We went to the post office yesterday and I didn't have any mail so you should probably send me some.
My address is
Apartado 15005 CP 11105
Tegucigalpa, Honduras
I would appreciate mail :)
I am still alive and doing well.
You can pray for Melanie, she has a little bit of a cold and is going through stage 2 of culture shock. So you could send her mail too.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Merry Christmas from Honduras!
H People!
I have been in Honduras for almost a month now! Sorry I have not updated sooner. We are super busy!
We have Spanish classes Monday through Friday 8am to 12pm. And that will last until the end of January. After Spanish class 3 days a week we do language rout. I go with Carey and we have established a rout around Kennedy where we talk to people along the way. We have a little text book to guid us through a simple conversation. This experience was not fun and really hard the first couple weeks. Most of the time Carey would have to take over the conversation because she know way more Spanish than I do. It is getting a little easier now that I know a little more Spanish and we know the people we are talking to a little better. I enjoy talking to Norma. She has a little table that she sells odds and ends off of and she gives us smarties. :)
Something that I really noticed since I'v been here is how much we take talking forgranted. In PA I would usually have to be forced to talk in a big group (although I was getting better at it). Here there is so much I want to say but don't have the words to say it. Don't take talking forgranted, be glad you can speak to the people you know and that they can understand what you are saying. If you have something that needs to be said you should say it.
I love the Hermanos en Cristo Iglesia here. It is a huge church! They have a couple of school buses that go around to pick up people to bring them to church. Worship is amazing! Everyone gets so excited! And they pretty much clap the whole way through the 45 minutes of worship. From my experiences in the States, if I remember corectly, it is hard to get people to clap the whole way through one song let alone the whole way through worship!
I love my honduran family. Walter and Audely are my perents. They are really cool and Audely is super pretty. My brothers and sisters are: Diego - 9 years, Sofia - 3 years, and Elias - 14 months. Sofia and Elias love to hang on me and come in my room to play with and take my things. I especially have to keep an eye on Elias. He loves to come in my room and climb on my suitcases.
I am kinda disappointer that we don't have more refried beans and rice. I have eaten so many things I wouldn't have touched in the States praying that I don't throw up. haha They make tons of tamales around Christmas. I never ate one in the states before but Ben said that these are nothing like the ones in the States. I had one for breakfast yesterday. It was pretty gross. I wouldn't want to eat one of those for supper let alone breakfast. I am very thankful for the mornings I can have corn flakes and a banana.
The other day as I was getting my Christmas presents ready for my family I found a gift bag that my mom sent along with me that had a tag on it that said "To: My loving wife From: Sam". Grandma Stoner probably never thought that her grand daughter would one day take that bag to Honduras and give a gift to her Honguran family in it... The tag in now displayed above my bed and the bag was given to my family with a gift in it.
A couple things you can be praying for:
*That my team and I would learn Spanish fast!
*Relationships would continue to be built with Hondurans
*Safety as we are out and about
*Good health ( I don't know if I have a super long cold, allergies, a reaction to my room being damp, or what but I have to keep taking cold medicine.)
*That the girls couls start to blend in a little. I don't know if this is possible though (how do you think I would lok with black hair?) I am getting used to the really long lous kissing noises and can usually laugh it off but it does get annoying sometimes.
Well I am going to call my family now. So I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!
I love you all!
I have been in Honduras for almost a month now! Sorry I have not updated sooner. We are super busy!
We have Spanish classes Monday through Friday 8am to 12pm. And that will last until the end of January. After Spanish class 3 days a week we do language rout. I go with Carey and we have established a rout around Kennedy where we talk to people along the way. We have a little text book to guid us through a simple conversation. This experience was not fun and really hard the first couple weeks. Most of the time Carey would have to take over the conversation because she know way more Spanish than I do. It is getting a little easier now that I know a little more Spanish and we know the people we are talking to a little better. I enjoy talking to Norma. She has a little table that she sells odds and ends off of and she gives us smarties. :)
Something that I really noticed since I'v been here is how much we take talking forgranted. In PA I would usually have to be forced to talk in a big group (although I was getting better at it). Here there is so much I want to say but don't have the words to say it. Don't take talking forgranted, be glad you can speak to the people you know and that they can understand what you are saying. If you have something that needs to be said you should say it.
