Last week before training again

Wow what a week. Been doing all sorts from kids clubs to leading home league. It has been a week full of challenges but also a more of a calmer week. I was also put in charge of the DAS (just office stuff) and it really encouraged me. Just the small act of someone trusting me with all that confidential info really boosted my self esteem by people showing their confidence in me and my abilities. So all in all a good week.

God has been at work all around me this week as well. There has definitely been an influence in me and around me and a supply of strength in answer to my prayers that I have done mostly on the go. I also had a good time at LTG ( sort of an accountability group) where we had healthy discussion and helped each other to, in our own way, change our way of lives. I just hope that I am able to keep up to it and I am sure the group will help me as I hope I can help them.

Had a great challenge of leading Home League this week. Planned and lead it. It went okay and people seemed happy about it but I definitely need practice on how long things take. Luckily I managed to wing some time and a bit of extra time especially when they asked me to sing them something from the song book.

Next week should be a brilliant week. All of the Essential1s are meeting up for another weeks training. It should be great to get out to make sure this doesn't become the norm and also to catch up with everyone else. And then only 3 weeks till I'm home for Christmas. Better quickly get shopping.

Busiest weeks ever

Wow, what an amazing couple of weeks. Sorry I wasn't able to blog last week but I just struggled to find the time. The time I had off I really needed to just rest and think of nothing. It started with the normal full on week that I have with a few extra things in such as YP band which I am going to be helping out at. Good fun but it's definitely no Chelmsford YP Band. The week ended in a great Reunion weekend for their 125th anniversary. I wasn't sure how I was going to take it not knowing Bedford very well but it was ok. A few things came to mind that I may have done differently but over all a great weekend and I hope that people went away from it with a sense that even though they aren't here anymore God still is and doing loads of work. This week has been even more full on with Holiday Club which is everyday where kids come in and we have some fun and have been looking at the story of Moses. Definitely been blessed to think about this story for 3 days now and see how God had worked through Moses, a person who had a real problem with public speaking, and helped him go and confront the King and tell him to "Let my people go!" I think it definitely goes to show that if we need a set of skills that we don't yet have God will provide them for us. The week has been great fun but really tiring, especially the full days.

I also planned and led cell group this week which was a new thing for me and I prayed a lot about it and a lot of thought went into what I was going to do. I think it went ok but everyone was a bit tired so it was difficult to get discussions going but once it did it was all fine.

I have still been using the Bible App for the read the bible in a year plan. It's going well and I am making sure I do that everyday. Some days I am just tired and think that I gained nothing from it but it's when I start to think about it I realise actually this is an amazing discipline that I am attempting to do and if I do it properly I can gain so much from it. So it's definitely worth having a go and persevering through the rough days.

Next week should be amazing. Bedford are doing a 24/7 prayer week which at first, I must admit, I wasn't sure I would enjoy but now I am so excited about what God is going to say to me. Unfortunately we are pulling a few of the night shifts but I am sure our timetables will be adjusted accordingly. Also Thursday is going to be my first day in the Debt Advice Service (DAS). I have never really looked at it before and it seems like a great way to serve the community. Definitely look to get some experience and training in the idea of debt advice which I am sure will help me in many years to come. God has definitely put me in Bedford for a reason.

I am also looking forward to a long weekend home. Getting home on the Friday though to the Monday. Should be great to see Matt getting confirmed and I am sure he will work as hard as he can in St. Stevens to do as much for God as he can and it will be great to be able to share in that experience with him as well as seeing everyone else while I am home and a good Remembrance Sunday parade.

Wow what an amazing time but I am tired so a bit of journalling about the day, a bit of reading and daily devotionals and then off to bed before holiday club tomorrow. Night.

Busy Week

Wow what an amazing week it has been at Bedford and a very fulfilling week. This time last week I was just going about the norm when on the Thursday we were made aware that we would be doing an anti-trafficing run where we picked up some guys in the mini-bus and took them to a safe house. What an absolutely amazing experience that those guys lives have been changed so much and they were so grateful for what had been happening to them in the past few days from the being saved to being well looked after although it was a late night getting in at 2 am.

Also when we went in on Friday for mother and toddlers we were shown great compassion by people of Bedford Corps who saw how tired we were and sent us home for some rest. Although it was short lived with another early morning getting up at 6:00 am on Saturday to get to coffee morning and 4:30 on Sunday to help set up an amazing youth councils event. Great worship from the cadet band of the training college and great teaching from DYO Nathan Loxley. Was truly blessed and felt the presence of God amongst the young people of this Division. 

