3rd Times a Charm

Tomorrow I head off to Timisoara, Romania for the third time since my move to Austria. Along with 24 students and 3 other adult leaders, we will be driving to Timisoara to help serve a care home called River of Life. ICSV students and staff have been going to this particular care home for almost 15 years now. River of Life takes in women and children who have been abused or abandoned and gives them a chance at a better life. They also teach these women about Jesus Christ and show his love through service. We have established a deep relationship with this care home and for some of our students, it's their favorite trip all year. All week the students have been telling me how excited they are for the trip and wishing Spring Break was today. It has been really sweet to experience.

While in Romania we will be digging ditches for a new sceptic tank, assembling a sceptic tank, re-patching some of the roof, painting fences and rooms, and putting on a little program for the kids at the care home. We also raised about 1.000 euro through events at school and personal donations. The students want to purchase a ping-pong table for the kids and wheel barrows for the care home takers in order to complete various projects.

For those of you reading this post, I ask for prayer for this trip. Some things you could specifically pray for are...

1. Safety as we travel to Romania and pass through the border
2. Unity among our students and a desire to encouraging each other
3. We will choose to have joy no matter what our circumstance
4. We would be a blessing to this care home instead of a burden
5. The love of Christ will overwhelm our students 

Thank you for your prayers and looking forward to sharing our experiences, stories, and pictures! :)

Some of the Romania team bowling last weekend 

King of Hearts

It is quite ironic that we celebrated Valentine's Day on Friday the 13th; however, it seemed to suit the day. Today was our annual King of Hearts Middle School Valentine's Day event. In trying to each the young middle school girls not to give their hearts away so easily, we created an event to try and make them aware of how easy it can be to give away your heart. My wonderful TA cut out about 50 pink heart necklaces and handed them out to all the middle school girls. The girls were not allowed to talk to any of the middle school boys for the entire day. If they did talk to any of the boys, they had to give them their heart. The boy with the most hearts at the end is titled The King of Hearts. It is a cute, fun, and highly entertaining activity to watch. The 8th grade girls all decided to wear black in order to bond together through this difficult time of not talking to boys. The 7th grade girls put on headphones so they wouldn't be able to hear the boys and the sixth grade girls are still trying to figure out why it's such a big deal to give your heart away.

The boys took this competition very seriously. Some of their questions and thought processes were quite humorous and I decided to write them down and share. The mind and heart of a middle school student never ceases to surprise me. 

1. Ms. Johnson, I have it all planned out! I am going to say the girl's name over and over and over again until she talks to me.
2. Stealing girls' hearts is really, really hard. 
3. I am going to trip a girl and then help her up! She'll have to talk to me then!
4. Ms. Johnson, am I allowed to kiss a girl on the cheek? She'll definitely talk to me after that!
5. If I make a girl laugh, do I get her heart?
6. Can I rip the girls' headphones out of her ears? "No.... that would be violent!" Ok... Ok...I could be romantic though and just sing to hear after I rip her headphones out?
7. If a girl nods at me, does that mean I get her heart?


Coffeehaus

Newlywed Game 

Tonight was our annual Valentine's Day coffeehaus event. Coffeehaus events happen 5 times a year are themed, and a High School only event. The students are in charge of planning and setting up the event and usually most of the students and teachers come. It's a great time to spend with students, create memories, and allow relationships to be formed outside the classroom.

We decided to play a newlywed game with some of our teachers, have an open mic time, and listen to cheesy romance songs. It was a great time spent with many of the students, getting to know the stories of fellow teachers, and watching our talented students perform love medleys throughout the evening. 

Can't stay still to Backstreet Boys

When Your Students Become Part of Your Social Life

This weekend was "hang out with your students" weekend and I wouldn't have a changed a thing. 

Friday Night, February 6th - Romania Fundraiser Talent Show

The majority of the Romania team in between the clean-up dance party

I know a lot of you were praying for our Fundraiser Event this past Friday (Feb. 6th) in which we hosted a Talent Show in order to raise money for our mission trip to Romania. First off, THANK YOU for your prayers. The whole event went very smoothly and was a big hit. All of the students who are attending this trip worked very hard to make this event a success. They cooked, cleaned, performed, and had great attitudes throughout the whole event. We have some seriously talented students and I was overcome with the urge to learn a musical instrument, taking singing lessons, or learn some new dance moves ASAP. Apparently my moves are "too white". 

Preparing the delicious spring rolls

I was thoroughly impressed by these teenager's work ethic and their ability to host this type of event. Over 125 people attended this event and we raised over 1.000 euro. We made our profit by serving Filo food (made by our students) homemade desserts (a HUGE thanks to all the moms who donated), and raffling off a few goodies. 

High School boys stealing all the girl's hearts by singing some Sam Smith

All the money that we raised will be used to help the organization, River of Life, build homes for the elderly women that have been abandoned and to purchase a ping pong table for the children in the compound. Our school has been connected with this organization for over 10 years and many of the students have been going for almost four years now. This event is very special to our students because have built deep relationships with a lot of the women and children in Romania. They know these women's stories and it makes this fundraiser all the more personal. I feel blessed to be apart of this ministry and to help make these trips possible. 

