Father, Speak to Me (BCM Week 1)

Greetings in the name of the Lord! God is doing such great things this summer. I feel so blessed to be here in East Palo Alto right in my own backyard, serving God and using my talents and gifts. There are 18 interns all from different parts of the country, from all different backgrounds, and all different ethnicities. I love the diversity. It’s such an awesome learning experience. I moved into the house last Saturday with 13 other girls, 5 to a room. The house is really nice though and we have a full kitchen, living room, prayer room, and laundry amenities (which is a real blessing).

We just spent a few days in the Santa Cruz Mountains about an hour south of BCM on a retreat. We used the time to play games, get to know each other, fellowship, swim, hike, share our walks with the Lord, our callings, and our goals in life, worship, sing, praise the Lord, learn our expectations for the summer, and just investing in relationship building. I am enjoying discussing how much we have in common, sharing what the Lord is teaching each of us, encouraging each other in the Word, through song, and through our experiences and acquired wisdom for 18, 19, 20, and 21 year olds. The founder of BCM came and spoke to us, sharing his experiences, his wisdom from the years he worked here, his thoughts about the community, about building relationships, about vision, about God, and about the internship. We also did a session on racial reconciliation which was by far the most powerful and emotional, but very good. I love how we can all talk about deep theological and faith issues and controversial issues respectfully and honestly.


Right now we are going through intensive training/orientation. We’ve spent yesterday training in curriculum, lesson plans, teaching tips, and standards for math. [Pray for recall!] Today we are learning about curriculum, lesson plans, standards, teaching tips, and we are practicing games and teaching strategies. We still have to go through the World Around Us, a combination of science and social studies. We’ve got another full week of training and then the program starts. During the program, I will be working with 1st or 2nd graders in math, science, social studies, reading, and writing in the mornings. Some afternoons I’ll do workshops in either theater or sign language (possibly others). Some of the other activities we’ll do include trips to the pool, partnering with a sports program in the community, and field trips.

My goals or expectations for the summer:
To use what I’ve learned in the past year
To grow deeper in the knowledge and wisdom of the Lord
To use my experiences/my past to minister to others
To serve in ways/places I haven’t expected
To become even more confident in who I am in God
To be stretched outside my comfort zone
To give more of myself
To love more unconditionally
To trust God completely
To live for God totally

There are several things you can pray for:
First and foremost, pray that God would use us this summer to minister to the kids of the community of East Palo Alto. Pray God would stretch us outside of our comfort zones and that we would grow and learn in our faith walks.
If you didn’t already know, I exceeded the amount of money I needed for the summer. Thank you for your support and continued prayers. That was a blessing!
Pray for endurance, that we will be well rested, stay in shape, and eat well.
Pray for unity among the interns and humility.
Since we are all living in close quarters, I’d like to ask you to pray for the interns’ patience, for understanding, and for respect.

I wanted to share a song that the Santa Cruz redwoods inspired...

Father, speak to me, speak to me, speak to me
I am free to repeat Your praise
I will seek Your face, seek Your face, seek Your face
I am alive, constantly amazed

That you would choose someone like me
To spread the Word; I've been set free
Holy God of all, my Father and Savior

Hear my cry
Unto the heavens
May Your light
Descend upon the earth
Hear my prayer
O Messiah
I will praise You,
Jehovah God

Father, heal my heart, heal my heart, heal my heart
So I am free to feel Your grace
I will love You, Lord, love You, Lord, love You Lord
I want to run in the good race

(and I'm amazed) that You would choose someone like me
To spread the Word; I've been set free
Precious Lamb, Son of God, and Savior

Loving Father
Come and heal me
Wrap me in
Your precious love
May I never forget the story
I was bought
With Your precious blood

I’ll continue to send updates. Thank you again for your support and prayers. I appreciate it so much.

Philippians 1:9-11

In His Grace,
Hannah