Living in New Haven

So I just moved to New Haven yesterday and there is a lot of work to do. I'm basically living in a "fixer-uper" second-story apartment of a house - having to repaint everything... However I am living with two other great girls and we are all in this together. We live in a low-income area of New Haven - however, close enough to town (and everything else) that I don't feel like I have to travel far to anything (except for the boarding schools which I will start to travel to later in September).

I am psyched to be here. Although it might be hard to sense God's "affirmation" with so much grunt work to get settled, I definitely sensed another "wave" of it today in church. I will mostly likely attend a non-denominational church in town with many other like-minded, missional people (including my roommates). Definitely the kind of community I need. In fact, on my seat at this evening's service was a flyer describing the different homegroups in the community that people can attend. Here is the description of the one I plan to go to:

"The group will be open to anyone, but will be particularly focused on helping people to process issues of life and calling that are related to return from past or preparation for future overseas work and service, particularly in the Muslim world. There will be a strong emphasis on personal sharing and on focused prayer for one another, as well as on worship and on biblically based discussion of practical life issues." (italics-mine).

(it is led by a couple with two young children who live two houses away, who have been missionaries for a time in Turkey)

Needless to say, I feel more confirmed to be in this setting, at this time, than any other season of my life (maybe an exaggeration, but it feels pretty real!).

That said, I also need prayer for perseverance - to get through the long and physically arduous process of settling in, as well as relationally settling into an unknown place. Even more, I pray for time to really pray and dedicate the year ahead to the Lord. I'm not sure exactly what I will face as a "boarding school minister" - but I trust that He has clearly led me to this point. So, while I continue to process South Africa and the West Bank, there is a lot of personal growth ahead, which is another main reason why I took this job, and another area for spiritual diligence.

Thank you for reading, and I look forward to relaying messages here about God at work in community in New Haven, and also among boarding school students in New England.

For those that don't know where New Haven, Connecticut is (or Connecticut, for that matter), here are some helpful maps:)

Starburst Commercial

Another favorite commercial..

Tide-to-Go Superbowl Commercial, My Talking Stain Ad My Fav

Favorite commercials of my new FOCUS staff friends.

In the news...

I picked up a Newsweek yesterday morning in the Philadelphia airport as I was headed to Chicago and read perhaps the most honest and accurate description of what is actually going on in Jerusalem. Sometimes it is very hard to describe in facts and figures what is going on and how it affects people, and yet also to be sensitive at the same time.

Here are some bits and pieces of the article - however, I recommend picking it up. You can read the entire article here.

The article begins by describing the life of the man that recently delved his construction vehicle into innocent civilians in Jerusalem. Not too many months before, a similar event ensued. The first string of these recent incidents, which occurred in March, I remember hearing about from a student in the West Bank that night, that 8 Jews had been killed in Jerusalem at a seminary....

Sadly, I can understand why these happen.. why they are not random, and yet also why they are not organized (as much of the world thinks). These are normal men, sick of their situation, and desperate for positive outlets and opportunities.

While Palestinian "Jerusalemites" have a life better than their West Bank or Gaza fellow countrymen, things have quietly been getting worse:
"Since the summer of 1967, when East Jerusalem was annexed by Israel, the district has built close ties with both the Israeli economy and Palestinian culture. That combination has been a formula for relative stability, earning East Jerusalemites the trust of Israelis on the city's west side.
But in recent years Israel has dramatically altered the sector's landscape. In 2002, former prime minister Ariel Sharon began building a 460-mile barrier—in much of the city, a 20-foot-high concrete wall—that slices deep into Palestinian territory and divides neighbor from neighbor. A network of new access roads and checkpoints has further chopped the territory into a hodgepodge of Palestinian enclaves. Even as Israeli settlements proliferate in East Jerusalem, building permits for Palestinian homes are becoming a rarity."
As an Israeli rights lawyer said, "We're screwing them royally... We've cut them off from the West Bank without integrating them into Israel."


Another interesting fact is that while Israel reacts by targeting mosques and other Islamic centers as hotbeds for these kinds of "terrorists," they are undermining the very fabric of the majority of Palestinian life. One man interviewed in the article says that it is unsafe to go the mosque even three times a week, for fear of getting arrested. Unbeknownst to itself, Israel is playing a direct role in creating the kind of grassroots, radical Islamists that it fears...

Love's Redeeming Work Is Done

Love's redeeming work is done,

Fought the fight, the battle won.

Death in vain forbids Him rise;

Christ has opened paradise.

(Refrain)

Alleluia, Alleluia!

Alleluia!

Lives again our glorious King;

Where, O death, is now thy sting?

Once He died our souls to save,

Where thy victory, O grave?

Soar we now where Christ has led,

Following our exalted Head;

Made like Him, like Him we rise,

Ours the cross, the grave, the skies.

(an old hymn)

Level One Internship -

Strengths:

• grace-filled community of our leadership team and their attractive fellowship
• openness to what God would do with me (by God's grace) - I was desperate!
• constant attention given in prayer to what God was doing in the lives of the students
• strong teaching program (morning and evening talks from Colossians, small group bible studies on Exodus)
• good weather

Highlights:

• early-morning devotion given on FREEDOM
• Prayer Day (at Great Rock Bight)
• Hunt the Spy (there were some amazing disguises!)
• day-off with Caitlin and Audrey
• hearing students' testimonies
  

Having attended various FOCUS camps in Martha's Vineyard since Middle School, I had never attended an Internship One until this past July. This camp helps students delve further into the faith, learning the basics of "putting off the old self" and putting on the new. Students learn to articulate their faith and learn what it means to live as a Christian. All of the 55 students on this camp came from private schools from Boston to Richmond.

Acquina Cliffs

Crazy morning (getting ready for a game)

Great Rock Bight

Hunt the Spy - A brillant game in which leaders disguise themselves around Edgartown and must be found by students. I'm the "pregnant woman" in the center.

Hanging out on the lodge porch

PURPLE CABIN!!

Sunset Reflections (students take Bible and journal and pan out along beach..)

While watching students' lives transform cannot compare to much else, the most profound memory from this camp included the gentle, solid leanings of the Lord to go on staff with this organization. I'd never seriously considered it before this camp, but found myself enjoying my fellowship with the staff so much, connecting with the students' need for the Gospel, and realizing how this "job" right before me matched beautifully with this season in life.

All that to say, at the end of this month, I will be moving to New Haven, Connecticut and will serve in FOCUS' boarding school ministry. I will be raising support, helping lead fellowship meetings at a couple boarding schools during the month, make connections with faculty and staff at these schools, and building relationships at a church that my other two roommates attend in the city.

Rob, my new boss, and his son Andrew

Michelle, a student at Hotchkiss in CT, and Jen, going on staff in Boston area

Anne, far right, is a student at Deerfield in Mass. She memorized the entire book of Colossians!!

Sarah (far left) is a student at Emma Willard in NY - i'll be connecting with her!

Liz (the one with the hat), my new roommate! and Audrey, going on staff in NYC