 Saturday, February 7th - Senior Class Party

When I first started teaching at ICSV, I signed up to be the Freshman Class Sponsor. A class sponsor is someone who helps the students plan events, supervise them through study hall, pour into their lives, and just be available when needed. This class quickly grabbed my heart and I have loved watching them grow up and face high school. They are now Seniors and it really saddens me to think this is my last year with them. (I'll write more about our relationship later). Anyway, we usually plan a few class parties throughout the year in order to spend time together. Sadly, this year has gone by too fast and we finally just had our first class party this year. We decided to combine all the parties we would've had into one. Therefore, we ate LOTS of food, played a few games, had a white elephant Valentine's gift exchange, and even made a few silly music videos. (I'll post one on their graduation day). This class is fun, genuine, goofy, talented, smart, and a class that I will miss dearly.

Cool kids

Senioritis 

The One with All the Activities

My Responders group

What Am I Involved in?
Responders
I am currently mentoring two high school girls every week during lunch. We are reading through the book Lies Women Believe by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. When I was in High School, I was mentored by one of my high school teachers and we went through this book. This book changed the way I lived my life and I wanted to be able to share that with some of the girls in the High School. We have created a pretty special bond and they are such a blessing to me. The girl in the middle was baptized today (Sunday, February 1st!) 


Romania Mission Trip 2015

This year I will be returning to Romania for our Spring Break with 24 students and 4 other adult leaders. This will be my third trip to Romania and I am very excited to return. We will be partnering with a missions organization there called River of Life that reaches out to abandoned women and children. I believe we are going to be digging trenches for a new skeptic tank for a home for the elderly, painting a few houses, and creating a kids program for the children in the neighborhood. It will be a great trip. This Friday we are hosting a Romania Fundraiser event in order to raise money for a ping pong table to bring to the kids in Romania. We are putting on a Talent Show at our school where students and staff can show off their talents and raise money. All the money that we raise will be donated to River of Life.

Making posters for our Fundraiser Event

Student Ministries 
Along with five other staff members (Becca Martin, Caleb Dossett, Sean Sattler, and Michael Stinauer), I am on a committee that is responsible for the spiritual growth at ICSV. We are in charge of the mission trips, class events, responder groups (bible studies), worship nights, retreats, and being a support to the student body. Because of this group, the students are able to learn about Christ outside of the classroom, learn how to live out their faith, and serve other students within and outside of our school. I feel blessed to be able to connect with the students in this way.

Spending time with students at one of the worship nights

What Am I Teaching?
ELL Intermediate Language

Intermediate ELL Class

I have only four middle school students in this class and we meet on M/W/F. The point of this class is to improve the kid's language skills in English. We read a lot of books and review English grammar. We just started a unit on punctuation which has all my students very excited to come to class :). I have two students from Austria, one from Korea, and one from Pakistan. I am very spoiled with this class because they are very well behaved and do enjoy learning.



ELL Intermediate/Advanced English
I have ten middle school students in this class from Austria, Russia, Korea, South Africa, Pakistan, Thailand, and the Philippines. There are seven boys and three girls and our conversations somehow always revolve around computer or video games. The majority of these students are conversationally fluent in English, they just need help in reading comprehension, writing, and building vocabulary. Along with teaching these students English, I want these particular students to find joy in all they do and to not complain about life's problems. The majority of our problems are heightened because we make them a bigger issue than they need to be, especially in middle school. Every problem they face will result in an emotional reaction. I am trying to teach them to choose their reactions wisely, have a better attitude about their situation, and to not complain. I appreciate your prayers for this endeavor :).

Advanced ELL Class

This is also a very inquisitive class. They are always asking questions about God, life after death, and how to make a lot of money in a short amount of time. I have been greatly encouraged by their questions, thoughts, and love being challenged by eleven year old students.

Spanish 1

Spanish 1 Class celebrating Day of the Dead

My Spanish 1 class is very different from any Spanish class I have taught before. This is my largest class with 10 students from Austria, America, Burkina Faso, Korea, India, and the Philippines. I have freshman through seniors in this class and they enjoy learning the Spanish language. We do a lot of projects, chants, songs, and skits which they love :). I am planning on taking this class to Madrid and Toledo, Spain in May for a class trip. We will be touring both cities, eating traditional Spanish food, going to a bull fight, and experiencing a Spanish evangelical church. The Spanish culture is pretty different from Austria's so I am excited to show my students another part of the world.


If you made it this far, thanks for reading! I continue to covet your prayers for my classes and the extra curricular activities that I am involved in. The Lord continues to bless everything that is happening in our school and a huge part of that is due to your faithfulness in praying. Thank you once again :).