I love the Hermanos en Cristo Iglesia here. It is a huge church! They have a couple of school buses that go around to pick up people to bring them to church. Worship is amazing! Everyone gets so excited! And they pretty much clap the whole way through the 45 minutes of worship. From my experiences in the States, if I remember corectly, it is hard to get people to clap the whole way through one song let alone the whole way through worship!
I love my honduran family. Walter and Audely are my perents. They are really cool and Audely is super pretty. My brothers and sisters are: Diego - 9 years, Sofia - 3 years, and Elias - 14 months. Sofia and Elias love to hang on me and come in my room to play with and take my things. I especially have to keep an eye on Elias. He loves to come in my room and climb on my suitcases.
I am kinda disappointer that we don't have more refried beans and rice. I have eaten so many things I wouldn't have touched in the States praying that I don't throw up. haha They make tons of tamales around Christmas. I never ate one in the states before but Ben said that these are nothing like the ones in the States. I had one for breakfast yesterday. It was pretty gross. I wouldn't want to eat one of those for supper let alone breakfast. I am very thankful for the mornings I can have corn flakes and a banana.
The other day as I was getting my Christmas presents ready for my family I found a gift bag that my mom sent along with me that had a tag on it that said "To: My loving wife From: Sam". Grandma Stoner probably never thought that her grand daughter would one day take that bag to Honduras and give a gift to her Honguran family in it... The tag in now displayed above my bed and the bag was given to my family with a gift in it.
A couple things you can be praying for:
*That my team and I would learn Spanish fast!
*Relationships would continue to be built with Hondurans
*Safety as we are out and about
*Good health ( I don't know if I have a super long cold, allergies, a reaction to my room being damp, or what but I have to keep taking cold medicine.)
*That the girls couls start to blend in a little. I don't know if this is possible though (how do you think I would lok with black hair?) I am getting used to the really long lous kissing noises and can usually laugh it off but it does get annoying sometimes.
Well I am going to call my family now. So I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!
I love you all!
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
TRAIN
We had teaching from Dick Marks and Pastor Ben Thompson yesterday and today.
Yesterday we talked about Understanding Behavior and Personality's. We all took the personality quiz and I am a beaver and a golden retriever. Out of the 4 girls on our team we are all predominately a different animal. We have one of each animal living in our room (Otter, Lion, Beaver, Golden Retriever). So we all have really different personalities but we get along great! It is such a God thing!
Today we talked about Leading with Kindness & Confidence. We talked about TRAIN's :)
Tell people what you expect of them. And make it clear!
Reward them when they do it. Behavior that gets rewarded gets repeated.
Remind them when they don't do it. Do it privately and keep it low key though.
Advise them of the consequences, positive or negative.
Implement the consequences. You can't change your mind - stick to your word! You are wining the respect of this person by doing so.
No Suprises! They have to know what you are doing and why you are doing it.
We have a train with double r's. :)
These are great steps to follow weather you are disciplining a child or training an adult in the work that they should do.
Yesterday we talked about Understanding Behavior and Personality's. We all took the personality quiz and I am a beaver and a golden retriever. Out of the 4 girls on our team we are all predominately a different animal. We have one of each animal living in our room (Otter, Lion, Beaver, Golden Retriever). So we all have really different personalities but we get along great! It is such a God thing!
Today we talked about Leading with Kindness & Confidence. We talked about TRAIN's :)
Tell people what you expect of them. And make it clear!
Reward them when they do it. Behavior that gets rewarded gets repeated.
Remind them when they don't do it. Do it privately and keep it low key though.
Advise them of the consequences, positive or negative.
