An Ebenezer Summer

    

   

    I find that serving with Serge that I use these terms about things without explaining them so before I get into this post, I have included a key that defines 5 terms.

Encounter/Serge Internship: Summer programme for Irish and American university students or graduates. The time includes a study of Galatians, going through a Free To Love manual (Sonship for Encounter alumni) and 2 weeks of outreach teams twice throughout Ireland.

Intern: An Irish or American university student or graduate participating in the programme. An Irish intern participates and serves for one month (Encounter) and an American intern participates and serves for 2 months (Encounter/Serge Internship).

CUI: Christian Unions Ireland (Intervarsity for those reading this in America)

Free To Love: A course that teaches you that you are a child of God and what that means for you with loads of reflection questions and you get a mentor for the summer with it as well.

Outreach teams or “O-teams : Teams of 3-6 interns with an Apprentice* (*short-term Serge staff-AKA yours, truly*) that go to various churches throughout the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland and serve as needed for 2 weeks.

    

     Last week, I wrapped up my final summer participating in Serge and Christian Unions Ireland’s Encounter programme. Though I know I still have at least another year left here in Ireland there is a bittersweet feeling in me as I realize that I am closing the Encounter chapter from my life. There will be no more summers of back to back outreach teams, amazing food from the Coolnagreina at Greystones, mornings and evenings filled with worship in the Coolnagreina meeting room, chip runs with Serge and CUI staff and interns and playing games or volleyball late into the night or grabbing a drink at the beloved “Beach House”.

   As I accept this and reflect on past summers, I think about the things I have learned from Encounter. My first summer doing Encounter, I was an intern. I learned that summer how I had struggled to believe that God actually loved me and learned that the more I would accept His love for me the more free I was to selflessly love others and accept that others loved me. I believed that summer that God really truly loved me, even the bits of me that I would like to hide from Him. 2 years later, I moved to Ireland with plans to serve with Serge for 2 years and got to participate in Encounter again only this time as Serge staff. I became more aware of my sin that summer and realized how much I needed Jesus to help me honor God and obey Him.  Last Wednesday, I finished my final Encounter. I thought back on the summer and tried to think of what monumental thing I learned. Since I had been going through “Free To Love” this past year with a mentor I felt going into the summer that I would just continue to dig deeper into what I learned this past year and I did. I got to dig more into who I am in Christ and had some good and hard conversations with God about stuff. There wasn’t a monumental lesson for me though or so I thought.

     I feel that each summer is always shaped by some major theme or lesson. I could not pinpoint what this past Encounter’s was until I returned home after our final debrief. On my second O-team, I had the pleasure and joy of leading an outreach team with the church circuit that I have been serving with this past year. I also had the pleasure of hosting them in my home! All the rooms were full. The fridge was full (or well until we ran out of food). People were always coming and going. It was so nice!          

      When I would go downstairs to have breakfast, there would always be one or two people sitting in the sitting room with a cup of tea or coffee, toast or a bowl of cereal or granola with yogurt and an open Bible. Something about seeing it every morning encouraged me and reminded me how important God’s Word is. They were a great group and were always so quick to encourage and serve others and one another. They responded well when things didn’t go as planned and took whatever came next with positive attitudes and open arms. I saw so much of Jesus in each person on my team. 

     When I returned home after a final debrief with the interns about a week later, I knew that it would be sad to not have full rooms and people coming in and out of the house. As I came downstairs the following morning and entered a quiet sitting room without anyone having their breakfast and reading their Bible, I was sad but although I was sad I couldn’t help but feel gratitude as I reflected on memories of a full home with music, laughter, movie nights and reading the Bible together.

    As I think on these things and think of this past Encounter, the word that comes to mind is “compassion”. I have seen so much compassion this summer in all 21 interns. Compassion for each other, strangers, ministry leaders and for the CUI and Serge staff. I have left this past Encounter feeling so loved by God as well as others and affirmed as a leader. I have left full of hope for the world and for those who do not know Jesus to come to know him, and know his love and grace. I have realized that sometimes there isn’t a difficult lesson or life-changing one. Sometimes, God just wants you to feel His love, His joy, His providence and His power. He wants to fill you up to the brim and sweetly and gently remind you of His goodness as He speaks His truths over you through others.

       In 1 Samuel 7:12, it talks about how Samuel set up a stone to commemorate how God had helped the Israelites in their victory over the Philistines at Mizpah and called it “Ebenezer” which means “stone of help”.  A friend of mine told me once that there are moments in our lives that can be called our “Ebenezer” moments. Moments that mark all the good that God has done and help He has given. This Encounter summer is my “Ebenezer” summer. As I look back I can see that the theme of this summer for me was not one that primarily focused on my personal growth as it was in prior Encounter summers but instead was one that pointed to God’s endless compassion and providence.

     Praise Him for all He has done in our interns, our CUI and Serge staff and in me. Praise God for His goodness, His abundant love and His Spirit’s leading in life!

Have a great week!

-Amy