Coming into this internship I thought audaciously little of what I could learn. I had spent most of my college career in relational team based ministry. In fact, I can’t remember a time when I was not involved in a ministry in some form. Basically, I gravitate towards opportunities like this partly because I know that is were the Lord wants me but also because its the culture I know. Serving at a new church not knowing anyone has not only awarded me the opportunity to look at ministry through a different lens, but I have also been able to examine my motives and learn about myself in the process.
One of the major things I have learned this summer is the importance of staying spiritually grounded. In one of our high school meetings it was brought up that unless we are spending time with God we are giving these kids our second best, essentially spiritual leftovers. We only have ten weeks and being unprepared or trying to coast on previous knowledge could mean a missed opportunity.
Another thing I learned was the importance of where we are pointing students. I remember sitting in small groups one Sunday morning panicking because I realized just how many students I hadn’t got to know and who I should take to lunch. Then I realized that not only had I tuned out a solid thirty seconds of the lesson but I also only thought about myself. We are pointing these students toward God and the church not ourselves. Recognizing my role in the whole process and exactly where I should rank in the grand scheme of things humbled me and my burgeoning ego. Ultimately, God has entrusted us fragile beings with malleable yet equally fragile beings and there is no way for us to be remotely successful without the inclusion and acknowledgment of His role in our lives and theirs.
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