September Update

Dobry den!

Czeching Things Out:
So, I’ve officially lived in the Czech Republic for about eight weeks and I can honestly say Prague is beginning to feel like a place I can call home. I feel so blessed to be able to share with you how God is using me in the Czech Republic! Thank you so much for becoming part of my support team!!

My Schools:
As you know, I am splitting my commitment time between two schools: Gymnazium Milady Horakove and Gymnazium Radotin. Sofar things are going very well at both of my schools and I have been able to get to know some of my students.
Something that has been very challenging is that I have a student with autism at each of my schools and have been having a hard time making my lessons “student’s name” friendly. The things that I have tried so far seem to be working, but I am never truly sure if those students understand because I have not yet earned their trust. Please pray that he and my students with autism will become more comfortable with me so I can serve them more.

I also have a student in my beginner class at Milady Horakove that from a bi-lingual family. He and his parents are fluent in both Czech and English. In result, his fluency has placed him at a MUCH higher level than the rest of the class. Sometimes I find it very difficult to keep his attention in my lessons. Please ask for guidance as to how to what to do in this situation.


My Ministry:

First of all, God is pretty much amazing!! I’ve been praying about what my ministry should be with my students. He has answered my prayers!! A couple weeks ago at Milady Horakove, four of my students came up to me after class and asked if I would be able to give them private English lessons to help them prepare for an English exam required to study in the US next year. HELLO SIGN FROM GOD!! I GET IT!!! I’LL START AN ENGLISH CLUB!!!

On another note, I have also been praying about other types of ministry and do not feel the He is calling me to volunteer with IFES at this time. Rather He has used the IFES volunteers from the UK as part of my spiritual support system.
Right now, I feel that God is asking me to specifically invest in the younger girls, especially the students around me. In helping me do so, He has presented me with two student groups: Young Life and Youth Praha. Both groups have very different dynamics, please pray for His guidance.

My Spiritual Life:

Another prayer that has been answered is the prayer to find a church and or a really good bible study to make me feel at home: I have found both! I have been attending the International Church of Prague (ICP) and I have also been attending a women’s bible study through the church.

Most of the time I have been here, ICP has been taking a close look at Paul and his story. In result we’ve had “homework” (okay, its self afflicted homework) taking an even deeper look at the the life of Paul and God has been “smacking me” in the face with new angles to share the Gospel!! I’m SO EXCITED!

My Support:

First, a BIG thank you to everyone who have been praying for me, to those of you who have signed up for monthly deductions and given special one-time gifts. As of right now, God has raised $7395.50!!! AWESOME!!! However, I still need to raise $4604.50 in order to reach my full budget of $12,000 before the end of February.
As you can see, I still need your help. To join my support team or add to my support please visit the TeachOverseas website: www.teachoverseas.org and click on the contribute link under the “about us” section. From there you can give credit card or a paypal account or sign up for monthly contributions. In the “contribute” section choose “teacher or staff member” and enter my name.

My Prayer Requests:
- Praise God that I have been adjusting well to live abroad
- Praise God that I have found a church, bible study and Christian friends here
- Praise God for the ministry opportunities He has recently revealed to me
- Pray that I will receive guidance as to how to better serve my students with Autism
- Pray that I can find a way to feed my “beginner” level fluent English speaker
- Please pray that I can continue to build relationships with my students both at school and English Club
- Pray that God will make it clear as to which youth ministry I should be involved with (or both)
- Please pray that God will provide more support both in prayer and funding


Thank you so much for all of your support!!

With His Love,

Sierra