Anchorage

Throughout the twenty- two years of my life I’ve heard the word “Hope” as it’s been thrown around in conversation, written down in a story, or talked about as a genuine emotion. I used to think I understood hope, that I could explain it and identify it in a moment’s passing as something that yearns to be caught when it’s placed close to us. I used to think I understood it as this overwhelming sense of peace and calming that washed over a person during their darkest moments; a type of restoration technique for body and soul. I’m twenty- two years old and just now figuring out that I didn’t really know anything about hope at all. It’s been a word I myself have thrown around, one I see and continually reiterate in the mission statement with Heart Support, but it was simply a fleeting notion, until this week when I actually began to sit down and pour over some of what it is that we offer to the students that write into us each day.

As Heart Support is a Christian organization I began to really attempt to utilize my resources and understand the full and true meaning of hope as it applies to what we do. The Bible emphasizes hope to be an anchor, one that grounds and stabilizes the foundation which a kingdom is built. The Bible holds that God is the anchor, the one to plant us firm with purpose and a sense of peace. He is to be the driving force for the steps we take forward and the paths that lives may take those who believe in all He is. That passage in Hebrews really stuck with me as I began to think back to an earlier entry I wrote, “Hands & Feet” and for me hope became more than just this one word people throw around for the sake of language.

As a team, we’re meant to do three things: ground the message, ground the community, and ground each other. Therefore, like the Bible says that hope becomes the anchor to center each moment of uncertainty, so too do we, as His hands and feet, become the anchors of even greater story. Those who believe in Christianity adhere to the fact that the community is intended to live the life that Christ has envisioned, guiding people closer to his Kingdom and toward understanding the world from that sense of perspective. I’ve begun to understand how vital my role is as a member of this team. I’m not just an intern, not just a student trying to learn or another college kid. Instead, I’m someone who is necessary in order to provide those who come to us each week with information, with community, with fellowship, and sometimes with answers as they go through these challenging situations of life.

Is it hard for me sometimes when a person writes in about addiction, asking for counsel from a Christian perspective, and asking to utilize resources? Of course. Is it hard for us as a team when someone writes in about their difficult home life and the struggles that they are having in those times of their lives? Of course, it’s never an easy situation to handle. It’s those moments that are the pivotal ones toward attempting to be the anchors for the students that follow us and have begun to join this community and share their stories. For each of them their struggles often times bind them to the present, but through our organization we’re meant to be the people that can begin to speak into their lives and restore them back to the relationship and understanding they had with Him.

What does this all have to do with my initial impressions of hope? Simple. It’s changed. No longer is hope just a meaning, just an intangible but present emotion that seems to sweep us when we’re not quite prepared, but for us hope is a mission. Hope is to believe that we our beliefs have to offer and what our stories have to share will help to spread the truth of the faith we believe. Hope is simply being the person on the other side of a computer screen who makes it a point to take that email, write back, and say “yes, we do want to help you through this.” Hope, as I’ve recently begun to discover both personally and through the experience of others, is the nature of being connected to this mission not for the fame and notoriety that it may or may not receive, but to be the guiding light that attempts to go through the same journey of faith and understanding that our followers are experiencing. It’s a partnership and each of us is committed to meeting wherever the trail is left.

Reclaim. Restore. Rise Above.

Big News and Changes

We’re wrapping up the insights and responses for May. As I’ve been saying all along, it’s been amazing to see the way that an online community can begin to grow and communicate with each other. It’s like each day gives me something new to look forward to in doing my administrative tasks.

Jake recently informed me of the topic for next month: forgiveness. Is it broad? Yes, but I think that’s what makes for such an interesting dialog on the site. It allows people from all walks of life to come and comment, share and connect in the thoughts that we have buzzing about. Primarily we’re going to be introducing the ideas of what it means to forgive someone- what it looks like and feels like to do so, and what it means to forgive ourselves and the things that we have done in our lives. I think this is going to be the most interesting because if people are open to it, we have the chance to receive a number of stories which allow for a discussion of faith and struggle.

June hasn’t even begun and we’ve already gotten some stories to share on the site. That’s pretty exciting news because it means that there’s potential for great outreach and programming. I’ve also said to Jake that I want to do something different on Facebook and twitter this month. I want to find articles and segments of what others have said and experienced in regards to forgiveness. I want to have a discussion on the boards because right now it just seems like we’re pumping the students and followers full of minimal information. I’m working to achieve a sense of application and communication between people that are worlds away. Do we have it on the prayer board that’s direct to the website? Sure, but I’d like to find a way to get it pumped up a little bit more. Jake agrees that this is one piece that’s been lacking lately.

