Well Halloween (or Reformation Day...ha) has come and gone without much fanfare around the apartment. We bought pumpkins, but I'm sad to they escaped the knife. One of them is currently sporting a mullet-wig, but that's about the extent of it.
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RUF-UTK had our annual Halloween dance on Friday night at Redeemer Church. It was definitely a success, and pictures will be posted soon.
(It is at this point in the blog-post that I paused this morning, and I finished it later in the morning at Panera. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to me, Panera's free wi-fi only works for 30 minutes at a time during lunch hours. So when I finished and went to post it...nothing. Goodbye post. [sigh]. So here goes try #2:)
I returned on Wednesday afternoon from Fall Intern Training in Atlanta, and it was such a great time together with all the other RUF interns from across the country. To be perfectly honest, while the training itself was great, the best part of the trip was getting to spend time with the other interns, hearing how God is working on their campus and in their own lives, and also being able to encourage each other.
When the rest of the world doesn't think you have a "real job," and when the life of an intern is often lonely, sometimes it's good to all come together and toss around "intern humor" that no one else understands. For instance, who knew that online reimbursements could be so hilarious?
But in addition to discussing the job, it was so encouraging to spend time with such a solid group of people. Seeing their passion for their campuses and their ministries was definitely an inspiration to me as I returned to Knoxville, and it was also wonderful to be able to pray for each other and encourage each other personally as well. A lot of the interns are also considering seminary, and I look forward to hopefully being able to continue many of these friendships after the internship. While I'd never suggest doing the internship simply for this reason, I can definitely say that the times spent with other interns are a definite perk of the job. That and doing nothing but sleep and eat all day.
Please note the sarcasm in that last sentence. Maybe this is why no one thinks I have a real job...ha
So now I'm back to Knoxville and back to work, feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. Knoxville's feeling more and more like home. Lord willing, I'll be joining Redeemer Church here in Knoxville on Sunday. I've been blessed to be able to join such a wonderful church, one that is extremely supportive of RUF and also one with a very missional mindset toward the community. I've also been blessed with some wonderful friends, and awesome freshmen...all of whom are much cooler than I am. Seriously.
Please continue to pray for me and my interactions with students. One of the hardest parts of this job is the ambiguity. "Success" is very difficult to quantify, and there are no clear outcomes...at least not immediately. I'm told this is why so many campus ministers take up golf. Ha. I pray for wisdom as I try to figure out how to proceed in each individual relationship. I'm realizing more and more that there is no science or equation to fit this job into. It's all about faith, grace, and yes, obedience. It's only by God's grace that I'm able to obey, and I must have faith that God is at work, whether or not it's evident to me. Even when I fall short or completely fail, I must have faith that God is still at work, because ultimately, it's not about me.
And yes, I will definitely post pictures from the Halloween dance soon. I could do it now, but that would make an enormous post, and this is already my second time writing all this. (I think it's better the 2nd time...just FYI) And of course, I wouldn't want them to take away from the mulleted pumpkin.
Until then...
Resting in His Promises...
Stephen, whose job is real only by God's grace
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