Mosaic Internship Newsletter No. 4

Happy April, readers! 

It may be a month late, but happy belated Easter, everyone! I hope you all were able to be with loved ones and friends, eat delicious food, and above all, celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Again, let’s take a moment to praise Jesus for paying the ultimate price on our behalf. (Thank you, Jesus; amen!)

When this newsletter is posted, I will most likely be getting ready to board a plane. I’ll speak about it more next month but in short, I’m traveling all over these next few weeks! First, a collegiate ministry summit in Tennessee, then visiting family in Florida, and then a wedding for one of my best friends in North Carolina! Needless to say, I have a lot of traveling in store for this year, and this is just the beginning. 

It’s been a busy month for Mosaic as the semester and school year come to a close (so please forgive me if this newsletter entry feels a bit rushed). I cannot believe how fast time has flown and that summertime is almost here! Though it may not feel like it occasionally (thank you, Alaska, for being so bipolar), I know that it is just beyond the horizon. 

With all that being said, let’s jump into all the crazy and fantastic things that happened in April! 

I finally spoke about my YWAM Japan trip and missions at Mosaic.

Originally, I was supposed to speak about this not long after I returned from Japan, back in September. Unfortunately, I was struck pretty hard with health issues and was having a hard time adjusting to being back home. I’ll probably dedicate another post to what “reverse-culture shock” feels like because it is real and bizarre. But luckily, I managed to adjust and am doing better now, so I was able to finally share.

Now, I won’t lie, it was terrifying. Did I cry a few times before I had to speak? Sure did. Did I feel like puking my guts out and curling into a ball on the floor? Absolutely. Did I repeatedly say to God, “I’m not qualified; can you send someone else”? You bet. 

But I’m so glad I didn’t chicken out. 

Once I started talking about YWAM and my life-changing experience in Japan, I just kept going. What was supposed to be a 20-minute presentation turned into an hour of storytelling (oops!). Not gonna lie, it did keep me up afterward that I kept the students so long, and I felt incredibly guilty, but luckily their positive feedback and encouragement were loud enough to drown out the guilt. I may have spoke for an exceedingly long time, but it resonated with the students, which is what I was exactly going for. I remember praying that evening, “Lord, even if it’s completely different from what I have prepared, please do, for it is Your will and not mine.” Perhaps He wanted me to speak longer, or it could have been the nerves talking.

At least they were engaged enough that it didn’t bore them to death, and they felt encouraged and inspired. That was definitely the Holy Spirit and not me, though I could have probably left a story or two out to save time. But I am glad to say it went very well!

Speaking at Mosaic on YWAM and Missions

I’m working on a support-raising promotional video for myself and Mosaic. 

If you know anything about me, you know that I love to be creative. When we (the Mosaic staff) started brainstorming about potentially doing a video to promote our ministry, I immediately had a zillion ideas bouncing around in my head. Landscape shots, campus grounds, interviews, music,  effects, all of it! I was ecstatic and immediately jumped onto the project. 

Has it been easy? Nah, not really, especially since I’m using a program I’ve never heard of before. So, if any of you have tips on how to use Davinci Resolve 18, feel free to comment or send me an email! 

But has it been worth it? Absolutely! Once I got a brief tutorial from my fellow staff member, Nathan (thanks, again!), it became a much more feasible and fun task. I actually love the program now and can’t wait to make more videos for Mosaic in the future. I love creating and designing videos, even if I know nothing about film editing and

cinematography. Sure, some parts may not have been as enjoyable, but overall, it’s been great! 

Basically, these videos are to bring attention to Mosaic and invite ministry partners to join us in support. I also made one specifically for my internship that I can share with churches or future potential ministry partners. There is a chance that these videos may be posted on my blog somewhere, so keep an eye out!

I’m so proud of our student volunteers. 

Guys, what an amazing and hard working crew we had this semester. If you have read my second Mosaic newsletter issue, you will see that I felt like a proud mama. That still remains true! They have grown so much these past couple of months, and it is honestly, an answer to prayer. 

Remember the campus-wide worship night I mentioned? They worked hard and diligently, and it was made possible! I unfortunately wasn’t able to be present, but from the photos I saw and the feedback I heard, it looked to be a tremendous success. The Den was packed to the brim with students, all worshiping our Father together. How anointing, blessed, and inspiring, and all done by the students! They had an idea, sought it out, and pulled it all together. It's wonderful to see Chi Alpha, Cru and Mosaic come together as one body. Just, wow; I am in awe. 

Fun staff night out!

How do we boost morale within the team? By doing fun and silly activities together! Since we are not just coworkers but also friends, we want to make it a habit to spend fun time together and grow our friendships, without thinking about deadlines and work details. So, for this fun staff outing, we went to play glow-in-the-dark mini golf and dinner at Texas Roadhouse. I wish I had taken a picture of us all together, but I had so much fun that I totally forgot (which is fine with me). Needless to say, I am very excited about our next staff night together. 

Quite the month, huh? It’s shocking to think that the end of the school year is already here. Since this will be posted during finals week, please keep the students in your prayers for good health, decreased stress and that they will finish the year strong! I know a few who are graduating too, which can be both exciting and terrifying, so please be praying for them as well.

I hope you all had a wonderful April, and I will see you again next month! God bless! 

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