Youth Track!

Hey there!  Here's an article written by my friend Betsy about the Youth Track I've been working on...enjoy!

Youth track comes to Lifehope

OM Lifehope is offering a new youth track for community outreach participants this year. As part of the larger OM Lifehope training programme, participants have the option to study foundational principles and engage in practical youth ministry as they reach out to local communities in the UK.
“The youth track gives the opportunity to study and reflect on Christian youth work,” says Tami Zacharias, Lifehope youth leader. “This programme teaches you how to think and gives you frameworks and structures.”
The four-month track, launching for the first time this month, is comprised of studying, reflecting, talking and doing. Participants use relevant training materials, participate in regular youth work, reflect on what they are learning and meet with a mentor.
Why not just jump into youth ministry? Tami explains that time spent in purposeful study leads to powerful ministry. ““If you know what your biblical and theological foundation is,” she explains, “you’re able to analyse what the needs are and find ways to meet them instead of just putting things together and hoping it works.”
The youth track handbook states, “…The best ministry comes when we are intentional about it. We’re going to be better youth workers when we know what we want to achieve, and do it on purpose.” The goal of the youth track is to build a foundation which equips youth workers to minister from a biblical basis, regardless of cultural context.
“As I was developing the programme,” says Tami, “I wanted to think cross-culturally. I was very aware that everyone coming into the youth track would be coming from a different context. I wanted to give the students tools and skills that could be used in all cultures.” With the first participants coming from Spain, Bulgaria and Brazil, a cross-cultural approach is vital.
Through the completion of the four-month track, participants will be equipped for current and future youth ministry. Please pray for the youth track students as they walk through the programme. If you are interested in learning more about the youth track at OM Lifehope, click here.
Credit: Betsy Rouse This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
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Gobble Gobble - Experiencing Turkey

 Welcome to Turkey: land of squattie potties!  Of course there's more to it than that, but it was a big thing my co-worker Christina and I noticed when we arrived.  Although we were going to Turkey for a leadership course (and a bit of sightseeing), we weren't sure what to expect.  We had heard a few 'horror stories' and so we were somewhat apprehensive.  While I can't speak for all of Turkey, the part we visited was much different than I'd anticipated - in a positive way.  As we stepped off the train I heard a loud siren-like noise, looking around to see what emergency was going on, I realized it was the Muslim call to prayer.  Yep, not in England anymore.  But God was with us the entire way.  We weren't sure how to get to our hotel, and someone on the train walked us all the way there.  We weren't sure how we'd get to Ephesus, and a hotel employee gave us a free ride.  We didn't speak the language, and we met someone our first night who was very friendly - AND fluent in English!  These are just a few examples of God's faithful provision.  Isn't our God amazing?

This picture is of the free continental breakfast at our hotel, and let me tell you, Turkish food is delicious!!  This breakfast, slightly modified for tourists, consisted of fresh bread, 2 kinds of olives, fresh oranges, helvasi (sweet, dense treat with pistachios), two kinds of cheese, fresh butter, jam, tea, juice, tomatoes, and a goat's cheese mixture.  I looked forward to breakfast :)  The guy in the picture works at the hotel and is the one who gave us a ride to Ephesus, and later to the train station as well actually.

 Since we came to Turkey a few days earlier, we had the chance to see a couple sights - including the biblical Ephesus!  I was absolutely elated to be able to see more of what is talked about in the Bible - it really make it come alive!  Here's Christina and I at the beginning of the city, before it started raining.

 This just gives you a little idea of how large and impressive the city would have been in its day.  The pillars made my feet look small...and I don't have small feet...hahaha.

I couldn't resist this shot of the puddle just as it started to rain...beautiful.

There were all kinds of stray cats around not only Ephesus, but also where we were staying...lots of dogs too. 

 This is a shot from the top of the long marble street that led down to the Celsus Library.  There would have been large pillars and statues all along the street.  Some of the things down the street included public latrines, houses, baths, temples, fountains, etc.

 This is the great theatre where Paul tried to go into in Acts 19, but couldn't.  It can fit about 24,000 people!  Just compare the small figures on the bottom right to the size of the structure - wow! 

Why couldn't Paul go into the theatre?  Thousands of people were quite upset that Paul was saying that their gods weren't gods at all.  The people of Ephesus, and in other areas, worshipped Artemis, the goddess of fertility.  They were shouting "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!" for over two hours, and were about to be accused of rioting.  On the left is what the temple of Artemis would have looked like in its day.  On the right is what is left of the actual temple - almost completely destroyed.  I'm going with Paul - Artemis wasn't a god at all.  Look at what is left!  But our God remains.

 Here's a statue of Artemis that was in the museum - this would have been in the temple... crazy looking isn't it?

Over here we're in one of the local restaurants with a friend we met - Aydin.  The first night we went to this restaurant he was sitting nearby and heard Christina & I speaking English.  He started talking to us and he was fluent!  He was able to translate things for us, and when he left, he invited us to visit his carpet shop down the road the next day.  So the next day we went there and had tea and learned about carpets, then met him for supper that night.  It was great to experience some warm Turkish hospitality!  We drank way too many cups of tea! 

 This is Selcuk (pronounced Sel-chook), the town nearby Ephesus where we stayed during our sightseeing.  The conference was nearby as well.

 The leadership course we attended was called FLighT, which stands for Foundational Leaders Training.  This is the building where our sessions took place.  We learned about a variety of things, including characteristics of a Godly leader, multicultural teams, team building, communication, constructive feedback, motivation, project management and more.  The training was basic (i.e, foundational), but it was still helpful.  I also really enjoyed meeting people that work all around Western and Central Asia.  God's people are at work everywhere!

From the characteristics of a Godly leader session, we had to write down some of the things we thought characterised a Godly leader on these strips of paper.  Themes that came out were serving, humility, integrity, communicating well, deep relationship with God, etc etc.  Thinking about all this reminded me of John 15 - apart from God, we can do nothing.  How can I be humble, live with integrity, serve others, communicate well, live deeply with God, if I try to do it by myself?  I need God!  Please pray for each of us who went to this course as we desire to be Godly leaders. 

Because of the area where most of the people attending the conference work, it's not wise to show pictures with their faces where they can be identified.  Here's a photo of a praise & worship time during the conference.


Hopefully now you're not craving turkey, but have enjoyed reading about my experience in Turkey!  I'm looking forward to putting what I've learned into practice, and I humbly ask for your prayers in this - it's a balance between being faithful in what God has given me, and recognizing that if God doesn't do it in and through me, I'm hopeless.  Through this conference I believe I've grown closer to God not only in the way I lead, but also personally.  The more I truly experience of God, the more thankful I am that I'm God's child.  Thinking back of people worshipping Artemis, I'm thankful that my God is alive and always with me.  What a great God we serve, amen?

Be encouraged and blessed in our God,

Tami