My Daily Prayer

"Disturb us, O Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves. When our dreams have come true because we have dreamed too little, when we have arrived in safety because we sailed to close to the shore.

Disturb us, O Lord, when with the abundance of things we possess we have lost our thirst for the Water of Life. When having fallen in love with time, we cease to dream of eternity; and in our efforts to build a new earth, we have allowed our vision for heaven to grow dim.

Stir us, O Lord, to dare more boldly, to venture on wilder seas, where storms shall show Thy Mastery, whe losing sight of land we shall find the stars.

In the name of Him who pushed back the horizons of our hopes and invited the brave to follow Him.

Amen."

-A prayer from Sir Francis Drake, 1577

Where does your security lie?

The word security is a loaded one. It also is one that God has put on my heart a lot lately. Earlier this year - during the spring of my senior year - it was during worship at a prayer night we had in Boone that God began to tell me that He wanted me to be willing to surrender all for him. He began to impress upon my heart that he wanted more of me and my heart and that He longed for a deeper dependence between me and him. Ever since that night I have seen the Lord begining to strip me of earthly treasures and really fix my heart and mind on things above. This word security for me also is tightly paired with the word trust. God has asked for more of my trust daily since the end of my senior year in order that I would let my security rest only in him and not other things or people. This as you can imagine has been a test of faith and has definitely been a challenge and struggle at times. I have been learning how during a transition like moving from college to an internship and leaving behind what was and moving forward to what is and what will be is the absolute perfect time for God to start stretching my trust in him and my security in him.

This internship that God graciously gave me with IJM was not my idea it was God's. He brought me every step of the way and linked me with every person I needed to be linked with in order to fall right here in this place serving him. Also at the end of my senior year God brought a wonderful guy into my life and that was not my idea either. Jonathan, who is my boyfriend now, started pursing me back in February of this year and I never saw it coming - this was God's idea too. Also I never thought that I would move back to the VA/D.C. area after graduating college, let alone back in to my house with my family. I never thought I would wear a suit to work everyday. These were all God's ideas and he brought them into being and I have been reminded of a truth that God taught me earlier this year that comes from a scripture in the Gospel of John - here Jesus is speaking to his disciples and he says:

"I tell you the truth, anyone who has FAITH in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even GREATER things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father."

-John 14:12-13

And again when God says this in the Old Testament:

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."

-Jeremiah 29:11-13

This summer yet again the Lord is stripping me of things that I would cling to if given to me instead of clinging to him. He is teaching me how to live at the mercies of His provision when it comes to money, energy, creativity, and comfort. These are all things that I am turning to God for more than ever and I am watching him show up in big ways. It is so amazing how my time at IJM so far has definitely been filled with work and growth professionally but one of the biggest things I have learned is that God cares about my heart above my ability to serve and he loves me and wants me to be taken care of and he doesn't just want to use me for his work - he wants to grow me in the midst of my service to him, he wants to heal me of my wounds as I remain faithful to him, he wants to provide for me as I provide for his children who cant provide for themselves.

My God is incredible and He is your God too. He tells us to believe for GREATER because the things He is calling us to do or to be apart of are not our ideas, they are his and he promises GREATER. I am holding fast to these truths as I pour myself more and more into the depths of what God has for me here in DC with IJM and what he has for me in each step I take near or far. He has plans to give me a hope and a future - I am praying that he would reveal them as I continue to walk out what he has called me to this summer. Thank you for your love support and prayers. I can't do this without you.

Blessings,
Kaity

A Day in the life of the Student Mobilizer

So one thing I feel like I have yet to clue y'all in on is exactly how my position as an intern fits into the BIG vision of IJM! I think it has been interesting and fun of course for me to try and take a step back and figure out how the education department at IJM and the position of the Student Mobilizer fits into the vision of IJM too. For those of you who dont know the vision - here it is:

"To rescue thousands, protect millions, and prove that Justice for the poor is possible"

