CABLE fall 2011
A publication of
GEMS Girls’ Clubs
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Shirley Batts – Portage, Michigan Cheryl Boer – Eden Prairie, Minnesota Cori Dykhouse – Port Lambton, Ontario Susan Kepley – Grand Rapids, Michigan Glennys Kuperus – Hudsonville, Michigan Lia Leenstra – Byron Center, Michigan Debra Liccar – Crete, Illinois Henrietta Reinders – Rockwood, Ontario Amy Schaaf – Grand Rapids, Michigan Irene Vanderlaan – Indianapolis, Indiana Mary Jo Vis – Riverside, California
GEMS Girls’ ClubssSTAFF Executive Director – Jan Boone Training Manager – Lenae Bulthuis Customer Relations Specialist – Michele DeHaan Managing Editor – Kelli Ponstein Conference Coordinator – Alecia VanHulzen Publications & Web Coordinator – Amy White Executive Secretary – Gert Wolfert Graphic & Web Designer – Nicole Zaagman
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the Counselors’ Newsletter
REFLECTIONS One of the first delightful discoveries I made after moving to West Michigan was the plethora of fruit that grows here. Roadside fruit stands make summer travels great fun and my counter top fruit basket filled to overflowing! That image, a luscious fruit basket overflowing with yummy ripe fruit, is the perfect picture of the many great things God is bringing to this ministry now, for such a time as this! Over and over again He continues to bring opportunities to the ministry, encouraging us to trust Him and follow hard after Him. In this issue of Cable, you will read about our new website, our first ever chapter book, the culture of prayer and new prayer journals, a great new annual theme, the next exciting Annual Counselor’s Leadership Conference, our new outreach to developing countries around the world–GEMS International, and our mission focus in Zambia. Each “fruit” mentioned brings so much extra, rich flavor to our ministry!
One of the rich flavors that is growing BIGGER hearts among girls, counselors, and friends of GEMS in North America is our call to Zambia. Not only are our clubs teaching girls spiritual, physical, and emotional truths they would likely never learn anywhere else, but they are training and equipping the next generation of leaders in GEMS Clubs. Older, seasoned GEMS are becoming CITs and eleven CITs actually graduated to become counselors in June. It was such a great joy to see this passing of the baton-of-faith take place! In addition, the sprint to open The Esther School has begun! If all goes as planned and God continues to inspire you and your girls to help make it possible, we will open the school in the fall of 2012! God has provided a husband and wife team and their family to serve as the first administrators of the school, and provided another couple and Continued on page 2...
PRESIDENT’S LETTER
family to go and serve as the Facilities Business Manager for the school! The person to serve as the first Zambian teacher for The Esther School and the person that will serve as the first nurse for the school are both finishing school now. The roof on the library/clinic is under construction. And every member of the 16 member work team that went to the school in June caught the vision for what this school will mean to the village of Chongwe and to the nation of Zambia and wants to return and take as many people with them as possible!
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9:10 These words, one of the theme verses from Proverbs, always make me smile. For years I’ve been reading them in large print, painted on a school wall—what a way to memorize God’s words of wisdom that are oh-so true and incredibly important to remember. In this day and age, there is so much information—so much data and so much knowledge available. This is wonderful! But is this wisdom? Does all this information speak to God’s truth for everyday life? Or does it cloud it? Do we push wisdom aside in our striving to learn more and grow in our own knowledge? Isn’t this what Eve did as she reached out for the fruit?
So I’m asking YOU to join me in this final sprint. Let’s run together! It truly is a HUGE Godsighting to have come so far together in three short years! To cross the finish line of this sprint to open the school, we’ll need you and your girls to participate in the Hand ‘n Hand Program, be a part of the BRING Change to Bring CHANGE campaign – a loose change offering for your church or club (see the website for details), join one of the two work teams scheduled for next year, or find another creative way to get your club and congregation involved in this God–given assignment. Watch the DVD sent to clubs in August or go to the GEMS website and view these great videos that show the current story of what God is doing through GEMS in Zambia. Check out the Called to Zambia bulletin inserts and the website to learn what is needed to open school. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to enjoy the fruit of what God is doing. It is so incredibly sweet!
