YWAM Staffing Support Letter

Dear friend,

I have the pleasure of being able to write about the amazing opportunities that God is leading me towards. As many of you of know I completed my Discipleship Training School (DTS) through Youth With A Mission (YWAM) this past March in New Zealand. During those 6 months I learnt so much about god, his character, my relationship with Him, my identity in him, gained freedom from my sin and the boldness to move forward in that freedom. Since then God has led me to work at Pembina Valley Bible Camp (PVBC) for a season. Being part of the spring staff team has been an awesome new learning experience and being able to be part of camp is always a blessing. Crazy that I’ve been at camp for the last eleven weeks, it’s flown by so fast, and that there’s six weeks of summer camp before the end of the season. The team I’ve been able to be a part of and work with has blessed me incredibly. We’ve become so much of a family, truly my brother and sisters. God is so good!

Fast forwarding a few weeks from now… Praying and trusting God to guide and lead me where He wants has been an interesting journey, but a fruitful one. I have felt strongly called to follow God back to New Zealand, specifically with YWAM. YWAM is an international volunteer movement of Christians from many backgrounds, cultures and Christian traditions, dedicated to serving Jesus throughout the world. I have been accepted to staff the Backpacker DiscipleshipTraining School (BDTS) which is run out the YWAM Oxford base (the same location I completed my DTS) in New Zealand. About backpacking: Each year thousands of young adults strap on a backpack to travel around the world, experience culture and find adventure. They are seeking to discover who they are, what life is about and what to do with their lives. They are seeking answers. They are open. Many of them return home without answers or even get lost on their travels, stuck in drugs or just living the same life they tried to escape from. The mission of the backpacking school is to share the love of Christ with these intrepid travellers by way of friendship evangelism. We go where the backpackers go. Over 350,000 people from all over the world backpack across New Zealand each summer. Meaningful conversations can occur on the top of a mountain, on a trail, or while preparing dinner for your team over a campfire or in a hostel kitchen. We live life together, listen, share testimonies and the Gospel, give out Bibles, and pray with them. Along with staffing I’ll be taking the Basic Leadership School (BLS). The course is designed to help grow leadership skills, learning how to lead others through mentoring, lectures along with practical opportunities. My practical opportunity will be staffing the BDTS. I’m planning on leaving at the end of August for the start of BLS and will finish in March of 2014.

Following the call to “Go into all the world and make disciples of all nations” Matthew 28:19, I am stoked to have this opportunity to explore more of my Maker, to study his Word, and use the passions and gifts he has given me all over the world in order for people to know, experience and fully understand his love. It would be wonderful is you could keep YWAM and me in your thoughts and prayers because I cannot do this alone! If you would like to help me financially with my trip, please let me know! I need to raise $9,000, so any amount of support you feel God is leading you to give will help tremendously and is GREATLY appreciated. **Checks can be made out to: Jolanthe Schaefer, memo: YWAM and given to myself or sent to {164 Cedar Ave. Winkler MB, R6W 1S3}. To donate online go to: http://www.ywamoxford.org/pay-online/ and when selecting payment, choose "donation". 

If you have any questions or would like to be updated on my journey, email me at: jolanthe94@gmail.com. For more information and updates of my YWAM please stay tuned to my blog: southpacificwanderlust2012.blogspot.ca/. Once again, I am so excited to be able to share this with you and cannot thank you enough for the support and love you have given me throughout my life, and now. I am truly blessed.

Jolanthe

It's Been Awhile, I Know

Hey ya'll!
Yes, I know it's been awhile since I've posted anything and a lot has happened since. I apologize if my thoughts are every where... that's just how life's been. I've graduated from my DTS, traveled home, spent time with family and friends, grown in my faith and the like, worked at camp and am still working at camp. I feel like I need to catch up. It's been 3 months since I've been home. Time flies by. What have I been up to? Heaps of things. Camp for one. I've been working at PVBC for the last 9 weeks as part of the spring staff team. Man has it been good. The team I work with has been amazing, lots of growing, lots of laughing and lots of Jesus! And I'm blessed to work another 7 weeks with them! Camp is awesome. Sweet conversations has been another thing I've been up to. I've been blessed to talk to some amazing people these past few months. God knows the people you need to talk too, and it's awesome when ya'll get together. :) Yep! God's given me some neat opportunities to share what He's been working in me, and that's been sweet.
As this is a bit of an update on my life already, I have some exciting news. I am going back to New Zealand at the end of August. I will be staffing the Backpacker's Discipleship Training School (BDTS) along with taking a Basic Leadership Course (BLS). In the near future (by the weekend) I'll be sharing more information of what that'll look like and how you can be a part too. Yeppers, getting pretty excited about it!
Prayers are always appreciated! For camp, finances and the like are always good things to pray for! 
Jo