Training
Up Means Handing Over!
“And
the things which thou hast heard from me among many witnesses, the
same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others
also.” II Timothy 2:2
How
many of us are approaching or have already arrived at the empty nest
season? We encounter many scenarios that reveal intense struggles for
the empty nesters as well as those who have been launched! Some of
these include a lack in providing the skills and tools for children
to grow up and out successfully. In other cases, there is a lack of
preparation to face the changes that take place during this season.
Parents might feel like they are “out of a job.”
If
most of their lives revolved around determining and securing the
futures of the children, they might feel a great loss. Yet, launching
our adult children should be exciting even if not done perfectly.
There might be some bitter-sweet moments in the launching, but the
goal should be to prevent huge regrets and bouts of looking back at
the woulda-coulda-shouldas! We
have had 2 empty nest seasons. The first was the empty nest that
resulted when our own biological children moved on. The second season
occurred when we shifted from a busy maternity home to a community
outreach ministry primarily counseling and teaching those who were
not live-in residents. We sensed that this “extra time” was for a
purpose. The shift from training up young women to be good, nurturing
mothers to training up willing adults to mentor, disciple, and
counsel others seemed to be a very natural and logical next step for
the ministry. The Lord prepared us for such a time! We never
struggled with the shift because it seemed one season prepared us so
adequately for the next. Paul
never had to worry about an empty nest in the same sense that we
would, but I love his example of training Timothy up to be
successful. Wise investments, proper priorities, faithful
stewardship, and mostly a zealous love for the Lord enabled him to
succeed at launching others into the ministry. I want to learn from
the examples in Scripture and so we have been zealous, ever since we
had an empty nest on both accounts, to search for others to whom we
can invest the beautiful treasures of wisdom and grace. We would like
to share with you some of the fruit that has taken place since
training up capable Timothys! Director
of JCM Retreats Linda
Abell took over the JCM retreat ministry. This is a great example of
training up to hand over! I did not worry a bit when I transferred
this responsibility to our faithful assistant. She has exceeded my
expectations and the fruit is obvious. Women from all facets of our
outreach come together every other year to connect and grow. Our
emphasis is to provide a safe place for them to exercise their
giftings in an environment of unconditional love. We train them up
and our hope is to launch them in their own individual church
communities. Please enjoy these pictures along with just a few of
many comments of how the retreat influenced their lives this year. Retreat
2018 “Welcome Waiting”
“Praise
God for His power to heal at the retreat. I am feeling so much more
like myself but with added growth and clarity. Although every retreat
has been dynamic this one for me topped them all!”
“Thank
you for the wonderful weekend. I appreciate the loving care through
prayer and service that you and your team cultivated.”
“My
heart is so full... What a beautiful testament to all you have poured
into so many women..”
Train
Up Team/Grab the Net Several
women have asked to be a part of discipleship and mentoring for the
women of Jesus Cares Ministries. It is always a great honor when
individuals want to help in such a capacity. When I had a full house
of pregnant teens, and my own daughters, time was so precious. I
trusted the Lord to multiply my lunch in those days and multiply He
did! (Read this blog I posted about the boy and his lunch: https://devotioncalls.wordpress.com/2015/12/03/the-little-boy-and-my-divided-life/) Though
we still have lots of visitors, and some live-ins and respite
residents from time to time, the demands in the home have decreased
significantly. We have been able to obtain training materials and
certifications in the areas that are relevant to our culture today.
It has been a huge help as we minister to many broken from domestic
violence, rape and molestation, addiction and grief issues, marital
struggles, and most recently we have had the privilege of working
with homosexuals who desire to leave the lifestyle. These materials
have been a great resource to equip our Train Up Team along with some
excellent volunteers and teachers that have made themselves available
to the mission. The greatest gift we have seen among our Train Up
Team is the ability to hold up the arms of those that are weary to
provide a sisterhood and community of what I call spiritual shock
absorbers. As some go through divorce and betrayal, others are
inviting them over, offering comfort and encouragement as they hold
their hands through a grievous and painful season. Fellowship during
these times is crucial; this is when many are tempted to disconnect
from the vine and wither. We are so grateful to our team of ladies
who are on the front-lines and giving of themselves so sacrificially
for the sake of the beautiful body of Christ. Thank you to Linda,
Leslie, Tracy, and Kelly
who are currently bearing the burden for others. We have others who
have joined our team recently and those who are in a season of
waiting as they tackle issues close to home. We are also grateful to
Gloria
from New Turning Point for Women who
has allowed me to pass the baton several times. She has great
expertise in ministering to women from D.V. situations. Chris
and Carmen from Fortified Marriages Ministry have
walked beside us to help those with difficulties in their marriage.
