grow, in even just a matter of days.
I remember meeting this one girl (I'll call her Jamie) in the beginning of the week. Jamie was shy, quiet, and kept to herself. She was the type of girl that excused herself from activities and drug along other girls with her. By the end of the week, Jamie had asked me to "do her hair," and today, while at church, she ran up to me, jumped into my arms, and gave me a huge hug. What an accomplishment, I thought.

3. Watching Reggie Rice (my children's ministry supervisor at CCV) teach the kids about Jesus.
Talk about a gift. I never before thought it was possible-or even a good idea-to preach to children about Jesus before I listened to Reggie. I never before saw hundreds of kids take out their Bibles to follow along with the Biblical passages. I never before watched the story of Jesus become more alive, more animated, or more interesting to kids-and me! I am so excited to learn everything I possibly can here.

Two major take-away that I had from camp included:

1. 4th-6th graders ask some great questions about God-if you give them the chance.
I've never before had an opportunity to sit one-on-one with a 10 or 11 year old to ask them questions about God. Wow, do they understand some things. Wow, do they have questions about some things. Wow, are they so willing to listen and learn. One thing I love about this children's ministry is that they have big expectations for the growth of their children. Stories and sugarcoated and questions aren't ignored. A lot is expected from an eleven year old.

2. A sucessful ministry involves leaders who are dedicated to spiritual journies of their volunteers.
I am so impressed by CCV's leadership. Each morning, before our chapel services and activities commenced, CCV pastors would host a counselor meeting where we were encouraged to immerse ourselves into the Word and prayer that day. We read scripture together, and shared stories of praise to encourage one another. We were reminded that if we were not to spend time with God, our "spiritual tanks" would be empty, with nothing to share with the students.

Upon "debriefing" about camp, a few reflections inclulde:

1. God's gifted me with incredible enthusiasm and energy, and I can't ignore that.
At age 22, I have the energy of an 11 year old. I can keep with their pace, laugh at their jokes, and celebrate life with them. I never realized how much natural talent is required in relating to kids. Working with kids requires a true gift, and I think I've got it!

2. It's really easy for me to talk to kids.
"What do you think about God?" may often seem like an akward question to be asked, but with 4th-6th graders, I have no fear in talking to them about their faith! It may seem odd to think that one could engage in a spiritual conversation with a 10 year old, but so often this week did I find times when I chatted one-on-one with students about many topics, including faith. The conversations seemed so natural, not forced, and even more, kids didn't hesitate to share facts with me; stories about parents divorcing, broken friendships, the loss of a sister...
"Are these conversations really happening?" I thought. They haven't stopped yet.


3. I deeply desire to communicate to people about Jesus.
While listening to Reggie turn Bible passages into fantastic stories, I couldn't ignore the passion stirring inside of me, wanting to do the same. Although I may not be confident in my "Bible knowledge," I am sure that I desire to communicate the stories of Jesus and other Bible characters so that people of any age can better understand, relate, and remember the gospel.


After my first weekend experience, I'll finally get the chance to start in the office this week. With camp "under my belt," I'm anxious to get started.I have the feeling that I'm going to be learning a lot here at CCV, and I'm just getting started!