Center for Intercultural Training
I just finished the last of four weeks of residential training at the Center for Intercultural Training in Union Mills, North Carolina. It was such a blessing to spend time there. Not only were we situated in the beautiful countryside of North Carolina, I have learned so much and feel so much more prepared for my time living in the Dominican Republic. I lived on a dorm hall with four other women who were also part of the training, and it was awesome to get to know them and share experiences as cross culture workers. Our cohort has a total of 25 individuals, partly couples (some with kids and some without) and partly singles, who are all transitioning over seas to be cross cultural workers. People are going all over the world— the DR, Guatemala, Thailand, Middle East, Europe, and many more places. I have learned so much from everyone here about their experiences moving abroad.
A day at CIT looks something like this: 1) wake up and read my Bible, 2) 8:30am learn from Heart of the Servant curriculum, 3) 9:30am Equipping lesson, 4) 12pm lunch break, 5) 1:15pm Equipping lesson continued, 6) 3:30pm dismissed for homework, time with cohort members, and then bedtime!
Our teaching came from two different curricula: Heart of the Servant and Equipping. During our Heart of the Servant lessons each morning, we explored the essential qualities and disciplines of a Christian who serves well overseas. It reminds me that I can never be successful in my job if I am not foremost focusing on what God is doing inside of me! Our Equipping course, which comprised most of our classroom time, focused on specific topics of working abroad such as avoiding being ethnocentric, team dynamics, conflict resolution, family and friends abroad, and self care.
While a lot of our class time was lecture-style learning from amazing facilitators who spent most of their lives serving abroad, we did have some awesome (and hilarious) simulations that we completed as a group. One quote from our learning with which I really resonate is:
”The book of Exodus is about God getting the Israelites out of Egypt. The book of Leviticus is about God getting Egypt out of the Israelites”
I feel like the past year has been God paving the way to get me out of the USA, while the past month learning at CIT was about how to start getting the USA out of me so that I might be able to successfully serve my brothers and sisters in the DR in a Christ centered, not American centered, way. Thank YOU for your generosity that allowed me to have this formative experience!!
Kids Alive Orientation
My missionary journey hit i65 N on March 2nd as I left Nashville bound for Valparaiso for Kids Alive International’s new missionary orientation. My first stop was O’Hare International Airport, where I picked up a fellow new missionary named Audrey (now a dear friend) from her flight. We enjoyed dinner with one of my dear college friends, Hallie, at a delicious Mexican restaurant near her apartment. I love when friends become friends!
Our final stop of the first evening was a second trip to O’Hare, where we picked up a “veteran” missionary, Kaela! Kaela currently serves in the Dominican Republic as a trauma care and emotional learning coordinator. I think she’s brilliant, and it was especially fun to spend the time with her because she is going to be my supervisor for my time in the Dominican Republic!
We arrived late in the night at our wonderful host family where we all three got to make their ground floor our home for the week. We began our orientation at 8:30am the next morning!
It’s worth mentioning that the first day of orientation I woke up to find out that the devastating March 3 tornadoes hit Nashville. What a weird feeling to know your city is in distress but to be so far away…
Each day of orientation was full of great information and fellowship. During each section of orientation, we were able to hear from different Kids Alive staff members that work in the home office: also known as the heroes who do the nitty gritty stuff (finance, budgeting, IT, etc) that allow us missionaries to be more present on the field. It was so great to meet and spend time with the people I’ve been emailing over the last year, and I also really learned a lot about Kids Alive operations from the sessions.
I also saw a more full picture of Kids Alive’s history and foundation. Kids Alive was founded in 1916 with the mission of rescuing and restoring at risk children and youth, and it is so clear that the organization is still passionately pursuing this today. From the different representatives from the 12 countries that Kids Alive serves, this orientation allowed me to have a broader perspective on what God is doing through Kids Alive around this globe.
The highlight of the week for me was spending time with the 12 different current missionaries who were also attending the orientation. Half of us were brand new to the field and the other half had been on the field for quite a while, which allowed me to learn from those who have gone ahead and join alongside those missionaries at the same phase as me. I walked away from orientation with a community of fellow missionaries to journey alongside!
Our last morning included an incredibly special Commissioning Service where the Kids Alive staff prayed over us and officially sent us off on our call. It was such a surreal moment!
I was able to meet up several dear friends on my drive back to Nashville (the Smiths and Josiah). Upon my arrival back to Nashville, Stay at Home orders were issued and the “COVID19 quarantine” season began. Truly, this week was a short respite sandwiched in between the insanity of this world. I am so thankful for this week, and the amazingly caring Kids Alive staff, for all of their hard work to make this happen!