Implement the consequences. You can't change your mind - stick to your word! You are wining the respect of this person by doing so.
No Suprises! They have to know what you are doing and why you are doing it.
We have a train with double r's. :)
These are great steps to follow weather you are disciplining a child or training an adult in the work that they should do.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
PA, Rain, and Proposals
Greetings Friends & Family,
I can't believe it has been almost a month since I have written an update for you. My time is flying! I have less than a month left in New York before returning home for a week over Thanksgiving. Wow! I am excited to be at home for a week and then in Honduras, but I am glad we have a week of debriefing back in New York after we get back from Honduras. I like this place. :)
I can't believe it has been almost a month since I have written an update for you. My time is flying! I have less than a month left in New York before returning home for a week over Thanksgiving. Wow! I am excited to be at home for a week and then in Honduras, but I am glad we have a week of debriefing back in New York after we get back from Honduras. I like this place. :)
I will share some highlights from the past month with you.
-We got to spend the week of October 17 in Pennsylvania. That Sunday morning we got up really early and went to share our story with the youth and young adults at Manor Church in Lancaster. After Sunday school we got to attend the worship service. That was pretty awesome for me because I have missed worshiping in a setting with lots of believers. And to make the day even better we all got to have lunch at my house, which was made by my amazing mother. We went to Mike's Spanish church in York Springs that afternoon to share again. We all went to the cabin in Dillsburg for our retreat with Kimberly Horst after that. Our main focus for the 3 days was inner healing and prayer. It was a great time of learning and growing as a team. Here is one of my journal entries from the retreat.
"It is raining and I am sitting on the back deck. It is so peaceful here. All I can hear is the rain falling. Such a drastic change from New York. I think it is a God thing that it is raining. Just a couple hours ago Melanie and I were swinging on the deck when I said how I like the sound and smell of rain and how I thought it would be cool to sit out here in the rain. And now I'm sitting out here and it's raining! How awesome is our God?! He can change your perspective on things you normally wouldn't like into things you enjoy, like rain."
-We had teaching from Larry Locke this past week. He is an amazing man of God and has a great testimony. His theme of teaching was "A Mission To Die For... Dying To Self, Carrying Our Cross, Follow Jesus". He had lots of great stories and analogies to go with his teaching. This is one of the ones that really stuck out to me. How does a jeweler show off his expensive diamonds? With a black back drop. You can see them best with a contrast. In the same way God shows off His master pieces (us) best with a black back drop (the tough times in our lives).
That subject has been coming up a lot in our training. God usually uses the hardest times in our lives to teach us the most. We have to learn how to fully rely on Him and trust Him through it all. I have been struggling with this, but if the hard times are what grow us the most and bring us closer to God, then bring it on...
-I will tell you something funny that has been happening now. I get lots of comments for my name, eyes, and hair. And one for my blue sweat shirt. There is a guy at breakfast ministry who said I look exactly like his ex-girlfriend. He also told me that she was living in Florida when she was in a drunk driving accident. As soon as he heard he flew down to see her as fast as he could. She then died in his arms. Not sure how much of that story is actually true... Then there is Lewis at the Bowery Mission. He fell in love with me when I sat down to have lunch at his table because his first girlfriend's name was Emily. Apparently I broke his heart because I am going to Honduras and he won't be able to come see me there. The next week we were there he came and sat at the table I was eating at. He then proposed to me and tried to convince me that I should marry him. I then tried to convince him that it wasn't a good idea and he could just pretend that he was my grandpa (because he is old enough to be!). And then on Saturday while working with Manna of Life I had another guy want to marry me. He said that when I got home from work he would have the bath tub filled up and supper made. He said "I hope you like mashed potatoes." I told him that I am not allowed to date while in the STEP program and he said to look him up after we are done. It is interesting that this homeless guy is going to have a house for me and a bath tub to fill up and I am the one that is going to have to go to work. There have been countless other times while walking down the side walk that guys comment on the "pretty white ladies".
