Celje/Maribor English Camp

Honestly, I don't even know where to start with this post. I want to tell you all about camp, but there is so much to tell and I have no idea where to begin! And I would love to talk with you in person about this instead of over a blog. But, since that's impossible at the moment, this will have to do.

Camp Basics: 37 Slovene high schoolers, 3 JV interns (me, Kari, and Nate), 14 Americans from a church in Tennessee (they were awesome!), and some missionary families (including Brooke and Johnny) went to a castle in Millstatt, Austria. For a week we swam at the lake, had English classes, played stupid games, got to know each other, and talked about God.

My English Class: I taught an intermediate level class of all girls: Sasa, Andreja, Lucija, Petra, and Maja (the last two were at camp last year and are both girls I hung out with at youth group in Celje before camp). Abby, a 15 year old, was my helper for the week -she was awesome! And we also had a translator named Andreja who is a 20 year old from the Celje area. We had tons of fun in our classroom in the tower of the castle. I absolutely loved teaching and these girls made it easy for me :)

Connections: Besides connecting with the girls in my class, other campers made their way into my heart as well. I especially got to know a 15 year old named Bella. She stayed in my room with me and we connected right away because she spoke English like a pro! We ended up hanging out a lot during free-time in the afternoons. She was super easy to talk with and she opened up about a lot of things in her life. She grew up going to a Catholic church, but said that this year she had begun thinking and learning a lot more about Jesus. It was fun to go through some of that process with her as she learned even more at camp and I'm really excited to continue our conversations over the internet in the future.

I also connected quickly with the American team that came. It was sweet to hear them say by the end of camp that out of the five years that their church had come, this year was the one where they felt most connected to the JV interns. They called us "honorary members." It was encouraging for me to see how well they worked together as a team and served the campers and each other throughout the week. Talking with different members of the team about what God was doing in and through them at camp was great. And saying goodbye to them on Monday night was harder than I expected it to be! So, now I have a bunch of friends in Nashville -all the more reason for me to go visit :) I already know that flights from Chicago are cheap!

How We Changed: The camp theme this year was "Redeem." The evening sessions where we talked about God were all about redemption in different stories in the Bible: Rehab, Judah (Joseph's brother), David and Bathsheba, and the Gospel. One of the missionaries would talk and then we'd have time in small groups with our English classes. It was cool to see the girls open up more throughout the week. A highlight was the night we talked about David and Abby pulled out a guitar to play a song she had written a few months ago about exactly what we were talking about. It was definitely a moment when I felt God speaking and moving! Then our last night together, we talked about if and how we thought camp had changed us. It was great to hear how the ones who had been to camp before changed throughout the year and then how they were able to share that with the others. One of the girls in my group who was new to camp said that she came in not believing that there was a God and now thinking that there is. She and others said they want to read the Bible more and stay connected with people from camp throughout the year. I was talking with Johnny yesterday and he was encouraged that more campers than he has ever seen were interested in spiritual matters this week. Our prayer is that they will stay connected during the year and that what they experienced this week will be something that continues outside of camp.

Lessons I Learned: This week I, personally, learned a lot as well. Here are just a few thoughts:

- Teaching English is something I want to continue to pursue in the future. I love it!

- I surprisingly don't mind crazy camp games as much as I used to.

- We all have different roles in the body of Christ. One isn't better than any other. (Ephesians 12)

- Forgiveness is a powerful thing.

- Asking God to break your heart for what breaks His is dangerous, but worth it. Even after a week you can fall in love with the people around you.

That's it for now. Prayer requests next time.

A Look at the Castle

Here's a quick look at the castle we were at for camp this past week. Sorry the video isn't better quality but this is the best I could do. The background noise is people playing a crazy game. Hopefully this gives you a little picture of where I was in Austria for English camp.

Gospel Night and Prayer

It's been a long, but great week at camp. A lot has happened! I can't wait to tell you more, but for now, I just wanted to let you know a bit more about how to be praying. It was gospel night tonight and the Spirit was definitely moving. I personally didn't have any super deep conversations or anything, but I spent most of my evening praying for what was going on around me. There were quite a few tears shed and hugs given and I know that God is doing awesome things here. Please be praying that the next few days of camp will finish things up well. Pray for the team's energy level, my English class (7 girls I absolutely love!), and the follow-up that will be happening after camp. My biggest prayer request right now is that the students won't just go home from camp and be unchanged or think they have to wait until next summer to feel and experience more of the life we've shown them. So, please pray that they'll keep in touch with the missionaries and friends they've made here throughout the year and that the seeds planted this week will be taken care of (watered and given sun) so that they will grow.

