Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.
-St. Patrick
You are my adventure and my co-adventurer. You are at once my destination and my companion. You are my purpose and all I need for the journey. You are the joy set before me and the peace within me.
You hem me in, behind and before, and lay Your hand upon me.
-Psalm 139:5
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
The official support letter
Dear family, friends, brothers and sisters in Christ,
Thank you for taking the time to
read this update on the exciting plans God has given me for this year!
The short and sweet:
A 7-9 month training, serving, encouraging, and vision-casting journey
to Uganda & the UK.
The details:
From August 2012-January 2013, I
will be in a Discipleship Training School
(DTS) in Jinja, Uganda, with Youth with a Mission (YWAM) at their Hopeland base there. YWAM
describes the purpose of a DTS as “to encourage committed Christians into a
deeper personal relationship with the Lord, thus equipping them to serve Him in
whatever capacity He calls them to. It is also an introduction to the values of
YWAM and a chance to explore the opportunities we can offer to develop a
calling into missions.”
Following the DTS, my plan is to
spend another month in Uganda, visiting other YWAM bases and ministries.
After this, I’ll stop in the UK
on the way home for as long as finances allow (anywhere from 1-3 months), visiting YWAM bases, family, and friends
all over the UK and Ireland.
I’m especially interested in spending some time at YWAM Paisley, a base in Scotland that
focuses on living in creative, worshipful, intentional community. I also hope
to have the opportunity to visit my cousins in Northern
Ireland and to visit friends in Galway, Ireland,
where I studied abroad in high school.
What's the point of all this?
As I’ve prayed and planned and
prepared over the past year or so, the vision has slowly come together for this
journey. The purpose of the trip is
fourfold, which is great, because I like bullet points.
- Training: Having never had any formal Bible teaching, I am so excited to do a DTS—intensive study and biblical teaching for three months, followed by two months of application on the DTS outreach. And all of this in a non-Western setting—such a source of perspective and depth!
- Serving: During the DTS, I’ll be able to use my gifts, my training, and my willing hands to partner with YWAM Uganda in the amazing work they are already doing and lighten their load in any way I can. In my travels following the DTS, I will also happily offer my services, skills, & training in any way I can be useful to the bases I visit, working for my keep.
- Encouraging: it can be such a breath of life to have a visitor, to hear stories of how God is moving across the world, to share commonalities across cultures, to laugh and learn and worship together and minister to each other. “Like cold water to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.” (Proverbs 25:25) I feel incredibly privileged to get to be that breath of life.
- Vision-casting: the vision-casting aspect of this journey is both personal and corporate. Personally, I’m wide open to the possibility of long-term ministry in any of these locations. Both Uganda and the UK have been on my heart for years, and I’m eager to see what my future looks like in relation to those places. On a larger scale, I look forward to fostering the partnerships God is waiting to build between ministries and members of the Church across the world. One of my great passions in life is to see the Body of Christ realized in the fullness of the way He planned it.
In closing:
I feel like this journey is the beginning of a new season of really walking
in the dreams God has for my life, using all the gifts and training and
blessings and passion He has given to me. I feel incredibly blessed to be
walking in the footsteps of such believers as Paul, getting to see the bigger
picture of what God is doing worldwide and working to weave stronger
connections among His Bride, while having the honor of meeting and sharing
fellowship with so many diverse brothers and sisters in the faith.
Partnership:
With all of the ways God has opened
doors and confirmed His heart for this plan, I have no doubts that every penny
will come in in His perfect order. That said, I am in the process of fundraising. I’ve been blessed this year
with great jobs that have allowed me to put a good deal away in savings, but as
of June 5th, I still need to raise about $2000 more for these nine
months or so (plane tickets, the DTS, visits to other bases in Uganda and the
UK). Please pray about it and give only what the Lord leads you to give—I can't wait
to watch Him supply every need!
