last day

Today is the last day of class here in Lebanon, PA. The end brings bittersweet feelings.

I have come to love my classmates; we have seen each others tears, seen the  “aha! I get it!” moments, we’ve helped each other through struggles, worshiped the One we all have in common, interceded for peoples/nations, and laughed together. These people have become my family.

Yet, now we are equipped to GO. We are all very excited to see where we are all led to use the tools we have recently acquired. I will miss all of my dear classmates, but do not wish anyone to simply stay when we are all called to GO!

Waiting for the next step…

3rd update from PA

Dear peoples(friends, family, etc…)

Something very unexpected has happened during my stay here in Pennsylvania. I have found that I love this state. Never in a million years would I have suspected this would have happened, but it has. Moving on…

Last week was b-r-u-t-a-l.  Never have I enjoyed challenges quite this much. We had several assignments due, grammar presentations (I taught on modal verbs), 2 evening “classes” (we each lead a discussion group then the other night more presentations), and lots of studying (that means lots of coffee and music along with it. Time management has been something I have really been getting a handle on (yes, *finally*).

The week was wrapped up Friday by Universal YWAM Day of Fasting and Prayer (this occurs every 1^st Friday of the month). After morning class the entire base met to intercede for the North African and Middle Eastern countries. It was such a wonderful thing knowing that not only was God hearing our prayers, but also those of all the other YWAMers around the world that were praying for that exact same thing!

On Friday a dear friend from Virginia drove up to visit (Shout out to you, Mer!). I loved getting to know the heart of this enthusiastic, go-get-em girl a little bit more.

Sunday morning Jared, Andrea, Max, Cassia (Andrea’s sister) and I drove over to Philadelphia. Even though it was raining we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! Fresh pastries from WholeFoods, a walk across to Penn’s Landing, a quick stop a hole-in-the-wall coffee shop, then onto the art museum. We spent several hours just roaming around the museum. There were some fantastical armour galleries, beautiful paintings, and some weird modern art(no kidding, it was *weird*).

This week has been a little bit more laid back. Monday evening some of us ladies went to Anvil to a little coffee shop and played Pictophone, a great group game. We laughed a lot!

The end of this week and first of next week we have a few quizzes and one more big assignment due. I can hardly believe we only have 7 more days. Sad! But I am very excited to see how God leads me to use this training!

If you have any specific questions just send them and I will get back to you ASAP.

 

2nd update from PA

(February 26th, 2011)

Hullo!

The Lebanon YWAM base is one building. Upstairs are the offices, dorm rooms, and the student lounge. Downstairs are the classrooms, laundry facilities, the kitchen, and chapel.

There are 11 of us in this TESOL class. Vova&Marina, Leah, Iris, MaryBeth, Mary, Forrest(&Lucia sits in the back because she did TESOL a few years ago), Gail, Abby, Ju-Yung, and myself.  I room with Leah, Iris, MaryBeth, and Abby.

A typical day starts out with breakfast at 8am, worship/intersession from 9-9:30am, class from 9:30-10:15am, break for 15 minutes, class from 10:30-12pm, lunch, class from 1:30-3:15pm, activity time(this is anything from free, study, or whatever our teacher, Lynn, has us doing), supper, then free time(except for 2 nights a week when we have another class). This first week we didn’t have a lot of homework, but we did have a few reading assignments and then 10 syllabuses we had to write up then turn in. We did a lot of “getting to know each other” activities, we can also use these in English as a Second Language classes we might teach in the future.

There is a LOT of learning…I love it! I love being challenged to think outside the box. Wednesday morning I presented a lesson on adverbs. Lynn wastes no time getting us into teaching mode!  I can see why people like teaching, it stretches a person but is also rewarding!

This weekend I am really liking just relaxing and not worrying about any homework (I hear next weekend might be different!). Andrea, Max, Dexter (the daschund), and I went to the market, walked around town, ate ice cream and just enjoyed being outside!

Hope you are all doing well!

 

1st update from PA

(February 19th,2011)

Friday the 4th I needed $850 for TESOL. Sunday the 6th I received $420 of that. Friday the 11th I was given $200. I just continued to trust God to provide the rest. On the 13th I received $637! God is faithful to provide! 😀

The flight from Denver to Chicago was smooth. My seat buddy was a man that liked weird alien invasion movies, but loved skittles…what a combination! Once in Chicago I used my Starbucks gift card then found a place to hang out. The flight to Harrisburg was delayed a couple times, then the plane had “serious mechanical issues” so they changed our gate to the next terminal over. I was glad to not have to find it alone though. Finally boarded our new flight and taxied for 20 minutes. And get this, a man from INDIA was my seat buddy! Oh my goodness. His accent was amazing. We talked about TESOL, where I want to use it, the area he is from, languages, his wife(and her skill with cell phone games), and some small things. It was really cool! 😀

I will be here in Lancaster with Jared(my brother-in-laws brother), Andrea, and Max until tomorrow afternoon at which point I will go check in at the campus. When I am in Lancaster on the weekends I will send updates and stuff.

dear readers

As of last Friday(the 4th) I needed $850 for the rest of my student fees for TESOL. Sunday morning I was given $420. God is faithful! Thank you, dear friends, for all the support  you have given and continue giving! I will continue to keep you all updated as God provides 🙂

TESOL update

Hello from frigid Colorado!

