Hey y’all!
I made it all the way to Wisconsin! Goodbye South, hello Midwest!
I am so delighted to be here and I’m growing, learning, and serving so much! Right now, I’m going to update you on where I live, who I live with, and what ministry looks like here!
Living Situation! so! I live in international student housing here in Wisconsin Dells, where we are essentially the only Americans around. This is a hub for international J-1 students to get visas and work at the nearby resorts, waterparks, and restaurants. Me and my teammates are split up in bunk rooms, where we also have roommates from around the world. Me and my roommate Mackenzie (aka Macklemore) live with our new South African friend. I do life with my 7 teammates and our 2 amazing team leaders, Kirsten and Kayla.
Ministry! I also get the privilege of also being coworkers with the J-1 students. Honestly, i’ve gotta say they are the BEST. This is also where the whole lifeguarding part comes in. before I got here, I had absolutely no idea that I would be lifeguarding. It’s also probably one of the types of ministry that i would have least chosen for myself. However, I am learning so much through my experience of being trained as a lifeguard on day 2 of being here and then getting thrown into working shifts after that. This was a very “hit the ground running” type of situation, whether we felt prepared or not.
On the days we don’t work at the waterpark, we help out at a local food pantry that was started by our Host Ministry. It’s called Beyond Blessed and the community has been in even greater need since COVID-19 hit. The staff there works so hard and they have been so grateful for our help to lighten their load unloading trucks and distributing groceries to the community.
Life is Ministry, Ministry is Life.
That’s what I am continually reminding myself: life is a beautiful adventure with the Lord. Challenging and spontaneous, we are always doing ministry in our homes, communities, and world. There is no separation and no place where the Spirit is not present and working.
A whole week into working at the waterpark, I have been stretched so much. There’s a massive tension of feeling unprepared and unequipped, but also feeling the thrill of being surrounded by Ecuadorians, Colombians, South Africans, Puerto Ricans, and Jamaicans 24/7. It’s a constant blur of languages and laughter that comes along with language barriers. It’s been really fun for us to practice our broken Spanish and Zulu with our coworkers. I feel like I am inside of this amazing patched together community of people that God created.
Community! The same goes for the community within our team. We are a mixture of people eager to serve the Lord, even when we don’t get to go to Thailand or Zambia or we get brought home from Swaziland and Guatemala months early. Our zeal should never depend on our location. Easier said than done but we are called to God himself before we do or desire anything else. I am learning so much from my team and the way we get to love each other. I cannot say enough good things about these 9 people. Each of us is unique in our personality and in our interaction with the same God, but what a beautiful mosaic we are. We are constantly encouraging each other and humbly allowing ourselves to be called higher into the abundant life and good work the Lord has prepared for us.
What I’m learning right now:
GOODness, so much. I’m at the point right now that I am learning so much by what each day brings. Since being here, I’ve been so much more attentive to what God has been speaking to me.
When I found out we were lifeguarding, I was pretty surprised but okay with it. But almost immediately, when we got to lifeguard training, I was so overwhelmed. I wanted absolutely nothing to do with being responsible with the lives of other people. It all happened so fast and I was not ready. I felt unequipped and super afraid. Let’s just say work was a rough start for me. After that, I have had major anxiety about going to work. Our shifts are long and we don’t get home until 11pm many nights. BUT i have been stretched and grown so much. I believe that God has been in this and with me every step of the way. I can see fruit in the ministry we are doing but I know we are supposed to be here. God is meeting me and walking me through this learning process. He is so good and patient.
Through this, the Lord has been speaking a lot. A few things I’ve learned:
1. Whether I like my job or not I will not remain passive and let someone drown. The same goes for spiritual lives. Whether ministry is easy or not, I will not be passive, I will not stop praying, and I will not stop being intentional to love every human I get the opportunity to interact with. I am learning that my mission takes priority over how comfortable I am. I really heard the Lord unpacking this idea for me as I took a shower the other night after a long day at work.
2. My Instincts will kick in. Yet another thing that the Lord spoke to me about lifeguarding specifically. After jumping in to save a girl around my age who was drowning at the bottom of a waterslide, I realized that I do actually have instincts and they will kick in. Sometimes it’s really hard to trust ourselves (also the Spirit in us) to, in the moment, do or say the right thing. I’m learning to trust myself in keeping people safe and having conversations with people about Jesus.
3. I am not here for myself. I was humbled by a statement that the Lord whispered to me as I was changing shifts the other day. I didn’t actually choose this job for myself. I was following where the Lord lead, and He lead me to build relationships with these people I’m doing life with right now that don’t know Him. I am here for them. I am here to plant seeds. I am here to do the good work. I must surrender.
These are just a few things I’ve learned from work so far. I have also learned so much from my community about what it looks like to live in freedom and surrender. I’ve loved serving at the food pantry.
2 Peter 1:3-4 “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”
Thank you for listening! Please please please be praying for me, my team, and my international friends to come to know Jesus.
-brooke
