Lefever Family Missions Adventures Fall 2013 Update

Hello from the Lefever Family! We are embarking on our next missions adventure and wanted to share what we are doing.  Since returning from our last adventure (check out our blog if you missed those updates or are new to our list), we've been making preparations to work in missions on a longer term basis. We have sold our house and have been working with our church missions board to develop a plan for further training and ministry. While we are still considering working overseas in the future, our next adventure will be right here at home! We've been accepted into a nine-month missions apprenticeship program through an organization called Immerge. Immerge focuses on serving the growing immigrant/refugee population here in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Many immigrants arrive seeking refuge from oppression, only to find themselves isolated due to language barriers, cultural differences and the lack of a relational network. Our outreach will consist of developing relationships with refugee families and finding practical ways to helping them get established, including language coaching, transportation and job assistance.   In addition to working with Immerge, I (Carl) am working in sales operations at Refreshing Mountain, a christian retreat center, Amy is homeschooling the girls, we are serving on the outreach team at our church and helping run the cafe at the dance academy where the girls are taking dance and drama classes this year. Bente has been invited to be a member of their dance company, which will give her the opportunity to travel and perform. There may even be an opportunity for their team to travel to Africa! We are not certain where we will go when our apprenticeship ends, but we hope to do more work overseas. The apprenticeship with Immerge will give us great experience in working with foreign cultures and we will have weekly training and coaching from leadership team, each of whom have spent a great deal of time working in missions both here and abroad. The completion of our apprenticeship will coincide with the end of the school year and the expiration of our apartment lease, so we will be ready to go should the opportunity arise. We are so blessed to be a part of this team that  is serving the immigrant population in Lancaster and helping those in great need.  We would love for you to be a part of what we are doing.  Here are some ways that you can join in: Prayer: Please partner with us by praying for our family and immigrant ministry.  Pray that all barriers would be removed and that our work would be fruitful. Finances: Would you like to support us financially as we minister to immigrants here in Lancaster?  See below for info on how to give.   Volunteers: If you feel the call to help others but haven't yet found an outlet, contact us.  We'd love to help you get connected! Thank you so much for taking the time to read our newsletter and for joining us in our adventures.  We will continue to send out newsletters periodically, check out our blog and facebook pages for more frequent updates, prayer requests and stories (see info below to subscribe). Please feel free to share our update with your network via the links below. We are so grateful to those that have already been praying for us and for those that have supported us financially – it has made all the difference in terms of us continuing on this journey. We would love to hear from you and what is going on your lives too. Contact us anytime, Carl & Amy Lefever "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." Ephesians 2:10 Stay connected with our family and receive our updates (click links to subscribe) If you prefer to receive a hard copy via mail, please let us know Facebook Website Email Share our adventures with your friends (click links to share) Share Tweet Forward to Friend Financial Support Tax deductible donations may be made in the name of "Lefever Family Missions" to Ephrata Community Church.  Click the Donate button below to give online via credit card, please be sure to include "Lefever Family Missions" in the special notes field.  Checks may be made out and mailed to Ephrata Community Church, 70 Clay School Road, Ephrata, PA 17522.  To ensure donations are directed to our ministry, please note "Lefever Family Missions" on the memo line.  Donate

When one door closes, another opens...

"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand." 

-- Solomon, Proverbs 19:21

Wow, so much has happened since our last family update, it’s hard to know where to begin! In our last update (Feb 2013), we were less than two months away from our planned move to Florida to continue our missions training with YWAM Orlando. While in the final stages, we had some major details that needed to fall into place to make the move, including the sale of our house. As our departure date drew closer without an offer, it became clear that we needed a "Plan B".

Being fully convinced of our plan to work with YWAM, we hadn't really spent much developing a backup plan. Our assumption was that if things didn’t come together in April, we'd just head down there for the next semester. However, after that open door apparently closed, we decided to take time to reconsider some core questions: Were we really called to serve in missions long-term? If so, was our place overseas or here in the US? Was it best to continue working with YWAM or should we work thru our home church network?

