Finally!!!! Deutschland -bound!

Friends and family!

I am finally Deutschland-bound!

I am leaving for the airport now on my way to Germany.  I fly out of Louisville at 1:30pm; then after Chicago, London and Basel airports, I will drive 30 minutes into Germany, Lord willing.  Thankfully, I have some people I know on the long flight, which is a blessing.  I hope to be in touch after I get settled in the next several days.  Training for language, staff relations, ministry with the students, driving, etc. will be the first 3 weeks or so.  Then the kids come!  Feel free to email me how you all are and any prayer requests, too: mwaters@teachbeyond.org. 

Peace be with you all, Michelle Waters,
Resident Assistant at Black Forest Academy for Missionary Kids (http://underglassmw.blogspot.com)

6 Days: Prioritizing and Preparing for the Long-Haul

Dear friends and family,

MY SCHEDULED DEPARTURE: 

Wednesday, July 27 at 1:30 P.M., EST, 

from Louisville.

 

Knowing I have 6 more days in the States for a while has led me to think about what really matters and what are my priorities. I am grateful for people encouraging me along the way to prepare in advance for goodbyes, so that they are not crammed last minute.  Thankfully, I have been intentional to find closure for myself and others as much as possible.  I am grateful that I have gotten to talk to many of you before I go.  I am excited to share this journey with you!

I've found a great deal of perspective in these last weeks from the book of Hebrews, particularly 11:9a, NLT: 

"And even when he reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith - for he was like a foreigner, living in tents...."    

God has grown my faith greatly since I began the journey with TeachBeyond and preparing for Black Forest Academy in October 2010.  The Holy Spirit has exhorted me that the need for faith does not stop once my funds come in and my support network is built.   The reality is that in order to be sustained through God's ministry at BFA, I must continue in a life of humble dependency on the LORD and interdependence on others.  May the words of this song encourage you in your trust in the Lord for wherever you find yourself as they have me:

"God Is In Control" - Twila Paris Lyrics
This is no time for fear

This is a time for faith and determination
Don't lose the vision here
Carried away by emotion
Hold on to all that you hide in your heart
There is one thing that has always been true
It holds the world together

God is in control
We believe that His children will not be forsaken
God is in control
We will choose to remember and never be shaken
There is no power above or beside Him, we know
God is in control, oh God is in control

 

Financial Update:  I have only $551/month LEFT to RAISE: :)

Which is only 11 more people committing to $50/month or some variation of that. 

Prayer Update: Please pray that God will continue to grow my roots down deep in Him and enable me to discern and follow God's priorities for me before I leave this Wednesday, July 27th.

 

Thanks for your care, prayer, support and encouragement!

Peace be with you,

Michelle Waters

I'd love to hear from you: mwaters@teachbeyond.org 

3 Weeks Bridge the Gap between America and Germany

Just three more weeks, Lord willing.

Just three more weeks bridge the gap between America and Germany for me.

I am extraordinarily humbled and excited by the generous financial and prayer support of my friends and family over the last weeks.  I am amazed by the ways individuals, families, and churches have given sacrificially, reminding me of the widow whom Jesus praised in the Gospels (Mark 12:43-44).

In the last weeks, I've gotten a poignant picture of what the Body of Christ ought to look like - her members using their various gifts in the same mission to honor God.  

I am reminded of an art exercise in my senior counseling course where I had to depict "where I was at" holistically at that point as well as "where I wanted to be." [The result was the picture on the right.]  Despite all the unknowns of my then impending graduation, I felt two things strongly: 

1. I had to remain rooted "in stream of living water"        (Psalm 1:3)
2. I had to be a part of a team of people on the same mission for Jesus, serving with their various gifts while valuing what the others contributed              [represented by boat in tree].

As far as support-raising and preparing to serve at Black Forest Academy, I need people with various gifting and in different seasons of life to contribute what God has given them to use.   
I am blown away by how much "little things" to some people are big things to me and bless me beyond words:

• Some cannot give $, but they are fervent prayer warriors and passionate advocates
• Some give of their time to help with administrative tasks and prepare for support development
• Some email me advice on how to prepare and encourage me with what God is teaching them

For all those using their various gifts and resources to partner with me - I am deeply grateful and overflow with thanksgiving to God for His graciousness.  May God continue to be honored!

"Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.  Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen." (Ephesians 3:20-21, NLT).

Peace be with you,

Michelle

I'd love to hear from you. Email me at mwaters@teachbeyond.org.

