To God be the glory

It is 3am on Sunday morning and I cannot sleep.

I woke up because my foot was severly cramping and after I prayed and it eased up I started reflecting on the highlights of Link Up yesterday (the official student launch of ISCF Grenada) and I just could not contain my excitement so I figured I might as well let it out and hope I can go back to sleep afterwards :)

IT WAS A SUPERBLY, SPECTACULARLY, SPLENDIFEROUS DAY!!!!!

When I woke up yesterday it was raining. So I started praying one time because I didn't know if Grenadians are like Trinis when it comes to rain and deciding to stay home.

Answer to prayer #1: The weather cleared up beautifully and we had great weather for the entire day :)

Double rainbow at the end of a perfect day

At 10:00am when we were scheduled to start, there were exactly 2 students and 13 volunteers. We had been praying since last week that students would come up. I asked my Trini supporters to agree in prayer with us as well. When we finished setting up at 9:40am we again met to pray for the event, for God's Word to impact lives, and for lives to come out to be impacted.

Answer to prayer #2: By 11:00am we had 39 students from 13 different schools, 17 volunteers, 3 sponsors, 5 interim committee members and some adults who came to support

ISCF Grenada Link Up posse!!!!

While we were waiting for the students to arrive, I noticed Sophia looking particularly distressed. She is an extreme introvert, and seeing so many new faces in one place was quite overwhelming for her. She clung to her friends from school and refused to be left alone. We prayed with her before the event started, and I shared my testimony with her about how God used ISCF to break me out of my shyness shell. However, when the icebreakers started, she literally ran away from anyone who tried to talk to her, and she was upset to the point of trembling.

Answer to prayer #3: By lunchtime, she came smiling to introduce me to her new friend from another school. And she did a solo when her team had to do their presentation. And she took part in the team drama. And she excitedly joined in the team games afterwards.

Sophia accepting first prize for her team

I have never run an event quite like Link Up before. It was an experiment which can best be described as 'camp in one day'. We started with icebreakers because the students came from all over; as far north as Sauteurs and as far east as Grenville. This was followed by an introduction to ISCF, which included testimonies by two Interim Committee members who were a part of the ministry when it was active in the 1980s. We then had Pastor Dubissette sharing a message about identity based on Psalm 139, where he encouraged the students to define themselves by who God says they are rather than anyone else. This was followed by meetings in small groups where they looked at a case study which helped them practically apply the biblical principles to their daily lives. This generated some really great discussions, as the students shared openly with the group leaders about their challenges. They spent some time in prayer, then we broke for lunch.

After lunch we put them in teams (we mixed the students so they would have to work with students from different schools). After another ice-breaker to get them comfortable with their team members, we gave them half an hour to plan a ten minute presentation based on the speaker's message and the theme for the day 'Who are you?' We closed with some team sports and asked them to fill out evaluation forms.

Answer to prayer #4: When asked which aspect of Link Up made the biggest impact on them, the students' answers ranged from having fun in the games, to being able to communicate with new people and overcoming their shyness, to learning to not let peer pressure control them, to helping them know their identity in Christ and understanding that God has a plan and purpose for their life, to accepting Jesus as the Saviour of their life. GLORY BE TO GOD!!!!

Pastor Dubissette sharing the Word

Praying in small groups after the case study

Chicken and chips for lunch - everyone was happy!

Winning team drama presentation

Pass the balloon

Celebrating their victory

I really have to thank God for the people who worked so hard to contribute to the success of Link Up:

Cross Connect Ministries for helping brainstorm and plan this event. Special thanks to Nadia for enduring my harrassments this week as we finalised all the fine details. Also grateful to Danielle who wasn't feeling well on Thursday so she took a sick day on Friday to ensure that she was well enough for Saturday. She also did a great job with the games and case study. Thanks also to Shannon for leaving off his three other commitments on Saturday so he could be with us and MC the program (which he did superbly), and to Jeanele for leading this planning committee and ensuring everything was covered in the midst of her studies.

Some of our hard-working volunteers

Waiting patiently for the students to attend

Thanks also to Arlene for coming early to help set up, and to Thandi for doing the hot dogs and last minute shopping on the day, and to Johannas for helping to judge and clean up, and Isiah for coming in at the last minute and flowing with the program, and to Jim and Rodney for sharing their testimony, and to Ketaiya, Aimee, Tisheena and Yani who I didn't have any relationship with before Link Up but when they heard about it they were so willing and eager to come on board. 

They didn't let anyone pass unless they registered

Serving hungry children

Thanks also to Tonya for helping with registration, and for Sister Dale #1 and Sister Dale #2 for making snow ice (we call it suck-a-bag)

DJ *can't remember his name*

 I thank God for this DJ who volunteered his services for the entire event. He even gave a financial contribution afterwards! In a country where you normally have to pay for everything, this was truly a blessing. He also put up with all my weird requests: I am sure in all his DJing career he has never been asked to play "evaluation form music" :)

Could not have made it without my sister and brother

Coleen had my back straight through - from ensuring that I follow up with potential donors, to scheduling my radio and television interviews, to helping find a caterer 3 days before the event, to getting the Red Cross to come in the event First Aid was needed, to offering administrative services and moral support ("You said you are not leaving until they give you the donation of water so we staying until we get it!") Garryn jumped on a plane from Trinidad, leaving behind two other ministry engagements, to come and help out at Link Up. He helped with setting up the venue, co-hosted with Shannon to build up vibes, and took pictures of the event.

Thanks also to those who were lifting up this event in prayer. I'm so grateful for this technology age that allows us to connect across the oceans and support one another as we share our prayer requests.

This was truly a team effort and I really have to praise God for pulling it all together. BIG UP TO THE MOST HIGH GOD!!!