The Apostle Paul writes to the Corinthians,
“Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you? You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all. And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts.” (2 Corinthians 3:1-3)
I encourage you to pause and reflect on what it means for a letter of recommendation to be embodied by a human being. For a person to be so filled by the Spirit of the living God, that no one needs to write something down to affirm the teaching program they came from. They themselves are the evidence. They themselves are the proof that what it is that God has done (written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God) cannot be denied. It is etched into the core of the person who stands before a watching world.
On my most recent visit to El Salvador, I had the most beautiful opportunity to witness such a thing. On our campus in El Salvador, there are 5 such letters of recommendation, and they are our faith-filled cooperatives Antonio and Lorena, and three student-interns, Amilcar, Doris, and Orlando.
Each of these people has a very unique story of how God has led them into the work of ministry. All of them have weathered terrible storms in their lives - though they are all young. Yet as we prepared to facilitate a youth conference (with significantly fewer facilitators than expected), I watched as they unfailingly rose to the occasion, and I learned new things about them and giftings that have emerged over the last several years.
Doris, 20, used to be timid, anxious and quiet. When she was in her late teens, she would attend youth conferences and Bible Studies, but stay on the perimeter, freeze if she was called upon to answer a question, and only rarely offer a smile or engage conversation. On this trip, I felt my heart swell with joy to watch her calmly and confidently lead a discussion for a group of girls a few years younger than her, prompting them to participate and with clarity and joy, sharing her testimony as a reflection of what God has done to bring her to this place. When the time came to organize youth, or facilitate ice breaker games, she issued direction like a boss. During times of worship and prayer, she laid hands on students and prayed with sensitivity to the presence of God.
Orlando, 22, greeted me in English when I first saw him and continued to converse in that language with ease. His proficiency in English has steadily increased over the years, despite minimal opportunities to practice aloud (and don’t we all know how helpful that is in a language-learning process!). Orlando has developed a passion for education, and when I asked him questions about how he would like to grow in his field of work, he demonstrated critical thought and consideration beyond his years.
In a meeting to develop our event calendar in El Salvador, upon being asked, Amilcar, 22, painted a mental landscape of the facility and safety considerations necessary to effectively administer an event on our campus. His ability to organize and manage groups of people with social and logistical competency has grown from a hefty dose of natural social intelligence to a tested skill in organizing and facilitating group events and activities.
These are just a few examples of how these young people have grown and developed throughout the course of their internship, but the greatest blessing that they offer comes in the form of their attitude. With humility, joy, and enthusiasm they work hard and seek first the Kingdom of God. Their hunger to know God’s word fuels their times of study, worship, and prayer. Their love for others is displayed in constant service.
Amilcar, Doris, and Orlando will soon be joined by a new class of interns. As we process their applications and prepare for their move on campus, we reflect with gratitude on the opportunity that we have to participate with God in doing a transformative work amidst the young people of El Salvador. To learn more about how you can support our internship program and to sponsor educational opportunities for these young people, visit godintl.org/sponsor-an-intern.
The student interns have participated in youth conferences and had small tasks assigned to them in the past, but this is the first time they had major responsibilities and roles on the facilitation team! They learned a lot as they sat in meetings to prepare for the conference.
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