The rest of the week has been loads of new things including Tuesday where my project was to cook for the Luncheon club so a 3 course meal for about 50 people was definitely a challenge and I had such a fun time doing it. No one complained and no one has been ill that I know of so I am counting it as a win. Just counting down to Friday so I can finally have a lie in on my day off but I can't wait for the rest of the year.

Also really looking forward to getting involved in the Debt Advice Service (DAS) and once the head advisor is back I will start getting training and learning how it all works. Can't wait to experience this new side to social care that I have never experienced before.

Overall, definitely hard work and definitely worth it. Absolutely loving it and all the people here. Someone has even pinned up the sleeves of my tunic to take it up for Saturday. What wonderful people.

Settling In

Wow, Essential just keeps getting better. We are starting to settle in now and getting to know everyone and they are getting to know us so we are getting comfortable and able to have a laugh. I also found out who my mentor is going to be so it will be good getting to know them and them getting to know me. 

Also getting to know my way around Bedford which is quite nice as the hall is quite close to town so can just pop in if I ever want to. But now the real work begins. I am going to be giving our assignments a lot more time to complete and pass that side just so it is done. Our first one is all about child protection which is, more than anything, just common sense and just an essay based on how we would react to a certain situation. I think sometimes I am going to be enjoying it and part of me will be thinking just to get it done but we shall see.

I would like to take this opportunity to say thanks again to everyone at home for their prayers and support but also everyone in Bedford. I really feel like it is becoming a home away form home and that I am being taken in as part of a large family and being looked after.

Had an especially amazing time last night at man's cell group where we had some great discussions with great fellowship. Definitely looking forward to getting to know people better, getting known better, and deepening in my faith.

First week at Bedford

Wow what an amazing week. At the moment we are just getting to know the activities and the people at Bedford and I am having a great time. Spent a lot of time at various clubs and lunches getting to know the people of the corps and the regulars that come in. Overall there is as great set of people that give all they can and put in so much time it has really blown me away. The corps is extra busy during the week and I am definitely looking forward to finding out about the Debt Advice Service that is run by the Corps. Had a great Sunday yesterday and everyone is extra friendly and had a great time at lunch with a lovely lady who offered to wash my white shirt each week. Like I said people trying to do all they can to help. Wow.

The end of training

Wow, what amazing final week of training that has just flown by. We spent the week up in Leeds which was far more north than I realised just as autumn had hit so plenty cold with lots of rain but also quite cool fog on the clouds. Again we had lots of really cool seminars which challenged me really personally and caused me to think about a variety of different things. One that will always stick by me was a trip to east end park and also a chat about it the next day. We saw some really challenging times people were having and their reaction to such times and actually it isn't what you would expect. People were building real community in this place and with some help I saw some really changes happening with a potential for amazing things. We also learnt about interfaith communities and how me might run such an event and was really interesting how an open mind into these situations really shed some light and you saw what might happen if you put the effort in. We also spent some time with Richard Borret talking about our own faith and struggles which not only helped us deepen in our faith but brought us all closer together.

So after a long few weeks training I came home for the weekend. Saturday was mostly much needed rest and time away from other people which was really nice as well as seeing all the family and visiting the grandparents and Sunday was great to getting to see everyone and it really encouraged me to see them take such an interest in me and what I had been doing and making sure I was ok and being looked after/looking after myself. It was a good meeting led by our local DCs and was interesting to see their different style and get to know them in an interview in the evening.

And finally here I am back in Bedford ready to start my year. I have done a couple of days now and I have had a great time getting to know the people around me. Had a very special time in the drop in club where someone had questions about my faith and it gave me the opportunity to tell my testimony and brought on a really good hour or so of great talking and discussions about certain things. Definitely going to be a good year.

Also had a youth meeting tonight where I learnt about what the youth have/will/might be doing and it was interesting sitting there thinking wow that would be great in Chelmsford and linking the names of things with our equivalent. 

Over all a good week and looking forward to what is coming ahead.

Training in the William Booth College

Having a great time on Essential; it is great getting to know everyone and over time we are getting closer and closer together. So last week we were at the William Booth Training College which was quite a good experience doing loads of different things which gave us a new way to see God in the world around us wherever we are. I have been really challenged when looking at what amazing work people are doing for the marginalised and how great communities are sprouting up when all others thought that it was impossible.

I guess it is just a reminder to us that we have to go and find where God is at work and not try and do it on our own strength because if we work with God's strength we can accomplish anything and knowing that God has gone before us we can be comforted in knowing that he will always look after us.

