I guess I should explain a bit more of what I’ll be doing here at Ginghamsburg this summer, just so everyone is familiar with the ministries I’ll be working with. Primarily, I’ll be working with the New Path Outreach ministries, which consists of a number of different things including: a food pantry, clothing ministry, furniture ministry, used medical equipment rental, thrift store, veterinary services, car ministry, and a Monday night worship service. I’ll have the privilege of working alongside volunteers (called Servants here) to provide resources and ministry to a variety of individuals during my summer. In addition, I’ll also get to see some of the other ministries that are happening at Ginghamsburg, specifically with the New Creation Counseling Center, support groups, and a little bit of Student Ministry too! I am in for one very busy summer, and I am VERY excited to be a part of all that Ginghamsburg does! Honestly, thinking about it sometimes is enough to make my head spin!!! There’s just so much going on and so many people coming together to form a community of love and to serve God - it’s amazing!!!
For me, coming to a church like Ginghamsburg was a bit of a shock for me. I’m from a small town (which is actually very similar to Tipp City! Although Tipp City is bigger and has stoplights!!!) :) Anyhow, I grew up in a church that was small, with an average attendance of between 70-100 each Sunday. Last summer, I was given the privilege of serving at First UMC in Bowling Green - a church much bigger than my hometown with an average Sunday attendance of somewhere around 300. Serving at First in BG last summer was a completely new experience for me. I’d never really been a part of a church that was so big and it definitely took some getting used to!!! So, knowing that, imagine the shock that coming to Ginghamsburg gave me!! (Although I will say it’s definitely a good shock!!!) :) Ginghamsburg has several different services throughout the week/weekend, and with a worship area seating over 1000, over 4500 people worship at Ginghamsburg throughout the week!!! That’s AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!! :) I’ve been enjoying all the different people I have met and interacted with over the past few days, and for me, each person, has been a blessing!
On Wednesday when I arrived, I met my mentor, Marcia, who is absolutely wonderful! I have enjoyed her company this week and I must say, she is one fantastically dedicated and committed woman! :) She has such a heart for everything that New Path does, and I can honestly say, I’ve never met anyone who was quite as gifted for the type of work that we are doing as she is! We went to lunch, talked about the calendar for the summer, and then headed back to the New Path office where I got to see my desk and meet some of the food pantry servants. (On a random side note, I also learned on Wednesday that there are over 700 Servants that serve and minister through the New Path ministries each year!!! That’s AMAZING!) The Servants explained to me the procedure for helping clients as they arrive; what the clients do, what the servants do, and how the entire interview process works. Then, I was able to sit in on a few interviews with clients, play with some children as their mother was interviewed, and watch the entire process work! It’s actually very organized and incredibly efficient! At the end of the time, we cleaned up and several of the servants mentioned how slow it had been that day. In my head I was thinking, slow?! What?! We served 18 families that day in just two hours!!! That didn’t seem slow at all to me!!! But compared to a normal day at Ginghamsburg, 18 families in two hours was pretty slow.
Thursday, I had the opportunity to visit another one of New Path’s ministries in the morning: Anna’s Closet. Anna’s Closet is a clothing store where people can shop for gently used clothing, shoes, and accessories at a greatly reduced price. Anyone can shop at Anna’s Closet and they have a wonderful selection of really nice things!!!!! Clothing items, as well as the accessories are donated by community members, sorted, tagged and displayed by servants, and sold to people who come into the store. One of the other things that New Path does through Anna’s Closet is providing individuals (and families) with clothing assistance. Every 6 months, individual’s can receive a $10 gift certificate for clothing from Anna’s Closet for each member of the household. After getting a tour of the store, I got to create some displays using some shoes, purses, and belts, and pairing them with outfits, as well as hang and sort new clothing for the shelves. I really like working at Anna’s Closet and look forward to the time when I get to go back!
