Kristen Wood
Hi! My name is Kristen Wood and I am a soon to be college graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill in North Carolina. When it hit me a couple of months ago that I was actually to this point in my life, about to exit the “college/school” bubble and enter into the real world, I realized that I honestly had no idea what the next step in my life was going to be. I feel a calling into the ministry, specifically into the mission field, but do not yet know what specific area God is calling me to.
I know that this upcoming year will be difficult, and a definite learning experience. But I believe that God has changes in store for my life. I want more of Him, and less of me.
I am praying that God will show me my role in His kingdom. I will be forced out of my comfort zone in ways I probably don’t know are possible. But, that is ok. I trust that God has amazing things in store as I have the opportunity to live out my faith and serve my brothers and sisters in the inner city. There are many things that I still don’t understand about poverty, homelessness, race relations, or even how social justice plays out in the urban setting, but there is one thing I know for certain. Jesus has a heart for the poor and oppressed and has called us to do the same. I want to learn how to truly love people with all I have. I want to get past all preconceived ideas that I know I still have about certain lifestyles, and just be there as a true friend. I don’t want to simply be neighbors or have the mindset that I am there only to serve. Instead, I want to have deep relationships with those in the community, sharing in each other lives equally.
Because His grace is sufficient
Kristen
About Mission Year
Mission Year is a year long urban ministry program focused on Christian service and discipleship. We take teams of young people, place them in an area of need, and help them to serve people and create community. We are committed to the command of Jesus to “love God and love people,” by placing the needs of our neighbors first and developing committed disciples of Christ with a heart for the poor. Learn more about our first year program…
Kristen Wood's Blog
In Awe of Discovery / Sep 15, 03:18 PM
Mission Year has officially come to an end and I sit here with mixed feelings. I am excited about the future, however, it is very evident that there is a part of me missing. God changed a great deal of things inside of me while in Chicago, and I am now separated from the individuals who walked with me, grew with me and laughed and cried with me. I was so blessed to have the opportunity of Mission Year and thank God for those He placed in my life during the journey.
I decided to do Mission Year for several reasons. One of the most important being the desire to learn more about “love”. I wanted it to be more then just a word. I wanted to explore the emotion and actions behind it, and look at what it meant to love those different than myself, those who have hurt me, and those not in my family or my closest group of friends. So, I began a long and difficult journey of discovery. And I admit, at the end of the year, I’m still not great at loving. However, I have learned a great deal and I know what I want to strive toward.
Love is….. – non-judgmental – forgiveness – acceptance of differences – spilling over with joy
Love is…. – fighting for the justice of others – encouragement – support – giving of time and possessions – a friendly smile as you walk down the street
Love is…. – God – And it’s what we are called to do in every part of our life.
I saw all of this in my neighborhood. The acts of sacrifice, forgiveness and love brought tears to my eyes. I have learned so much, a lot of which I know I have not even processed yet. I am not perfect in any way. I do selfish and pretty stupid things everyday. But, despite this all, I know God can still use me in some way. So, with mistakes I know will come, I want to seek out love with everything I have. My life is not about me, it’s about Him and them.
I have decided to remain living in the community of North Lawndale. I will be working for the year, while continuing to pursue deeper some of the issues I began to see this past year. For all those that have been asking, I will be starting graduate school the following year. Although I know what I want to do, I have realized that I need a break to rest and relax and get my focus off of expectations and success. Please continue to be in prayer for safety as I remain in NL, that God will continue to challenge and move me, and for the ministry of my roommates and myself.
All of your support and prayers have been a huge blessing. I can’t thank y’all enough for the encouragement it has been. Love to everyone!!!
Because His Grace is Sufficient,
K-Wood
Community Defined / Jun 28, 04:39 PM
I have spent the last year exploring the question, “What defines community?” I discovered early on in this journey that I have spent my entire life with one idea of what community is, and that this idea was not even close to being correct. Community is not simply the individuals you are surrounded by on a daily basis in the workplace, where you live or in church. It is quite possible to go years as an outgoing individual, constantly surrounded by others, but, never being part of a true and intentional community.