I have really enjoyed the chance to really chat about discipleship and mission/evangelism and what it means to practically get involved with these and we learnt or re-learnt, which is just as important, that it is an ongoing journey which is never completed. There were a couple of things throughout the week which I didn't really get much from apart from seeing other people being changed and challenged by them and I know that where I like the classroom style learning others really don't. Just goes to show that everyone likes different things and we are all different. Over the last week I have learnt that praying for vision for my life's plan isn't always the answer because God will show me that when it he and I am ready; so this week I have been praying for courage. Courage so that when God reveals his plan in my life that I follow it and don't think that it is impossible because with God in my life I can do anything. Also this week I have still been following my yearly reading plan on the app on my phone which has been really beneficial. At the moment it is each day a bit from the Old Testament (Genesis at the moment), a Psalm or 2 and a bit from the New Testament (Gospels at the moment). It is really interesting having almost 3 completely different styles and praising one amazing God and refreshing my mind on some of the stories that I haven't read for a while.

This week I have achieved so much but overall I think not only have I been better at approaching things with an open mind but also after approaching these things being able to form an opinion on it instead of relying on the opinions of others. Some of you may be saying I did that too much all ready but I think I am doing it in a better way and learning to get these opinions across in a loving way. I think this is just one of the things that really shows a maturity forming in me which I am sure will continue to grow over the next year.

So really looking forward to the next week. The rest of this week I will be in Leeds learning about a variety of different things and then I am off home for the weekend. After this I am off to Bedford to start my journey and the hard work I will be doing there. What an exciting time!

Leeds Hills

Up in Leeds for a weeks training.

Essential playing Bible Scrabble

First week on Essential

Wow, what an amazing first week of Essential. Met all the other people on Essential who are amazing and so easy to get along with. Just a time of meeting together at Gilwell Park and spending time round a camp fire. Got to do some of the activities there although in future I wouldn't trust a raft built by me. So after an amazing few days of meeting new the Essentials I went off to Bedford which is going to be my placement. The officers there are absolutely amazing and I was blown away by the effort they have and are planning to put in for us to make sure that not only they benefit from us but more importantly we benefit from them by all they can teach us. I couldn't have been more welcomed. Every single person we spoke to and were spoken to by was so friendly and it couldn't have been a nicer welcome.

Definitely saw God at work in peoples lives. The people at Bedford Corps are definitely working towards a direction and know what they want to be doing but are also keeping God at the centre of all the community and outreach which is so important. Very good day on Sunday although I feel a bit bad for beating the man who taught me to play dominos 4 times in a row but he loved it and we had a great time just chatting over lunch.

Today we are back at the William Booth Training College for some training to prepare us for the year and I am sure we will take what we learn into the rest of our lives. We had a lesson about discipleship and all about what it is, where it came from and what it means to work at being a better disciple. This is so important because "Christianity without discipleship is Christianity without Christ." (Dietrich Bonhoeffer) and we all have to work together to keep each other on the right path.

This week has been an awesome week of new experiences which brings enjoyment and challenges. Early morning have always been a problem for me but over the week I have found it easier and easier to get up in the mornings; including waking up before my alarm on some occasions. I have really enjoyed all of the new people who have been so kind to me and have made the transition away from living at home to easy.

This week I have prayed on all sorts of things. We were urged to look in the past over the last year and I realised how much I have grown and matured and the people around me have commented but I never realised until I looked back. We also looked at the present and everything happening as we go away from home into a new life almost and all of the help we can get from God and also the people around us. Finally we looked at the future and what we will be doing over the year. This is going from all the training Alove will provide to all the work we will be doing at Bedford from out in the community to the stuff at the hall to all the youth work that goes on there.

Ii have recently started a daily reading plan on the android app Bible. It is a Bible in a year and it has a few selected chapters a day; not all in order but they compliment each other really well. I have found that it just makes reading the Bible much more interesting and so I don't treat like I would any other book because it deserves much more than that.

My biggest achievement this week must be the amount my confidence has grown. It has really given me the opportunity to get to know those around me and talk about anything such as my faith and my situation and testimony.

Next week promises to be a great week. We are continuing our training at the Training College then going off to Leeds at the Westwood Christian Centre. I haven't been there but I'm sure I'm going to have a great time there learning loads and trying to put it into practice.

Promises to be an amazing week and an ever better year. Looking forward to it and I know I have the support and will continue having the support I need to make it an extra special gap year.