I love this mission and I love the heart behind it. As the student mobilizer, I obviously mobilize students. A lot of my job and responsibilities include social networking students together all across the nation in order to UNITE them under the banner of Justice and Freedom. I handle  a lot of little details that I have learned go a LONG way with students when we actually pay attention to them. It means so much to a student when you respond to their e-mail by using their name - they want to be known. It also means so much to them when we respond to their e-mail or phone call promptly - they are amazed when I get back to them on the same day that they have contacted me! I love hearing the excited and passionate voices of students all over the U.S. who are gearing up to launch the Justice Movement on their college campuses. So if you haven't figured it out - I handle lots of follow up phone calls for those students who have sent us a request for more info on how to start a campus chapter, I handle a lot of e-mails that are asking for creative ideas on how to get their campus active in raising awareness about the injustices that are taking place globally. It has been phenomenal so far to partner with students and to encourage and guide them as they begin to take the first steps on this journey for Justice! I have been working on some other things as well, such as resources for the education department so that we can better equip students with the knowledge they need to know about the issues of violent oppression that we are asking them to fight against.

The main way that I see myself fitting into the big vision of IJM as a whole is this: I am a Voice for the Voiceless. The number one way to fight against modern day slavery and the violent oppression happening in the countries that IJM serves is to educate and make aware students of what's happening so that they can take a stand and spread the word. If we don't know what's going on we are not going to ever be a part of the solution. I have a new passion for education and a new passion for encouraging those who have a lot and those who have freedom to stand up and share their freedom in a way that expresses that they care for those who don't have freedom yet but long for it desperately.

The scripture that comes to mind for me as my spirit begins to stir is one from the Gospel of Matthew - it reads:

"Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, preach this message, 'The kingdom of heaven is near. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give"

-Matthew 10:6-8

This scripture hits me in the heart and especially when it says 'Freely you have received, freely give'. This is so true in my life. I have been blessed beyond measure to live in a land that is free as can be and to have a family that has been so generous in providing for me and to be surrounded with friends in my life who have become like family and supported me in my walk of faith and to have Jesus who found me when I was lost. None of these things that are apart of my life have i earned or even asked for, God has freely given them to me and as his daughter and his beloved one and his follower I am called and commanded to freely give back. It is not an option, it is a calling. I feel like that is how i fit into the bigger picture, the cases that IJM handles all over the world, they are funded by students who do fundraisers on their campuses and they are supported by the student prayer groups that lift up the monthly prayer requests of IJM to the King of Kings, and these victims and cases are going to become less and less as students rise up and teach their campuses about what is going on and how they can be apart of the movement to bring Justice to the nations.

I as the student mobilizer am reminded every day that God has called me to use my gifts and talents to freely give to those who are in need. And he is calling you as well to figure out how you fit into this bigger vision of IJM and more so just God's heart for freedom and Justice. You are apart of this whether you have realized it or not yet.

Thanks for walking through this journey with me, thanks for your prayers and support I can feel the Lord strengthening me and guiding me. You are all a blessing.

Short & Sweet & More to come

Praise God for his love and faithfulness.
He has showed up in so many ways this week at IJM, in my life, in my friends lives (who are spread out all over the world this summer), and in the beauty of his creation that we witness everyday.
Specifically I want to thank those who supported me this month - MB and Pangshua - y'all are a blessing and I love you and I am so thankful for sister friends like you who are partnering with God and his glorious work. Thank you thank you thank you. For the Kingdom is all I can say. I am humbled

So this post is going to be short but sweet. Scripture is where it is at and those are the most important and powerful words I could share with you in this short amount of time before I go to bed because I must be up at 5am for work at IJM in the morn - rise and shine and give God the glory glory. Here are some of the scriptures I've been reading and the Lord has put on my heart this week. I pray that they will bless you and speak to you. The word is alive and always speaking. Draw Near:

"And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." -Phillippians 4:19 (thanks Leslie for this one! my intern friend)


"The Lord your God is with you,
    the Mighty Warrior who saves.
He will take great delight in you;
    in his love he will no longer rebuke you,
    but will rejoice over you with singing.”
-Zephaniah 3:17

"I am the Lord, and there is no other;
    apart from me there is no God.
I will strengthen you,
    though you have not acknowledged me,
 so that from the rising of the sun
    to the place of its setting
people may know there is none besides me.
    I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I form the light and create darkness,
    I bring prosperity and create disaster;
    I, the Lord, do all these things."

“You heavens above, rain down my righteousness;
    let the clouds shower it down.
Let the earth open wide,
    let salvation spring up,
let righteousness flourish with it;
    I, the Lord, have created it."

-Isaiah 45:6-8

"And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God." -Philippians 1:9-11

P.S. Here is a link to some pictures from my first couple weeks at home and as an intern -->

Pictures from my Summer!