Peter 4:8-10 says, “Above all, love each other deeply. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others.” Community requires the desire to move past the surface level of relationships and enter truth and emotion. Everyone must allow themselves to be open to letting others in and putting others before self, the “you” and “us” before “I”. A true community is taking the time value other people and digging deep enough to discover who they truly are as an individual. It is building each other and inspire each other to finish the race and reach for ones dreams. And in all and through this journey together, always making sure to rejoice in the blessings and pray together when facing trials. It is all through love.
This newly defined community I have discovered does exist. I have found it on my team of fellow mission year members, in my neighborhood, at my church, and here at ABLE. I have also been able to look back in my past and recognize when it’s been present. I am grateful for every single person who has been part of this “beloved community” in my life.
-Here’s to community and for the blessings it brings to our lives.
It's possible / Mar 31, 12:46 PM
Location: the west side, North Lawndale
Song: Jaded – Bleach
Books: My First White Friend and The Shack
Understanding is hard.
Forgiveness is hard.
Racial reconciliation is hard.
Love is hard.
But, it’s all possible. With Christ, all things are possible.
This is comforting and encouraging, but it doesn’t mean it’s easy. How do I look past the violence, the drugs and the degrading comments voiced in my direction by the men in the neighborhood? How do I get over the fact that so many of my neighbors are cheating the welfare system and the lack of respect for others that I see every single day?
I came here because I wanted to learn how to love. Encompassed in this was the desire to fight racism and work toward reconciliation. I wanted to better understand my brothers and sisters who come from different backgrounds.
I have seen this happen. I’ve built relationships with amazing people and seen a community filled with hope and strength. I’m surrounded by wonderful people who have blessed my life and taught me so much. This has been amazing, but doesn’t cover the larger struggles and situations I witness and deal with on a daily basis.
I have realized that dealing with these hard issues takes time. Long…frustrating… time. Love, a word that I’ve always taken for granted, doesn’t come as easy as I thought. Learning to love is a journey. A journey that I am dedicated to venturing on because Christ is love and that’s what I want and need to experience.
All things, even the hardest, are possible.
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Journey / Mar 2, 04:21 PM
I can’t say that I have always had a heart for the “least advantaged”; at least not to the same degree in which I do currently. Although I grew up always feeling sympathy for this group and participated in one day service projects to assist, my feelings and actions never went past this stage. I held the view that it was their own doing, and as a result, their own problem to deal with. It wasn’t until an urban outreach mission trip to DC and then an internship with a non-profit in Miami, that my attitude began to change. My time in DC was the first critical step of my transformed view as I spent 24 hours participating in a Poverty Simulation, realizing the terrible treatment of the poor, specifically the homeless. In Miami, I was challenged by one man at the shelter at the very beginning of my time there as he asked, “Why you are here and what are you learning?” After realizing that I honestly didn’t know, I spent the summer exploring this question through studying what God says about it in His word and working through the book Compassion, Justice, and the Christian Life: Rethinking Ministry to the Poor by Robert Lupton.
A well known verse, Matthew 25:40 states “And He will reply, I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers, you did unto me.” Jesus is in disguise in everyone. As they are all God’s creation, every individual, deserves to be treated the best that can be offered. 1 John 16-17 explains God’s love as not living for ourselves, but living sacrificially for others. I discovered in this the true meaning of love, a love that I center my actions upon. The book also helped me explore this theme in the difference between being a servant and being a friend. When concentrating on serving, one can easily fall into the trap of trying to fix or consider themselves to be better. In this ministry, I am determined to follow the latter part of the quote; “Servants believe one will become better because they know better, friends believe ‘we’ will be better because we share in each other’s life.”
In just the first half of my Mission Year experience, my beliefs have been even more solidified and I have been challenged every single day in what it means and looks like to love the disadvantaged in my neighborhood. I have found that it’s though my faith in God and knowing His unending love for everyone that I am able to make it through each day as I witness so much hurt and injustice in my neighborhood. But I am confident in the mission in which God has called us all, to love and serve the least of these. I am determined to find ways to do just that, no matter where or what I am doing in the future.
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