(This is a photo of me with the other new Partner Office staff and Joe Jordano! We hung out a lot throughout the week and Joe was really lovely, making sure we were always being taken care of. As you can see, we were probably the funnest group there. Just saying. Ha!)
So Tuesday
through Thursday really consisted of several seminars and meetings and we
learned so much more about how IJM operates. I was very impressed by how well
thought out each part of the organization is. It is evident that professionals
have considered each and every detail carefully, over prayer.
Prayer is one
thing I am really excited about after training week. IJM spends half an hour each day praying
together as a team. We do this in every office, including our wee office in
Belfast, but it was a blessing to be a part of the cooperate prayer in HQ. Each
day prayer was filled with updates from the Field Offices and from staff
members about what was happening in HQ and Partner Offices. As we prayed for
everything that was happening around the world, there was a real sense of peace
and God’s presence in the room. It is clear to me that IJM is close to God. God
cares deeply about justice and about the victims that IJM is rescuing. God
hears our prayers when we ask for justice and training week allowed me to feel
this in a new way as we prayed together as a team.
Friday was the
last day of training. I felt both sad and relieved when the week was over. Sad
because I knew it meant leaving HQ, which my heart grew very fond of. Relieved
because it was a really exhausting week. Each day my brain was fully engaged
learning so many new things and then in the evenings it felt like I never
stopped walking! So many things to see in DC and so little time made me a very
busy girl!
The very last
part of training week was our commissioning service, led by Jim Martin and Sean
Litton. Jim Martin, Vice President of Church Mobilization, led us in prayer and
communion. Sean Litton, Vice President of Field Operations, led the service and
his words were so encouraging. As he finished the service with a commissioning
statement I could feel my heart beating faster and faster. I remember thinking,
“This is it. I am officially part of IJM. I am part of God’s mission of
justice. God is rescuing people and I get to be a part of it.” These moments
have become more frequent for me.
These moments
started when I was writing my dissertation on human trafficking. These moments
remind me that our bodies and souls are so connected. My whole being is
excited by God’s call for my life. My hands start to shake and my heart beats
so fast and I feel incredible joy. Justice. I have noticed that I feel the
closest to God and most alive when I am talking to people about His mission of
justice.
The words we
find in Isaiah 1:17 are so compelling,“Seek
justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.”
These are commands.
We are all called to seek justice. We get to be a part of God’s rescuing and
redeeming plan for His creation. For now, I am responding to this call as a
part of IJM. What an honor.
A very special thank
you to Johanna for letting me stay with her while I was in DC. Your heart for
God is so evident and I continue to be encouraged by my time with you.
Also a big thanks to
all of the IJM staff who worked so hard to make training week special for us.
You truly made us feel welcome as part of the team, thank you!
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