"Week 2...Sorry it's so late!"

Hello from Missouri!

Week two is almost over and I still have a lot of work to finish! Like I said in the last blog, this week was very emotionally draining! We learned about the abused child (mentally, physically, emotionally, sexually) and how to look for signs of abuse and how to get help for that child. We also learned about different religions and how to minister to kids with different religious backgrounds while still teaching them to respect their families. I was also able to take an elective class on Teaching Preschoolers and it's amazing how much I've learned through this class!

The Teaching Preschoolers class was wonderful and so much fun. We were taught to teach at a preschoolers understanding without sugar coating the Gospel or leaving out important details like the blood of Jesus! Praise God for allowing me to learn so much in such a little amount of time!!!

In the other two classes, we learned how to minister to children from different religious backgrounds and kids that were abused in different ways. It broke my heart to read and hear about children that are not being taught and shown TRUTH. I encourage you all to educated yourselves on issues that children face and how to help those in need. Are we really just sitting around, when we can see that a child is suffering in innocence!? Many say “Well, it’s none of my business,” or “I can’t do anything, I wouldn’t know who to tell.” Well, I would urge those people to DO SOMETHING, and actually LOOK for answers. This is my soapbox J

Well, to finish, I am having an amazing time here even though the weather is different every single day….60 degrees one day, 10 below the next! I am so thankful for all of your prayers and I am praying that God blesses you for your faithfulness. I love and miss you all and I hope to hear from you soon!

Finishing Week One....

These are some pictures of my room and the girls t.v. lounge! I had to add some of my own decorations but it's pretty cozy! I hope to have some better pictures next weekend.....

Finishing Week One....

Hey everyone!

This week was very difficult but it was great!!! There was so much information each day and really drained me but I learned so so much! Everyone here is great and the instructors have so much to share with us! The teaching here is very solid and I love finally learning about what I know God has called me to be! His blessings are abundant here and I am so thankful that I get to share it with you all!

This week we had 3 practicums to complete and I passed all of them!!! Two A's and a B!!!! God is good!!! Our practicums are basically evaluations by the instructors about what we have learned! So this week we learned how to teach a memory verse, a Bible lesson and how to share the Wordless Book! Once we learn the new material we have to do it ourselves in front of the instructor and two other students for the evaluation. Needless to say I was very nervous but made it through.

It's amazing to think about how little I knew about leading a child (or adult) to Christ. And I am excited to learn so much more. This coming week we are learning more about issues that may arise with children such as disabilities, home life situations and hard subjects that we need to know as we go into ministry. We won't have any practicums but I will have a lot of reading to do and I've heard that this week will be emotionally draining. Please pray that God breaks our hearts but gives us the ability to do well on our assignments!

I hope you are all doing well and I can't wait to hear from you!
I love you all and I will update more next weekend!

Blessings from Missouri,
Steph

"Getting Started..."

Hey Everyone!

I miss you all so much and I was sad to leave, but I was ready to get started again! This semester I’m sure will fly by! Sorry it’s taken so long to get back to some of you, internet (and time) has been limited. Dad and I had a beautiful drive here with great weather and he got back safely and also had a good drive. Thank you all for your prayers as we traveled!

Wednesday I was able to just check in and get unpacked and orientation started Thursday morning at 8am. There was a lot of information all day long but it went really well and the facilities here are very nice and almost everything is connected (keeping me out of the cold!!!). The building here is huge because of all that goes on here at headquarters. Thursday evening we were able to just relax so I was able to hang out with some new friends and get to know them better. The building has a laundry room, a library, computer room, and student lounges throughout and the dinning hall is great (the food is amazing here!!!)!

Friday was the first day of this 6 day class and we were fed a lot of information and ideas and all of them were great! I have learned so much already!!! The meals were great once again and that evening we had a “Get To Know You” night with different activities and ice cream sundaes after we finished. Because of the small class size, it is a little easier to get to know people and all of them so different, some traveling all the way from India and Singapore and other from the States and Canada! The ministry that CEF does is huge and I don’t even know the half of it yet.

I hope all of you are well, and I am praying for you and I appreciate all of the prayers and encouraging words that you are sending me! I love you all and can’t wait to hear from you soon!