4 Weeks Until Take Off!

Dear friends,

DEPARTURE COUNTDOWN:  My estimated departure date                

 - July 27^th - is 4 weeks (or 28 days) from yesterday!

PRAYER UPDATE:  Please pray that God will…

·         Grow my love for Him and desire to dwell in prayer and the Scripture

·         Strengthen my courage to speak the truth in love and invite people to know and serve God with me

·         Connect me with those whom God wants to be a part of my financial and/or prayer support team

·         Continue to bring healing to my body after being sick with the flu

·         Bring healthy closure with my family and friends here before I move

FINANCIAL UPDATE:  Thanks to all of you who have already given!  As of the beginning of the week, I am currently at 37.84% of monthly support raised for the two years.  With my one-time gifts and my monthly pledges ($537.00/month) I have a total of $626.94 for 2 years, which equals out to be 37.84% for 2 years. 

If you are interested in being a part of my financial support team, please contact: http://www.teachbeyond.org/donate and “download pledge form.”  If I had 21 more people giving $50/month, I would be fully supported.  Please email me if you would like to know more: mwaters@teachbeyond.org.

TEACHBEYOND ORIENTATION UPDATE: Several days ago I returned from the Chicago area after visiting dear friends, presenting the BFA ministry, as well as attending the TeachBeyond orientation.  I was touched by the hospitality of so many people who opened their homes and hearts to me.  God knew I needed that encouragement.  

After spending a week of orientation with the TeachBeyond staff and new appointees (like me), I grew to deeply respect and appreciate the TeachBeyond family.  It is clear from their words and deeds that they care about us each like family and pray for us as individuals.  They wanted two copies of our picture prayer cards: one for the Canada office and one for the US office, so that they could put our cards around their world map and pray for us regularly during lunch time. 

Some of these appointees in training with me will be going to Black Forest Academy, too!  It was neat to start bonding throughout the week and in region, job, and gender specific breakout sessions.  I really enjoyed those times.  

A highlight of the day was the evening testimonies, where affinity groups (dorm parents, counselors, resident assistants, nurse, etc. were primarily in mine) had five minutes to tell briefly about how God has worked in their lives and brought them to this place; then we prayed for them.  These staff members are from all over Washington, California, Canada, Minnesota, Indiana, Ohio, Alabama, Germany, and beyond, and are going to serve in Germany, Czech Republic, Central Asia, Budapest, Philippines and beyond.  

ENCOURAGEMENT:   After I shared my testimony, BFA man came up to me and said, “Two words. Hold fast.”  He went on to explain that if he were to get a tattoo, it would be of the words, “hold fast,” across his knuckles because he knew the sober reality of being tempted to reenter our former, destructive ways of living.  

So, friends, be encouraged by Hebrews 10:35, NLT, “So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord.  Remember the great reward it brings you!  Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will.  Then you will receive all that he has promised.”

Peace be with you,

Michelle

Financial Support Update

Dear friends,

On Thursday I fly to Chicago to visit with several friends before my week TeachBeyond orientation, which will help me prepare to serve at Black Forest Academy.  I will get back on June 26th and then, Lord willing, one month later I will leave for Germany!

It has been bittersweet to catch up with old friends and family members; yet, I am grateful for the opportunity to have quality time with them and celebrate and reflect upon the past, present and future.

I spend a great deal of my time doing pre-orientation cross-cultural training, beginning to begin to learn German (thanks for kids tapes in the library) and meeting with people about how they can be involved in my financial support team to make this position a reality.  

For a 2 year term I am at 21.71% of my financial support raised!  If you have been a part of making this a reality, thank you!  If you are interested in helping me raise the next $1,200/month, please see the last post of how you can be involved in small or big ways.  

More to come :)
Peace be with you,
Michelle

What I Am Doing and How You Can Be Involved

Grüsse! Möge der Friede Gottes mit euch sein!                 

(Greetings! May the peace of God be with you all.)

For all the unknowns surrounding my recent college graduation, there is one thing I felt deeply in the core of my being: even though it might be uncomfortable for a time, I could not jump into a job for a job’s sake-- I believed God would bring me something with which my soul resonated, and I had to be willing to wait for God to do so on His timeline.

I waited, and God’s given me a unique opportunity to pursue my heart, apply all I’ve been learning, and be challenged to grow in ways that will continue to shape my life long after I return home.