Jake also introduced that he and the heart support leaders, minus myself, will be going out on tour with his band, August Burns Red, this summer. They’ll be addressing the community directly while I man it from home like I’ve been doing. I think it’s going to be a great chance for me to continue expanding my responsibilities and capabilities while Jake, his wife, and one of the other team members are out on the road pushing our mission. Having conversations and holding the time for them is extremely important to us through any medium; I can’t wait to see how it takes shape.

Recently, I have worked with the team in creating a new segment on the site pertaining to the subject of church. It includes finding a church, speaking about what church should be, and talking about how it is that we can let go of some of the stigmas surrounding the institution. I had the chance to put pieces of the page together and found it to be a wonderful experience. I got to see the mechanical aspect as to how some of this is formed, to organize the information, and to entice our followers to visit this page. It seems to be working very well; we’ve got more and more people visiting it each day.

http://www.heartsupport.com/gethelp/Church/

Take a look and let us know what you think! Excited to see how we’re going to be expanding in His glory this month!

Reclaim. Restore. Rise above.

Kicking Around New Ideas

This week has been another busy and exciting adventure with Heart Support. As we continue forward for the month of May and the platform of spreading and instilling community, I have been blown away by the response of our followers. Many have written in explaining what community means to them or, what it is that they look for in a community. Many have thanked us for the dedication and time that we give to the organization but many more have also explained that they want to find ways to implement Heart Support in their own communities.

I’m excited to speak to Jake on this and see if there’s something we can do to actually make it a reality. Many of the people we’re reaching and talking with are college students going through some major changes in their lives, and if we can be a part of that discussion I think it might be another way to extend the idea of faith. There’s a number of organizations that have begun to set up chapter programs, both at the high school and college levels, in order to bring their causes to a new spectrum and a newer community. A chapter is much like a club on campus, and while the group may do their own things to spread knowledge and awareness, they’re also upholding the mission statement and goals of the organization they are representing. In this case, schools and organizations would be aiming to support and portray the message of “Restore. Reclaim. Rise Above” to the communities in which they are a part.

I know that this may be a large endeavor but it’s something I’m very interested in sharing with Jake and other members of the team. I know the biggest challenge we’re facing right now is that sometimes the community, and the response from those we follow, seems stagnant. This is a particular issue with the social media sites although, the idea of have pictures and banners be represented to show support for our mission has been a big help this month. Like I said, it requires quite a bit of work for a new organization, and for someone with Jake’s touring schedule, but I’d at least like to present the idea, have the discussion, and go from there. This could potentially be an idea that gets Heart Support on the map as a group dealing with mental health issues and questions of spirituality.

My time with Heart Support has been wonderful. I’ve learned a lot about the upkeep of a website, the functioning and processing of materials, and I love the fact that I get to interact with people and hear their stories everyday. However, I’ve noticed a particular challenge this month as my own studies come to a close; I’ve realized that I struggle with time and wondering whether or not I’m doing enough to contribute to the organization and their specific needs. Of course, I follow up and dedicate time to each project that Jake and the team shares with me but sometimes I wonder if there is more I should be doing. More of an active and forward role I should be taking for the team. I know that my work ethic is 100% to this team and all that it stands for- it’s just a matter of keeping up that steam and trusting that I am worthy and necessary for this position. I’m still learning- each day is a new experience for that- but through Heart Support, and through my weekly updates with Jake, God has begun to equip me with more skills and more opportunities for conversation than I could have every imagined.

While May is still very much an active month, we’ve all begun looking forward to June and the topics to discuss. After speaking with and presenting my thoughts to Jake and his wife, I think we’re going to tackle the idea of forgiveness. It’s always a rough pill to swallow, but we’ll be attempting to deal with situations like, “Who do you still need to forgive? What does forgiveness actually look like? How can we know that Jesus has forgiven us? What if we need to forgive ourselves?” So, it’s going to be a challenging month for all of us, I think. Hopefully, there will be a lot of good discussion and conversation as we attempt to think of ways to revamp our social media outlets.

Restore. Reclaim. Rise Above.

Hands & Feet

This month's project of community and development outreach has taken off wonderfully. Each day we get new emails of kids sharing stories, telling us how important it is that Heart Support has been created, and just simply appreciation for the fact that people can come together to share struggles and praise for Jesus. Each day that I log on to check the updates or respond to new messages there's always something that seems to blow me right out of the water. This week alone has been no exception to that rule.