As we wrestled with these questions, we realized that while our desire to continue working in missions was certain, the specifics on where, what and when, were still open to evaluation. For instance, our experience with YWAM was awesome and we would love to continue working with them, but our home church network (http://harvestnetinc.com) also has an expanding missions program where we could serve. YWAM has outstanding training programs, but there are other training programs that might actually be a better fit for our family. We’ve enjoyed working overseas, but we also see the great needs right here in the US.

Given these uncertainties, we decided it would be best to stay here in Lancaster, take advantage of the extra time to prepare and search things out further. Believing that selling our home was key to being free to follow whatever path opens, we decided to keep searching for a buyer, while also seeking out continued employment and opportunities to gain more training and experience in missions. In a very short time, several major items came together and our path for the next year or so is already clearly mapped out! Our house has sold, we found a nearby apartment, I have the opportunity to continue working at Refreshing Mountain (www.refreshingmountain.com) and Amy and I have been invited to join a nine-month missions apprenticeship program, called Immerge (http://www.immergecca.org), that will provide exactly the kind of practical training and mentoring we've been looking for and is based right here in Lancaster!

We are very excited to tell you more about Immerge, but we are going to save that for a future post. For now, we wanted to give everyone a long overdue update on our adventure. Before I close, here's a quick run down on what we are up to this summer, as well a some prayer requests.

• I will be working on several interesting projects at Refreshing Mountain. In my free time, I'll be hanging with the girls, honing my meat smoking skills and will be attending the upcoming Circuit Riders School in Lancaster.(http://thecircuitrider.com/school-of-the-circuit-rider/lancaster/)
• Amy just completed an intense training program at YWAM Lebanon (http://www.ywampa.org), earning a certificate to teach English to speakers of other languages (TESOL). After a short rest, she's busy organizing our new apartment, preparing for homeschooling in the fall and preparing for all the other things we are doing in the fall. In addition to Immerge, Amy will be volunteering at the Cavod Academy of the Arts (http://cavodacademy.com/), where the girls are taking dance classes.
• Bente recently served as a a youth counselor at Kids Camp with our church and is now working in the kitchen at Refreshing Mountain. She will be attending the Circuit Riders School with me in August and then will be take a full load of dance classes in the fall.
• Ascher is busy with all sorts of creations, from the plays she and her friends develop, to stop motion movies and short stories. She will be taking some acting classes and piano classes in the fall.
• Soren continues in her aspirations to be a veterinarian one day by absorbing herself in every episode of shows like "Dog Whisperer". She's been spending a lot of time at the pool and has been a great play mate to Mala. She'll also be taking some classes in the fall including Hip Hop and Piano.
• Our little Miss Mala just turned three and she's got all of the spunk and energy to prove it. She won't be taking any classes just yet, but she's busy learning more everyday and enjoys keeping us on our toes from morning to night!

Our journey has had some unexpected twists and turns, but it's a fulfilling adventure and we're learning more everyday! As you think about us, consider partnering with us in prayer in the following areas:

• Increased grace as we learn to walk on this next leg of our journey
• Clear direction over this next year as we seek out our future in missions
• Praise the Lord with us that we have already received about half of the monthly support we will need during our apprenticeship (I will be transitioning to part-time hours at work) and for continued wisdom and provision as we work out a strategy for additional fundraising.

Bente, Carl, Mala, Soren & Ascher

Amy & her TESOL class

Mala & Ascher on Mala's Birthday

Family in Missions Spotlight: The Keller Family

Hi everyone! Just received an update from our dear friends the Keller family, who we first met in New Zealand. They were in our DTS class and also were one of the families on the outreach team to Australia. Matt and Heidi have three boys, Indiana, Trace and Perrin, and they are an amazing family with a burning heart for missions! Upon returning home, they moved from Minnesota to Idaho to serve on a YWAM base where they are staffing the Missions Adventures program (http://www.ywamidaho.org/cascade/Mission_Adventures.html). Here is their first outreach report:

His name was Tristen. We met him several times on the street in a miraculous sort of way...

