Ned Erickson: UPDATE - Week of February 7

James K. A. Smith

FORUM ON FAITH AND CULTURE

It's not every week that you get to attend a twenty-four hour conference in your hometown where the speaker happens to be the author of the book you are studying for class!

This year, the Forum on Faith and Culture invited James K.A. Smith to keynote the weekend. Dr. Smith is the author of several books, including You Are What You Love and Desiring the Kingdom both are being studied by our Fellows this year.

Reese, Sara Beth (honorary Fellow), Christina, Ned, Rahel (in the back) Campbell, Jessica, and Tessa and Rachel (from the Greensboro Fellows.

The conference was thoughtfully provocative. And what was almost as good as the sessions was the conversation it inspired afterward with the Winston and Greensboro Fellows.

What a treat! A special thanks for the committee who put this conference together - it was as if you had the Fellows in mind when you put the weekend together!

OTHER GUESTS

Friday, we also had the opportunity to hear the stories of two former felons: Biggs Burke (cofounder of Roc-a-fella Records with Jay-Z) and Chip Skowron (Yale Educated Doctor gone Hedge Fund Manager). Unbelievable.

Biggs and Chip

Thank you Jay Helvey and NCS for inviting us in!

Let it be known: Winston is a happening place!

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

Monday we had Round Table at the Erickson house. It was a great night of laughter and prayer. I also was able to snap this special photo of the Anna Rose helping David with his homework!

So cute!

Wednesday, we had one of the best Leader Lunches of the year (of course I didn't get a picture! Blast!) We met with Jeff and Kim Ickes, owners of Salem Sports, a company that provides soup to nuts branding for customers. Their story is absolutely amazing! Not only did they supply us with food, give us a tour, but they created a top 10 list of things they wished they knew when they were 25! I have it on my wall now! THANK YOU JEFF AND KIM!!!!!

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!

The objective of the Fellows Program is to increase the Fellows understanding of Who God Is, Who They Are, and What Do It Mean For Us To Live In The Context of This Time and This Place.

We have achieved this objective in all kinds of ways this year. But it had always been our hope to define Time and Place globally. To do that, we had set aside some time and money to put toward a mission trip.

And so, we put the question to the Fellows: are you interested and willing to go on a mission trip this year even if it means that you will have to raise extra funds?

The answer was a resounding Yes!

So we have been working with our board on the best way forward and this week we are ready to make the trip official!

We are going with Young Life Expeditions (Young Life's Missions Group) to ISRAEL!

Why Israel?

Great question:

- 1st - If you want to understand God and His Word better, there is no better place to go than to the place where Jesus actually lived.

- 2nd - If you want to understand the particular challenges that we face as a country and a world, you have to understand what is happening in Israel.

- 3rd - Winston-Salem has a great friend in the Middle East: Hunter Lambeth, a graduate of Reynolds High School who is now the Director of Young Life in the Middle East who we will be able to walk alongside and serve.

The trip will be from April 30-May 9 and will be half-educational, half-spiritual, and half-missions (I know that adds up to more than 100% but that's the power of a trip like this). For the missions part we will be serving the local Young Life Areas in Nazareth and Bethlehem (yes that Nazareth and Bethlehem) and working with teenagers as well as special needs children.

There is more but I'll leave it at that.

But to go we are going to need your support. We are going to need to raise $1,125 per fellow, or $13,500 as a group. That is absolutely incredible for a trip like this!

This is what we need:

(1) DONATIONS - if you believe in this program and have been looking for a way to support it - THIS IS YOUR CHANCE!

Click Here to Give Online

Or mail checks to WS Fellows

851 W. 5th St.

WSNC 27101

For Credit Card donations, contact winstonsalemfellows@gmail.com

(2) FUNDRAISING OPPORTUNITIES

- need babysitting? pet sitting? house sitting?

- yard work?

- heavy lifting?

We Are Your People!

(3) Know of MONEY EARNING OPPORTUNITIES?

- This week one of our Fellows put in some extra time to earn money for the trip.

(4) PRAYER - we want to go spiritually, financially, emotionally, and mentally prepared. We need your prayer support to do it.

(5) INTERESTED IN GOING? We have the capability of having others join us. Let me know if you are interested.

PRAYER AND OTHER NEWS

Please Pray for the Fellows

- I may make it sound like in these updates that we never experience challenges or setbacks or difficulties. The truth is we do. I don't share them on these updates primarily for privacy reasons. But I will say here that we need your prayer!

--> the Fellows have some adulting to do

--> the Director and the Board are still learning what to do

--> our team of incredible volunteers (mentors, host families, churches, business partners, etc.) all have their own personal struggles as well as their struggles with us!

So please pray. We are humans here. And we are participating in a God thing. It can't be accomplished without Him.

Some specifics:

- Pray for our recruiting. We are still at 2 yesses. We are praying for more! 12 by June.

- Pray for Fellows futures. Lots of good indicators. But plenty of room for prayer.

- Pray for the Director as he will be single parenting Thursday and Friday.

- Pray for our Upcoming Board Retreat.

Thank you!!!!

Other News: David turned the big 8 on Thursday!