There and Back Again

2014, what?  When did that happen?  I'm sure I will still be referring to this year as 2013.

So much has happened in the time since I last posted!  December finished out well for us here at SROM.  Three of my co-workers led a fantastic winter course trip in Rocky Mountain National Park from the 15th - 22nd; they not only had a blast teaching the students about the unique challenges of winter camping and hiking, but they were also really encouraged by the students' reflections at the end of the course!  Please join us in continuing to pray for these students as many of them return to classes this semester.  Pray that they would not forget their identity first and foremost being in Christ!

While three of my office mates were out in RMNP, I was working on my Wilderness First Responder certification here in Laramie.  We went through a LOT of information in a very short time!  I really enjoyed the course and I was reminded how much I love getting to process new information.  While I really hope I never have to use my new medical skills, am I really excited to have the knowledge and skills to respond to a situation should it arise!

As at Thanksgiving, time at home for the holidays was incredibly refreshing and sweet.  I was able to be home for about 10 days, which was a huge blessing!  It was great to feel like I had the luxury of getting to relax and really enjoy the time I had at home, rather than feeling like I needed to cram as much as I could into a short weekend with loved ones.  One of the many highlights of being home was getting a lot of time in with my nieces and nephew!  (Pictures are below because I can't stop myself from sharing how adorable they are.)

It's been good to get back into life here in Laramie.  SROM has really hit the ground running after the time away for the holidays.  As a staff we sat down to reflect on all the Lord has been doing in our organization over the past year.  It was a really encouraging look at where we've been and where we're continuing to go!  Below is a brief recap of our year-end review; it gives a few snapshots of the major changes that have been going on here at SROM.  

This has been more of an update rather than a food-for-thought sort of post, but there has been a lot floating around in my mind that I'm eager to get out into words in future posts!  

Blessings in this new year!

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As we begin preparations for our 2014 summer season, we thought it was important to reflect on 2013 and celebrate the major changes that SROM has made in the past year.

As an organization we were intentional about refining our ministry focus and getting on the same page as a staff regarding the overall vision for SROM.  We took huge steps to reorganize our entire staff into practical departments, which enabled us to specifically updating and streamlining our internal software, and moving toward a paperless environment.  After contacting Google Apps and requesting non-profit status, we were able to completely shift over to using Cloud-based programs for managing and delegating tasks and projects.  We revised our hiring documents and created an electronic system for processing and following up with applications.  Additionally, we automated our student application and registration process, and developed a more efficient way to follow-up with students.  Developing new processing systems also helped us to effectively track course payment and account for every student being paid in full in our 2013 season.  We were also able to significantly cut our monthly and year-end expenses, allowing us to purchase necessary equipment for winter courses.  We recently launched The SROM Channel, a new YouTube channel for our video content, and we are currently in the middle of redesigning our entire webpage and anticipate launching our new site at the end of January 2014.

                Changing the internal software has made an unbelievable difference in our office atmosphere!  As a staff we have been able to communicate more effectively and efficiently, which has greatly increased our productivity, focus, unity, and morale.  We’ve been able to collaborate with one another and work on getting necessary information available to the entire staff.  Thanks to the amazing in-house summer leadership of Diane Binder, we closed out our 2013 season smoothly and were able to make notes for changes to implement in our 2014 season.  November brought us another full-time staff member, Olivia Zimmermann, who has been working in the Course Management department.  We have also started to intentionally focus on staff health and fitness to stay strong in the off-season. 

                This summer marked the first in recent history that had no course cancellation and had all scheduled Open Enrollment courses going out into the field!  The average number of days our students spent in the field grew from seven to fifteen, meaning that we have more and more students signed up for our long courses.  This included three wilderness ministry professional courses specifically focused on training future instructors as well as for professional growth and development for the students.  Another point of celebration for this summer is now being able to offer graduate level credit for our Open Enrollment courses!  With all of the courses that we are running we have maxed out our allocated permit days, and we are fervently praying for the provision of more permits so we can serve more students.  More and more we are seeing the Lord work in incredible ways in the lives of our students.  Students are giving their lives to the Father and growing in their understanding of their identity in Christ; we also have had several students express interest in baptism while on course.  One of the things we stress while on course is how to keep living in the truth of these lessons ‘off the mountain,’ and we’ve been really encouraged to hear from students who have brought the lessons they learned on course out to their community and church back home.  Praise God! 

                We really have had an amazing past year at SROM, and we are eager to see where the Father will lead us in this upcoming season.  Our Admissions department has been working hard to get registration ready, and we are currently accepting student applications for 2014!  Please join us as we pray for the students and instructors that will be coming this summer, and for our alumni as they continue to seek the Lord in day-to-day life off the mountain.  

