My last year of seminary is a year where I am required to do an internship. Coast was in the midst of an intrachurch crisis with the resignation of one of the senior pastors and a personal friend. I share this because it was one reason I didn’t really want to do an internship with the church. But God challenged me to stay put. Through a God-given dream and a series of encouragements by God to do the noble thing, I stayed at Coast and did my internship. As I did it, I found I really enjoyed the internship and getting to develop my speaking skills, teaching gifts, and practice some leadership theory under a strong transformational leader.
I dreamt that I was on a team with Michelle and MaryAnn one night during those times of questioning and the future casting in the dream was fulfilled along the path of being on the Teaching Team. Those are the moments in life with God where a person is liberated in joy because they can say, even if poorly done, they are walking in the will of God. Praise God for leading me.
Prepping With the Teaching Team
Over the course of the internship, speaking opportunities were coming up almost monthly. I spoke in the context of giving three sermons at Coast. I also had 2 opportunities to carry out speaking regarding LGBTQ outreach and Thousand Rainbows Ministries’ (TRM) work. I met every other tuesday night with the Coast teaching team and gleaned from the wisdom and experience and feedback of the team. By my second sermon, I was feeling encouraged and semi-competent. Teaching the Word was something I have dreamt about even when I was a new believer. And here it was, so many years and broken steps, but some of that dream was also being fulfilled. I was teaching the Word, I was preaching the Gospel, and I was sharing some of my intersections with God where I found life in humility. Esther got me the opportunity to speak to regional Christian leaders. It was a night we both felt, God was anchoring the reality of our dream callings more deeply. For those of you who know of walking out perceived, God-given dreams, they can feel very vulnerable at times. And so it was very sweet that God was giving us a moment of anchoring us in His dreams for our lives. Later in the year, I also spoke at the youth group of my old church, one I had largely alienated myself from but who where in the past and continue to be great blessings to me. It was a moment of stepping deeper into the work of TRM as I looked to be reconciled to them and reconcile them to one another and God’s heart for the LGBTQ people.
My seminary work seemed to be part preparation for ministry in the local church and part preparation for the work as a Christian leader in TRM. I learned more about being a transformational leader and I learned more about how to communicate in a way that brings people closer to the heart of God and His work on the earth. I took away that following God is difficult at times but exciting and fulfilling. In this new season of transition, we are gaining focus to try to take hold of what He has taken hold of us for.
