The Next Thing

Hello! This is what I've been up to since I graduated high school in 2008: From Sept 2008 to February 2009 I did a DTS (DTS stands for Discipleship Training School), with the organization YWAM (Youth With A Mission). YWAM (pronounced wye-wam) runs these schools as mission training courses. It hosts 3 months of lecture about various topics of Christianity followed by a 2-month outreach. I did that in Bishop, CA (It was a backpacking DTS). Then the outreach was to Kyrgyzstan, in Central Asia.
I came home to Escalon and from February to September, I worked either on our new church building, or with YWAM Modesto in their ministry with the homeless. I also ran a fireworks stand to raise money for SBS (School of Biblical Studies).
From Sept 2009 to July 2010 I did an SBS (School of Biblical Studies, an intense inductive Bible school also with YWAM) in Turner Valley, AB, Canada. In short, it was AWESOME. I studied all day and it was really difficult, but it was the best 9 and a half months of my life; I feel so much more grounded in my faith. Afterward a small team of us went to Thailand and Burma for four weeks. You can read more about that in my last blog (Outreach 2010).

I learned so much during my SBS! I spent all day every day in the Word for over nine months! After doing these two schools and their outreaches, I feel prompted to be in a position where I can pour into others using what I've learned.

The next thing I'm doing, starting Sept 10 is this: DTS Staff. The DTS I did had staff who planned everything and kept up with the students on how they were doing in the school, graded assignments, and prepared and led outreach. That is the role I will play in Turner Valley, AB. The base there is very focused on the Bible and sending teams to Thailand/Myanmar to the Shan people.

This is how I came to decide to join DTS Staff: During my SBS I felt interested in staffing DTS. After a couple months of thinking about it, telling only a few people, the DTS leaders at Turner Valley, Alberta, without knowing I was interested, invited me to join the family, so to speak, at the YWAM base. I believe this was confirmation; first I wanted to do it, then people kept telling me I'd be good at it, and finally then they officially invited me without knowing I was interested.

This position is a volunteer, non-paid position, so I have to raise my own support. I am a young person going to train other young people as missionaries; to help lead them on mission trips and spur them on towards having a heart that wants to see the gospel spread throughout the whole earth, and I'm asking for my church, my friends and my family to support me. One-time gifts are welcome, but I have a greater need for monthly support. The leaders recommend as close to $500 a month (CAN) as I can get. This sounds like a lot, but if 50 people could give $10 a month, that would cover it, and allow me to save some of it for outreach.

These are the different ways you can give: Soon I will have an account with YWAM Project Funding, who accepts checks, even post-dated, and also automatic withdrawal, while giving tax-deductible receipts. Until that is set up, you can give to my church: New Hope Christian Fellowship located at 300 Trask Ln, Modesto, CA, 95354. You can give them a check for me and, as long as my name isn't on the check, they can give you a tax receipt. Just attach a note letting them know it's for James Harrison.
If you do not require a tax receipt, you can simply give to me specifically. I have a Paypal account and you can send the money to Jamesthellama@hotmail.com
If you have any questions, please feel free to ask! My Facebook and e-mail are the same address as the Paypal e-mail, or you can just ask me in person too. : )

Thanks for reading!
Peace,
James