New Exec Leaders Training Weekend #2
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30
On July 9-11, the new student executive leaders team met for their second weekend of summer training. We went camping at the Albion Hills Conservation Area and spent the weekend expanding on some of the visioning of the last training weekend and committing to some details for the coming year. This weekend was also co-lead with outgoing leaders Reuben and Ainsley. Reuben and Ainsley handled all of the arrangements and food preparation for the weekend and I facilitated the planning sessions.
There wasn’t that much time between this weekend and the previous training weekend (only two weeks), but it was amazing what happened during those two weeks. All the hostility towards the vision for campus ministry had completely dissolved and the students were actually excited about its implementation!
Within a few hours; the students had brainstormed ideas of what to study for the upcoming semester (1 and 2 Peter), how they wanted to structure large group meetings, how they wanted to transition into small groups, and loads of creative ideas for outreach amongst the larger student body! The one item, I really wanted the students to be excited about and have new vision around was how they set-up Campus Groups Day and how they would choose to be present during Orientation Week. These are two important events that occur at the beginning of the year, and how the students leaders approach these events is often reflected in the number of new members who join the group. Campus Groups day, is an 5 hour event that happens in the first week of school, where all of Gould Street is closed to traffic, and all the campus groups have a table to represent their group. Often these tables have sign-up sheets and general information and pamphlets about the group, as well as something to draw people in like games, prizes, etc. The student leaders were inspired to do something different with these events, choosing to not merely be present, but BOLDLY represent the group and themselves by using the skills and talents amongst them. Vanessa, a fashion student offered to make T-Shirts for the all the student volunteers that would be eye-catching and serve as a parable. Moses, a new media student offered to make posters and flyers for the event and communicate who we are by giving us a new website. The excitement that Vanessa and Moses had was contagious and inspired the other student leaders to brainstorm ideas of how they could use their skills and talents to outreach to students during the first weeks of school!
After our first planning session, we had some time to explore the Conservation Area, it was unfortunate that many of our afternoon activities, mainly swimming, were not possible in the Conservation Area and some of the surrounding parks, but we were able to spend some time bonding and laughing in our car adventures! Dinner proved to be an ambitious meal, and had its own set of complications, but in the end everything worked out and was delicious!
After dinner, Reuben led us in a session about forms and general information in regards to interactions with the Ryerson Student Union. It was very informative, and he brought examples of past forms. I was deeply touched by his investment in the new leaders and his desire to set them up well for the upcoming year.
Following this time, there was a brief discussion about the dividing up the defined roles. Everyone was excited and ready to jump in, and the roles the students chose, seemed to fit with their skills and passions. Brian, who enjoys structure and organization offered to set up the bookings of rooms for meeting and the arrangements for booking A/V equipment, as well as taking care of the financial forms required for reimbursement from the Ryerson Student Union. Moses, who enjoys art and design was excited about doing the website and promotional material for the group, as well as helping with snacks for our meetings. Jenna, who is gifted with superb interpersonal skills offered to be in charge of communications and be responsible for sending weekly emails and updating our facebook group, as well as putting together a community contact list so members of our community can be in contact with each other. Vanessa, this year’s president, will be in charge of overseeing the above roles as well as other tasks associated with the mentoring and discipling of members of the leadership team and larger community.
Following this session, we made a variety of desserts around the fire: ‘smores, banana boats, and an experimental cake baked in a orange. Everything was delicious!
The next day, after breakfast, we cleaned up the campsite. We had our last session, on the beach. We did a lectio divina, on Matthew 11:28-30. This passage really spoke to the reality of the group, as many were weary from carrying heavy burdens on their own. We spent some time in reflection and prayer. It was beautiful and peaceful doing this exercise on the beach, though at times it was a little too peaceful, as the students kept falling asleep! After we wrapped up this session, we had lunch and concluded the weekend.
This weekend was full of new experiences for me as it was my first time camping in a tent. It also was a redemptive experience having the students run with the vision and be excited about its implementation. It also felt like already this team of students were beginning to work together well, each had something valued to offer and was excited to do so. I also felt like a part of that team, there is so much that I have received in training and wisdom during my absence from students this past year that I am excited to share! I see opportunities to train these students in how to be invitational, how to call each other deeply, how to lead fully as themselves and appreciate the gifts they are and bring to the Kingdom.