We've gotten a lot of feedback from kids about why it is that they follow the community of Heart Support, how it is that they first heard about Jake's project, and what it is that they can do to help extend us further. Following that, Jake asked me the same questions: how it is that I came across them, and why it is that I asked the question of interning so long ago. He'd remembered I'm sure but, wanted it to be a bit more of a vulnerable answer.

Start with the easier of the two I suppose: I heard about Heart Support from one of my good friends here at Arcadia. He knew how interested I was in the serious issues of mental health, and how it was that I was growing in my faith. So, he gave me the website to check out and experiment with for a bit. nothing of a surprise there.

The second, why it is that I chose to email and persist with Jake is an experience I don't think I've truly ever allowed myself to process. I believed in the story that Jake was sharing- the idea that if we start the conversation and begin to talk about some of the issues then we can find a sense of newness and the courage to rise above it. I've always been one that wants to help people and so when I came across this site, across the community that was slowly being built, the desire drew me in once more. I knew that I had some of my own struggles to face, my own pieces of my story to work through, but I knew that I at least wanted to put my name out there and see.

Now, here I am. Almost 3 months in, and it's been fantastic since the beginning.

This month I've heard stories of how Jake's music, August Burns Red, has changed people. How it has allowed them to hear his story as they begin to piece together and make sense of their own. I've heard stories of kids who are coming from broken homes and dangerous situations- they ask us to pray for them and we let them know that this a community where they can come to discuss some of the things they are facing. This month I've seen people interact. I've heard stories of those who tell others in their community, believers or non- believers, about the mission statement of Heart Support. I've seen the community- even though it is online- be fostered through the sheer ability for communication and conversation. A safe haven is being built just because of our ability to log on, come together as a team, and be there for people across the globe. Technology continues to amaze me with this job.

I think the hardest thing for me is still the idea of wanting to do everything...not perfectly but, almost perfectly. Each time that someone writes into us, I want to make sure that I have the right words or the key passage from Scripture that's going to help them. I want to know that I definitely have the skills to do this. That the ways in which I'm reaching people through twitter and facebook, are effective in extending myself and promoting the message of Heart Support and Jake's goals. The hardest part throughout this whole process has been to acknowledge the fact that I'm still learning- that I'm one student and one team members- and that this entire mission is going to keep growing, not for me and not for Jake but, for the One who has given us the opportunity in the first place.

My hands, my heart, my feet, are all moving in His direction. No matter the things I think I face, it was always under control from the beginning.

Excited to continue receiving these responses.

Reclaim. Restore. Rise Above.

May: Community Centered

As I described last week, the month of May is dedicated to the discussion of community. We've been working hard to see how it is that we can build community as a team, to build it with the people who are brave enough to share their stories with us everyday, and to provide knowledge to those who don't know what/ who Heart Support is.

This month has been phenomenal with outreach and it's only the first week! I've had the chance to interact directly with people who want to talk to us and hear some of what they're doing to spread the word about our project. I've been answering emails, writing blurbs, and asking for people's feedback through social media. Not only that, but I've also pitched a few ideas to Jake these past few weeks about ways to get incentive since our facebook posts have been decreasing lately. There's a video project I've pitched to him; we get people to send in their personal reasons for following us and then to describe a little of what community means to them. I'm excited for that idea because then it means we're reaching beyond borders. Precisely what we're all about.

I've really enjoyed this experience thus far because it gives me the ability to sit down and write in the ways that I love to, but it also has taught me a lot about management and PR/ communications skills. There's the whole idea of keeping accounts up to date, of sounding and being professional when speaking to the students we reach, and then just with Jake himself. It's a great chance for me because I've helped to build pieces of Heart Support from the ground up and this is only the beginning for all of us. I feel like I've really begun to mature as I learn how to conduct myself from behind a keyboard and a cup of coffee. I'm eternally grateful and am thrilled each day to be a part of this.