Unusual Provision

It's amazing to me how quickly I stray from relying on God's strength, and how GOOD He is to remind me. 

As I was preparing to come to Laramie earlier this year, God was abundantly providing for me at every step and in ways I could never have expected or asked for!  As I'm settling in here, however, I'm falling back into relying on my own strength or my own abilities rather than choosing to remind myself that everything I have is from His hand.  God gave me a sharp reminder last Friday morning, and it's been good to get perspective from that:  I was sick all last week with a sore throat, and ended up having to go get antibiotics for it (which--credit where credit is due--my mother called it early on and told me to get to a clinic days before I actually dragged my stubborn self in).  It got to be bad enough where I would wake up several times in the middle of the night needing something to soothe my throat.  Because I wasn't getting much sleep, I overslept my alarm on Friday morning and woke up as I was supposed to be in the office for staff prayer.  I quickly texted my bosses, got dressed, and ran down to my car...and my car wouldn't start.  I had accidentally drained my battery trying to use my auto-start in -20 degree weather.  Tired, sick, frustrated with myself, and very, very late for work, my coping skills deserted me and I called my dad in tears.  Looking back on it, I feel a little foolish for how strongly I reacted to a pretty simple situation.  But it made me realize how drained I was from trying to do everything of my own strength and ability!  As strange as it may seem, it really is a mercy of God to bring me to the end of my own capacity; because it seems that it's only when I stubbornly get to the end of myself that I realize I am not enough, and can meekly turn to Him and ask for His direction and strength.

God has also been showering SROM with crazy blessings!  In preparing for our winter course next week, one of my co-workers (Jay) was calling around trying to find a somewhere that would rent mountaineering boots out and had a size 14.5.  Needless to say, not many places have boots that big in stock to rent!  We prayed as a staff to be able to find a place that would stock the size we needed and that we would be able to find favor with them for inexpensive rentals or purchases.  After a full morning of calling, Jay was finally able to get in contact with an organization who not only had the boot in stock, but was willing to sell us their line of last year's mountaineering boot at an incredible discount!  As Jay was emailing back and forth with the equipment supervisor, he turned in his chair and gave me an incredulous look and said that this guy had asked if an Olivia Zimmermann happened to work in the office.  Apparently, the equipment supervisor had gone to Wheaton and, as it turned out, I had done a wilderness trip with his wife the summer before our freshman year together!  It's great to hear how friends from Wheaton are doing after graduation, and it's always encouraging to find other Christians in the outdoor industry.  We were able to completely outfit the course we needed, as well as buy enough boots to be able to use for future winter courses!  And, just to bless us, he also threw in ice axes and said he would keep us in mind as their organization was looking to update their gear and sell their old inventory.  It's amazing how God works! 

As quick as I am to forget how abundantly God provides, He is there to draw me up short and gently remind me that He is the Source.  He definitely gets creative in how He brings me to the end of myself; He is even more creative in how He brings abundant blessings to us when we seek Him rather than our own solutions to the problems we face.

Staying positive in negative temperatures

Winter has finally truly arrived in Laramie.  We had our first big snowstorm earlier this week, and got around 6 inches of snow overnight.  Cleaning off my car was relatively quick because the negative temperatures turned the snow into light powder that brushed off easily!  You've got to celebrate the small victories.

Getting to go home for Thanksgiving was a rich and wonderful time.  There's nothing quite like having your three-year-old niece run up to you, throw her arms around you and say "I missed you while you were in Why-yo-ming!"  The weekend was full of time with family and loved ones, and it made me finally understand all of the sappy sentimental gooeyness that surrounds the holidays.  Being 1,000 miles away from family during this time of year is hard!  But it definitely makes me cherish the time I do get to spend with them so much more.  Plus, there's nothing quite like the annual gingerbread house decorating contest, rife with good-natured sarcasm and taunting.  When all was said and done, I think we created some pretty darn good houses.

 The warzone.

 The finished products!

The first and second place entries

 The third and fourth place entries

Though there is still a lot left to December, our year-end deadlines are closing in at SROM.  We have a winter camping trip the 15-20th, and I'll be taking a Wilderness First Responder course the 14-22nd.  Most of us are leaving for Christmas around the 23rd, so we really only have this week and next week to get everything done before the break!  Please be praying for continued energy, clarity, and focus as we try to stay on task these next few weeks.  And please be praying for this course that we're running in December; pray for the students, pray for the instructors, and pray that everyone stays warm enough while they're in the field!

Blessings to all, especially around the holidays!