I feel like I’ve used this word a lot in this post, but I am truly excited to see what God will do with this team in the coming year. And I pray that I will be part of His plan.
New Exec Leaders Training Weekend #1
And the people continued to bring freewill offerings morning after morning. So all the skilled craftsmen who were doing all the work on the sanctuary left their work and said to Moses, “The people are bringing more than enough for doing the work the LORD commanded to be done.” Then Moses gave an order and they sent this word throughout the camp: “No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary.” And so the people were restrained from bringing more, because what they already had was more than enough to do all the work. Exodus 36:3-7, NIV
On June 25-27, I had the pleasure of joining the new student executive leaders of the Ryerson IV community on their first training weekend. The weekend was co-planned by myself and the outgoing co-presidents of the fellowship; Reuben and Ainsley; and took place at Reuben’s family farm.
The weekend was packed as we spent time getting to know each other, debriefing last year and visioning for the upcoming school year.
Each year I say this, yet each year I am amazed at how quickly it happens; this team of leaders began to bond! As a result of the minor earthquake that occurred (centralized in Ottawa), there were some delays in Vanessa’s arrival to Reuben’s house. I was surprised and touched as all the students chose to wait up until 1 am and pile into a van to go collect Vanessa from the train station. It was an unexpected team building activity!
The next morning after breakfast, we studied Exodus 35, the building of the Tabernacle, which I had just studied at a staff conference a few weeks prior. The students really delved into the text and made insightful discoveries. I left them with application questions of what are the skills and talents that you are freely offering to God this year; and how can we invite other to freely offer their skills and talents in the community?
In the afternoon we spent some time debriefing the past year, and then spent some time enjoying Reuben’s farm.
After dinner, we watched the movie, Ocean’s Eleven and spent some time in discussion afterward. Coming out of the movie was the big idea of striving toward a seemingly impossible goal and what were the costs and benefits associated. It was at this point that I led the students in an exercise where they dreamed of seemingly impossible ideas for what ministry could look like in the coming year. Some of their ideas were entirely possible if they approached it with willing hearts and a bit of training. Some of their ideas about sharing the gospel with their friends and striving towards a multi-ethnic community warmed my heart and made me excited to see what they would do in the coming year! After this discussion, I cast the vision I had received for campus ministry.
The initial response to the vision was a lot of questions and a bit of hostility. The students were not sure about some of the big changes carrying out this vision would entail. We ended the evening with a decision to “sleep on it” and return to discuss the next day.
The following morning we all attended Reuben’s church. I always love attending the churches my students either regularly attend or attended, as I enjoy being in places of their spiritual history. Following the service, we went back to Reuben’s place and had lunch and resumed discussion about the vision for the upcoming year. The students had a few more questions, but overall felt like they wanted to move forward and see how we could begin implementation of the vision. We ended the weekend together by praying for each other as we returned to our busy summer schedules.
Afterward, everyone was heading back to Toronto, and I invited them to help me paint my new room. I expected only a few to say yes, and was surprised when everyone agreed! We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening painting the walls of my room and eating pizza! It was an unexpected and fun way to end the weekend, and whenever I look at my walls I think of the great day we had painting!
Launching 20,000 Extraordinary Kingdom Leaders by 2020
Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship of Canada’s ten year vision statement is as follows: Launching 20,000 Extraordinary Kingdom Leaders by 2020.
What this means is that by the year 2020, Inter-Varsity hopes to have 20,000 Extraordinary Kingdom Leaders (E.K.L.) be part of and graduate from their Inter-Varsity communities and be “launched” into churches, workplaces, homes and beyond!
What defines an “Extraordinary Kingdom Leader”? Exemplary women and men who have learned to integrate their faith and life. They are people who carry their vibrant and contagious faith from our camps and campuses, to their families, churches, communities and vocations. Wherever they find themselves, they become recognized as spiritual leaders, possessing in increasing measure, a love for God, and a love for people. Inter-Varsity’s alumni are missional, committed to scripture, to prayer, and to worship. They are life-long influencers, and shapers of culture from a Kingdom paradigm. Extraordinary leaders are intentional about bringing the kingdom to whatever circles they travel in. We would describe extraordinary leaders in the following blocks: They passionately love Jesus and lay down their lives for the sake of the kingdom. They are growing in character (fruits of the spirit, ie: love, joy, peace, etc); they are becoming self aware; they are dealing with sin and hurt in their lives. They have entered into the practices: scripture, prayer, community, evangelism, generosity.