Jake asked me to write a blog for the month on what community means to me, what it looks like, and how I influence my community. This is the posting I've come up with:

There have been a number of times where I’ve been told and taught that community by definition is a social construct and perspective of people interacting with one another for a larger purpose. That’s a great definition from a textbook or for the sake of a classroom environment, but it just never felt like enough. When I saw the objectives and details for the month of May with Heart Support I experienced the exact same thought as in a classroom: “alright. I know what it is to define.” The question I couldn’t seem to answer with enough credit centered on uncovering what community looked like, and its significance in the larger picture that we create as people striving toward a goal. I kept thinking about the idea of community and the different things that I could manage to present for my blog this month only to realize that maybe, even in my own communities here at school, I still have a ton to learn about how they facilitate and what it is that I can do to better the machine. Community, in its own standalone definition, relates to the idea of people coming together and attempting to forge new connections- to promote a stable ground through the busy nature of everyday life- struggles and achievements combined. Yet, there’s still a piece that I’m desperate to uncover and that I hope will truly get the heart at what we’re trying to create as the people of this organization: what does community look like?

“There’s no I in team.” That’s the phrase so many of us here in the early years of childhood. Some of us might even still reiterate the same theme today, to ourselves or the other people that we encounter on a daily basis. This concept, whether repeatedly said throughout childhood in a game or group setting or, mumbled under your breath in the middle of a difficult situation, still applies. Community means that there is a group of people who share the same heart and vision toward a common goal. The size and number of those in the group proves insignificant. Instead, the importance is each individual brings heart and dedication to the project that lies ahead. Community calls to the individuals to put aside personal goals and come together toward the aspirations of the overall group.

Will it be easy to put aside personal values for the “bigger picture?” It’s never easy. Group perspective and human vulnerability is never a gift handed easily, but it’s possible and achievable.

What must persist though, throughout the challenges of each, is the heart of each person and their ability to sit and hear the need. A community comes together to tell a much larger story than the ones we’ve personally created. A community comes together for the sake of telling an intricate detail of this honestly broken world and when those words have been uttered, the community stands tall and connected to keep the hope and the faith. Will standing tall in the face of hardship, in the lack of energy and tired seasons be easy? Of course not, but it’s a possibility. The building and the effort is always a possibility. Again, it comes back to where the heart lies and the true dedication of those around us.

Think for a second of the communities you’re a part of. There’s communities at the school the attend, the church you go to, the job you have, the clubs you’re in, the music you like, the family each of us come from, the goals you aspire to achieve. Think about it: communities are a part of how we function as a mobile society. They exist; they sprout up in more places we tend to acknowledge. In those moments then, the question comes not from what community is but what it looks like.

Arcadia’s a school that prides itself on extending a hand to the community of the students and of reaching further out to the Philadelphia area. What does it look like? Community looks like students taking their time on a few Sundays of the week to go and complete service projects. Whether it’s packing things to be recycled, holding a family weekend for prospective students, or packing backpacks for inner- city kids. That’s one facet of the community. Community paints the picture of people working together to spark a conversation or make a statement, no matter how large or small.

Arcadia dedicates itself to making a community for the first- year students who come here and through their orientation program upperclassmen attempt to facilitate the commonalities between students as they attempt to connect to one another. Therefore, the conversation sparks around the beginnings of college life and the blend of people who come together in this new environment. The statement, in its own way, comes in the ability to mesh the newest class of students together before the start of classes. Thereafter, the fostering of relationships then continues as the semester moves forward and the changes of students is just something phenomenal. It still makes me wonder sometimes.

Is it challenging; of course. Is it awkward at times; of course. It’s the ability to persevere that makes the experience that much more worthwhile. Community then, takes the shape and the perspective of those who first breathe life into its creation.

Recently I’ve applied to a local graduate school in Philadelphia masters degree in counseling psychology. When asked about which concentration I’d like to pursue in the program I chose the community track almost instantly. When asked why I chose that track specifically I explained that I want to be at the heart of the situation. I believe that to be in community and to understand it is to be willing to dive in, trust God, and just take what He has to offer us. Allow ourselves to hear the stories of those around us because those interactions are the most significant, whether or not we’re consciously aware of it. The truth is, I love the way that a community can take shape, the way that it can transform, and the way that it can spark discussions and needs bigger than ever before imagined.

Community’s a pretty definition you can find in any sociology textbook, but the movement and steps it provides for are even more beautiful. Think about the communities your part of, make a list if you have to. Look at that list. Digest it, pray over it, and dare to be the one that takes the first step to make it noticeable. When that happens just remember: don’t do it for personal gain, pursue it for the movement of the world. Do it to meet the need and start the conversation.

I'm happy with the balance between writing and advertising, PR kind of roles. Frankly, it's kind of exciting to see the feedback from the people we're reaching everyday. I'm excited to see what the next few weeks have for us as a team.

Reclaim. Restore. Rise Above.