Intern Stories
Michael Goeke 2018-19 Intern
Six months into this journey and so much has changed! The fear and anxiety of walking this path has been replaced with fulfillment. God has been weaving a story of reconciliation between me and my brother, Chris, allowing us to share at the MVF Benefit Dinner and recently at our church. I originally came here looking for freedom from porn, but God had bigger plans. God continues to spread His work of healing and restoration with the people around us.
Through the internship training I’ve begun stepping into the ministry God has called me to. I can see God is at work, as others have been impacted by His promptings in relation to my sharing. I’m so happy to see others stepping into relationship in new ways with Him. The journey is also challenging. My wife Steph continues to shoulder a greater part of responsibility for the house and kids, as I pour time and energy into the Erēmos Internship. I’m greatly encouraged to hear that people are specifically praying for our marriage. Please continue to do so! My desire through this season is to take the growth God is doing in me and begin sowing it into my relationships at home. From there I believe God will cause it to flow powerfully to others. |
Tim Jenks 2018-19 Intern
When we first started the Erēmos Internship last fall, I did not know exactly what to expect. Alumni of the Internship would tell me how hard it would be. While that has been partially true, it has also been a great and very necessary learning experience. When I finished Taking Back Ground last May, I thought I would be finished and ready to move on to other ministries. But as I reflected on it more, I realized that a bit more training and learning would be to my benefit, so I decided to apply for the Erēmos Internship.
After 70 years of avoiding close, healthy, same-sex relationships, Erēmos has encouraged me to press into developing those. It is still a struggle, but I am making progress. One of my huge endeavors is to become more in touch with my emotions. This has been very difficult for me after growing up in a family where that was not emphasized. While it is still a labor, I am thankful for the efforts to help me grow in this area. I have long felt that the Lord is leading me to a ministry of sharing the Gospel with homosexual men primarily. Being a part of Erēmos this year is giving me confidence to carry on with that in the coming years. I know that even if I separate into another ministry that MVF will be here to give me encouragement, guidance, and advice. |
Michael Denning 2018-19 Intern
I started the year anticipating that it was going to be a good and difficult year. I have not been disappointed. As the Erēmos Internship draws to a close, I am thankful that relationships have been built and progress made. I expect to continue on the path God has for me as I grow my local business and pursue relationship with God’s people. Thank you for your continued prayer and support.
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Terri Jaynes 2016-17 Intern
I have really loved the times we have taken to rest, pray, and seek God's guidance during the year. I know myself a lot better. I have found the ability to rest in God and his plan for my life. I have received confirmation that it's okay to be who I am. And that even when life is stressful, I can turn to God and be at peace with what is going on around me. I trust God more than ever and can rely on him completely. Last year was the first year I have ever been “on retreat.” I had no idea how beneficial a retreat would be for me. Taking time to get away with other Christians, to pray and seek God, has been a wonderful experience for me. I come away from these experiences refreshed, joyful, and even more dedicated to the kingdom of God. I am thankful.
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Chris Goeke 2016-17 Intern
The Erēmos Internship has been an out-of-the-way place where I've been free of the noise and striving that once controlled my life. It's brought me to a place where I could hear God's truth about who he made me to be and have the faith to allow him to direct my life. God has done a lot of valuable preparation in me and filled me with confidence that he has more wonderful things in store for me than I could ever have believed for myself otherwise. I’ve gained awareness of many internal barriers, along with the encouragement and guidance needed to overcome them. Where I used to stay silent in fear, I now offer my thoughts and ideas with confidence. The challenges I used to run away from, I now face head on. I’m no longer being held back from the great things God has for me, and it brings me incredible joy and anticipation of what’s yet to come!
The staff at Mid-Valley Fellowship have poured so much dedication and love into the interns, but it's not just what the program offers in itself that makes it so amazing. What I've found incredibly valuable is how it's design has made it a perfect platform for God to do anything he wants in my life. I’m constantly seeing God using the Erēmos experience to help me engage with very specific personal things in my life that need attention for me to grow. Everything from the materials we have studied to the leadership responsibilities I've stepped into and even the relational interactions and conflicts I've been able to work through have been perfectly woven together by God to help me experience exceeding progress and the joy of being who God created me to be. |
Donna Elliott 2016-17 Intern
The Erēmos Internship has been life changing for me. I am simply not the same person who began this journey, and I am confident that I will be changed even more before we conclude. This has not been easy because it has challenged me and stretched my limits. I truly feel like I have been left in the wilderness at times. I have traveled into some areas of great discomfort but have come through with unspeakable joy. Without the wilderness, you are not able to experience the goodness of God. Though difficult and trying at times, I thank God for the wilderness.
I have learned of my worth, spiritual gifts, strengths, and weaknesses, and in all of them growing, changing, relating, and processing. I feel I have been stretched to the point of breaking at times. “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.” In all of this, God has given me back the desire and ability to worship and praise Him with great joy. He has brought into my life wonderful friendships that have and will continue to encourage me, as I will encourage them in return. He has brought me boldness without shame to proclaim what His Lordship has done in my life. I am able to freely give my testimony to all who will listen, praying that it will have an impact on that one person seeking to change. In all, I am thankful to have been in the Erēmos Internship. My God is able to do above anything I could ask or think. |
Kent Glazier 2015-16 Intern
I haven't found the answers to all of my questions. I still struggle to fully embrace God's forgiveness and grace in my life, but I'm happy to say that I'm in a much better place than I was six months ago. The internship has helped to keep me from isolating which has been a go-to coping mechanism for me in the past. In the context of mentoring and peer relationships, I've had the opportunity to be more honest and transparent about my failures and my fears, and to experience God's love extended to me by others.