Each theme seems to address a particular need for a particular time, culturally and spiritually. God must be directing this, as wisdom continually comes up in multiple places: devotionals, emails, quotes, stories, etc. Do you notice this too? He’s drawing us back to His timeless wisdom, His simply worded guide to living wisely. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom…” – the beginning! Oh the depths of wisdom we get to explore together. As a ministry, God continues to bring many exciting opportunities to GEMS to truly reach out to girls everywhere. The GEMS Executive Board deeply appreciates your prayers for wisdom in leadership and should you have wisdom to share to enrich the ministry, to reach out to girls everywhere, please do so. We serve together! Growing in wisdom together,
Jan Boone Executive Director
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Henrietta Reinders GEMS Board President
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GET WISDOM—GO BEYOND THE GOLD! The Fear of the Lord
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the Lord might sound like a paradox, but Proverbs is clear that fearing God precedes wisdom. Wisdom is obedience—it’s a continuous choice to submit to God. And it pleases Him when we make that choice. But following the all-powerful, sovereign Creator of the cosmos can be terrifying. Paul was obedient, and he was shipwrecked, beaten, and thrown in prison (2 Corinthians 11). Yet in spite of everything, Paul trusted God as a loving Father and a supreme Judge; he trusted that an omniscient God would do what was necessary to shape him into the person he needed to be. That’s wise. It can be scary and often painful, but it’s wise. When we stand at God’s feet with a reverential awe that fully acknowledges that He is God and we are not—that He is in control and we are not—we begin a journey toward wisdom. How much better to get wisdom than gold, to choose understanding rather than silver! The highway of the upright avoids evil; he (she) who guards his (her) way guards his (her) life. Proverbs 16:16-17 Throughout the season you will be helping your girls understand the true value of seeking wisdom over worldly desires like wealth, being well known, or well liked. Being a strong athlete requires discipline and hard work. You need to make good choices if you’re going to excel on the court or on the field. The same is true of Proverbs—it takes discipline and hard work to walk the highway of the upright and live with wisdom. During the theme experience girls will partake in the GEMS Games as a member of the Light Team—applying godly wisdom about words, relationships, integrity, work, and money to every decision they make. They will get wisdom that goes beyond the gold!
Theme Resources
guide for the Bible lessons in SHINE brightly and Sparkle Magazines), access clip art, find a step-by-step guide for hosting a family celebration, access parent newsletters, and find other free tools to enhance your time in club.
Threading the Theme
And, don’t miss the handout titled Threading the Theme that has countless ideas for weaving the theme into every aspect of your club year. Based on one of the most popular workshops at GEMS Annual Counselor’s Leadership Conference, you won’t want to miss this valuable resource with ideas for a Wisdom Board, openers, mixers, and activities all related to the Annual Theme!
NEW WEBSITES North America
Stop by GEMS all new website (www.gemsgc.org) soon and take advantage of all the amazing resources we have for you there. Access free downloads, get encouragement for your work with girls, catch up on the latest happenings with The Esther School and GEMS mission focus in Zambia, and connect with other counselors around North America!
GEMS International
The new GEMS International website is also up and running. Read more about this new component to the overall GEMS ministry and discover how women and girls around the world are being impacted by starting clubs in their communities (www. gemsgcinternational.org).
Visit the GEMS website often throughout the season for a variety of resources that will help you keep the theme alive for your girls and their families. Download PowerPoints that correspond with lessons from Connections (the leader’s 3
CLUB NEWS SHINE brightly – Digging Deeper Not enough time to get through all of the resources Connections offers for teaching the Bible Lessons in SHINE brightly Magazine? Direct your girls to download the Digging Deeper questions from the GEMS website (www.gemsgc.org) to complete on their own. This is a great way to encourage girls to continue their Bible study at home! Don’t Forget! Club Coordinators—please remember that the Service Center needs to receive your dues by November 15th. Also, if you have not already done so, please update your counselor list ASAP. You can do this quickly and easily on the GEMS website (www.gemsgc.org). Hand ‘n Hand Don’t miss out on this all-club fundraiser that brings girls in North America together with their sisters in Zambia to raise support for clubs on both continents. This season you can participate whenever it’s convenient for you and your club. Visit the GEMS website (www.gemsgc. org) for more details.
DATE NIGHT with Dad Parents are the primary faith-nurturers of their children. Some of the families in your club may take that role seriously; some may not. Either way, creating ways for parents to positively interact with their daughters in a welcoming, safe environment is a great way for you to help grow the faith of the girls in your club.
Girls and Dads singing Karaoke together.