I am also support-raising, which is even more exciting. This is the part where I get to travel around, spend time with so many amazing people, share what God's doing in my heart and life and in Uganda and the UK, and build connections with the Body. I’ll be leaving the States in mid-August, so if you'd like a phone call, email, Skype, or real live visit, or if your church really loves missionaries, let me know and we'll figure something out! This is my favorite part. Except the part where I'll be traveling all over the world, chasing the dreams God has put in my heart. That’s my real favorite part.
I am also support-raising, which is even more exciting. This is the part where I get to travel around, spend time with so many amazing people, share what God's doing in my heart and life and in Uganda and the UK, and build connections with the Body. I’ll be leaving the States in mid-August, so if you'd like a phone call, email, Skype, or real live visit, or if your church really loves missionaries, let me know and we'll figure something out! This is my favorite part. Except the part where I'll be traveling all over the world, chasing the dreams God has put in my heart. That’s my real favorite part.
More information:
www.ywam.org
www.ywamhopeland.com
www.ywamuganda.org
www.ywampaisley.org
Contacting me:
www.ywam.org
www.ywamhopeland.com
www.ywamuganda.org
www.ywampaisley.org
Contacting me:
Leave a note here and I will gladly get back to you! If you're not a member of my mailing list and would like to be, just let me know!
Grace and peace to you from our sweet
Lord Jesus, blessings on your families, life to your hearts, and favor on the
work of your hands.
Molly K. McKinney
Saturday, June 2, 2012
I made a choice
I made a choice to be here.
I made a choice to be 25, single, and transient.
I made a choice to live on the mountaintops and not on the highways.
I made a choice to feed the dreamer and chase the rainbows and go for broke.
Some days it's hard to remember. Some days, after twelve hours of packing and moving (knowing I'll do it all again at least twice more before summer's end), it's hard to see anything but frustration. Some days, saying goodbye and feeling my heart stretch and tear yet again, it starts to feel like a curse. Like this is something that has happened to me. It's easy to fall into self-pity.
But I made a choice.
I looked at the paths. I explored the options open to me. Presented with the opportunity for comfort and consistency, I let my mind and my heart wander hand-in-hand down that wide, level road (it wasn't hard to see where it was headed). As the vision wandered on, I saw my mind and heart always comfortable, the routine always consistent and predictable, and no life to be found. Mind grew anxious and given to fits of whining for lack of anything else to talk about, heart turned gray and bleak and screamed with gasping little breaths for something more.
I recoiled and pulled them back just in time, and rolled them down another path. The winding, climbing, rambling, narrow path where "If only..." gives way to "What if..." which teases back with "Okay, when?" and is met with a resounding "Well, why not now?" They followed this path, cartwheeling and leaping and gaining speed. And they faced scraped knees and tears and having the wind knocked out of them on a frighteningly regular basis, but their hearts (the heart of my heart, the heart of my mind) pounded and their blood flowed and their cheeks glowed and no one could question if they were alive.
And so I made a choice.
I was created a dreamer. I was created a live wire, a loose cannon, a dangerous equation of imagination and impulsivity. I was created with a million "what if"s firing constantly across the night sky of my mind, with the willingness to engage them, with the stubbornness to chase them and pin them down. I was created with a knack for jumping in with both feet and very little natural talent for patiently testing the waters. And this knack has landed me in pits and mud puddles and surrounded by crocodiles, and it has landed me on trampolines that have flung me into the greatest adventures.
I was created this way, I say, but I made a choice to engage, to accept, to throw open my arms and embrace it.
This is not a sorry circumstance, this is not a feather blown by the wind for lack of the gumption to make a decision, this is not a holding pattern until I figure it all out.
I made a choice to stay a dreamer, in the company of dreamers, chasing after the greatest Dreamer.
And I would make that choice again.
I made a choice to be 25, single, and transient.
I made a choice to live on the mountaintops and not on the highways.
I made a choice to feed the dreamer and chase the rainbows and go for broke.
Some days it's hard to remember. Some days, after twelve hours of packing and moving (knowing I'll do it all again at least twice more before summer's end), it's hard to see anything but frustration. Some days, saying goodbye and feeling my heart stretch and tear yet again, it starts to feel like a curse. Like this is something that has happened to me. It's easy to fall into self-pity.