-I have been challenged by the devotion book we have been reading. It is called Extreme Devotion and has tons of true stories of people who have really suffered for their faith. It is amazing to hear about what some people have to go through to be faithful to Christ. And makes me wonder if I could stand firm through what they are going through...
My prayer requests are pretty much the same as last time.
-Unity and growth as a team
-To see other people the way Jesus sees them
-Courage to talk to people on the buses and subways (I have talked to some people but not nearly as many as I would like to)
Thank you so much for your prayers. There are times when I can pretty much tell that people had to have been praying.
I am really going to try to write another update before I go home for Thanksgiving. I guess you will see if it actually happens.
I love you all!
~Emily Joy
Oh, PS You can still send mail. It is always fun to receive. :)
c/o Priority 1 Ministries/UDC
490 E. 181st st., Apt 4A
Bronx, NY 10457
Saturday, October 16, 2010
In PA
I don't have time to give a long update, but I need to tell you that I will be in Pennsylvania all of next week. We are leaving early tomorrow morning to head to Manor Church in Lancaster. Our team will be sharing with the youth and young adult Sunday School class. After church we are all going to my house for lunch! I am so excited to have lunch with my family! After lunch we will go to the Spanish Church in York Springs. From there we will go to a cabin in the Dillsburg area for our retreat with Kimberly Horst. That will end on Wednesday morning and then I will get to spend the rest of that day and night at my house, maybe with a couple of my team members. We will then be in the Chambersburg area from Thursday to Sunday getting ready for and then helping with a volleyball tournament. It is a fundraiser for Priority 1 Ministries. If you are available you should come to see us and support the ministry. It is at Antrim BIC Church - 24 Kauffman Road East, Chambersburg, PA. The games are Friday the 22nd at 6pm and Saturday the 23rd starting at 8am. You can learn more at priority1ministries.org
I am so excited to be spending the week in Pennsylvania!
I am so excited to be spending the week in Pennsylvania!
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Rain, Hugs, Cats, Spanish, and wishing I could have spent the day with my family
Hello People,
I don't really like writing so I am doing a bad job of keeping you updated.
We have been doing lots of stuff and I don't have time to tell all of it, but I will tell you about Saturday, which was a pretty cool day.
Erin Wolf and her fiance Matt were here. She gave us some pointers for childrens ministry and taught us some cool rope tricks to go with Bible stories. We had leftovers for lunch and just hung out for awhile. Erin, Matt, and Steve went to Little Italy for the afternoon. Carey, Evi, Melanie, Ben, and I then went to Central Park. We met up with Jeremy, Tyler, Rachel, and Mary. It was so good to see them! The point of the Pathway teem coming to New York was to talk to people. I got to go around with Rachel to talk to people. While in Central Park you will have a countless number of people ask if you would like to rent a bike. One of them was very interested in talking and didn't want us to keep walking so we got to ask him about what he believed. After we got past all the bikes we went down to the playground. Rachel is amazing! She can walk up to a complete stranger and start a conversation! I am so proud of her...
For supper we went to Jeremy's favorite place to eat in New York. A little vendor that sells Greek food. We all got the lamb and or chicken platter. It was so good. I would like to go back some time before we leave if possible. :)
After I said good bye we came back to the apartment and watched To Save A Life. I could watch that movie many times and be challenged by it every time. It makes you want to be nice to everyone. So Saturday was a very good day.
I will tell you about today now.
I got to sleep in until 7:30 today because I didn't have to help with breakfast ministry. I have been feeling kind of dry while doing devotions recently so this morning I let God know. I let him know how I was feeling and asked for a touch from Him. While I was praying, lyrics from the song "Deep in Love With You" by Michael W. Smith keep coming into my head. When I was listened to it on my ipod at first it felt like I was sitting at Gods feet just listening to Him. But then I got a hug from Him! So awesome, and an answer to my prayer.
We had the lesson Blessed to be a Blessing this morning taught by Bonnie. Then Ben met up with one of his friends and the girls went to Barns and Noble to read. We had Spanish class this afternoon at the church. I am having a really hard time remembering all the stuff we talk about.