After that, I went to all staff chapel - which this week, was just lunch with fellow staff members. I sat with some people from the Children’s ministry dept. and had a great time learning more about Ginghamsburg and eating fantastic food - cooked by the chef on staff! :) Yes, I really did say that there’s a chef on staff! :) Following staff chapel, I headed back to the South Campus (where the New Path offices and food pantry are) and went to work setting up the food pantry for another day. Soon, clients began to arrive and after sitting in on two interviews with another servant, I felt confident enough to do my own. We served something like 25 families on Thursday! And that was still a slow day!
Friday my day was spent at a conference on “Spiritual Issues in Counseling.” For me, this was the highlight of my week so far. That’s not to say that all the other things weren’t interesting or important, or that I didn’t love doing them (because I did!) but I truly understand now that Pastoring/Counseling is where my heart and passions lie! I can really see my gifts being used most effectively within the realm of counseling.
Saturday, I worked at a newer ministry of New Path called the Gleaning Place. At the Gleaning place, unpaid servants have set up a yard-sale like atmosphere inside a building (which a church member is letting them use.) Inside you can find all sorts of things: paintings, pictures, toys, music, and too many other things to really name! The Gleaning Place works a bit like a garage sale, servants price the items (which have all been donated) and they are sold to customers on Saturdays when the store is open.
Saturday evening, I went to the 5:00 worship service at the main campus of the church. It was graduation weekend here at Ginghamsburg, so after seeing a video of the graduates, the high school specialist, Nick Cunningham, gave the message entitled “When God eats our Cookies.” It was pretty wonderful! At seven, Ginghamsburg puts on what is called ”The Next Step” which is a service for people in recovery. I decided to attend this service as well and found that I really enjoyed being there. The service is set up much like other worship at Ginghamsburg, with the music team and Nick preaching, but in addition to the sermon, the Next Step service provides a testimony from someone in recovery each week. It was wonderful to hear stories and to see how God has worked in the lives of so many!
Sunday morning, I got up and went to worship at the Fort McKinley campus of Ginghamsburg, down in Dayton. Marcia and I had breakfast at the Fort and I got to know that church a bit, and we enjoyed an amazing worship service, where Mike Slaughter preached a message about Dealing with Stress. I loved worship at the Fort - it was a bit more traditional than at the main campus, and I LOVED the music! At the Fort, (at least this past Sunday) there was a choir that sung Gospel music! As a former Gospel choir singer… I knew the songs and I was very touched by worship there. Mike’s message was also wonderful. As a person dealing with stress in my life lately, it was good for me to hear Mike’s wisdom and God’s wisdom about taking care of me when stress happens and how to effectively and healthily deal with stress.
Sunday afternoon, I spent time in the Englewood Metropark and reading The Shack… which I have to say is fantastic so far!
Monday began with an early trip to the office, working on paperwork and getting things done. Then I made some deliveries and a few phone calls, met with one of the servants about Paws4Hope, a vetrinary minstry here at NewPath, and then headed over to main campus to help at Gateway Cafe - a Monday night worship service and opening/intake for food pantry clients. Worship was good and so was dinner. I got to learn about several different jobs during Gateway, and ended up helping out the interview servants (as they were a bit short-handed!)
This morning, I had a meeting with the financial guy, Nate, who had me sign forms so I can get paid (yay!) and went over employee policies and the Ginghamsburg handbook. Then I headed back to the New Path offices to do some work and then to meet with the servant about the Paws4Hope ministry. After that, I headed over to the main campus of the church and to The Avenue (the building for Student Ministries) and attended a Student Ministries staff meeting. I loved hearing all the wonderful things they were doing with the Ginghamsburg youth! They have GREAT plans!!! :) It was wonderful to be a part of such a dynamic group of people and to share ideas about student ministry and mission trips! I finished my afternoon at the New Path offices, where I currently am writing this blog! :) I worked on some mailings, ran to the post office, and did some odd jobs around the office. In about an hour, I will go with Marcia to the Kingdom Investors Dinner at the church - a dinner for all the giving members of the church in which Pastor Mike Slaughter, along with the other members of the Senior Management Team will give an update on the Church and a vision for the future. As Marcia describes it, it’s kind of like a “State of the Church” address. It will be interesting to see all the things that are going on at Ginghamsburg and to hear updates on all the ministries here!