Heidi and I and the rest of our YWAM Mission Adventures staff were praying with our students asking God to speak to us about who we were supposed to share the Gospel with today. We believe that God is speaking and wants to speak to us. As we prayed someone in one of the groups felt God telling him to look for a man sitting alone in a cafe. Some of the kids were given pictures, landscapes and even names. So we always write that down and just be aware of it as we're walking down the streets.

This is where Tristen comes in. He was sitting alone in a cafe. He was dejected and hopeless when someone from one of our groups sees him says, "that's the man God told us about". One of the men from our team went in to the cafe and told him the story...that God had sent him to talk a man sitting alone in a cafe. Instantly Tristen began to cry. He was broken. They had a time of prayer and time of sharing the Gospel but it didn't end there.

The next day our team was doing a PB&J ministry where we set up tables on the street corners and serve sandwiches and drinks to whoever needed it. After they picked up food they were greeted by our prayer teams waiting to share and pray with them. And guess who walks in to the group...That's right, Tristen. But the group that had ministered to him at the cafe were on a different street and so none of us knew the connection yet with this man that God had brought to us. He grabbed his food and again received prayer and his own Bible.

But now the story gets crazy...

The group of 3 adults who had prayed with Tristen on the PB&J ministry had a couple hours to "kill" while other groups were out doing ministry when they felt that God told them to get in their truck and drive. So they did. They came to a red light as the light rail train passed by. The train slowed down just enough so their eyes could meet with someone they recognized...Tristen! They knew that's why God had them drive at that moment. They followed the train until Tristen got off. They quickly hopped out of the truck and after many tears Tristen had told them he had given his life over to Jesus. He also shared a few of the answers to prayer from the previous day that were also truly amazing.

I'm sure you can imagine the excitement the groups had when they all realized they had been directed to meet Tristen and minister to him.

Most of this ministry was done by people who had never shared their faith like this before. They hadn't taken the time to ask God who He wanted them to talk to but because they were now willing on this day and because they sought the LORD, He spoke to them and gave them the great privilege of being a part of His ministry.

We are SO blessed to be a part of this ministry. We have been learning much and are excited to see what is coming up next. We have another group of students coming in on Monday so thank you in advance for praying :)

For God's glory!

Matt & Heidi
Indy, Trace & Perrin

ps...Our new ministry address is:

YWAM IDAHO
110 W Market St. PO BOX 70
Cascade, ID 83611

 

 

Family in Missions Spotlight: Arts & Missions, Melanie Weaver

Hi everyone! Since we're home right now, we thought we'd keep up our blog by introducing you to some of the other missionaries we are in contact with.  We met Melanie Weaver and her family through our church and have been following her missions adventures over the last few years.  She has served on missions bases through YWAM in Haiti, Jamaica, Hawaii and has also participated in short term outreaches in other countries around the world.  She is currently attending a School of Dance on YWAM base in Montana in preparation for serving as staff in future performing arts schools held overseas.  You might wonder dance has to do with missions, the fact is, the "arts", including dance, music, media, etc. have quite an impact in our society and often serve as a great vehicle for reaching the unreached, particularly in "closed" countries. Melanie and the team she is studying with are a great example -  their work is leading to open doors in Thailand! The following is her latest update.  I encourage you to pray about how you might contribute to their work. If you feel led to give, or just want to stay up to date with the teams progress so that you can join them in prayer, contact Melanie by email, dancer.for.Christ@gmail.com

"We are now already almost halfway through the School of Dance Studies and are getting more excited by the day to be going to Thailand for our outreach! The last several weeks of the first quarter were packed full from having a guest artist, two dance concerts, and all our finals, presentations and individual presentations of dance pieces we have choreographed. As much as my fellow students, staff and I are here for dance we are also here to grow in character and our relationships with God and each other. It has been a journey and there is still much to learn.

