We are continuing to highlight the reflections of our summer Discern staff on our blog. DOOR Atlanta provides a leadership program (named Discern) that teaches, models, and provides experiences that develop Christian leaders. This week our blog post comes from Edrick, who is returning for his second year on DOOR Atlanta's staff. We have been talking about Motivation and Edrick reflected on who is our motivation for service.
~Jannan Thomas, DOOR Atlanta City Director
"The word of the week this week was motivation. Motivation, or the reason why we do things, can take many different forms. Whether it is the motivation to wake up in the morning, or the motivation to wash your clothes, our reason for doing the things we do are incredibly important. And the reason why we serve is just as important. Our motivation to serve here at DOOR comes from our Christian faith, as well as our commitment to help our fellow man. In order to do God’s work, our reasons for doing so must be in order. Our reason must not come from personal gain, glory, or greed. Our motivation for spending an entire summer in the service of Jesus Christ must come from love. Because God calls us to love our neighbor, our service this summer is not done out of pity or recognition, but out of the love of our fellow man and a sense of justice that everyone is entitled to the little things that we take for granted every day such as conversation or human contact. Because our motivation is out of love, it makes it easier for us to spend a summer on mattresses, living off of peanut butter sandwiches and filled with middle schoolers who never seem to tire. Although I might not always show it, my motivation to serve comes from the love I have for God and the love I have for my neighbor. My motivation to serve is to put the words of the Bible into action, and maybe be worthy enough to become the hands and feet of Christ. "
Edrick, DOOR Atlanta Summer Discern Staff
Tuesday
Sunday
A give and take experience
This summer our Discern summer staff are writing our blog entries. Our summer staff come and live in Atlanta for the summer and learn about urban ministry and Christian leadership by helping our mission trip participants serve, pray and learn. This week's reflection is from Liz and she is reflecting on what she has learned about leadership so far this summer.
~Jannan Thomas, DOOR Atlanta City Director
“ Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it”. –Dwight Eisenhower. This summer’s theme is centered around leadership and President Eisenhower’s words of wisdom shed light on a very important point about leadership. A leader needs to have the power to not only lead people in a certain direction but to help them to want to go in that direction. The point of a mission trip and part of DOOR’s philosophy is that mission is a give and take experience. I learned that being a good leader was not to make the kids do the work but help them to realize why they were doing the work so they could want to do it. The kids could give their service but also take back a better knowledge of what it means to help others. Being a leader is not manipulation, but guidance and patience. If you want to know how to guide and be a good leader you just have to look to our trusty friend Jesus, he seems to have all the answers and a very large number of followers. If you lead with love and understanding you can influence the lives of many.
~Liz Evans, Summer staff
~Jannan Thomas, DOOR Atlanta City Director
“ Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it”. –Dwight Eisenhower. This summer’s theme is centered around leadership and President Eisenhower’s words of wisdom shed light on a very important point about leadership. A leader needs to have the power to not only lead people in a certain direction but to help them to want to go in that direction. The point of a mission trip and part of DOOR’s philosophy is that mission is a give and take experience. I learned that being a good leader was not to make the kids do the work but help them to realize why they were doing the work so they could want to do it. The kids could give their service but also take back a better knowledge of what it means to help others. Being a leader is not manipulation, but guidance and patience. If you want to know how to guide and be a good leader you just have to look to our trusty friend Jesus, he seems to have all the answers and a very large number of followers. If you lead with love and understanding you can influence the lives of many.
~Liz Evans, Summer staff
Thursday
Summer Staff Learn about "Responsibility" in Leadership
Our blog post today is from Betty, one of DOOR Atlanta Summer Discern Staff. This week our staff has been exploring the Leadership trait of "Responsibility". Here are Betty's reflections:
~Jannan Thomas, DOOR Atlanta City Director
"The team building word this week was responsibility. Responsibility is defined by WordNet as the "social force that binds us to the courses of action demanded by that force". This week was our first week carrying out the Discover program - with that came the need for responsibility not only from the summer staff, but also from our leaders, the youth groups and their leaders.
At the beginning of the week, we were given detailed schedules for the week; by the end of the week, I realized just how important being a responsible summer staffer is! This was our first time leading groups this summer and therefore some things were a little rough around the edges. However, it was up to us to be aware of which agencies we were to visit, what activities we were to lead and what chores we were to oversee. In reference to the WordNet definition used previously, the social force was the Discover program, and the courses of action were our jobs as summer staffers. If any one of us ever chose to neglect our duties, that could have had a bad effect on the agencies, the youth groups and the other summer staffers.
In order for a team to be successful, the individual players need to be responsible, not only for themselves but for each other. If someone in the team is having a hard time, or not doing something right, it is the team's responsibility to offer a helping hand. I have seen numerous cases of that this past week, ranging from offering a ride home to someone to just listening to what someone had to say. I hope to see more of it this summer!"
~Betty, DOOR Atlanta Summer Discern Staff
~Jannan Thomas, DOOR Atlanta City Director
"The team building word this week was responsibility. Responsibility is defined by WordNet as the "social force that binds us to the courses of action demanded by that force". This week was our first week carrying out the Discover program - with that came the need for responsibility not only from the summer staff, but also from our leaders, the youth groups and their leaders.
At the beginning of the week, we were given detailed schedules for the week; by the end of the week, I realized just how important being a responsible summer staffer is! This was our first time leading groups this summer and therefore some things were a little rough around the edges. However, it was up to us to be aware of which agencies we were to visit, what activities we were to lead and what chores we were to oversee. In reference to the WordNet definition used previously, the social force was the Discover program, and the courses of action were our jobs as summer staffers. If any one of us ever chose to neglect our duties, that could have had a bad effect on the agencies, the youth groups and the other summer staffers.
In order for a team to be successful, the individual players need to be responsible, not only for themselves but for each other. If someone in the team is having a hard time, or not doing something right, it is the team's responsibility to offer a helping hand. I have seen numerous cases of that this past week, ranging from offering a ride home to someone to just listening to what someone had to say. I hope to see more of it this summer!"
~Betty, DOOR Atlanta Summer Discern Staff
Sunday
DOOR Atlanta's Summer Staff Explore "Teamwork"
For the rest of the summer, the Atlanta blog will be filled with reflections by the summer staff and summer mission trip participants. This will give you a great chance to hear first hand the impact of our programs and the ways it makes our participants think about our world and community. This week, Alisha, one of our summer staff, reflected on our leadership word of the week: "Teamwork".
~Jannan Thomas, DOOR Atlanta City Director
"This week the summer D.O.O.R staff was given several activities and opportunities to work together as a team. We have done scavenger hunts, team building activities, shopping extravaganzas, and a mini-documentary on hospitality. During all these activities we had to operate as a team in order to accomplish the task or to get to our destination. The word that kept popping up throughout these activities was trust. One of my teammates would reiterate the need for us to trust one another. We had to trust our teammates as we were led blindfold through an obstacle. We had to trust that our teammates knew where they were going on the MARTA public transit system. And we had to trust the skills and knowledge of each other as we created our mini-documentary. I believe that throughout the summer as we continue to discover the gifts, skills, talents and knowledge that each team member possesses, we will build up our trust in each other and the gifts we bring to the table. We will begin to recognize that we all have something to offer and contribute to making this summer a success."
Alisha, DOOR Atlanta Summer Discern Staff
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