But I made a choice.
I looked at the paths. I explored the options open to me. Presented with the opportunity for comfort and consistency, I let my mind and my heart wander hand-in-hand down that wide, level road (it wasn't hard to see where it was headed). As the vision wandered on, I saw my mind and heart always comfortable, the routine always consistent and predictable, and no life to be found. Mind grew anxious and given to fits of whining for lack of anything else to talk about, heart turned gray and bleak and screamed with gasping little breaths for something more.
I recoiled and pulled them back just in time, and rolled them down another path. The winding, climbing, rambling, narrow path where "If only..." gives way to "What if..." which teases back with "Okay, when?" and is met with a resounding "Well, why not now?" They followed this path, cartwheeling and leaping and gaining speed. And they faced scraped knees and tears and having the wind knocked out of them on a frighteningly regular basis, but their hearts (the heart of my heart, the heart of my mind) pounded and their blood flowed and their cheeks glowed and no one could question if they were alive.
And so I made a choice.
I was created a dreamer. I was created a live wire, a loose cannon, a dangerous equation of imagination and impulsivity. I was created with a million "what if"s firing constantly across the night sky of my mind, with the willingness to engage them, with the stubbornness to chase them and pin them down. I was created with a knack for jumping in with both feet and very little natural talent for patiently testing the waters. And this knack has landed me in pits and mud puddles and surrounded by crocodiles, and it has landed me on trampolines that have flung me into the greatest adventures.
I was created this way, I say, but I made a choice to engage, to accept, to throw open my arms and embrace it.
This is not a sorry circumstance, this is not a feather blown by the wind for lack of the gumption to make a decision, this is not a holding pattern until I figure it all out.
I made a choice to stay a dreamer, in the company of dreamers, chasing after the greatest Dreamer.
And I would make that choice again.
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
25
A good measure, pressed down and running over.
If I were to stumble over what I have not, what I am leaving, what I am waiting for, I would miss:
-All my kiddos' sticky, sweaty hands and hugs
-The simple joy of the moment, being a tourist in my own town on lunch break and enjoying an affogato
-All the daily chances to throw my head back and belly laugh
-Each bite of a meal made on purpose
-The support of my beautiful friends, and the love and wisdom in each word they say
-The satisfaction of small successes
-Hot pavement, warm air, cool breezes at sunset-- the first real days of summer.
At 25, let me live each day, receive it with hope and farewell it with gratitude, and pack it away in an arsenal of reasons to rejoice.
If I were to stumble over what I have not, what I am leaving, what I am waiting for, I would miss:
-All my kiddos' sticky, sweaty hands and hugs
-The simple joy of the moment, being a tourist in my own town on lunch break and enjoying an affogato
-All the daily chances to throw my head back and belly laugh
-Each bite of a meal made on purpose
-The support of my beautiful friends, and the love and wisdom in each word they say
-The satisfaction of small successes
-Hot pavement, warm air, cool breezes at sunset-- the first real days of summer.
At 25, let me live each day, receive it with hope and farewell it with gratitude, and pack it away in an arsenal of reasons to rejoice.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Uganda & Kony 2012
For the past fourteen months or so, Uganda's been on my heart again (I spent two months there in 2007). Since last May, I've been praying about the possibility of returning there for a longer period of time, and since June I've been looking into opportunities with YWAM Uganda (www.ywamuganda.org). Since August, it has been my hope to head to Uganda at some point in 2012 for a discipleship training school (DTS)-- a six-month school that starts with three months of studying Scripture and the character of God and how He relates to the situations found in Uganda, and then continues with two or three months of outreach as a means of blessing communities elsewhere in East Africa.
So that's my background. I don't claim to have a ton of authority, but I love Uganda, and I have a little more experience with and personal investment in the country and the people than your average American 20-something-year-old.
That said, I was very intrigued when a video about Uganda and its struggles began showing up all over my Facebook page a few weeks ago.
