A Glimpse of My Life: A busy week!

My second week in Jackson was more eventful than the first! It began with being introduced to the congregation as "the new intern", and teaching Sunday School for the first time. I continue to feel the hospitality and welcoming nature of the community here at PCJH, which I am very thankful for.

I spent Labor Day going fly-fishing with my friend James King (from Bellevue Christian) and his dad. Fly-fishing (if you haven't been before), is absolutely incredible! I had a successful, or lucky day and caught 8 Rocky Mountain Whitefish on the Gros Ventre River just south of Grand Teton National Park. Fly-fishing is about as peaceful and picturesque as it is portrayed by literature and movies, possessing a calming and alluring draw. This is definitely something that I will want to continue to do before the weather gets bad here in Wyoming!

On Tuesday, I enjoyed a ride on Jackson Lake with the dinner Rotary Club (courtesy of Patty, who is a member). Jackson Lake is a large lake just to the east and at the foot of the Grand Teton range, naturally producing beautiful scenery. Wednesday, we spent the day on a staff retreat, planning out the entire year and discussing how we can work best as a team. Thursday evening, I went and heard Dr. Paul Farmer and Ophelia Dahl (the founders of Partners in Health, and large international non-profit) speak with my Senior Pastor Paul and his wife. It was a lot of fun to hear what both of these individuals had to say about their work and what motivated them. Even though I do not know if they are Christians, they both verbalized a deep motivation to care for the lowest of the low, and how "transcendent love" is an integral part of that. Hearing the motivations of such influential individuals showed me how the LORD is working on the hearts of everyone, whether or not they realize it at that specific time.

This weekend consisted of a number of activities, including a community 5k run, which I completed! My time was not impressive, but I was satisfied to have completed the race considering the elevation (6200ft), and the fact that I am still recovering from knee surgery. Today, we had our first youth group of the year! It went well, with around 30 jr. high/high school kids showing up. It is a very energetic group of kids, and I already enjoyed working with them! We have three tag-lines for youth group this year that will serve as our way to share God's love and hope with the children. They are Experience Jesus, Prioritize People, and Choose Joy! We will be focusing on these each week as we meet with the kids, hoping to help lead them towards developing living, authentic relationships with Jesus. Tonight showed me that this year will be full of many surprises, and that I must continually be watching and listening for what God has next!

One passage that stuck out to me this week was Ephesians 4:25-32...read it for some conviction! This passage motivates me to continually build up those around me (especially the youth I am working with) in my every day interactions with others!

That's all for now, enjoy some pictures from the week!

Andrew