Putting myself out there

            HI ALL! Sorry this one's late! Things have been going pretty well. I'm still slowly getting involved with the culture here, and I am becoming more and more involved with the church. Being a US-2 Missionary, I tend to have a lot of responsibilities. Not just at work, but with self-care and putting myself out there to volunteer for positions that aren't part of my two regular jobs.
            Other then cooking breakfast at the XYZ/ADC Center (Senior's Center) and working at the Boy's and Girl's Club in the afternoons I have signed on to work with the Nome Community Church's Youth Group, to help as a member of the Trustees Committee, helping out at this weekly event that the church holds called "Tuesday School" that helps educate youth between the ages of 6 and 12, and I am currently assisting a team in putting together a special outreach project.
            Since my schedule has been pretty packed and I've been doing things kind of on the fly since I've gotten here, I really need to start making a structured schedule. I recently got my planner shipped to me that I forgot to pack, so now I'm going to start using it. There are a lot of other opportunities in town that I could help out with. There are cultural organizations, other church organizations, and I can volunteer with radio stations (even hold my own shift, so yeah, I could be a DJ of sorts :D).
             Other then this I can join fishing teams, crabbing teams and hunting teams, all of which I think would be an excellent way to get more involved with the culture out here (even though I need to get licenses for all of these things). The best way to become part of a society is to bring yourself to be as similar to the society as possible.
             I'm sure people back home may not be able to see me doing these certain roles, but times change. Alaska is a state where a lot is imported for sure, but Alaska is also home to a people that are very resourceful. People use everything they can to survive out here, they have to. Alaskans are tough, there is no argument about it. True, this state has it's problems with substances and isolation, but a lot of the culture still lives off the land and with what they have. I to am going to have to live off the land like they do.
            http://www.ministrywith.org/ can shine more light on what it is like to ministry along WITH people. It speaks about how being involved with a culture and becoming more like a member of that culture's society plays an important role in ministry and mission. We as humans must seek to learn and understand the hows and whys of another culture in order to really minister to them. The role of a missionary is not to come in with their own ideas and change society, but to come in and listen to the problems of the society, and seek to resolve them. We are not only supposed to cloth, feed and give shelter to those who need it, but we should also understand their situation, be in community with them. Why?

"Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."    ~Matthew 25:40


+PeAcE+


P.S.   No Blog on Saturday because I will be at a Eskimo Cultural Festival for the weekend. I will have pictures up on my Facebook so keep watch!