This is my story, This is my song...

My story is my testimony. I tell my story as a witness and example of God’s love as it abounds in this world. My faith can provide hope and witness to the Gospel of the Christ, Jesus. I tell my story because it was my struggle, it was my fight, it was my gift. God did not have me experience these things so that I may be blessed, but so that I may bring witness to God’s blessings.

During the D.C. trip QuiQue Aviles said, “No one is going to sing your song for you so you have to sing it for yourself. Sometimes you have to write it. If you’ve got something to say, figure out a way to say it.” This is the poem that I wrote during his time with us.

“I was 15”

I was 15.

I walk into the room,
my mother
a hospital bed
a machine
another one

I was 15.

I stand beside the bed,
no strength
no movement
no breath
no life

I was 15.

My father had asked us,
keep her alive
allow her to die
uncomfortable silence
I answer

I was 15.

My father tells me “she’s gone”
I smile
there’s peace
there’s comfort
there’s God

I was 15.

I sit beside the bed
its okay
I say
for her
for me

I was 15.

Others come in the room,
they hug
I leave
they cry
I smile

I was 15.

As always…

In Christ,

When we say "never again", what do we mean "never again"?

I spent June 14th through June 19th in Washington D.C. as a part of the Next Generation Leadership Intern program. We went for a Mission and Justice Seminar on Immigration. It was hosted at the United Methodist Building on Capitol Hill. We also had the opportunity to visit Wesley Theological Seminary and the Holocaust Museum. At the end we were able to speak to the offices of Kilgroy and Voinovich on the issue of immigration. What a wonderful learning experience! Originally I was concerned that the group of interns would have a couple of personalities that would clash and make this trip difficult. As it turns out, many lifelong friendships were formed between people that I wouldn’t expect. The trip as a whole was a blessing.
The theme for the week was exemplified in Micah 6:8, Ephesians 4:1-6 and Matthew 23:23. They provided structure to our thoughts surrounding our calling as Christians and the idea of justice within the constructs of religion and theology. One of my thoughts throughout the week was, “If everyone who is able helps one who is unable, what would the world look like?” It is the responsibility of those who have, to help those who have not. The recognition of privilege is an important step towards justice and equality; especially unearned and unwanted privilege. Unfortunately, the recognition of privilege is often a step that is overlooked because the privileged become comfortable with their situation. Until you are compromised it is easy to be complacent. As quoted in the Holocaust Museum, Pastor Martin Neimoeller said, “First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionist, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me -- and there was no one left to speak for me.” This was a quote that was on the wall at the end of the permanent exhibit at the Holocaust Museum. It’s a perfect example of complacency. Does the fact that we live under, or are a part of, a suppressive system give us the right or privilege to become complacent to the system? I’d say no. But what does that mean for me, for us, for the people, for the nation?

Other memorable quotes and thoughts from the day we spent at the Holocaust Museum include one from Elie Wiesel, “When we say “never again”, what do we mean “never again”?” It makes me wonder how we continue to say that we would never become complacent to genocide and yet there is Darfur, Rwanda, Bosnia, etc. Genocide is not a problem of the past. It’s not a problem of tomorrow. It’s today’s problem. It’s our problem. So, when we say “never again”, what do we mean “never again”?

There was a temporary exhibit on propaganda. How much of today’s Jewish stereotype was influenced by Hitler? One thing I noticed was that the methods that Hitler used to persuade and coerce people to listen and follow him were the basic methods of persuasion studied in communication. Later that evening, during reflection, we discussed how those methods are also used by the church. At what point does the church shift from persuasion to coercion? What makes the church any different than Hitler? It can’t be because we think we’re right…Hitler thought he was right? So, when we say “never again”, what do we mean “never again”?

As we explored the immigration situation here in the U.S., I was reminded that during the Holocaust, when Jews tried to enter this country, we sent many back to Germany, even though we knew that they were refugees. To this day we continue to deport refugees back to the country they fled for numerous unnecessary reasons. Furthermore, once they are deported they can never return. So, when we say “never again”, what do we mean “never again”?

When we say "never again", what do we mean "never again"?

As always…

In Christ,

Thoughts on Annual Conference

The week of June 8th through June 11th, I was blessed to experience the West Ohio Annual Conference in Lakeside, Ohio. It was an enlightening experience. I stayed in the youth house as a NGL intern. Although politics are not my favorite thing to participate in, it was important for me to see how the United Methodist Church operates. I went to a couple of their sessions and it took all that I had to stay awake, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I should mention that the freedom the UMC offers its members, clergy and otherwise, is remarkable. The voice of the individual is powerful and recognized. It is a very open approach to religion and theology. I was blessed to be a witness to such a posture.

The worship services were outstanding! Ginghamsburg Praise Band and the Hope for Africa Children’s Choir led worship. The teachings were on leadership from different perspectives. Whether one was trying to understand biblical leadership or develop leaders there was something in the messages that spoke to you. Sue Nilson Kibbey was especially enlightening for me. She was pleasant to listen to without losing the passion in her voice. Both her and Mike Slaughter used short video stories on different topics to help the conference understand and visualize their message. I hope to create something similar for Central soon. It was a good example of using technology to enhance and enrich the Gospel. Many times technology can be used to put on a performance instead of bringing people closer to Christ. In my opinion, the videos were a great way to use technology to help glorify the Lord and His kingdom. A great example of leadership!