It was a dreary, cloudy, rainy day. I got a couple texts from mom telling about what they were doing with pictures of Rachel and her cat. I am wishing I could have spent the day with my family. I want to curl up on the couch with them and a blanket and watch a movie. I miss them...
Oh and I have been getting mail with my name on that really isn't for me. So that is kinda disappointing.
My day started awesomely with God got kinda sad and now I am going to go and try to end it happily with God. We'll see how it goes...
Good night
I don't really like writing so I am doing a bad job of keeping you updated.
We have been doing lots of stuff and I don't have time to tell all of it, but I will tell you about Saturday, which was a pretty cool day.
Erin Wolf and her fiance Matt were here. She gave us some pointers for childrens ministry and taught us some cool rope tricks to go with Bible stories. We had leftovers for lunch and just hung out for awhile. Erin, Matt, and Steve went to Little Italy for the afternoon. Carey, Evi, Melanie, Ben, and I then went to Central Park. We met up with Jeremy, Tyler, Rachel, and Mary. It was so good to see them! The point of the Pathway teem coming to New York was to talk to people. I got to go around with Rachel to talk to people. While in Central Park you will have a countless number of people ask if you would like to rent a bike. One of them was very interested in talking and didn't want us to keep walking so we got to ask him about what he believed. After we got past all the bikes we went down to the playground. Rachel is amazing! She can walk up to a complete stranger and start a conversation! I am so proud of her...
For supper we went to Jeremy's favorite place to eat in New York. A little vendor that sells Greek food. We all got the lamb and or chicken platter. It was so good. I would like to go back some time before we leave if possible. :)
After I said good bye we came back to the apartment and watched To Save A Life. I could watch that movie many times and be challenged by it every time. It makes you want to be nice to everyone. So Saturday was a very good day.
I will tell you about today now.
I got to sleep in until 7:30 today because I didn't have to help with breakfast ministry. I have been feeling kind of dry while doing devotions recently so this morning I let God know. I let him know how I was feeling and asked for a touch from Him. While I was praying, lyrics from the song "Deep in Love With You" by Michael W. Smith keep coming into my head. When I was listened to it on my ipod at first it felt like I was sitting at Gods feet just listening to Him. But then I got a hug from Him! So awesome, and an answer to my prayer.
We had the lesson Blessed to be a Blessing this morning taught by Bonnie. Then Ben met up with one of his friends and the girls went to Barns and Noble to read. We had Spanish class this afternoon at the church. I am having a really hard time remembering all the stuff we talk about.
It was a dreary, cloudy, rainy day. I got a couple texts from mom telling about what they were doing with pictures of Rachel and her cat. I am wishing I could have spent the day with my family. I want to curl up on the couch with them and a blanket and watch a movie. I miss them...
Oh and I have been getting mail with my name on that really isn't for me. So that is kinda disappointing.
My day started awesomely with God got kinda sad and now I am going to go and try to end it happily with God. We'll see how it goes...
Good night
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
He, who knew no sin, became sin
We are reading Search For Significance and had a discussion about it tonight. Here is the quote that started some cool thoughts "Only if we understand the horror of coming under the wrath of a holy God for our sins will we appreciate what Christ did on the cross. Every day our minds should be overwhelmed by thankfulness for what He did on our behalf."
I never really spent much time thinking on this subject. Jesus who was perfect took on all the sins of the world, past, present, and future. He didn't just take mine and yours, He took everyones, all the billions and billions of people that ever lived and ever will live! And on top of that God can't stand sin, so imagine how He was feeling when His Son who knew no sin became the sin of the world... And when the soldier stabbed His side blood and water flowed out. Bonnie said that she has herd doctors say that is the sign of a massive heart attack, which means the heart explodes. Our sins busted Jesus' heart, literally!....
I am pretty amazed right now. After hearing that how can I not thank and worship my AMAZING God!
