This fall has already been a whirlwind for our family. Johnny was asked to not just staff the Compassion DTS, but was asked to be the co-leader for the school. We talked and prayed and decided that he should take that new role of leadership, so he is now helping to lead 20 staff and 80 students. He is doing an amazing job leading with his servants heart and his love for people and has earned the respect of everyone who works with him. I am incredibly proud of him and I am so thankful for this leadership opportunity for him and also that he gets to work alongside such fantastic leaders/mentors who have already taught him so much!
Lecture phase is currently underway and the students are experiencing life changing lectures from incredible speakers addressing various topics. Just last week the students found out which of the ten outreach destinations they will be traveling to! It's an exciting time to be a part of the University of the Nations here in Kona and we are thankful for the opportunity to play a small role in it.
We will be in Kona until February, at which point we are praying for the finances to send Johnny on some pastoral visits to a few of the outreach teams. It would be an incredible experience for him and the teams really benefit from having one of their leaders spend some time with them while they are on outreach. Having a leader visit is a time of refreshment and encouragement for the staff who are on outreach, and also for the students. Our prayer is that Johnny, who is so gifted in counseling and encouragement, would be able to go and bring energy and passion and excitement to the teams when they may be feeling the exhaustion that can come along with outreach. Please join us in praying for this to be possible!
Johnny should be done visiting teams by mid to late February at which point we will be making another HUGE change. As I mentioned in my previous blog, we knew that God was calling us back to ministry with the Performing Arts Discipleship Training School, but we didn't know exactly what that meant. In the past couple of months it has become quite clear that we are to join the staff of YWAM Orlando, Florida, and help them pioneer a PADTS, along with training them how to do outreach into the public schools, like we were doing in New York. We have been in communication with the leadership there for a number of years because they had an interest in us training them to run the PADTS, and it became quite clear while talking with them this summer, that this was exactly what God has for us next.
So in March, we will be moving to Orlando, and joining their staff team, taking a 12 week School of Ministry Development (which is required for all of their staff) and then jumping into preparations and planning to launch a new Performing Arts Discipleship Training School! We are so excited to be working with artists again and there are not enough words to describe how thrilled we are to be preparing to go back into the public schools, with No More Victims!
God has taken us on an incredible journey the last year and Kona has been the absolute right place for us. It has NOT been easy at times but it has been an incredible time of watching Johnny's confidence in leadership grow and a time for me to really focus on my family. As we look to a new season in Orlando, we again face many challenges and changes but we take with us so many lessons learned and such an excitement to now have the opportunity to lead together in ministry as a couple! God has been faithful to our family in incredible ways and we do not question his call, we say YES we will go where he sends us and we cannot wait to see how he uses us!
As we get closer to our move to Orlando, we will keep you updated on details, however right now we are choosing to focus on the season we are currently in. Giving our attention to the Compassion DTS and to Ezra and the new baby that will be joining our family any day now. We ask for your prayers as we fulfill our commitment here in Hawaii and then prepare for another new and exciting season. We are so thankful for this life we have been called to, and for how God continues to provide for us in every way. This includes being eternally grateful for each of you who takes the time to pray for us and encourage us and support us, our ministry would be impossible without you. Thank you for loving our family and for believing in the call that God has put on our lives!
We truly love all of you!
Kelsey, Johnny, Ezra and Baby K
Kelsey, Johnny, Ezra and Baby K
p.s. I have felt very compelled to use my love for writing on a more regular basis, and have been keeping a writing blog. It is a combination of posts about our everyday life, or something God has put on my heart, or sometimes a short story. If you are interested, I would love for you to follow that blog as well as this one, you can find me at... www.thegingerminstrel.wordpress.com . Happy reading!