Another memorable moment during conference was the offering of school kits. It was amazing to see hundreds of people taking thousands of kits up on stage. It wasn’t much fun to move them off of the stage and on to a truck. Then move them from the truck into a storage room while packaging them for shipment. But it was a wonderful blessing for those at conference and the children who will receive the kits around the world!

The time I spent with the other interns and the youth at the house was wonderful. Even though the introvert in me wanted more time to rest and process information (which is what I think many youth leaders forget…not all youth need something to do all of the time!) I had a great time. A couple of mornings we went down to the dock for sunrise and then had breakfast/coffee together. The time of fellowship was priceless. It was the beginning of many lifelong friendships!

As always…

In Christ,

Summer Update Letter!

So I haven't blogged in a while but I will be on a blogging spree for about a week or so playing catch up. I've been really busy and have tons to share....Here's some of it!

Grace and Peace to you!

It is wonderful to be writing another letter to all of you. Why, you might ask? It means that another period of my life has passed and is worth sharing with those in my life who care. I am writing this letter a couple of weeks later than usual because I wanted to have a better understanding of my summer schedule before I sent this letter. I’m going to try to not explain anything in too much detail because a lot has happened since Christmas.

To start off, I’d like to address some of the items I mentioned in the Christmas letter. I did have the opportunity to submit a research paper to the Central State Communication Association Conference. Unfortunately, I had a little too much on my plate (surprise, surprise). I’ve decided to submit it for next year’s conference. Hopefully I’ll have some time to work on it this summer. I also didn’t have the opportunity to participate in the International Play Festival as the Assistant Stage Manager. My golf schedule was not compatible with the demands of the production. It is possible that I may have the opportunity to participate in a production next year.

As usual, I expected to do a lot of things with my time but I ended up doing a lot of other things. At the beginning of spring quarter I decided to change my minor in Religion to a major. So now I am double majoring in Organizational Communication and Religion while participating in the Pre-Seminary professional program. I have managed to keep my GPA around a 3.0. As a result, I was inducted into the communication honorary, Lambda Pi Eta, this past spring. I also had the opportunity last quarter to create a video on cross-cultural appointments in the United Methodist Church from the perspective of young adults. It was for the Issues in Professional Communications course on globalization. I thoroughly enjoyed that project and have since had my hands in a couple of other video projects. None of the others are finished yet but you can see the completed video on my blog.

Spring is also the primary golf season. I was given the award of Most Improved which is typical for me. I haven’t decided if that’s a good thing or not. It either means that I am a pretty good player because I’m constantly improving or that I’m so bad that I always have a lot of improvements to make. I’ll let you decide. Aside from that, this golf season was particularly difficult for the team. The coach that we had in the fall, Coach Hairston, resigned and moved to Canada about a month before the start of the season. The school hired Coach Dawn West, which turned out to be a blessing. She previously played on the Futures Tour of the LPGA and had plenty of advice and structure to advance our team. Unfortunately, she won’t be returning in the fall but we are all excited to see what God is going to do with this team next year.

Since the end of the school year in May I have stayed pretty busy. I’m currently working on creating a workshop on Creating and Maintaining Supportive Climates for an organization called Sing Watson Studios in Tipp City, Ohio. I will conduct the workshop later this summer. I’m also working on a promotional video for Sing Watson Studios that will be a summer long project, possibly spilling over into the fall. Another communication opportunity involves an organization called Heaven’s Oven in Athens, Ohio. I’m working on a portfolio for them to look over and decide if they’d like for me to work with their organization.

Just last weekend I moved to Athens for the summer. I’m here for an internship that I have received through the West Ohio Conference of the United Methodist Church. Through this program I have taken a trip to D.C. for a Mission and Justice Seminar on Immigration. The group of 13 interns had the opportunity to speak to members of Kilgroy’s and Voinovich’s offices about immigration reform. It was an amazing learning experience! I will also attend Rob Bell’s conference in Michigan and go on a Seminary bus tour. This program is designed to allow us to explore our call into ministry. Therefore, I will experience individualized opportunities at my host site, Central Ave. UMC, as well. I will be preaching on June 26th and August 23rd in addition to organizing four church social events and increasing participation in their food pantries. I am working on videos as a means to increase participation and fuel a desire to fill the need in the surrounding Appalachian communities. As you can see, there are a lot of things going on this summer!

As for preparing for my senior year in college, I plan on starting an organization called Acting on AIDS through World Vision. I’ll be writing the constitution and bylaws this summer while preparing for recruitment at Welcome Fest in the fall. I’m also spending some time networking with professionals in the communication field in order to prepare for hosting a panel discussion/conference through Lambda Pi Eta next year.

There are a ton of things going on in my life right now. I’m assuming it’s the nature of being in college. Then again, maybe it’s just me! J If you’re interested in keeping up with my thoughts and actions a little more closely feel free to check out my blog tiffanieinministry.blogspot.com or follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/TAShanks.

Thank you so much for your support and encouragement!

With Love,

Tiffanie Shanks

And as always....

In Christ,

Disconnected...Reconnected to God

(thoughts on majoring in religion)

I want to spend my life following after God.
...chasing after Him, even if it is only to touch the edge of the hem of his garment.

I want to climb the mountain, even if I never make it to the top.

I want to swim across the ocean, even it I never make it to the other side.

I want to live ministry.
...to be the living ministry of my Lord and Savior.

I want to be the Lord's vessel because He is the only way, the only truth...

I want to wholly surrender to His will.
...so that I may see the world as He sees it
...so that I may be emptied of my self and filled with Him.

I would rather love god in my ignorance, than question God in my intelligence.