DONE Mission One 020 Report - Zoom Meeting

DONE Mission One 020 Report ZOOM, June 13, 2020 By the ESGD Team flexible and adjust to circumstances beyond our control. Many participants expressed how the unique nature of experiencing this

O education from home, gave the space to reflect and work more with n Saturday, June 13th, we held our online Graduation the content, and then apply it directly to their daily life and family and closing for all DONE Mission One staff and relationships. Certainly, the programme was a big blessing for all participants. With congratulatory remarks from the of us to be involved with during the lockdown; it provided Balcombs and William Haines, and closing talks from structure, education and companions of faith. the team leaders, we concluded our DONE Mission One programme for this year. We are very grateful for the collective effort that went into creating this unique and internally rich online educational experience. And Due to the lockdown, this year’s schedule had to be significantly we want to express our gratitude in particular to the team leaders, adjusted. After just the first week of the programme in early March, who took a lot of initiative for their team members, and the guest all participants and staff had to return home. Soon after, we made lecturers, William Haines, Armando Lozano and Frank Kaufmann. the collective decision to offer an adjusted online programme, which was fittingly re-named to “DONE Mission Corona”. DMC To share an insight into the journey and growth that was ran for 11 weeks, from the end of March until mid-June; the experienced collectively, we have attached a poem, compiled by programme consisted of weekly team calls, sharings and activities, taking one to two sentences from the final reflections of each complemented with regular zoom lecture series and internal participant and team leader. We also include four written content from guest lecturers and staff, and weekly education testimonies from this year’s DONE participants. packages with readings and lecture recordings. Looking to next year, we can confirm that we are planning to run Of course, this wasn’t the original plan, and we were sad not to be DONE 020 in person, starting in late October/early November. able to be together in person for the intended 3 months. However, it Applications are open, and more information can be found by was a lesson for the nature of life; that we always need to be visiting us online.

“My Gap Year Not Ruined” DMC 020 poem, by participants and staff

When we started DMC, I didn’t know what was coming. It’s my responsibility to never give up on pursuing For some time, I was extremely bothered that my gap goodness. year got “ruined”. My room will be full of post-its.

I didn’t really know how I want to grow I had a great gap year. or in what direction. I was scared to go deeper. I remember a lot of moments when I felt lighter because of a lecture, a prayer or just seeing Taking responsibility for your own life is hard. everybody’s faces. I’m still scared of finding my place in the world, but I DMC was a really honest mirror for me. know where to start now. This wasn’t a time of surviving. Now is the time where we make major decisions in our It was a time of learning and practicing. life; We should be creative. I don’t want to be a selfish bystander anymore. I don’t want to live a passive life. All I’ve ever wanted to do is be a good person and I I don’t want to prioritise being liked by everyone didn’t think that I needed a life of faith to do that. anymore, even though it’s nice. But a few weeks ago, I had this massive urge to get to know God. I want to approach life differently. I have been educated and taught about God and his I want to doubt myself less. love for basically all my life. If I give away my responsibility, But I realised a connection and love for God is not I give away my freedom. something you can be taught. It’s something you have to want. My want to be better for others, overpowers my want to be comfortable. Now, I want to do life together with God. I want to make better decisions; My goal is sincerely to have God in my life, Don’t aim for average. living with God and listening. I want to live a life that would make God happy. It takes commitment to grow, and a commitment to never give up. There is so much to come; But I’ve realised I don’t have to do everything alone. I feel my life will be much fuller than I realised up until now. I had a longing to call people my companions of faith. We are all part of a big story, We need companions of faith. and now it is our turn. A lot of growth comes from talking with each other. God needs our help to make the world a better place. It’s the quality of my relationships Please be hopeful, not hopeless. that reflect the quality of my life. Let’s make families God is proud of. I can see more clearly the purpose of life – I just need to look at my sister. And my dad. For some time, I was extremely bothered that my gap year got “ruined”. I can see that I’m going in the right direction. But I had a great gap year.

The place I can grow is right now, Oh goodness, my heart. whatever and wherever that is. It’s been so good, it hurts. That’s life – taking responsibility and overcoming things. The quality of the environment may change, but the quality of my heart won’t.

I want to live a better life.

DONE 019 and DMC 020 participants testimonies “DONE provided me with a kind of education that at the same time confronted me and brought me peace. The honesty from the staff and the extent to which they truly care about each participant is so evident from beginning to end and I couldn’t be more grateful for that. DONE really provided me with a lot of support, but also with the tools to support myself and the people in my life as I move forward. I gained a much more grounded sense of myself, spirituality, and the world. I really feel that I gained a clearer image of myself and of how to continuously distinguish within myself that which is from God from that which is not. Another big thing is a much firmer understanding of growth and the awareness that I have the potential and ability to grow, which is not an awareness that I’ve always had. I also gained some of the best friends I have ever had. I would describe the education I received on DONE as realistic, applicable, inspiring, hopeful, and grounded. I honestly believe that the education I received there is the best I could have received and exactly what I needed, because it is confronting in exactly the right way without ever crushing hope or making growth seem impossible. The encouragement and push to grow and the honest portrayal of the challenges that may accompany that really pave the way for sustained growth. Going to DONE was probably the best decision I have ever made, and I am so grateful for the things I have learned there, for it will surely make my life a better one.”

“Before going to DONE, I wasn’t exactly sure what my future was going to look like. But now, DONE has given me the confidence to really take ownership of my spiritual life and develop that commitment to higher standards. I now have the understanding that I’m forever going to be on this journey of growth. I’ve realised that there’s always some way I can improve or grow, emphasising the need for me to be attentive to what God is trying to tell me in my everyday life. Ultimately, I am responsible for choosing to grow to be the person I have the potential to become.

DONE truly has been the “down to earth” programme people have said it to be. The atmosphere the directors and lecturers create; one of welcoming challenging questions and encouraging us participants to take responsibility to challenge our own concepts and understandings has been an important part of my DONE experience.

Now as a DONE Graduate, I look forward to moving onto the next chapters of my life with the precious friendships and unforgettable memories I’ve made throughout the past year.”

“DONE’s approach to spiritual education is something I’ve never experienced anywhere else. Their content is powerful, honest, supported by facts, not fanatical, confronting, meaningful, deep, and relatable. I love this quote from our HDH booklet: “Faith does not mean seeing the world as you would like it to be; it means seeing the world exactly as it is, yet never giving up the hope that we can make it better by the way we live.” I think that the content on DONE is very similar to this. You don’t hear about fairy tales, but if you give your effort you can gain a lot of faith, strength, and hope from it. It always comes down to personal responsibility. DONE helped me realize my relationship with spirituality and I could build a strong foundation. I appreciate ESGD’s healthy approach to education. They constantly made us think and asked us to think and figure out our own understanding, not just accept everything they say blindly. I felt a tremendous amount of love, support, and understanding from everyone during my year and it also contributed a lot to how I received the content.”

“DONE brought me reality. Honestly, I was expecting some kind of wake-up call or dreamy experience, but instead I realized it’s up to me to work with where I’m at and make it better. At the same time, it provided me with a nurturing environment to learn, to grow and to develop my relationship with God. I learnt that growth takes time, it’s not linear, there are ups and downs and that I should appreciate and enjoy the process.”