How do we hope to achieve this?
Well, the division of Inter-Varsity that I work for, Campus Ministry (which includes High School, International Students, Undergraduate and Graduate Student Ministries) is responsible for launching 10,000 of these Kingdom Leaders in the next 10 years (the other 10,000 will come from Inter-Varsity’s various Camp Ministries).
There are about 100 Campus Fellowships throughout all of Canada, and there are roughly 100 Canadian IVCF staff. In order to achieve the goal of 10,000 Extraordinary Kingdom Leaders by 2020, each fellowship would need to launch 100 E.K.L.s in total or roughly 10 E.K.L.s per year!
In order to achieve this goal, some changes need to be done in how we do ministry, we need:
– To get in the mindset that before our fellowships have 75 people, we are pioneering!
– To have a consistent invitational posture.
– To drop as much of a deadening structure as possible.
– To focus on small groups and have the large group develop from them, rather than the other way around.
– To call each other deeply (towards God and out of sin) and be intentional about our own development.
– To continuously partner with and disciple students so they disciple more students and those students disciple more students.
Exciting? Yes.
Scary? Yes!
Impossible? No. I believe it is entirely possible to achieve this goal, and even the very act of striving for an ambitious goal causes us to be BOLD and take risks that we might not take if we only worked towards an undefined goal!
Please pray for the various Inter-Varsity Campus ministers who are in the process of casting this vision to their students.
Campus Gathering
Campus Gathering is an annual Inter-Varsity Canada national conference in which staff from across the country who work in High School Ministry, Undergraduate ministry, Graduate Student Ministry and International Student Ministry; come together for a week to rest and receive vision for the coming year.
This was my first time attending Campus Gathering, and I was excited to spend the week meeting and reuniting with staff from across the country and to receive teaching and vision for the coming year.
We spent each morning in scripture study of Exodus 31-35. We were challenged as we studied the passage about the Israelites and Aaron creating and worshipping a golden calf and spent some time praying and repenting of the golden calves of our lives. Later on in the week we were inspired by Moses’ staunch support of his people and the ways in which he interceded for them with the LORD. We ended the week encouraged by the Israelites as they brought forth their freewill offerings and used their skills and talents to build a Tabernacle.
In the evenings we spent time in our divisions receiving teaching and vision for the coming year. In the Undergraduate Ministry division, we spent the time learning, understanding and receiving strategies for implementation of Inter-Varsity’s 20 000 Extraordinary Kingdom Leaders by 2010; the vision we’d been presented last year. Some of the vision being cast seemed lofty and unattainable, but as we had time to process and ask questions, we were able to see how we could work towards its implementation.
A highlight during the week was one evening the staff who attended AASC led an evening of bubble tea and karoke. It was great to partner with the staff, and bless our community while being empowered to lead as ourselves. My favorite part of the evening was the prep: a few initial blunders, a blown fuse, and a last minute run to get more bowls and serving supplies; but in the midst of it lots of laughs, improvisation, and a few “D & M” (deep and meaningful) moments! Not to mention some great drinks and a lot of hidden vocal talents amongst our national staff team!
Another highlight for me also came out of my time at AASC. The conference resulted in a lot of revisiting my past as a bicultural person, and delving into what it could be like as I became a person who was fully able to minister and live in both cultures. This led me to rediscover my Asian roots, and find out what it means to be South Asian and what would ministering to South Asian students look like? So I have had some great successes along this journey, and also met some crushing defeats; but I continue so that I could lead others towards their own bicultural journeys. I initially thought of this in terms of my work with students, but have seen more recently that this is something God is calling me to do with my staff partners. During this conference I was able to connect with two of the newer staff, both bicultural, and both having recently been on global partnerships (GP). Now, since much of my cultural journey truly ignited when I went on GPs, and I asked these staff if they had similar experiences. Both had, and through sharing our stories and then sharing with them about my experiences at AASC, we began to dream and vision what ministry could look like in our fellowships, and regions if we lead and were empowered to lead in the fullness of our bicultural identities. It was super exciting having these conversations and seeing how God was already using what He’d given me to bless others!
WordPress App!
Now that wordpress has a phone app, there’s no excuse for me to be slow with my blog posts.
Enjoy more frequent updates!
~The Arch
The Arch 