Recognizing the benefit of getting dads actively engaged in their daughters’ lives, counselors from Frankford, Ontario decided to host a Date Night on Valentine’s Day. “Each season we try to include our dads in some way,” explained counselor Helena Bootsma. “Other years we invited dad for the first couple of hours of our sleepover and played games and made sundaes together. This year we wanted to try something different. We were brainstorming at one of our leader’s meetings and since GEMS fell on Valentine’s Day, the idea surfaced to have a Date Night with Dad.” Counselors set up a dessert social with table clothes, simple decorations, candy, and—of course—a karaoke machine for some serenading fun. Girls presented their dads with heart-shaped invitations prior to the event, and were encouraged to come decked out in red and pink. “The girls loved the evening,” Helena said. “They had a lot of fun singing with their friends and with some of the dads! The dads seemed to really enjoy seeing their girls laugh together. Even some of the shyer girls were willing to go up with their friends and participate. Some of the girls went out of their way to serve their dad punch and snacks.” Though some appeared hesitant at first, the dads brought a special energy to the evening and ended the night by singing to the girls. “[That was] a highlight for me that I remember so fondly!” Helena concluded.
A Firm Foundation The spiritual foundation you lay each time you meet with your GEMS is immense. But when you create situations for families to learn and grow together you are strengthening the structural integrity of their faiths in immeasurable ways. How can you create opportunities like this during your GEMS season? Stop by GEMS Facebook page to share your ideas and see what other clubs are up to as they seek to bring girls into deeper relationships with Jesus! 4
Take a Peek at an Exciting New Opportunity for Girls! The Micah Road Mysteries –A New Book and Summer Book Club! Two years ago, SHINE brightly introduced its readers to Chloe and Tasha—average girls who made an extraordinary decision. Committed to taking action to set things right, the leading characters of The Micah Road Mysteries opened a detective agency and continue to solve mysteries and fight for justice in issue after issue. SHINE readers have enjoyed following the mysteries in the magazines as well as listening to the podcasts online. In response to the positive feedback, this spring, GEMS plans to release its first full-length book for girls as Chloe and Tasha face their biggest case yet. The Micah Road Mysteries, Book One: Shadows in Tenebray Forest will be available in March of 2012. Pre-orders can be placed now! With each pre-order, girls will receive an autographed copy of the book as well as a FREE mini-magazine with additional clues, crafts, ideas, and thoughts on what it means to act justly. In addition to the book, GEMS is developing a summer book club guide for girls. The themes of justice, mercy, and humility will be drawn out in even greater depth as girls find discussion questions and practical challenges for seeking justice in their own communities just like Chloe and Tasha! Check out the website (www.gemsgc.org/MRM) to watch a trailer for the book, place your pre-order, get bios on the main
Culture of Prayer “Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?” Corrie Ten Boom For over fifty years GEMS has prayerfully sought God’s will for the ministry—seeking His leadership in the big and seemingly small areas of growing women and girls into a deeper faith. After witnessing the impact of the Prayer—No Worries! Annual Theme two seasons ago, the GEMS Executive Board decided to widen the culture of prayer throughout the ministry. Members of the GEB meet regularly for prayer and are asking others to join them from their own areas by starting regular prayer meetings in their communities. Tuesdays at 10 is the designated time and name for these meetings, but if your schedule requires a different meeting time, by all means pick that time and begin to meet together (or alone) and lift up the growing ministry of GEMS Girls’ Clubs to our great King. If you live in the West Michigan area and want to join the area board members for prayer, please contact Mary Jo Vis, maryjovis@gmail.com , for location details. Also, please take note that from the home page of the new GEMS website you can submit requests for prayer online. These Prayer Partners on Call are a small team of prayerful individuals that will consider it a great privilege to pray on your behalf. All NEW prayer journals have also been created and are now available that will serve as helpful aids in your time alone with God. Strength and Power is for women and Praying Like Jesus for girls. We encourage all counselors and girls to use these new resources that follow the Lord’s Prayer model. In addition, each week GEMS Training Manager, Lenae Bulthuis, coordinates a prayer email between all of Area Coordinators and Leadership Trainers (the key volunteers who provide area-wide training to counselors across North America) that lifts up individual as well as ministrywide prayer requests and praises. Be encouraged that leaders in your area are praying for you. This is just the beginning. The next question to ask is what can you do to cultivate a culture of prayer within your club: with your counselor team, with your congregation, and with the precious girls you mentor?
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The Esther School: Big Update! Meet our Zambian Missionaries
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s we enter the final sprint to open The Esther School in 2012, we are excited to announce that God has brought two families forward to serve as the first administrators for the school. Kevin and Tina DeKam and Drew and Arika Roelofs, along with their children, will be heading up operations at the school. We interviewed both couples and are excited to introduce them to you.