Blessings, grace, and peace to each of you,
Lorrin
For me, coming to a church like Ginghamsburg was a bit of a shock for me. I’m from a small town (which is actually very similar to Tipp City! Although Tipp City is bigger and has stoplights!!!) :) Anyhow, I grew up in a church that was small, with an average attendance of between 70-100 each Sunday. Last summer, I was given the privilege of serving at First UMC in Bowling Green - a church much bigger than my hometown with an average Sunday attendance of somewhere around 300. Serving at First in BG last summer was a completely new experience for me. I’d never really been a part of a church that was so big and it definitely took some getting used to!!! So, knowing that, imagine the shock that coming to Ginghamsburg gave me!! (Although I will say it’s definitely a good shock!!!) :) Ginghamsburg has several different services throughout the week/weekend, and with a worship area seating over 1000, over 4500 people worship at Ginghamsburg throughout the week!!! That’s AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!! :) I’ve been enjoying all the different people I have met and interacted with over the past few days, and for me, each person, has been a blessing!
On Wednesday when I arrived, I met my mentor, Marcia, who is absolutely wonderful! I have enjoyed her company this week and I must say, she is one fantastically dedicated and committed woman! :) She has such a heart for everything that New Path does, and I can honestly say, I’ve never met anyone who was quite as gifted for the type of work that we are doing as she is! We went to lunch, talked about the calendar for the summer, and then headed back to the New Path office where I got to see my desk and meet some of the food pantry servants. (On a random side note, I also learned on Wednesday that there are over 700 Servants that serve and minister through the New Path ministries each year!!! That’s AMAZING!) The Servants explained to me the procedure for helping clients as they arrive; what the clients do, what the servants do, and how the entire interview process works. Then, I was able to sit in on a few interviews with clients, play with some children as their mother was interviewed, and watch the entire process work! It’s actually very organized and incredibly efficient! At the end of the time, we cleaned up and several of the servants mentioned how slow it had been that day. In my head I was thinking, slow?! What?! We served 18 families that day in just two hours!!! That didn’t seem slow at all to me!!! But compared to a normal day at Ginghamsburg, 18 families in two hours was pretty slow.
Thursday, I had the opportunity to visit another one of New Path’s ministries in the morning: Anna’s Closet. Anna’s Closet is a clothing store where people can shop for gently used clothing, shoes, and accessories at a greatly reduced price. Anyone can shop at Anna’s Closet and they have a wonderful selection of really nice things!!!!! Clothing items, as well as the accessories are donated by community members, sorted, tagged and displayed by servants, and sold to people who come into the store. One of the other things that New Path does through Anna’s Closet is providing individuals (and families) with clothing assistance. Every 6 months, individual’s can receive a $10 gift certificate for clothing from Anna’s Closet for each member of the household. After getting a tour of the store, I got to create some displays using some shoes, purses, and belts, and pairing them with outfits, as well as hang and sort new clothing for the shelves. I really like working at Anna’s Closet and look forward to the time when I get to go back!
After that, I went to all staff chapel - which this week, was just lunch with fellow staff members. I sat with some people from the Children’s ministry dept. and had a great time learning more about Ginghamsburg and eating fantastic food - cooked by the chef on staff! :) Yes, I really did say that there’s a chef on staff! :) Following staff chapel, I headed back to the South Campus (where the New Path offices and food pantry are) and went to work setting up the food pantry for another day. Soon, clients began to arrive and after sitting in on two interviews with another servant, I felt confident enough to do my own. We served something like 25 families on Thursday! And that was still a slow day!