On a side note, I forgot to give you my mailing address yesterday when I posted, so here it is. It is always fun to get mail. :)
Emily Stoner
c/o Priority 1 Ministries/UDC
490 E. 181st ST., Apt 4A
Bronx, NY 10457
I never really spent much time thinking on this subject. Jesus who was perfect took on all the sins of the world, past, present, and future. He didn't just take mine and yours, He took everyones, all the billions and billions of people that ever lived and ever will live! And on top of that God can't stand sin, so imagine how He was feeling when His Son who knew no sin became the sin of the world... And when the soldier stabbed His side blood and water flowed out. Bonnie said that she has herd doctors say that is the sign of a massive heart attack, which means the heart explodes. Our sins busted Jesus' heart, literally!....
I am pretty amazed right now. After hearing that how can I not thank and worship my AMAZING God!
On a side note, I forgot to give you my mailing address yesterday when I posted, so here it is. It is always fun to get mail. :)
Emily Stoner
c/o Priority 1 Ministries/UDC
490 E. 181st ST., Apt 4A
Bronx, NY 10457
Monday, September 20, 2010
Our Schedule
Dear Friends and Family,
After being in the Bronx for over a week I am finally writing a letter for you. It seems like I have been here way longer than one week because we are doing so much. I think my ten weeks here are going to go by way too fast.
Our weekly schedule looks something like this:
Monday & Tuesday – mentoring/training with special speakers (pastors, missionaries)
Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday morning – breakfast ministry at Fellowship Chapel Brethren In Christ Church (where we attend)
Tuesday afternoon – conversational Spanish training
Wednesday & Thursday – helping with an after school program at Manhattan Bible Church/Academy
Thursday 1:00-3:00 – Packing food for the food distribution at Manhattan Bible Church
Friday – World Vision, working in the warehouse/store organizing and stocking shelves
Sunday – Sunday School & church at Fellowship Cha
We have lots of other random things we do through out the week. We are reading a couple of books, so we spend a lot of time reading. Some of the books are: On Being a Missionary, The Search for Significance, Victory over the Darkness, and Celebration of Discipline. That is some but not all!
Last Monday and Tuesday Mike Holland and Carlos did out training. The main focus was on prayer. We did a drama that really helped me understand the importance of prayer and reminded me that it really does make a difference. There is a battle in the spiritual realm and every time we pray we are helping God’s angels in that battle. We all know that battles can last a long time, so we shouldn’t give up on prayer so quickly. We may be getting really close to victory, but then we stop praying because we think it is taking too long. There are lots of miracles waiting to happen; we just have to ask for them. We then practiced praying in some ways that I had never done before. It was pretty awesome!
The after school program is interesting. The first day was kind of hard because we were not sure what we were supposed to be doing, but the second day went better. We take all of the older kids to the park for the first hour and then back to the school for homework. I help in the class of 4th graders, which consists of helping them with any questions they have and then checking their work, without an answer key! I sure hope I do it right! I never would have thought I would be helping in a school class room! That’s a place I didn’t see myself, but I guess God had other ideas. :)
I am really enjoying getting to know everyone on our team. They are all really cool and we have fun together.
We are getting used to the public transportation, too. I enjoy it, but there are a lot of numbers and letters to remember.
A couple things you can be praying for:
-Unity as a team (We are doing really well, but pray that it continues.)
-Courage to talk to people we don’t know and bring up spiritual conversations
-All the people we interact with, that God would be working in their hearts
-That our team will be able to learn Spanish really quickly
-That I (and our team) would depend solely on God for our strength
-Finances (I still need about $2,300)
Thank you for all your prayers!