Tell us about your family. DeKams: We met at Hope College and have been married since 2000. Kevin is a professional counselor and is a partner in a private counseling practice where he works with individuals, couples, and families. Tina worked for GEMS for about 8 1/2 years as a graphic designer and continues to contract with GEMS through her independent design company. We have three lively boys: Clayton (7), Rowan (5), and Hudson (2). We are pretty active and love being outdoors!
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Roelofs : We have been married for 12 years and have 3 children (and a dog, Bentley!). Lauren is 7, Claire is 5, and Will is almost 3. Drew is a CPA and currently works as a finance manager, and Arika works part-time as a nurse. We love activities that we can do together as a family. Our kids love to swim, and we love boating and being at the lake.
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How did you hear about The Esther School and why did you decide to move your family to Zambia? DeKams: Tina traveled with one of the first groups of women to go to Zambia for training. As we felt called and, to some extent, became more involved in The Esther School, we were often confronted with the question of moving to Zambia. We always brushed this off as “crazy” since our plan was so intently focused on family, our home, careers, social lives...to be honest, to our own sense of comfort and security. We were simultaneously praying for things like the ability to draw closer to God, to deepen our relationship with each other and Him, to learn to seek comfort in Him, to create opportunities to teach our children about being activists for Christ in this world while their lives were so sheltered from its brokenness.
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DeKam Family
In hindsight, we have seen how God was patiently working in our lives for the past few years to prepare us for a call that then solidified early this year. After several months of prayer and discussion, we came to trust that this call was real and truly of God. While we still battle fear and insecurity, we are so encouraged by the opportunity and see how God has and will continue to answer those prayers through this next step. Roelofs : We heard about The Esther School from Tina and Kevin. Tina and Arika were college roommates, as were Kevin and Drew. We have remained best friends since. We were aware of Tina’s involvement with The Esther School through her work at GEMS, and more recently their decision to move to Zambia. We were more than excited for them and ready to support and pray for them; we had no idea that the Lord was planning for us to go too!
Over the past few years, the Lord has been teaching us to truly allow Him to lead us. This has resulted in several lifechanging decisions, which have proven again and again that God’s plans are very often different, but always better, than our own. As we waited to see where the Lord was going to lead us next, we were amazed to see how He had been orchestrating our lives to prepare us for this very opportunity at The Esther School! We are humbled to serve Him in this way and are excited for the opportunities that await our children and us as we truly learn to love and serve those in need in His name.
Roelofs Family
What do you anticipate as the biggest challenges in being the first administrative couples? The biggest blessings? DeKams: I think we know just enough to know we don’t know enough! Our initial and enduring concerns are for the safety and protection of our children. We welcome the ways they will be challenged, but pray for them as they will see and experience things that will undoubtedly shake them. We also simply have a lot of work to do— and will be doing it among a people and culture that are foreign to us. We welcome the ways that this adventure will deepen and strengthen our faith and our relationships with each other and our God.
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Roelofs : We recognize that there will be many challenges as the first administrators of The Esther School. Some of the largest will be learning about and understanding the culture, establishing relationships with local people, and also beginning to solidify the role The Esther School will have in the village of Chongwe. We will also have challenges with communication as we strive to learn the local language and adjust to the timelines and schedules in which we can expect to
accomplish our plans and goals for the school and the children that will attend. It will also be such a blessing to see how our kids can begin to help the children there as they, too, develop relationships and serve. We even plan to watch our youngest as he goes off to preschool as one of the members of the very first preschool class! What are your biggest prayer requests over the coming year as you prepare? DeKams: That we will learn to take our comfort in our Creator and Protector. We know that while this is an exciting adventure, we will be faced with challenges like never before, and we know that our only hope is in the comfort of the Great Shepherd. We ask for prayer for His strength and guidance throughout our time there.
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We just feel so blessed to be given this opportunity. That we would be selected by God for such a time as this. We are so very humbled by the support and prayers of our brothers and sisters in Christ throughout the world and take very seriously our task of representing Christ through GEMS in Zambia and through The Esther School. Roelofs : We so appreciate each one of your prayers! We ask that you pray for our family over this next year as we plan and prepare, both to enter into our new home in Zambia, but also as we say good-bye to family and friends. Please pray specifically for health and protection for our family as well.
