LTN: Week 1

About 2 months ago, with a random burst of courage and a desperate need to do something with my summer, I applied for an internship with Love Thy Neighborhood (LTN), a program that I had only recently found on social media and knew next to nothing about. The only information I had was that LTN is a program for young adults that allows them to live in community together in Louisville, KY serving their ministry partners working in different areas of social justice.

Before I knew it, I had received and accepted the invitation to serve on their summer team as a book editing and publishing intern.

I have now been in Kentucky for about a week, but it feels like a year. And I’m still not entirely sure what I’ve gotten myself into. I’m living in an area I’ve never been to, living a place that feels smaller than my dorm room with people I hadn’t met until now. It’s pretty crazy.

But a good crazy.

In some ways, this is very much within my comfort zone. I’ve known these people for a week, but they already feel like family. I’m doing the work I’ve been going to school for, just in a ministry setting. Going to and serving at church is normal for me. Having assigned reading and discussions about the reading, while very much a school activity, is still normal and something I enjoy.

On the surface, this doesn’t seem that far-fetched, but in reality, none of this is normal. Time is moving so quickly, I don’t have time to catch up.  It’s already pushing me out of my comfort zone in ways I never expected. And it’s kind of amazing. And a little scary.

Before I left home, I was second guessing myself on whether or not this was a good idea. A part of me wished I was just staying home for the summer doing what I have always done, which isn’t a whole lot, but by that point it was too late to back out.

Now that I am here, I couldn’t imagine staying home for the summer. I’ve just begun this crazy adventure and I’m so excited to see what God has in store for me and the rest of the interns.