The PM shift starts at 3:00. At this time the ladies have just finished Study Hall in the classroom upstairs are are taking a bathroom break. Study Hall is a time when the ladies can work on homework that their counselors have given them (a study on a certain book or subject of the Bible, memory verses, books to read, worksheets, etc.). 3:00 is snack time so those who are on the PM intern shift bring the snacks to the ladies after checking in with the on-duty staff. When we check in, the on-duty staff gives us a brief overview of how the day is going so far and if anyone is struggling, so we are aware. Once everyone has gone to the bathroom and has a snack, we start a class until 4:00. The class is usually an audio track of a sermon from Pastor Viars, the pastor of Faith Church, and the ladies have fill-in-the-blank sheets that go along with the message. At 4:00 we go do some kind of cleaning, depending on the day. For example, Mondays we clean at the church, Wednesdays we clean in the house, Fridays we clean at the church again. The interns delegate the cleaning jobs and supervise. Around 4:45-5:00ish we head back to the house and the ladies who are on meal prep for the day go with an intern to the kitchen and start prepping for dinner. Dinner is at 5:45, so until then the rest of us have a little chill time in the living room. After dinner the intern starts meal clean-up, delegating jobs and supervising. At 7:00 we either have devos or outside chores, depending on the day. Once again, with chores the intern delegates and supervises. We are back in the house by 8:15 for snack time and med time, then the ladies have free time until 9:45, when they must be in their rooms. During free time we interns will work on our EOS for the day. EOS stands for End Of Shift. It is a report that includes a summary of our interactions with and observations of each resident that the interns must put together at the end of their shift and email out to all of the Vision of Hope staff and interns. This report is super helpful for the resident's counselors, so that they can see how their counselees are doing, if they're struggling with something and if they are following what they are being taught in counseling between counseling sessions. Also during free time, we regularly walk around in the house, loosely supervising the ladies. At 9:45 the ladies must be in their rooms, so we interns walk around and make sure everyone's there. 10:00 is lights out, so we walk down each hallway and tell the ladies goodnight, turning out their lights and closing their doors. We turn off most of the lights in the house and make sure all alarmed doors are closed properly and locked. In order to keep the house looking nice, the residents aren't allowed to leave their stuff laying around randomly. So if we see something laying around at that time we confiscate it. The residents can get their items back if they buy it back with a "blessing buck". They earn blessing bucks by memorizing and quoting scripture. Once doors are closed and locked and lights are out, the interns check out with the on-duty staff and head off to the apartment to finish their EOS or go to bed or whatever. The interns are the first-response if someone is struggling, so throughout the day it is our job to help the girls if they are struggling with something and stay with them until the on-duty staff can come and take over.
And that, my friends, is (basically) a day in the life of a PM shift intern.
So here I am, doing this internship! Whoa, so many new things that are so challenging and stretching! I am so thankful that God has brought me to this place where I can gain such experience and knowledge of things I've never been exposed to before! First of all, I have NEVER been a leader. That's just not my personality! So it has really been a struggle for me to step up and be a leader to all these ladies! I often feel very small and overwhelmed and fearful. I know that God has called me here and that He will give the the grace I need to get through each day and be a loving, confident leader for these ladies, but still sometimes it's just plain overwhelming. It definitely has to be all God...because this isn't me! I have to remind myself every day that yes, I am naturally not a leader and I have nothing to offer these girls, but God has promised to supply all my needs and to complete the good work He has begun in me. There are so many times in the Bible where God tells His people to take courage and don't be afraid, because He is with you. I cling to these verses and meditate on them before going on shift. Our God is a mighty God, and He is by my side in this! Why would I be afraid when I know He's right here, giving me all the grace I need to do the work He has called me to do?
God has also opened my eyes to see the heartbreaking results of trauma in the ladies' lives. Many of them struggle daily with experiencing strong memories and flashbacks of the unimaginable trauma and abuse they have endured. It makes me feel so blessed to have the family that I have and to have had the wonderful, Christian upbringing that I had. I know that I am NOT worthy of the blessings God has allowed in my life. It is so inspiring to see these ladies struggle every day, remembering their horrible past, and still striving to glorify God and trust His sovereign will. I think they teach me more than I teach them.
So as you can see, I am struggling through, desperately clinging to God for support, being stretched and learning a lot. I am so happy to be here because I know that this is where God wanted me and I am growing closer to Him as a result of being stretched and challenged. There are so many great opportunities here...in fact, I just got a new one this week! I started sitting in on one of the new resident's counseling sessions on Tuesday. I will be sitting in with her every Tuesday as long as we both are here. I am so excited for her, to see her learn and grow! I have high hopes for her future, and I can't wait to see what God has planned for her life.
Please pray that I will be growing as a leader. Pray for patience, wisdom, and discernment so that I can always do the most loving thing for these wonderful ladies. Also, please pray for all of the new residents that we have been receiving and continue to receive, as some of them do not know the Lord. Pray that their hearts will be opened and that they will see that Christ really is their answer. Thank you for your prayers, for without them I would not have lasted even this long!
"The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”
-Exodus 14:14