Liz
Beck from Hope for Addiction is
always there to offer supportive services to those struggling with
addiction. We believe in a multi-disciplinary team of support. We are
stronger when we use the net the Lord has provided in His
many-membered body. In most instances, many individuals contributed
negative influences throughout the lives of our clients and residents
and it will take many positive influences to foster an atmosphere of
healing.  Thanks to
Chris and Carmen from Fortified Marriages, we were able to attend
the national conference for AACC this year in Dallas.
Open
Doors and Releasing More Laborers As
many of you know, we have shepherded quite a precious flock every
Sunday. Tom has served as chaplain at Wellspring
Therapy Center
for about 7 years now. The residents that participate in the services
struggle with so many mental, emotional, and physical issues that
challenge their hearts and well being. We are so blessed to bring
them the shalom of Yeshua, our Messiah every week! We have come to
love the staff and have made many friends over the years. Some
residents keep in touch. One resident went to another facility after
being released from Wellspring. She bragged about the ministry to the
director of the new facility. When we came to visit her, the director
was in her room and invited us to do Christian services at this
90-bed facility right down the road from Wellspring. We knew we could
not do both so we prayed and asked our teammates, Jackie and Jeff
Chamberlain, if they would take over Wellspring. They have
substituted so many times for us and their heart of love for the
residents is so obvious. They come to us already trained up as Jeff
has pastored churches in the past and Jackie served as worship leader
for many years. They are bringing just what is needed to the table as
they gladly agreed to take the burden of this mission as their own.
We will still conduct our monthly Meet and Greet but they will now
conduct the weekly services. We also had a gentleman come forward
recently after making a presentation of our services at our home
church, Beth Emanuel Congregation. He shared a dream and vision he
had to minister to the elderly. How timely! Tom and I will now be
free to go in to the new facility and prepare the way for Duane
Wilson to take the lead on the services at The
Center at Val Vista.
The first service was a huge success. At some point, Tom and I will
completely release this mission to Duane and be free to do prison and
hospital visitations. As the doors swing open, we are grateful that
the Lord is providing harvesters!   Duane at
"The Center at Val Vista." Jeff at "Wellspring Therapy Center"
Coming
Up! - The
Lord has made a way for us to tour Israel. We leave November 4th
for our first visit to the Holy Land. Our own pastor, who lived in
Israel for many years, has organized this trip. Please pray for a
safe and wonderful time! Hopefully, we will have some wonderful
pictures to share with you in the next newsletter.
We
are so blessed to announce the new and improved Free
Store coming
up in December.
Jackie Chamberlain, one of our board members, is the director of
this annual event. This is another ministry task I have freely
handed over with all confidence that this area of ministry will bear
much fruit. Jackie was a single mom for many years who knew how to
make the best of the resources at hand. She is an amazing example
and well qualified to lead this area of ministry to our women. Her
vision is to supply the needs of moms and families who are working
hard but slipping through the cracks. She wants them to shop freely
for clothing, toys, linens, and household items without worrying
about the budget. Linda will work closely with her to make this the
best Free
Store
ever! This year we will be inviting women from Single
Moms that Rock (May),
Hope
for Addiction
(Liz Beck), and Hope
in Christ
(Logan Tracy). Many donations are coming in and others are offering
their salon expertise and other services that will
delight the hearts of our “customers.” We have great hope that
this event will create a lasting and beautiful memory for those
participating as well as those volunteering. Contact me if you have
any questions about this event. Doreen @ 480 831 1737.
“O
Timothy, guard and keep safe the deposit [of godly truth] entrusted
to you...” I
Timothy 6:20
We
cannot be more grateful for a well equipped team! We cannot thank the
Lord enough for providing resources, supporters, and volunteers to
meet the needs of those around us. His arm is not too short and as we
reach out in His name we will be surprised at how far our own arms
can stretch out, too. If you are interested in any area of outreach
mentioned, please feel free to call us @ 480 831 1737. You might be a
Timothy needing to be trained and launched or a Paul who is ready to
equip others. There is no lack for people and individuals to service
and love. Thank you for being a vital part of this outreach and
making it possible to let many know that....
Jesus
Cares
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