What College Taught Me...

I used to think that my college education was defined by the amount of knowledge I attained while sitting in a chair in a classroom listening lecture number 91,279,047,553,851...but there is so much more to it than that. Now that I am a graduate of Ohio Northern University I can look back and say that the most important things I gained from my experience were not the lessons I learned in the classroom. The most important things I learned were those that changed my approach to life outside of the classroom.

What I know now that I didn't know then...


#1 ~ People are worth it...

Every late night (or all-nighter) I had to spend working,

Every test I didn't study for until the hour before,

Every paper I had to beg for an extension to complete,

Every presentation I finished writing as I was walking to (or sitting in) class,

Every meeting I missed,

Every practice I left early (or woke up at 5am to get in),

Every class I skipped (because I had to sleep at some point),

Every chapter of every text book that I never read,



was absolutely undoubtedly worth...



Every movie I watched for the 3848750038 time,

Every story I told over and over again, laughing harder every time,

Every pancake I ate at 10pm,

Every cup of coffee I had at Northern on Main,

Every dinner I ate out that I couldn't afford,

Every pizza ordered at midnight,

Every spontaneous but necessary drive home,

Every smile shared,

Every tear shed,

Every joy lived and re-lived,

Every fear embraced and conquered,

Every one of the people in my life.

The time that I spent with the people that I care about is time that I wouldn't trade for anything in the world. I can always make more money but there are only 24 hours in a day. This was time well spent.

#2 ~ Define success...

I will admit that when I started college I expected to finish knowing what I was going to do with the rest of my life (or at least the next stage of my life). If I would have maintained that expectation I would be writing this as an absolute failure. Instead I decided that if I could finish with any idea of what God wanted me to do and where he wanted me to be, I would be satisfied. Today I don't know what exactly God is calling me to but that's okay. Its quite the accomplishment to honestly say that I'm trying to follow the path that God has set before me. The ability to distinguish between what God is doing in me, with me, for me, and through me, and what God wants me to do for him is a difficult dialectic. I can say that I have made this distinction. Success!



#3 ~ It really is who you know...

If I didn't know my high school English teacher I would not have been in Ohio after I graduated high school nor would I be a member of Stillwater UMC. If I didn't attend Stillwater I would not know the family that I live with now nor have an interest in multi-site ministry or the United Methodist Church. Knowing this family allowed me to finish my Associate's Degree at Sinclair Community College. If I didn't know a member of the Board of Trustees for Ohio Northern I would not have transferred to ONU after completing my AA at Sinclair. If I would not have known this Board Member I would not have known the people I had to ask for money to pay my tuition and would not have graduated with my Bachelor's Degree. If I wouldn't have known my Uncle in Nashville, TN who owns The Diekhoff Company, I would not be moving to Nashville and working for his company as a church liaison. What's more important than knowing all of these people? Being willing to let God use these people in my life.


#4 ~ Humility is strength...

This lesson builds on #3. Knowing the right people and meeting new people are important, but if you can't humble yourself enough to ask them for help, to let God use them, the benefit is lost. Networking is a great tool but so is a hammer. Tools are only valuable if you use them. If you need help, ask for it. If you don't know, say so. If you're wrong, admit it. You will be stronger for it.


#5 ~ Balance is everything...

There will always be things on your "to do" list. There will always be relationships that require your time. There will always be hobbies and interests that you want to stay involved in. There will always be a God who deserves everything that you can give (and a whole lot more). There will always be...

All of these things matter. Life is one heck of a juggling act. So set your priorities accordingly (making room for yourself and that which energizes you). Keep your balance!



#6 ~ Hallmark is still around...
...and for good reason.

Every month my grandmother sent me an allowance check in a greeting card. You would think that as a poor college student the check would be the most exciting part of receiving that card. It turns out that the most important part was knowing that when I was overwhelmed, overextended, overworked, and beyond stressed, someone was thinking and praying about me because they love me. No amount on that check could make up for the note that I received on that card every month. For anyone who is surprised that Hallmark is still making greeting cards...mark my words. There is a reason.

Winter Update Letter!

Grace and peace to you and yours!

I pray that you are receiving this letter at a time of joy and comfort this holiday season. I am writing because it is that time again. What a blessing it is to be able to share life with all of you in a variety of ways. So many things have happened since this summer, I hardly know where to start.

My summer internship at Central Ave. UMC turned out to be a fantastic experience. It has served as an opportunity to learn more about myself and God’s will for my life, as well as a springboard for future opportunities. It was designed to facilitate an exploration of calling and I discovered a calling in multi-site church development. I hope to pursue a vocation in this field of ministry but only time will tell. As a result of this discovery, I decided to drop my religion major to a minor and take additional classes of interest. So far I’ve taken a class on Entrepreneurship and a class on Personal Selling.

