IMPACT is a one-year full-time training, development and service programme designed to change your life and build the church. It is a great way to receive biblical training, discover and develop your gifts, grow in character, get involved church planting and serve God in the local church. Impact students are based in a local church and spend time often focussing on a specific project such as youth evangelism, the prophetic culture or students and volunteering in the church. Impacters also receive biblical training through one of our Into the Word (LINK) training bases, which is a great chance for them to grow in the biblical knowledge, whilst getting involved practically too. They also have several mission days throughout the year, which is a great chance to get involved with church community, whether that be on the streets or in a local church plant. Our students grow dramatically in relationship with God, and are already getting stuck in to church life.
During the next few weeks we will be sharing a little bit about each of our Impact students and what areas of church they are involved in…
Lisa Plenio:
Lisa is based in the Wildwood Church in Stafford and does youth work aiming to bring God closer especially to the children and youth. We want to show the children how much God loves them and what a life with God and following Jesus looks like.
The youth team organize and prepare several clubs every week Such as two lunch clubs, one in a primary school and one in a high school, where we talk to the children and teenagers about God. Sometimes they plan bigger things like an All-Age-Service, where they plan the service on a Sunday morning with special themes. On the 4th of November they will be having the first one with the theme: “Superheroes: Heroes of faith”.
Lisa is also responsible for the "Girls Nights" which take place once a month. Recently Lisa organised having a small campfire with marshmallows and smores! She enjoys trying different activities such as decorating gingerbread houses, watching "The Greatest Showman" and making cupcakes! Lisa is really getting to know the girls well and reminds them how precious and unique they are and how much God loves them.
“I come from Germany and had always been interested in a year for God abroad. Through my experience in child and youth work in my German home church, this work has grown especially close to my heart, as I was also able to experience as a teenager what good youth work can change in a teenager. That's why I always knew that I wanted to do this after school. I think God called me to the wildwood church because I felt comfortable there even before I came to England. And now that I've been working here for 2 months, I think I'm in the right place.
I was born in a loving Christian family, gave my life to God with seven years old, drifted a little bit apart in my teenager years where I struggled to accept myself the way I am, but luckily found back with 14 after I realized that God loves me no matter what and that I don’t have to be perfect and prove myself to him. That I don’t have to be insecure about myself, because God thinks I’m beautiful all the time and I’m so precious and unique to him. So now I’m really passionate about giving this message and God’s love to the youth and showing them what really matters and what God sees in them. During this year I’m learning a lot to be more confident, trust God and try new things I would have never done before. I wish to be able to build good and deep relationships with the youth and to really make a difference and have an impact on their lives so they know that God loves them no matter what.”