What I Do... - Kristin Sterk

I love what I do.

I know why I do what I do.

When I was at Kuyper College, I thought when I graduated I would be either be a school social worker or a marriage/family therapist. I was accepted into the Master’s program at Western Michigan, all I had to do was sign the letter. I will never forget – everytime I read that letter, I had this horrible pit in my stomach. I started to realize that that was not what God was calling me to do. So I declined. That took one leap of faith because I didn’t have a CLUE what God was leading me to then!

After Dan and I got married, for two weeks I was at home getting our house together and tried to figure out where everything was in this new town. It was very overwhelming and I just wanted to stay home. But I was forced to find my way around quickly, which was a good thing looking back. That third week, I told Dan that I wanted to go get a job – my dream was to always work at a Christian bookstore – just so happened that the store by us was hiring. Within a day or two I was hired part-time.

When Dan and I were dating, Dan asked me numerous times if I really understood what youth ministry all entailed. If I knew what like would be like as a youth pastor’s wife. If I understood what our schedule would look like. I told him I was all for it and I was willing to do walk alongside with him.

Now I know why I do what I do. I know why God didn’t have me go for my Master’s. I know why God had the job opening at the bookstore. I know why God gave me the desire to clean (I also am the custodian at our church). This week has been kind of nutso so far, but I look back and this is what I love to do. Yes, I have a list of what seems a million different things to do b/c my life goes in so many directions, but truly I do enjoy it. I was extremely overwhelmed Sunday. I felt emotionally thin – I felt I was spread too thin. But today is what I needed – a day off.

Every Tuesday we have one of our youth group kids over for lunch before he heads to the hospital for his internship (hospital is literally 3 blocks away). Our time is short, but the conversations, meaningful. I love being able to be home, cook a good sized lunch and have company. In a little bit I will be going out with another dear friend who was in our youth group a few years ago, to talk about new stages in life, so we are heading to Panera Bread. This past Saturday night, two of my youth group girls knew Dan was gone for my birthday, so they surprised me by coming over at like 8ish and stayed til 11:30 – we had some of the best conversations. I love them so much! That was not planned.

Our life can get crazy b/c a lot happens without plans, yet a lot needs to be planned so that we stay on course with connecting with our kids. What I do love is being a wife, being a homemaker (sometimes), having jobs that are flexible, having a husband who is a youth pastor, and having a lifestyle of ministry. We don’t know when God is going to bring someone to our front door who needs to talk. We don’t know when a parent is going to call with concerns about their children. Ministry is a lifestyle. We are thankful God has provided us with a house to do ministry within and each other to support one another.

A funny story…so on Sunday I had to ride with one of our kids back to our house from youth group b/c too many needed rides than number of seats we had. So I was walking with two of our girls to our house from the parking lot and they said “you have the perfect youth group house.” I thought, yeah, it is perfect – small and cozy. Well, it gets quite crazy in our house on Sunday nights that they are over. So one of our kids ran up to another and gave him a big “bro hug” (that’s what they call guys giving guys hugs). The guy didn’t know the other had a glass of grape Kool-Aid in his hand. The glass COMPLETELY EXPLODED. We had Kool-Aid everywhere. One guy had it all dripping off his face, Dan had it in his hair, it hit the ceiling, spilled on the couch, on our coffee table, on the wood floor, on the rug, and a few shirts. Mind you, this was a smaller glass. It was absolutely hilarious!! And to top it off one kid says…this is why your house is the perfect youth group house…

I agree. Our couch smells like permanent farts. We have a hole in one cushion. We have PS3 controllers everywhere. We have so many games that they are overflowing from our cubbyhole where they are supposed to fit. We have an endless supply of paper products, Kool-Aid, chips and salsa, and brownie mix. We have a bathroom guestbook that the kids sign into. And most of all, we have kids who love God.

I love what WE do. We are blessed. We have the chance to influence and be with the kids who God places in our lives. I pray God continually shows us why He has us doing what we do. Ministry can be so draining – especially when we have so much going on personally. But in the end, God truly has blessed us with kids. I pray also that God gives us peace with accepting what we cannot change!