Our guest artist was Freddie Moore. A christian who works within the Alvin Ailey company, a dance company that has been called artistic ambassadors to the world. It was an honor and a privilege to get to work with him in class and glean wisdom such a vast history and experience of dance and the dance world. The week following was full of multiple rehearsals and culminated with two concert nights. The base and community at large are invited to come and attend the concert.  The response from the audience and the base was that it was one of the most purposeful concerts in its message and the presence of the Holy Spirit was so evident. We felt it as well and it was really amazing. God is on the move and has a lot more in store for this quarter as well.

After a week of spring break and rest we are back at it again and are delving deep into the history of dance through the ages, how to teach dancing, and working with people and choreography. We are still a few months out from Thailand but will be getting our tickets soon.

This is a rather long update but check out Facebook for pictures and some videos.

Please be praying for us that we can soak up all that God wants us to while we are here, and favor as we start to work with each other in dance pieces that each of us will create ourselves and set on the others.

Please pray also for all the funds to come in for the team for Thailand. I am still in need of $1200 for the outreach and I know others are still gathering their funds as well. Thanks so much for reading and praying!

May God bless you in this season and give you a refreshing taste of His love and joy. He is our confidence and our source.

Melanie Weaver

Email: dancer.for.Christ@gmail.com"

Our Next Family Missions Adventure!

Hello everyone, we are so thankful for each of you that have been following our adventures and supporting us through your prayers and words of encouragement. We are writing today to let you know about our next adventure, which is a significant step in this amazing journey God is leading us on!

Our first missions adventure as a family was something of an "experiment" - a short term commitment to see if our desire to be involved in missions work was just a passing desire or a true path for our family to follow. What we found was that we enjoyed it more than we ever expected and in a way that's hard to describe, we feel like we have discovered our life purpose. Instead of being weary from the work and longing for the comforts of home, we found ourselves energized by giving to others.  And while we enjoy being home, we find ourselves missing living in community, serving in ministry to people in need and helping others learn about the goodness of God.  

In our travels we became aware of the great need for more workers in the mission field and we felt a growing desire to be a part of the solution.  Before making any major decisions, we wanted to return home and spend some time reflecting, praying and talking with trusted advisors. Through this process we realized that these desires were lasting and with the support of our family and church leaders we have have decided to begin on a path towards full time ministry.  Our goal is not to start a new ministry, instead our desire is to use the skills God has given us to come alongside ministry leaders and support them in achieving the vision God has given them reach to the lost, poor and needy. Specifically, we hope to get involved with supporting discipleship training programs and urban street ministry as part of YWAM. 

The next leg of our journey will take us to a YWAM base in Orlando, Florida, where we will receive the additional training we need to take on a staff position within YWAM.  The training will involve both classroom learning and practical application via local and overseas outreach work.  YWAM Orlando is a large missions base that is training hundreds of missionaries every year and sends out teams all over the world, so it's a perfect training ground for our family (http://www.ywamorlando.com/outreach). As part of our training, we will develop a longer term ministry plan, which will including identifying where and how we will serve for the next few years.  All YWAM workers are responsible for raising their own support, so we will be working out a plan for fundraising during this time as well.  

We leave for Orlando at the end of March, which is less than two months away! In preparation for our departure, we have been focusing on practical things like selling our house, downsizing our possessions and getting ready for the move. We've also been spending time with family, meeting with people to share what we are doing and trying to squeeze some fun with friends in too!  Please keep us in your prayers: chief concerns at the moment are that our house would sell before we leave at the end of March, that our family would have grace for the preparations and the move and that we would have the faith to trust God for his provision and favor as we step out into a whole new way of living and working as a family!

Please feel free to share these links with anyone you think would be interested in following our journey, we'd love to share our experiences with everyone.  If you want to receive our updates automatically, like our page on facebook (https://www.facebook.com/LefeverFamilyMissionsAdventures) or subscribe to our blog (http://lefeverfamilymissionsadventures.blogspot.com).