Call Ins

Something is changing.  I’m changing.  The way I do youth work is changing.  The funniest thing about it all is that I’m not meaning for it to change. It’s just doing it on its own.  Well, actually I think God is opening doors before me leading me deeper and deeper into the wilderness of Belfast. 

I’m starting to call in to (stop by) young people’s houses.  I didn’t plan for this to happen- it just happened.  Since working for Youth Initiatives, I’ve been a trainee youth worker learning loads about the world of youth work.  We often talk about “walking alongside young people,” so yesterday I literally did that ice cream in hand, walking down the street, engaging in conversations with one of the girls I have been meeting with regularly.  We walked from the ice cream shop to her house – taking the long route- (way too long for this American girl), and stopped by her house.  I went in to use her bathroom and get a drink of water.  Before I knew it, I was staying for dinner and jumping on the trampoline with her little sister. 

It was so simple yet so much fun.  After hearing so much about their family, I was able to finally properly meet them while entering into their life.  It’s such a privilege to enter into a family’s home and life.  That is where I love to be!  On their turf building trust and relationships. I get a glimpse into their reality and into their lives in a way that can’t be explained or communicated with words. 

I have been trying for months to get in contact with a girl from YI, but she never answers my calls.  While leaving the school, I ran into one of her friends and asked about her.  She pointed out her house across the street, so I decided to stop by.  Her mum answered the door and I met with her daughter in their purple living room.  It was so homey, colorful, and cute.  It was fun to just sit and chill talking about life while doing her volunteer interview.  It was so much easier to just meet at her house rather than finding a place to meet up since there are few places to meet in the Colin Area. We talked, laughed, and she invited me to call in any time.  I think I am going to take her up on that!

Dreams fill my head with what I one day long to do in the neighborhood I live and work in.  In some ways those dreams started to become realities today.  Another one of the girls I work with invited me over for dinner.  Rather than just talking about it, I now have a date in my diary to call in.  It’s easy to dream about the “one days,” but I think God sometimes desires to make those one day’s today.  Why not live out our dreams today?  And God’s dreams are so much more than we could ever imagine.  I’m starting to build relationships not only the girls I am working with, but also with their families and the community.  God is so good.  I can’t wait for this adventure to continue on.