Emily Joy
Our weekly schedule looks something like this:
Monday & Tuesday – mentoring/training with special speakers (pastors, missionaries)
Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday morning – breakfast ministry at Fellowship Chapel Brethren In Christ Church (where we attend)
Tuesday afternoon – conversational Spanish training
Wednesday & Thursday – helping with an after school program at Manhattan Bible Church/Academy
Thursday 1:00-3:00 – Packing food for the food distribution at Manhattan Bible Church
Friday – World Vision, working in the warehouse/store organizing and stocking shelves
Sunday – Sunday School & church at Fellowship Cha
We have lots of other random things we do through out the week. We are reading a couple of books, so we spend a lot of time reading. Some of the books are: On Being a Missionary, The Search for Significance, Victory over the Darkness, and Celebration of Discipline. That is some but not all!
Last Monday and Tuesday Mike Holland and Carlos did out training. The main focus was on prayer. We did a drama that really helped me understand the importance of prayer and reminded me that it really does make a difference. There is a battle in the spiritual realm and every time we pray we are helping God’s angels in that battle. We all know that battles can last a long time, so we shouldn’t give up on prayer so quickly. We may be getting really close to victory, but then we stop praying because we think it is taking too long. There are lots of miracles waiting to happen; we just have to ask for them. We then practiced praying in some ways that I had never done before. It was pretty awesome!
The after school program is interesting. The first day was kind of hard because we were not sure what we were supposed to be doing, but the second day went better. We take all of the older kids to the park for the first hour and then back to the school for homework. I help in the class of 4th graders, which consists of helping them with any questions they have and then checking their work, without an answer key! I sure hope I do it right! I never would have thought I would be helping in a school class room! That’s a place I didn’t see myself, but I guess God had other ideas. :)
I am really enjoying getting to know everyone on our team. They are all really cool and we have fun together.
We are getting used to the public transportation, too. I enjoy it, but there are a lot of numbers and letters to remember.
A couple things you can be praying for:
-Unity as a team (We are doing really well, but pray that it continues.)
-Courage to talk to people we don’t know and bring up spiritual conversations
-All the people we interact with, that God would be working in their hearts
-That our team will be able to learn Spanish really quickly
-That I (and our team) would depend solely on God for our strength
-Finances (I still need about $2,300)
Thank you for all your prayers!
Emily Joy
Sunday, September 12, 2010
In the Bronx
Hi All,
It has been a really good 2 days. So far I love the city. I don't think I will want to leave in 10 weeks. haha But it will then be time to move on to Honduras.
Church was long but good today. Something that stuck out to me was "sometimes by God's grace, God can use non Christians to point out the faults in Christians. If a non Christian does something good or is the answer to someones prayer God should still get the glory for that".
After church we got the instructions for breakfast ministry on Tuesday. It was a lot to take in and try to remember, but I think we will be able to do it. :)
This afternoon we went to the festival in Little Italy (and no it is not a restaurant here, it is a part of the Bronx). It was the first time the 5 of us were out alone. It rained the whole time we were there and it was lots of fun. :)
You can continue to pray for the people we will be interacting with later this week. My prayer is that God will start to work on their hearts now and we can help to keep it going.
Thanks for your prayers!
Emily Joy
It has been a really good 2 days. So far I love the city. I don't think I will want to leave in 10 weeks. haha But it will then be time to move on to Honduras.
Church was long but good today. Something that stuck out to me was "sometimes by God's grace, God can use non Christians to point out the faults in Christians. If a non Christian does something good or is the answer to someones prayer God should still get the glory for that".
After church we got the instructions for breakfast ministry on Tuesday. It was a lot to take in and try to remember, but I think we will be able to do it. :)
This afternoon we went to the festival in Little Italy (and no it is not a restaurant here, it is a part of the Bronx). It was the first time the 5 of us were out alone. It rained the whole time we were there and it was lots of fun. :)
You can continue to pray for the people we will be interacting with later this week. My prayer is that God will start to work on their hearts now and we can help to keep it going.
Thanks for your prayers!
Emily Joy
Saturday, September 4, 2010
My faith is growing
Today was a good day. I got to spend lots of time with my family.
I have now raised $4,099 of support. This means I only need $6,401 more!