In addition to it being a great experience, I was able to walk away from the internship with tangible skills. One in particular is the ability to tell my story as more than a testimony, as a sermon. Since this summer, I have traveled to a couple of churches to preach and I enjoy every minute of it. Through relationships I’ve made this summer, I have been able to speak in other contexts as well, such as a Young Life leaders retreat.

Since the start of the school year, I have also been attempting to build my professional network. I’ve had the opportunity to meet with leaders in multi-site churches and church consulting from Ohio and Tennessee. The meetings are always interesting and educational. I have made some great connections! As I continue to work on models and processes to assist churches with multi-site development, I know the information gathered through these connections and the connections themselves are priceless.

Unfortunately, due to the amount of time and energy I have given to these endeavors, I’ve had to shuffle around my campus activities. I am no longer an active member of the golf team, as of the end of fall season. I will continue to support the team in the spring, however, I will not practice every day or compete. My other campus activities have continued. I lead two small groups, one as a Bible study and one as a life group. I am the Event Coordinator for the Collegiate Entrepreneur’s Organization. I sit on the Student Advisory Board for the Communication Department of the Arts and Sciences College. Last but not least, I sing in People of Worship which is an outreach ministry through the chapel.

My last new development is…a job! Beginning on January 5th, I will work for the West Ohio Conference of the United Methodist Church as a conference consultant specializing in youth work. The contract runs through June and only demands 15 hours of time a week. It’s a step in the right direction!

At this point in my life, so many things change so quickly. For more frequent updates and thoughts, follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/TAShanks, on Facebook at facebook.com/tiffanie.shanks or on my blog at tiffanieinministry.blogspot.com. I’m not sure what life will look like after graduation in May but I know that God is in control. When the time is right I’ll know the plan. Until then I’m enjoying the ride!

In Christ,

Philipians 1:3
Tiffanie ♥

Merry Christmas!

When I think about Christmas I think about three things…faith, hope and love. Imagine that? I don’t think of them in that order though. See, I first think about hope. I think about what great hope the followers of Jesus in the 1st century could have in the fact that God had chosen to come down as the Son of Man to be our salvation. He came down to bring us out! But, where do we get our hope? “Faith is the substance of all things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.” Our hope comes from our faith that Jesus is the Son of God, sent by God to be crucified, dead and buried, and to rise again. But that doesn’t happen until Easter. Nowadays its only a few months between Christmas and Easter. In the 1st century there were 33 years between Christmas and Easter. 33 years of faith. 33 years of believing in things that they hadn’t seen happen yet. So, faith in what? Faith in knowing that God has sent His only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life. Why, would God do something like that? “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” Because He loves us THAT much.

So, when I think about Christmas, why do I think about faith, hope, and love? Because that’s all we really get until Easter! We get faith that Jesus is God’s only Son, hope in God's promise to his nation, and the love of God's sacrifice.

True Affirmation

A few weeks ago, I drove to Columbus to have coffee with David Cofer, CEO of Cofer Consulting Solutions LLC. I made the trip because I wanted to get his feedback on my idea to start a consulting firm that specializes in multi-site development and change management for the local parish. After I described the idea to him, his first comment was, “Why don’t you set it up within the church instead of forming an outside agency?” When he said this my heart melted because I had thought about the possibility of building the practice within the church on my drive down. 

During the drive back to Ada, I began to think about the blessing that God provided for my calling through that meeting. What God taught me was a lesson on affirmation of calling. My thoughts took me back to before I completely understood God’s calling for my life.

Before my summer internship at Central Ave. UMC, I had recognized my passion for multi-site development in the local parish. I remember believing, in my heart of hearts, that God wanted me to understand what it was like to be a leader in the local parish and that’s why He gave me the internship. When I shared this with the people around me they began to tell me that I was jumping to conclusions. For whatever reason everyone around me was convinced that I was (or am) supposed to be a pastor and that this summer’s internship was going to prove this to me. And, every time I tried to tell them what God was telling me they would turn it around and convince me that I was telling God what I wanted instead of listening. Their justification for all of this? God uses those around us to reveal our calling to us.  In this context, this statement just seemed to rub me the wrong way. During my drive back to school, God revealed to me why.

You see, there is a difference between creating and affirming a calling. All of the people in my life who tried to tell me that I was wrong about God’s calling for my life were attempting to create a calling. It’s one thing to plant the seed, to mention that being a pastor is real option as a calling. However, trying to dissuade me from what I believe about my calling is an attempt to create a calling for my life. On the other hand, when God places something on my heart or a thought in my mind about something, and without any mention of it someone tells me exactly what I was thinking, that’s affirmation. This is what happened during my meeting with David Cofer. God affirmed my calling.

In essence, we just have to remember, that in order for a call to be affirmed it must first be discerned. Otherwise, it is simply being created. Unless, they are just planting a seed.

Psalm 119:125*

In Christ,