At The Castle!

What do you get when you take 14 Americans from Tennessee, 3 JV interns, throw in some full-time missionaries, and add 37 Slovene high schoolers? English camp.

What do you get when you take them on a three hour bus trip to a castle in Millstatt, Austria? An even cooler English camp!

We're at the castle now and have already had a pretty full day. Can't wait for tomorrow! My English class seems great so far. It's a good mix of girls. Three have been to camp before (one is Maja who I've been hanging out with in Celje, so that's awesome!). I'm super excited to get to know them, the 5 girls in my room with me, and the others at camp. Plus, it's been fun getting to know the American team too.

Please continue to pray that seeds will be planted this week that will grow and produce lasting fruit, whether we see that fruit this week or not. Pray that God will be at this castle, working in and through all of the leaders here, and that any distractions or plans of the enemy will not be as powerful as Him who is in us.

Trusting Him this week and appreciate your prayers a ton! :)

Celje Day Camp

I don't have long, but I wanted to let you all know that the Celje day camp went really well! 17 kids showed up altogether and I had the opportunity to teach English every morning to 6 of them. My advanced English class was made up of 3 girls and 3 guys between the ages of 9 1/2 and 12 who were for the most part super responsive and fun! Here they are:

We had a great time in class talking about family, hobbies, and travel. And Polona was a huge blessing to me as I got to serve alongside her! Besides learning English, the kids heard lessons about being redeemed (the JV theme this summer), had small group times, and played fun games in the afternoon. It was a packed three days, but really great.

More to come later, but right now please be praying that the kids remember what they learned and heard at camp and that God would be redeeming situations in their own lives. Specifically, Peter and Jan (two brothers) in my class have been dealing with a lot recently as their parents are divorced and in court right now fighting for custody of their kids. So, I'm sure they could use prayer for that situation.

Thanks a ton! I'm off to orientation for the second camp tonight, but will hopefully be able to update you more soon. I added some new pictures on facebook so feel free to check those out and I'd love to hear from any/all of you, so comments are always welcome :)

You Know You're In Europe When... #6

#6 Kids over the age of 7 change in front of their peers (in this case, fellow English campers).

Camp is Almost Here!

After a lot of preparation time and training, the first week of English camps is about to begin. We're all super excited to be working with students, planting seeds, and prayerfully watching God move. This week I'll be at the day camp with Calvary Chapel church here in Celje. (Kari and Heather are at Ljubljana's junior high camp and Mallory and Nate are at Ljubljana's high school camp.) I'm teaching the advanced English class with Polona (she's an awesome Slovene with great English). We're expecting around 4 or 5 kids in our class, 15 at the camp altogether. Should be fun! The camp is from Monday to Wednesday and goes from 8am to around 2:30pm each day. Then on Thursday, I'm going to orientation for the second week of camps; I'm looking forward to meeting the church team coming over to help. Then Saturday starts the next week of camp. I'll be heading to a castle in Austria with around 40 Slovene high schoolers. I can't wait! Plus, Nate and Kari will be there as well. So after a week and a half without them, that will be exciting too.

So, that's the basic plan for me the next two weeks. Here's more specifically what you can be praying for:

- Strength and energy: The interns, church teams, and missionaries are going to need it as two weeks of camp back-to-back will for sure be tiring! Mallory has been sick the past few days, so pray that she'll be feeling good again soon and that no one else will get sick.

- Communication and unity: Pray that we will all be able to work well together, that communication (especially between the Slovene Christians and us) will be strong, and that we will be clear examples of love to the students as they watch us interact and serve along side one another. Also pray that any problems that could arise between members of the team will be noticed and taken care of now before camp starts.

- God-honoring excellence: One of JV's core values is God-honoring excellence. We want to pursue excellence that pleases God as we begin camps. So, pray that God will give us as leaders wisdom, that we'll be able to teach English well, and that we will put on camps that students want to come back to next year because they are planned out and professional, while also being fun.

- Trust in the Spirit: And this one might be the most important of all, but please pray that we'll be filled with the Holy Spirit, that we'll trust Him in our lives, and that we'll follow His leading at camp. Pray that we will be flexible and courageous, stepping out of our comfort zones when He asks us to do something. Pray that God will very clearly be at work through us and that we will be able to plant seeds that grow and produce lasting fruit in people's lives.

Thanks for partnering with me through prayer : )
I'm always so encouraged by all of you.