In Training,

Steph

Hey Everyone!

I miss you all so much and I was sad to leave, but I was ready to get started again! This semester I’m sure will fly by! Sorry it’s taken so long to get back to some of you, internet (and time) has been limited. Dad and I had a beautiful drive here with great weather and he got back safely and also had a good drive. Thank you all for your prayers as we traveled!

Wednesday I was able to just check in and get unpacked and orientation started Thursday morning at 8am. There was a lot of information all day long but it went really well and the facilities here are very nice and almost everything is connected (keeping me out of the cold!!!). The building here is huge because of all that goes on here at headquarters. Thursday evening we were able to just relax so I was able to hang out with some new friends and get to know them better. The building has a laundry room, a library, computer room, and student lounges throughout and the dinning hall is great (the food is amazing here!!!)!

Friday was the first day of this 6 day class and we were fed a lot of information and ideas and all of them were great! I have learned so much already!!! The meals were great once again and that evening we had a “Get To Know You” night with different activities and ice cream sundaes after we finished. Because of the small class size, it is a little easier to get to know people and all of them so different, some traveling all the way from India and Singapore and other from the States and Canada! The ministry that CEF does is huge and I don’t even know the half of it yet.

I hope all of you are well, and I am praying for you and I appreciate all of the prayers and encouraging words that you are sending me! I love you all and can’t wait to hear from you soon!

In Training,

Steph

Starting Something New...

Sorry it's been so long since the last blog! I will try to update this each week while I am away!

Christmas Break was fabulous, but I'm ready to get started again! Several were wondering why I was still home, so I am going to tell you and hopefully keep you updated through out this busy semester!

This semester I will be attending the Children's Ministry Institute in Missouri! This school is basically an internship and class time all in one. I will go to several classes through out a 12 week period and attend 1 to 2 week class sessions then move to the next level. My first class starts this coming Friday and will end the following Friday then I will begin the next course on Monday and so forth and so on. I will also being working in one of the local churches but I don't know much about that yet....

I am required to complete this training for my major and then I will go back to Liberty for another year. There I will be able to finish up all of my General Education classes and the rest of my Bible classes. I am excited for this opportunity, however, I am really missing Benj and all of my friends at Liberty. I am praying that I will have the right attitude and that I will have the strength to make the most out of these short 12 weeks! I am hoping that this will be a growing time of focus and quite time to myself!



A little About The School.....
I will have my own room with a community bathroom. The school has about 40 students at a time and is located on about 600 acres of rolling hills. There is a shopping center about 3 miles away and it is only 50 miles west of St. Louis! There are singles and families that attend this school and it should go very quickly because of the short class sessions from week to week!



I hope to hear from all of you and THANK YOU all for all of your love, support and especially your prayers!!! I love you and miss you already!

Praying for you,
Steph

Christmas is coming...

Hey everyone,

I figured I would finally write to you all before Christmas breaks comes! I was just taking a break from studying as it is finally FINALS WEEK! Please be praying..... :)

To update you from the last blog, Thanksgiving Break was great and it was so good to see most of you at home, although some were missed, (I.E. Darcy, Austin, and the boys!). The youth weekend in North Carolina went really well!!! We made some new friends and were able to experience and help with a really cool "All Night of Worship" with their youth group! God moved in some mighty ways and we were all really excited to be able to be a part of it! The week home was fun and very restful and I can't wait to see everyone again at the end of this week!!! I have finals until about Thursday and then Benj and I will get to make the drive home!!!

In the mean time, I am studying for three finals for the week and trying to finalize my internship plans! Things are going really well with that though there are always a few frustrations. I am just praying that I can get everything in on time! If everything goes as planned I will be able to go to school in Missouri for one semester and will start at the end of January!!! Hopefully I will have more good news about all this when I come home!

I love and miss you all and I will see you all soon!!!
~Steph


(The pictures are of Benj and I at "Open Dorm" night, My Roommate and I making the best breakfast ever, a Ginger Bread House that we made for Open Dorm night and My Prayer Group and I!!! ) We've had a lot of Christmas parties around here and lots of decorations and good food but I am ready to come home!!!