ALSO - if you are thinking about supporting me I am looking for donors for the next month! Feel free to donate to my summer while I serve at IJM by clicking on this link and choosing my name from the drop down list! Thanks! 

Support IJM Intern Kaity Ruhland!

Blessings and Love to you all. More to come soon. Tomorrow is friday!

Training Week at IJMHQ

As I finally have found a moment to sit down and begin to enter this blog post I am absolutely overwhelmed by the whirlwind of the past two weeks that have seemed to fly by. Last week was my first week at International Justice Mission Head Quarters and this week has been my first full week of starting my tasks, projects, meetings, and many phone calls within my specific department as an Intern. For starters I will bring you up to day with what training week was like.

If I had to pick one word or emotion that I felt by the end of last week (June 4 - 8) it would have to be beyond blessed. I thought I was passionate about IJM when I arrived in D.C. for the summer, but now I am even more passionate and in love with the mission, vision and structural strategies of this organization. Training week started out with being taught by the Gary Haugen, yes, the President and CEO and founder of IJM. He is one of the most humble and personable men I have ever met. It was such an honor, privilege and joy to learn from him as he taught us all about the biblical foundations of IJM and how it got started and the stirring God placed in his heart 15 years ago to start up IJM. One of my most favorite aspects of IJM is that it runs on God's strength and power alone. They are so Christ centered in all they do, even down to the reason why they are so professional and why we have to wear suits everyday! It has been easy to enjoy the "credibility costume", as Gary calls it, simply because it all comes back to doing everything with excellence for the Lord. That kind of motivation is the only kind worth doing all things for in my book - that the Lord might be Glorified - if you know me well it is probably the only way you could convince me to wear a suit all summer! The first night after being taught by Gary Haugen all day we were celebrated and introduced to all the staff at our Welcome Dinner! This was so fun and just a great time to get to know the other interns and the IJMHQ staff - who if I must say are quite the group of talented and gifted people! The rest of the week consisted of lots of training sessions and even some hands on case work simulations. We went over the ins and outs of how the 15 international field offices all over the world that IJM has planted work and the 3-5 year plan for IJM as a whole and how each department fits into the strategic plan and vision. It was so detailed and informative - I so greatly appreciate their transparency and how they truly welcome you into their family and desire you to know who they are, what they do, and they want you to feel a part of it. 

The Vision: To rescue thousands, protect millions, and prove that justice for the poor is possible. The way that IJM does this is by sending IJM professionals to work in their communities in 15 field offices in Asia, Africa and Latin America to secure tangible and sustainable protection of national laws through local court systems. For those of you who don't know the exact layout of the type of cases and work that IJM takes on here is a little summary-I love the work of IJM - it is so holistic and unique in comparison to other NGO's and their approach to work internationally. 

IJM seeks 4 outcomes on behalf of those we serve:

1. Victim Relief

IJM's first priority in its casework is immediate relief for the victim of the abuse being committed.

2. Perpetrator Accountability

IJM seeks to hold perpetrators accountable for their abuse in their local justice systems. Accountability changes the fear equation: When would-be perpetrators are rightly afraid of the consequences of their abuse, the vulnerable do not need to fear them.

3. Survivor Aftercare

IJM aftercare staff and trusted local aftercare partners work to ensure that victims of oppression are equipped to rebuild their lives and respond to the complex emotional and physical needs that are often the result of abuse.

4. Structural Transformation

IJM seeks to prevent abuse from being committed against others at risk by strengthening the community factors and local judicial systems that will deter potential oppressors.

I love the work of IJM - it is so holistic and unique in comparison to other NGO's and their approach to their work internationally. It is so incredible to work for this mission each and everyday that I come into the office. 

There is so much more that we learned. There is no way that I could possibly fit it all in here. But over all the jist of it is that they really take the time during training week to fully equip you to represent God, IJM, and their victims. The days were long and a whole new change of pace from just going to college classes at AppState, but the early mornings that come at 5am from the 2hr commute to the late nights of getting to know the other interns and finding time to rest when I get home are all worth it. God is so worth it. He is worthy of it all and that is why I have been called here this summer. I have been called to partner with God's heart for justice and freedom for his children and I get to do that and I am beyond thankful for the opportunity of a lifetime to do so. God has been so faithful. And this is just the beginning.