IV @ UofI

“Missional” is the brand new catchphrase amongst Christians.  “We’re trying to be missional.”  “We’re a missional church!”   But what does “missional” mean?

Missional is not us waiting for people to wander into our church.  It’s not putting up fancy signs attracting people.  It’s inviting!

Just as in the parable of the wedding banquet,  we are to “Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.”

Do we do that?

Or are we passive?

God has been teaching me a lot recently about “idle worship.”  I find it’s far more comfortable be to idle and wait for people to come to me rather than moving forward to find people.

These are lessons God is teaching me.  Amen!

I’ve read Luke 8 before, but this time I was struck by Jesus’ words to the healed man.

“Return home and tell how much God has done for you.”

In October I will be returning home for Worldfest, a weekend-long celebration of all the missionaries Westbrook Church supports.  I’m excited to come home and tell of how much God has done for me this short month I’ve been working at the University of Iowa.

But now, home is also here in Iowa.  I have been commanded to be in my home of Iowa and Iowa City and tell how much God has done for me.

It says the man ran back to his community and  “told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.”

What we call ‘evangelism’ and ‘witnessing’ is exactly what the healed man did -  he told his story of what Jesus has done for him.

Sometimes we can get so caught up in planning events and scripture studies that we forget to breathe - and just tell our community about what God has done for us.

What has God recently been doing for you?  What has he done in the past?

It’s been a rough week for both the full-time staff and the interns and we highly cherish your prayers.  May your prayers and thoughts be a sweet and pleasing offering to God and may He fill us up with his Spirit and give us energy.

God has given me a team that loves and respects God and involves Him by petition and praise in every step we take.  I am so very blessed!

May God bless you!

~Sarah

It was the first week of classes for students - and quite a busy week for staff!  Organizational fairs, meeting with students, prayer walks,  Bible studies and festivals crowded the week to be a blurr of fun and new faces.

On Wednesday night,  we hosted a Glow-in-the-Dark Capture the Flag event, from 9p-11p.   As it had been pouring rain since Tuesday evening,  a few of us were worried no students would show up.

How lovely it is when God proves us wrong - for the better!  18 students - men and women - showed up in the pouring rain and the game was on!

We wore blue and green glow-in-the-dark necklaces to signify teams, and the game was on!  And let me tell you, it’s hard to find the hidden team flag in the dark!

Prayer requests:

• Praise: For a productive week & meeting new and exciting people
• Prayer:  For the finances of the interns, as money is tight the first month
• Praise: God blessing us with support from so many angles!
• Prayer: That our focus be in unity w. Christ & his body - that we unite with the other Christian organizations for His cause!
• Praise: A successful birthday party for the intern, Brian, and all the students we met celebrating it!
• Prayer:  For God to lead me to Mayflower and reveal himself there.

What’s next?

I will be focusing my ministry at Mayflower, the largest student dorm, which houses over 1,000 students at the University of Iowa campus.

Pray for me as God leads me to students who are excited to serve, lead a Bible study and talk to their peers about Christ!

It’s official.  I am now intern Staff at the University of Iowa!  Myself and the three other interns are excited about the upcoming year - and all the joy, challenges and growth it will bring.

New students move on campus Saturday, August 22nd and the next week all students are back in Iowa City ready to start out a new school year.

Before students arrive, I hope to know the main buildings on the campus, which I plan to do with prayer walks.

While hiking across the city and campus, I’ve also prayed that God will provide me with a good pair of walking shoes, as well!

$7,000 in pledges by August 1st, people!  If I don’t hit that deadline, then I hit the road back home to Milwaukee and think about graduate school.

So what does that break down to?

• 7 people pledging $84 a month, or
• 15 people giving $40 a month, or
• 30 people giving $20 a month, or
• ~about 6 people at$20, 7x$30, 8x$40.

If you’re interested in supporting InterVarsity,  or you want to support me in my future, drop me an email [hidama.sarah at gmail]!

Phew, that’s a lot of work ahead!   Once again, thank you all for being so generous!

Hello Friends & Family!

As I step into the world as an independent and a recent graduate of Coe College,  I’m happy to say that God has blessed me with a job that further develops my passions and calling!  In August I will be working at the University of Iowa as a ministry intern with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship.

At the “U of I” not only will I be working with Christian students, but I am excited to be focusing on reaching out to non-Christians as well! 

While at Coe, I lead a Bible study that was so popular with Gay-Straight Alliance students that the GSA had to change their meeting time because their members kept leaving early to attend the study.  I am mentoring a wonderful young Jewish woman and have been blessed to study scripture and have deep discussions about God and Jesus. 

My focus at the U of I campus will be continuing to reach out and positively impact the non-Christian communities on-campus and show God’s love and truth for all people.

But it’s not just me! God calls all of us to further the kingdom in the ways he has blessed us. It is with a humble and overjoyed heart that I have the opportunity to ask you to consider joining my financial support and prayer team.

As we are the body of Christ, we are nothing without each other. As I am the feet, I need the vital parts to be willing to send me out.

Please prayerfully consider what your role may be in this as I raise up a team that will send me out faithfully, providing financially and in seeking the Lord on my behalf.  I look forward to talking to you in this next week and setting up a time to share further about the possibilities of your partnership with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and myself as I begin my ministry internship!

To our God and Father be the glory forever and ever.  Amen!

~Sarah M Wood



ps.  You can follow my adventures at http://ivuofi.tumblr.com!

As I step into the world as an independent and a recent graduate of Coe College,  I’m happy to say that God has blessed me with a job that further develops my passions and calling!  In August I will be working at the University of Iowa as a ministry intern with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship.

I remember rolling my eyes in high school when church friends would say to me, “Sarah, you’d make a great missionary!” When I entered Coe College,  I thought I would be exploring linguistics or pursuing a lucrative career in law - definitely not a missionary.

Every decision I made, from volunteering in teaching English as a Second Language in China to going on week long social justice missions trips to inner-city St. Louis, has lead me to where I am now: a missionary and a leader to the University of Iowa campus!

At the “Uof I” not only will I be working with Christian students, but I am excited to be focusing on reaching out to non-Christians as well!  

While at Coe,  I’ve lead a Bible study that was so popular with Gay-Straight Alliance students that the GSA had to change their meeting time because their members kept leaving early to attend the study.  I’ve also been mentoring a wonderful young Jewish woman and have been blessed to study scripture and have deep discussions about God and Jesus.  

My focus at the UofI campus will be continuing to reach out and positively impact the non-Christian communities on-campus and show God’s love and truth for all people.

But it’s not just me! God calls all of us to further the kingdom in the ways he has blessed us. It is with a humble and overjoyed heart that I have the opportunity to ask you to consider joining my financial support and prayer team.

As we are the body of Christ,  we are nothing without each other. As I am the feet, I need the vital parts to be willing to send me out.

Please prayerfully consider what your role may be in this as I raise up a team that will send me out faithfully, providing financially and in seeking the Lord on my behalf.  I look forward to talking to you in this next week and setting up a time to share further about the possibilities of your partnership with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and myself as I begin my ministry internship!

To our God and Father be glory forever and ever.  Amen!

I’m so excited to be working at the University of Iowa!

Right now I’m in the process of securing a summer job, an apartment and prayfully seeking out a team to financially and in petition to the Lord to send me to the campus!