Just thought I would send out a little update about the TESOL class. I applied and have been accepted! Hopefully the neighbors didn’t see me doing a happy dance at the mailbox when I found the acceptance letter 😉

Financially speaking this is what has been taken care of so far: registration fee($75), required student fee($200), and plane ticket($260, huge answered prayer!). Now I am just walking by faith that my God will provide the remaining finances. There is just the remaining part of the student fee, $850, which is due February 20th(upon arrival on campus). This is really stretching me…it is so good though! Every now and then there is this whisper saying that God won’t pull through and to just give up. But I say “no” to that. I continue in the confidence that He WILL provide!

Thank you all for your support thus far, it does mean a lot. And thank you in advance for supporting God’s work through to the end! If you have any questions about the program or anything else feel free to contact me!

words

Truth.

Pursuit.

Readiness.

Intersession.

Go.

Radical.

Holy.

Mighty.

Redeem.

Reckon.

Reality.

newsletter

Hope all of you have had a wonderful Christmas and are starting the New Year off with a bounce in your step!

I am writing to give you all a little update about what I am up to the end of this year and what it looks like I will be doing next year.

Now:

· I am still working at Penguins (coffee shop) and Marshalls (retail). Praying about looking for a completely different job though. Working 2 part-time jobs isn’t what I want to continue doing. There are things I want to save up for!

· Between a small group bible study and Bible Study Fellowship International I stay pretty busy with Bible homework. I totally love it though! I love to take it down to Loodles(the local coffee shop) and study for a couple hours during the week.

· Abby, Rissa, and I live in a little house in Windsor. Heather Newkirk and her son Gabe have joined us for a couple months. It is an adventure living with a little 2 year old!

· For Christmas I got Kip a bongo drum. It was pretty cute watching him banging on it!

· Ice skating, Christmas parties, a Gingerbread house making party, quilting, and enjoyed the unusually warm weather(until this week!) are things we have been up to so far this winter!

 

Hopefully Next Year:

The biggest thing is TESOL. That stands for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. This class is through YWAM and takes place in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. I am prayerfully applying for the February 21^st – March 18^th class. The Lord has confirmed my attending by supplying over half of the deposit ($200) in a matter of 2 days! I am really excited about watching the Lord provide the rest of the funds as I continue to prepare for what I believe God has called me to. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it -1 Thessalonians 5:24

Here are just a few more things about TESOL:
TESOL is “four weeks of intensive training in basic theories and methods of teaching English, intercultural communication for teachers, classroom management, how to work with different learning styles, testing, principles of language acquisition, as well as the sounds and grammar of English. An integral part of the training is the opportunity to practice teaching on campus during the course.”
TESOL costs “$1,050 USD plus a non-refundable $75.00 application fee. A $200.00 registration fee is also required at time of the application which will be credited toward the tuition upon arrival.  The tuition includes text books, lectures, housing and meals for the four weeks of the course.”
When I complete TESOL I will “receive a TESOL certificate and supporting documents from the Institute for the Nations, Lebanon PA. These will become the key for opening opportunities to teach English in many settings, worldwide.”
And TESOL will also open doors to commonly closed countries, if God leads me to such a thing.

As I apply for TESOL I am praying for wisdom to know how to utilize the training I receive. There are a few possibilities at this point. The first is using it to help birthmothers of other nationalities in the area that might want to learn more English. The second is to reach the local Spanish speaking population.

If you have any specific questions or anything, feel free to ask!

Love and hugs,

Bex

(or Rebekah 😉 )

 

at home

I sit here in one of my Colorado family’s living room. Nathan is on the couch next to me, ah!, I love little 8 year old brothers. Josh and Jon are battling it out in some computer game. Ben is playing the piano. {happy sigh} The Christmas tree has not been taken down yet, I can catch faint whiffs of the pine, toys are strewn about the house. The first official snow of winter is falling, hopefully it will bury my car{crosses fingers}.  I love evenings like this, I feel so at home. . . I think it is because I am.

it’s the most wonderful time of the year

…coffee and peppermints

…hats and scarves

…hugs and handrubs

…quiet times and party times

…Christmas lights and flurries

…packages and cards

…”old” friends and new friends

…movies and games