When one of your students gets married

About six years ago I was teaching Spanish 1 to freshman and sophomores at Kaneland High School. It was my 1st year of teaching and I was completely overwhelmed but trying not to act like it. One of my students approached me and told me that she had been to Honduras and had learned some Spanish. I asked her why she had been to Honduras and she told me she had gone on a mission's trip connected with her church. I then smiled, and told her that I had been to Honduras for a mission's trip. We then both smiled and nodded our heads at each other with the recent revelation that we were both Christians in a very public school. I've come to love the instant connection that Christ brings between people.

A few weeks later she came up to me with two of her friends and asked if we could start a small prayer group at the school. Since it was a public school, we were not allowed to have the prayer group during school hours. The girls offered to meet before school at 7:15am for 30 minutes. I was very much impressed and challenged by these girls. When I was in High School there was no way I'd get up early for a prayer group or bible study and I even went to a Christian school.

We started meeting every Tuesday morning and prayed together. I would always bring Dunkin Donut munchkins that were quickly consumed. Our small prayer group started to expand as the word got out. There were students from every grade and walk of life in our group. Soon the prayer group changed into a bible study. We studied different themes in scripture, books of the bible, shared our testimonies, and what Christ had been doing in our lives. I was so amazed by what the Lord had done in such a short amount of time. There were so many young teenagers who were thirsty for the knowledge of Christ and burdened by the depravity of each hallway. This group became a safe haven for so many students, myself included.

After 2 1/2 years of this bible study, I got the call to move to Austria. Telling this group was one of the hardest goodbyes I had to face. We had become a family and I did not want to leave them alone. In moments like these I was reminded that ultimately Christ has the control over his children, and not their earthly leaders.

I am writing this post because the girl who first approached me about the prayer group just got married last week. It was an incredible, God-honoring wedding and I know this union was and will be sculpted by Christ. I was able to see many of the girls that were in this group and so many amazing memories came flooding back. I was greatly blessed by these girls and the rest of the group at Kaneland.     

  

This is a group that I will always hold very close to my heart.

 

Summer Blessings

While I do love teaching, it is such a blessing to have the summer off and decompress from the year. Here is a little summer update:

1.  Traveling with my family
Three of my cousins came to visit for three weeks this summer.  I loved being able to share my life with them here in Vienna and to explore a bit more of Europe.  We had a lot of good times and made some pretty incredible memories.  I am blessed to have a family that is willing to come and spend time with me here.

2. New Staff Orientation
Every year we have a few new teachers come from America and are in need of assistance in adjusting to the culture and to get situated here.  Since the majority of the ICSV staff went back to America, I was in charge to helping the new teachers get acclimated to Vienna.  This involves visas, apartment furnishing, bank accounts, US Embassy visits, internet, phones, etc.  It was a very busy week but I enjoyed spending time with the new teachers and excited for them as they begin their ministry here.

3.  Preparing 
This summer was also spent preparing myself for the upcoming year and anticipating what to expect.  A big part of my heart for this school year is training and teaching these students how to be disciples of Christ.  So many times students leave Christian schools and struggle adapting to the "real world".  Many students know what it is to be a Christian in a Christian school but once they leave they are bombarded by the lies of the world and become easily confused.  I will be involved in more ministry opportunities this year at ICSV and am excited to disciple more young Christian students.

Café ou Thé? C'est gratuit

We have returned safely from France!  Thank you so much for your faithful and continued prayers for our team as we ventured into Northern France.

ICSV Team in France

 First off, Northern France is beautiful and delicious!

I could've eaten this bread all day long

Beautiful streets everywhere

The main plaza

                              

When we arrived in France, our first mission was to set up coffee tables (see below) and offer free coffee, tea, and hot chocolate to anyone who walked by.  The students learned how to say "Café ou Thé? C'est gratuit" (Free coffee and tea) and invited everyone to have some drinks.  Once they came for their free coffee or tea, the students would engage them in conversations and attempt to share Christ's love or their testimonies with the people.  I was so encouraged to see how bold and courageous our students were.  We also connected with other churches who had started their own coffee tables in Northern France and were able to minister with them.  

Coffee Tables 

We were able to worship in French on Palm Sunday which was quite different, but a really neat experience.

ICSV Team on Palm Sunday

One day we went to an Anglican church and cleaned/organized their entire basement.  We were happy to be of an encouragement and help to them.  The students didn't complain once about cleaning and really helped the church in a time of need.

Hard at work

The best sweepers you'll ever meet

The organizing queen

We also went to a community center one afternoon and taught people how to speak English.  These people were from all over the world.  Our students had brought pictures of their families and materials to use in order to teach English.  They were very encouraging and helpful teachers and I was amazed as to how quickly they formed relationships with these people.

Teaching about their families

She mastered the high five

In a plaza where the Austrians were defeated by the French

Thank you, once again, for your continued prayerful support.  We had an amazing time and we're greatly encouraged by what the Lord did in the lives of our students and the people of France.  Two days after we left France, two people accepted Christ at the coffee tables - something we had been greatly praying for.  Our students now want to bring this coffee table ministry to Vienna and reach the people here.  We pray that this ripple effect will continue throughout Europe.