Tomorrow is my last Sunday at Pathway for a while. I am surely going to miss it. Katie and I are going to be commissioned. I have a feeling that this is going to be a hard day, happy but also sad…
My faith is definitely growing.
I have now raised $4,099 of support. This means I only need $6,401 more!
Tomorrow is my last Sunday at Pathway for a while. I am surely going to miss it. Katie and I are going to be commissioned. I have a feeling that this is going to be a hard day, happy but also sad…
My faith is definitely growing.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
If you didn’t know, you do now!
I am going to be participating in the S.T.E.P. program beginning September 11! S.T.E.P. is an acronym that stands for Serve and learn with missionaries and church leaders oveseas, Train in language acquisition and how to learn a culture, Experience living, working, and worshipping with Latino Christians, and Promote evangelism as a way of life.
It is a 9 month program where I will spend 10 weeks in the Bronx, NY, have a week at home over Thanksgiving, and then spend the last 6 months in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. The time in New York will be discipleship training where I will live in a community setting and have the opportunity to serve in various kinds of ministries. Once in Honduras, I will live with a Honduran family from the BIC church there. I will have language study each week day morning for 8 weeks, and will be taught by professional Honduran teachers. After acquiring language and culture adaptation skills, we will be ready to practice what we’ve learned by participating in practical outreach and ministry.
You may be wondering, “Why is she doing this?” And I will tell you why. I have felt called to ministry for a couple of years, but never really took it seriously. After reading “Crazy Love” a couple of months ago I was challenged to take a look at my life and see if I was doing any thing to make my life look different than the unbeliever. Sadly I could come up with nothing that I was doing that required faith. I decided it was time to change that! I became aware of the need for more people to be on the S.T.E.P. team, prayed about it (could not find any acceptable reasons not to go), applied, and got accepted! So, I am doing this because I am ready to take my Christian walk to the next level. I want to grow my faith in tremendous ways and fall so much more in love with my God while I am serving others.
The first step in growing my faith is the fundraising. As of now I have raised about $2,800 (which is a lot of money) but I need $10,500 (which is a lot more). I am trusting God to provide what I need to go on this trip because I know this is where he wants me to be. I am also working on a list of at least 50 people who will commit to praying for me regularly. If you are at all interested or willing to help in either of those ways please let me know. I would appreciate your prayers!
I am going to try to keep you updated on what’s going on.
Until next time,
Your sister in Christ,
Emily Joy
It is a 9 month program where I will spend 10 weeks in the Bronx, NY, have a week at home over Thanksgiving, and then spend the last 6 months in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. The time in New York will be discipleship training where I will live in a community setting and have the opportunity to serve in various kinds of ministries. Once in Honduras, I will live with a Honduran family from the BIC church there. I will have language study each week day morning for 8 weeks, and will be taught by professional Honduran teachers. After acquiring language and culture adaptation skills, we will be ready to practice what we’ve learned by participating in practical outreach and ministry.
You may be wondering, “Why is she doing this?” And I will tell you why. I have felt called to ministry for a couple of years, but never really took it seriously. After reading “Crazy Love” a couple of months ago I was challenged to take a look at my life and see if I was doing any thing to make my life look different than the unbeliever. Sadly I could come up with nothing that I was doing that required faith. I decided it was time to change that! I became aware of the need for more people to be on the S.T.E.P. team, prayed about it (could not find any acceptable reasons not to go), applied, and got accepted! So, I am doing this because I am ready to take my Christian walk to the next level. I want to grow my faith in tremendous ways and fall so much more in love with my God while I am serving others.
The first step in growing my faith is the fundraising. As of now I have raised about $2,800 (which is a lot of money) but I need $10,500 (which is a lot more). I am trusting God to provide what I need to go on this trip because I know this is where he wants me to be. I am also working on a list of at least 50 people who will commit to praying for me regularly. If you are at all interested or willing to help in either of those ways please let me know. I would appreciate your prayers!
I am going to try to keep you updated on what’s going on.
Until next time,
Your sister in Christ,
Emily Joy
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