Friday my day was spent at a conference on “Spiritual Issues in Counseling.” For me, this was the highlight of my week so far. That’s not to say that all the other things weren’t interesting or important, or that I didn’t love doing them (because I did!) but I truly understand now that Pastoring/Counseling is where my heart and passions lie! I can really see my gifts being used most effectively within the realm of counseling.
Saturday, I worked at a newer ministry of New Path called the Gleaning Place. At the Gleaning place, unpaid servants have set up a yard-sale like atmosphere inside a building (which a church member is letting them use.) Inside you can find all sorts of things: paintings, pictures, toys, music, and too many other things to really name! The Gleaning Place works a bit like a garage sale, servants price the items (which have all been donated) and they are sold to customers on Saturdays when the store is open.
Saturday evening, I went to the 5:00 worship service at the main campus of the church. It was graduation weekend here at Ginghamsburg, so after seeing a video of the graduates, the high school specialist, Nick Cunningham, gave the message entitled “When God eats our Cookies.” It was pretty wonderful! At seven, Ginghamsburg puts on what is called ”The Next Step” which is a service for people in recovery. I decided to attend this service as well and found that I really enjoyed being there. The service is set up much like other worship at Ginghamsburg, with the music team and Nick preaching, but in addition to the sermon, the Next Step service provides a testimony from someone in recovery each week. It was wonderful to hear stories and to see how God has worked in the lives of so many!
Sunday morning, I got up and went to worship at the Fort McKinley campus of Ginghamsburg, down in Dayton. Marcia and I had breakfast at the Fort and I got to know that church a bit, and we enjoyed an amazing worship service, where Mike Slaughter preached a message about Dealing with Stress. I loved worship at the Fort - it was a bit more traditional than at the main campus, and I LOVED the music! At the Fort, (at least this past Sunday) there was a choir that sung Gospel music! As a former Gospel choir singer… I knew the songs and I was very touched by worship there. Mike’s message was also wonderful. As a person dealing with stress in my life lately, it was good for me to hear Mike’s wisdom and God’s wisdom about taking care of me when stress happens and how to effectively and healthily deal with stress.
Sunday afternoon, I spent time in the Englewood Metropark and reading The Shack… which I have to say is fantastic so far!
Monday began with an early trip to the office, working on paperwork and getting things done. Then I made some deliveries and a few phone calls, met with one of the servants about Paws4Hope, a vetrinary minstry here at NewPath, and then headed over to main campus to help at Gateway Cafe - a Monday night worship service and opening/intake for food pantry clients. Worship was good and so was dinner. I got to learn about several different jobs during Gateway, and ended up helping out the interview servants (as they were a bit short-handed!)
This morning, I had a meeting with the financial guy, Nate, who had me sign forms so I can get paid (yay!) and went over employee policies and the Ginghamsburg handbook. Then I headed back to the New Path offices to do some work and then to meet with the servant about the Paws4Hope ministry. After that, I headed over to the main campus of the church and to The Avenue (the building for Student Ministries) and attended a Student Ministries staff meeting. I loved hearing all the wonderful things they were doing with the Ginghamsburg youth! They have GREAT plans!!! :) It was wonderful to be a part of such a dynamic group of people and to share ideas about student ministry and mission trips! I finished my afternoon at the New Path offices, where I currently am writing this blog! :) I worked on some mailings, ran to the post office, and did some odd jobs around the office. In about an hour, I will go with Marcia to the Kingdom Investors Dinner at the church - a dinner for all the giving members of the church in which Pastor Mike Slaughter, along with the other members of the Senior Management Team will give an update on the Church and a vision for the future. As Marcia describes it, it’s kind of like a “State of the Church” address. It will be interesting to see all the things that are going on at Ginghamsburg and to hear updates on all the ministries here!
Blessings, grace, and peace to each of you,
Lorrin
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