I've also gained a good deal of practical experience and knowledge in the areas of various counseling tools and techniques, the ins and outs of non-profit ministries, continued personal health and development, and a greater sense of my own strengths and areas for growth in ministry. In these next few months, I look forward to God's continued equipping work in my life and to discovering what more He has for me personally as I follow Him on this path of surrender. |
Austin Yoder 2015-16 Intern
A large part of what I’ve learned in the internship has come from all of the self examination and self study that we started the year off with. Recognizing my areas of strengths (like administration and teaching) lets me focus on growing and continuing in those things. Discovering some of my tendencies and weaknesses (like being controlling and not trusting others to help) allows me to be intentional about correcting those behaviors. Then from that point, I’ve been afforded opportunities to serve in some of those strengths and to become more comfortable with who I am in sharing my testimony.
I’m also enjoying getting to do studies on different ways that people interact with each other and with pain from their past. Learning and understanding these things serves as a great aid to identifying needs that need to be ministered to and knowledge about how to do that. |
Josh Bowdoin 2014-15 Intern
Being able to do the internship with Mid-Valley Fellowship this year has been a privilege. As always, God knows exactly what I need and makes it possible. This has been a time of learning to fully trust my Heavenly Father. My whole life I have depended on myself, and He asked me to give that all up as I entered this internship. He gave me the grace to say yes, and He is proving faithful financially, relationally, and with every other need I have.
Duan and Angela have been very instrumental in representing God’s unconditional love to me. As the truth of His love becomes foundational in my life, He is making it possible for me to walk in greater purity than before. In addition, He is showing me how ministry to others flows out of this. It doesn't ever come out of some level of perfection that I manage to attain! I'm very thankful for the work God is doing in me through this internship! |
Jennifer Hutsell 2013-14 Intern
For me, the internship has been a continuation of God's healing process in my life. The opportunities presented through the intern program allowed me to gain a better understanding of who I am and who God created me to be. I appreciate that the program is Christ-centered and that the Holy Spirit has been an active part of the process.
I strongly encourage anyone that is seeking to learn more about themselves and has an interest in providing service to a well-run, much needed ministry in our community, to apply for the internship program. The internship will allow you to grow and develop intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually. Being an intern with Mid-Valley Fellowship has allowed me to grow and heal personally, but also, I have witnessed the miracle of Christ’s power in the lives of others that have struggled with sexual brokenness. |
Daniel Johnson 2012-13 Intern
The internship has empowered me in ways I did not expect. As we started learning about spiritual gifting, strengths and passions, God started speaking to me about ministry. He started putting a longing in my heart for getting into the battlefield. The people in my life before I became a Christian made me see nothing but the impossible. God has used MVF to show me the possible life we can live. I have seen how active God is in the lives of His children, and it is awesome! I have heard the call to get up off the bench, and it is music to my ears. God is opening the way for me to explore ministry.
Some days it is overwhelming to consider the love God has poured out and the things He shows me. That is the key with the internship as we move towards the end of the year. This is not the end of the internship coming; it is the door opening to a world of adventure that I would not have thought possible before! |
Matt Herbert 2012-13 Intern
My journey as an intern has been full of personal growth. In the skills, talents, and knowledge that I was once less confident in, I now have a better understanding — teaching, setting healthy boundaries, ways of learning, and fundraising. I know my strengths and how I can use them for ministry. I know my spiritual gifting and how to find areas to serve that complement those gifts. I also know what areas I am most likely to struggle with in being a leader.
Another fulfilling aspect of the internship is being able to walk alongside men who struggle with sexual brokenness, helping them walk into God’s light and experience grace and healing. All of these opportunities are helping equip me with tools and skills to use in ministry both now and further down the road. I find joy where I am now, and I’m excited to see where God will take me and how he will continue to use the internship to make me a stronger leader, teacher, and warrior for the Kingdom of God! |
Jonathan Eick 2011-12 Intern
The internship program has focused on developing me as a person, a leader, a friend, and a son of God. I have learned so many valuable things about myself that will impact me for the rest of my life. Using different techniques and assessments, I have been able to understand why I am the way I am, how God shaped me, and how Jesus wants to continue to grow and develop me.
During my time interning at MVF, I have felt so cared for and invested into. I have been challenged and stretched to explore and discover the passions I have for ministry, the desire I have to know Jesus more, and the need to understand myself better. I have felt a support and foundation to be who God has created me to be and to function out of that! I have been encouraged to look outside of my normal thinking, to take risks, and to truly live out the passion God has given me. I appreciate Mid-Valley Fellowship for investing in me and caring for who I am and how God has created me.
During my time interning at MVF, I have felt so cared for and invested into. I have been challenged and stretched to explore and discover the passions I have for ministry, the desire I have to know Jesus more, and the need to understand myself better. I have felt a support and foundation to be who God has created me to be and to function out of that! I have been encouraged to look outside of my normal thinking, to take risks, and to truly live out the passion God has given me. I appreciate Mid-Valley Fellowship for investing in me and caring for who I am and how God has created me.