And we ask that you pray especially for our kids as they, too, prepare to leave so much of what is familiar to them. Please pray for peace for them and that the Lord will prepare their hearts as well for this most amazing time in their lives. We would ask that you continue to pray for The Esther School. We are so very thankful for the blessing that each of the girls in GEMS and their counselors have already been for The Esther School and the children in Zambia! Each prayer and each brick that is donated is an investment into the ministry that is taking place there. All that you do makes such a difference, and we are so grateful!
Zambia Update
The Esther School Work Trip This past July our first work team of 16 traveled to Zambia to help work on The Esther School. Here are some of the highlights from their trip: • Working alongside the Zambian crew—laying the bricks for the library and clinic at The Esther School. • Celebrating all the work that has been completed at the school: The first teachers’ home is complete, the preschool/ kindergarten classroom is complete, and the library/clinic is nearly complete now as well! • Teaching, encouraging, and working with local preschoolers and helping them see what The Esther School will mean in their lives. • Making curtains for the teachers’ home using foot treadle sewing machines! They made the house ready for the North America teachers that will live there. • Meeting with eight area pastors and their wives who were encouraged, built up, and trained by a pastor and his wife from Ontario who were members of the work team. Be sure to watch the DVD sent to all clubs in August to see what God is doing through GEMS in Zambia. And visit the GEMS website (www.gemsgc.org) to find out how you can get involved in a future work team and/or the final sprint to open The Esther School in 2012.
Sister Clubs
Sister Clubs have had a HUGE impact on the growth and viability of our clubs in Zambia. We never could have started and maintained the 60 healthy clubs that currently exist in Zambia without the commitment of our North American Sister Clubs. You have made clubs possible! So we thank each of you for playing such a vital role in the past and present. But, more Sister Clubs are definitely needed. We have several clubs waiting for a Sister Club to come alongside them and help provide the assistance needed. Because of the success of the Hand ‘n Hand program, the cost of support to be a Sister Club is now just $450 per year. Please pray about this opportunity and email Kathy Brace for details, kathy@gemsgc.org
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Everywhere Meeting the Savior
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GREEN TRUTH Do you have extra space in your car each week when you head to work, church, or GEMS? Consider carpooling as a way to serve God by cutting down on the pollution caused by car emissions and as a way to build community through shared time to talk with people in your community or church family!
GEMS ANNUAL COUNSELORS’ LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE
COME TO CHICAGO!
If you’ve ever felt tired, worn-down, or discouraged during the GEMS season, you’re not alone. When the demands of life build up, it’s easy to lose focus. But God does not call the equipped— He equips the people He calls. As GEMS continues to move forward as a ministry, we are committed to maintaining our strong foundation—a foundation built on equipping women to be godly mentors to the girls in their lives (Titus 2).
Join us July 12-15, 2012 and as we discover what it means to Think Right: Win the Fight! We’ll hear from authors and speakers Kendra Smiley and Dee Brestin, spend an afternoon with musician and songwriter, Rob Biagi, enjoy an evening of comedy and cuisine with River City Improv, and worship with Colleen Reinders, Grace Moes and the Unity Music Ministries Band.
If you’ve thought about registering This past July counselors from across the US and Canada met for Conference but in Fort Collins, Colorado to experience the Annual Theme, never made the receive training for their work in club, worship with other commitment to women of faith, and be refreshed and inspired in their walk attend, this is the with God. year to set aside your hesitations “Conference gave me a renewed spirit of strength. [It] helped and come! Join me grow spiritually and gave me a closer connection to God us in Chicago! that I have been yearning to have…I was starting to feel run Don’t miss any of down toward the end of our GEMS season. During the sessions the training, enrichment, and times and classes at Conference, I felt God telling me this is where He of worship God has planned for the 2012 Annual wants me to be. The classes I took affirmed to me that God has Counselor’s Leadership Conference at Wheaton College. a plan for me and that plan includes continuing to mentor our Planning is well underway for this event and we hope GEMS girls. I felt joy from the moment we got off the plane and headed to Conference.” you will prayerfully consider bringing your entire counselor team along. - Beth Duras, Rosewood Church, CA
Conference continues to be our premier training event, and year-after-year women around North America experience a range of blessings as the learn how to honor God and love the girls in their club. Women left Colorado enthusiastic, renewed, and equipped for their work with GEMS! 8
Don’t miss the discounted, early-bird registration available in January. It’s not too soon to start planning for Conference next summer. Log onto Facebook and let other counselors know how you plan on raising the money to come to Chicago. We can’t wait to see you there!