Having looked into it a little further, here's where I stand. I'm obviously all about ending the use of child soldiers and sex slaves. But I'm also about doing it in a real, transparent, Christ-like, holistic, lasting way. I do appreciate Invisible Children's work in just plain getting the word out. But my heart is to see people really look into the issue beyond the user-friendly, one-time-only involvement fads, and find a way (be it praying, going, giving, advocating/sharing/
If your heart has been stirred up by the Kony 2012 video and the very real heartbreak of the people of Uganda, praise God. Do a little research, and find a way to contribute to an organization that's there on the ground, operating in a sustainable and realistic, practical, transparent way, seeking to rebuild and sow forgiveness, reconciliation, and healing rather than vengeance.
You can start by reading the following articles for a little more information and inspiration, and practical places to start.
A good basic rundown on the situation in Uganda and the Invisible Children organization
A beautiful perspective by an amazing woman on the ground in South Sudan, just above the Ugandan border
A follow-up from the above woman (Michele Perry) with action steps
One more resource for information on IC, the reality of Uganda, and practical ways to help
So that's my background. I don't claim to have a ton of authority, but I love Uganda, and I have a little more experience with and personal investment in the country and the people than your average American 20-something-year-old.
That said, I was very intrigued when a video about Uganda and its struggles began showing up all over my Facebook page a few weeks ago.
Having looked into it a little further, here's where I stand. I'm obviously all about ending the use of child soldiers and sex slaves. But I'm also about doing it in a real, transparent, Christ-like, holistic, lasting way. I do appreciate Invisible Children's work in just plain getting the word out. But my heart is to see people really look into the issue beyond the user-friendly, one-time-only involvement fads, and find a way (be it praying, going, giving, advocating/sharing/
If your heart has been stirred up by the Kony 2012 video and the very real heartbreak of the people of Uganda, praise God. Do a little research, and find a way to contribute to an organization that's there on the ground, operating in a sustainable and realistic, practical, transparent way, seeking to rebuild and sow forgiveness, reconciliation, and healing rather than vengeance.
You can start by reading the following articles for a little more information and inspiration, and practical places to start.
A good basic rundown on the situation in Uganda and the Invisible Children organization
A beautiful perspective by an amazing woman on the ground in South Sudan, just above the Ugandan border
A follow-up from the above woman (Michele Perry) with action steps
One more resource for information on IC, the reality of Uganda, and practical ways to help
Thursday, February 2, 2012
You
The more I want you
the more I am determined
to have you and only you
Because I desire gold
I am tempted with all things that glitter
but you are worth the waiting
I will not numb my senses
with counterfeits and half-measures
I will wait for you.
the more I am determined
to have you and only you
Because I desire gold
I am tempted with all things that glitter
but you are worth the waiting
I will not numb my senses
with counterfeits and half-measures
I will wait for you.
Having done all, to stand firm
Even as we await the outcome, we can praise You in the midst of the furnace-- praise You that You stand with us even in the fire, praise You that we are being refined, praise You that the breaking point is higher than we imagined, that we are made of stronger stuff than we imagined, and certainly of stronger stuff than when we began.
I need righteousness more than I need to be right
I love Your wisdom more than I love my own light
So I lay me open before You
I lay me open, coming just to implore You
Search me, O God, and know my heart
Try me, and know my anxious thoughts
Test me and see if any wicked way there be,
I lay me open, I lay me open.
Praise You that You are just and wise and merciful, slow to anger and rich in love. Praise You that You discipline the ones You love, allowing hardship and hurt and confusion to refine us, but not to ruin us. Praise You and proclaim that, whatever the outcome, You are good and Your mercy endures forever.
I need righteousness more than I need to be right
I love Your wisdom more than I love my own light
So I lay me open before You
I lay me open, coming just to implore You
Search me, O God, and know my heart
Try me, and know my anxious thoughts
Test me and see if any wicked way there be,
I lay me open, I lay me open.
Praise You that You are just and wise and merciful, slow to anger and rich in love. Praise You that You discipline the ones You love, allowing hardship and hurt and confusion to refine us, but not to ruin us. Praise You and proclaim that, whatever the outcome, You are good and Your mercy endures forever.
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