July (English Camp Month)

(The Well 2017 Team)

Hi All!!

I hope you all are doing great!! This past month of July has been packed full of events and relationship building.

The beginning of the month was spent preparing for English Camp. This week long event is a camp put together mostly for the people who have been coming to learn English with us during the year. We took the group on a large bus into the mountains about two hours away from Sophia and stayed in a Heja. During this camp week we had English classes everyday. Also, we had many fun events every day with the hope of not only immersing each person working at learning English in a mostly English speaking environment but also to give them opportunities to learn about new areas of life. We had reading comprehension each day which was a section of the Bible. With this we were able to talk through the concepts spoken about and answer questions. At the beginning of the week we were broken up into four teams. My team (the orange team) won the volleyball tournament. :) While some of the other teams won other events of the week. Along with games we had afternoon classes such as wilderness survival, first aid, chalk art, acting, business preparedness, dancing, (among others). Also, for those who know me well, I put together an afternoon tea one day and it was a huge success! During this time at camp it was great being able to spend more individual time with the people I've come to know some through the classes. It was beautiful to see how God was touching people and showing them His love. I had the opportunity to talk with a camper about loneliness and how God doesn't leave us even when we have a hard time seeing Him working. It was a blessing to be able to share how God has shown His love to me and how He has walked with me through my times of deep loneliness. This person and I were both thankful for the time we spent talking and for the time we spent praying.

On coming back from camp the summer internship started to wrap up. We had one large project to work on and present for twenty minutes to the whole intern and leadership group. The projects were to be on a topic each intern has wanted to look into in the Bible. Each person was to research through out the summer what they could find out about the topic and then present it to the whole group. Mine was on John chapters 14-15. I was spending time working through what it means to "abide in the branch" and I also spent time looking into 14:12 because I have heard controversy over this verse for many years. I presented my findings and I also sang a song I had written during my time "abiding."

After these few days of presentations the summer interns had their flights back to the States. It was sad to see them go. It was great working with this team during this summer. I really enjoyed getting to know each one, also learning what their gifts are and how we all can work together using those gifts to accomplish the goals of the summer. And I was thankful that I was able to spend my birthday with the whole team of interns before they headed back home.The summer team was Taylor, Elizabeth, Sarah Grace, Joy, Zach, Samuel, Elisabeth, Neli, and myself. Neli is from Bulgaria, so I will still be able to enjoy getting to know her more over the next many months. Taylor, Elisabeth, and I are all here for an eleven month internship.

Another major thing that happened this month was that my needed finances to stay till April have been given and added to my account with MTW!!! I am so thankful to have the opportunity through all of your gifts to be able to stay here the full length of the time I had committed! I am thankful for the things I have already seen God doing but also look forward to what He plans to still do!


Prayer Requests:

• We have a new participant in the RGP and so prayers for her to adjust and for us all to know how to best help her where she is. (I will be spending time with her a few times a week teaching english, fitness, and cooking).
• Our MTW team here has a yearly team retreat coming up in a few weeks. This is a time to learn, rest, and grow in relationship together.
• For all the eleven month interns to transition well into their new roles.
• For people here to know God's love and for new relationships to be made and for current relationships to grow.
• Safety for one of our team members as she comes back from the States in a few weeks (Lydia).
• For me and all the interns to be able to learn the language quickly

Thank you all for your support!! This would not be possible without each of you!