In the end of July 2011, I begin a two year adventure serving with TeachBeyond missions agency in Germany, working as a Resident Assistant (R. A.) for high school students... not just any high school students, though.  I’ll be working at Black Forest Academy, where missionary kids go to learn and process life and gain not only their education, but also their basis for understanding life, faith and the world.

My heart breaks for missionary kids in a unique way because they experience the isolation of being from one culture and in another (often times neither connecting nor identifying completely with either), and also feel weighty expectation to have it all together.  Being a teenager is hard... being a teenager in a place where they are often perceived to be exemplary leaders is even harder.  I feel called to be a safe place for these students, one where they can be honest -- honest with God, honest with themselves and honest with each other-- about their imperfections, fears and brokenness... and from this honesty to be able to experience and embrace life.

As an RA, I will be a live-in “older sister” in a house of 22 students, working alongside two house parents and another RA.  My days will be full of miscellaneous tasks of food preparation, laundry, errands, and driving, while getting to take part in informal mentoring students and supporting the other staff.  By living alongside students, I will be available to “rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn” (Romans 12:15) in a very real sense everyday during a time where they are away from their families.

Black Forest Academy provides quality, international, Christian education in English and boarding housing for mainly missionary kids from all over Europe, North Africa and Asia.  Sadly, for various reasons, these young people are not able to have quality education near their families because home-schooling is often illegal, private school is too expensive, and public school is often a negative influence.  BFA enables Christian workers to be able to continue serving in various parts of the world, knowing that their children are being cared for well by RAs and other loving staff.  

I would like to invite you to be a part of what God is doing at Black Forest Academy.  

You can come alongside me as I come alongside these students through the means of prayer and/or giving:

1.       Prayer - I need a core prayer team committed to praying for me –

●      Preparation - In such things as my fund-raising, practicing driving stick shift, learning German, and preparing to live overseas with diverse students.  

●      Daily - In addition, I need people who are willing to commit to praying with me for my ministry of RA throughout the next two years.  Although it will be a rewarding job, it will likely be immensely challenging.  I need ongoing patience, endurance, and empathy that only God can provide.  

2.       Giving - In order to serve at BFA as an RA and keep the price down for the students’ families, I need $1,657.00/month of monthly support to cover the costs of living, transportation, and insurance.  

●      I’d like to get as many people involved as possible in my monthly support with gifts of any amount, so that more friends and family can take part of what God is doing around the world. 

●      Right now I still need 78% of this monthly support.  This is 24 people committing to give $50/month (or 12 people giving $100/month, or 49 people giving $25/month); then I will be fully supported.   A donation of any amount would be helpful.

If you would like to pledge to support me through finances and/or prayer, please indicate that on the appropriate enclosed forms, or go to: http://www.teachbeyond.org/donate.

I am excited and immensely humbled to see what God is going to do through, in, and around me as I take the step of faith to serve as a Residence Assistant at BFA from roughly 2011-2013.  I look forward to sharing this journey with you as well as continuing to hear updates from you.  From the bottom of my heart, thank you for your love and support now and through the years!  May the peace of God be with you now and always.   

Peace be with you,
Michelle Waters

mwaters@teachbeyond.org

Two Weeks After Graduation Update and Prayer Requests

Dear Core Prayer Team and Friends,

Greetings from Southern Indiana!
A great deal is going on here.  Two weeks ago I graduated from college.  My family and friends here threw me a special graduation open-house.  After my grandfather's death in March, there has been a lot of work that my immediate and extended families have had to do.  I am doing part-time work with them.  In the meantime, I am seeking to rest and reorient, while continuing to visit with people and invite people to be a part of my financial support team for Black Forest Academy.

TeachBeyond (my sending agency) says that I must have 90% of my monthly support pledged before I can purchase my plane ticket.  Right now I am about 17% supported. If you would like to contribute, you can donate online or download a form "download pledge form" (monthly donations):

http://www.teachbeyond.org/donate.

Lord willing, I will leave for BFA in two months. My ideal target departure date to leave for Germany is JULY 27, 2011.

In the meantime,
Please pray...
-  that I will love God more and long to spend time in His Word with His people
- that God will refresh my spirit and enable me to rest in His Spirit
- that I will be able to process, grieve, and celebrate the transition from college to home to BFA
- that I will have a supportive group of Christians to meet with regularly in this area this summer
- that God will lay it on people's hearts to be a part of my financial team
- that I will be able to encourage each person I meet with

Thank you for your love and support!
Go with God,
Michelle