Summer Lessons and Year-Long Opportunities

Deya Esteban | Year Long Intern

This now-concluded summer of 2024 taught me so much about what it means to be a leader. This was also my second time as a summer intern for Toronto City Mission. While I can’t mask the fact that this summer at Sonshine DayCamp was hard, largely due to the intense heat, I also can’t forgo the beauty of the time God gave me with the kids, staff/interns, and the organization. As I mentioned, many days were hotter this summer than the last and with a lack of air conditioning at Kingston-Galloway (now Orton Park) this made the general energy of the camp tired and slightly exhausted at times. Despite the heat, most days were still filled with lots of fun and core memories that I will have for the rest of my life. Some of these key memories included the times I both watched leadership in action as well as participated in leading myself. I watched my Outreach Workers, who essentially run everything at Orton Park, and truly learned the importance of balance, communication, and delegation in the role of a leader. And just as those are important, I also learned that it is important to love both tenderly and sternly, and the balance of the two is key in being a leader. 

I got to also try my hand at putting these things into practice. I was able to work more on getting the kids’ attention during times when instruction needed to be given and sometimes during waiting periods between activities. I was able to experience more conflict resolution opportunities this year as opposed to last, and I was able to have some great heart-to-heart with the girls in my after bible small group. Admittedly I still have so much to learn, though I suppose that’s also part of being a leader, keeping your heart and mind open to learning for the rest of your life. I look forward to what God has to teach me! 

Learning leadership skills was especially important to me this summer as I knew I was preparing for a big change in my life. By the grace and prompting of God, I have felt called to join Toronto City Mission this upcoming year of 2024/2025 as a year-long intern. I will be helping out at Orton Park as well as Jesse-Ketchum with their after school programs, youth program, and tutoring program. I cannot begin to express just how blessed I feel to be able to serve my local community and be able to spread the gospel through word and deed. 

Something I am especially excited for in this coming year is both furthering relationships with the kids at Orton Park and getting to start new relationships with the kids at Jesse-Ketchum. Relationship building is one of the most important parts of this internship role and one of my favourite parts of TCM. Getting to know each of the kids and their unique personalities is a large part of what drew me back for another summer internship this year. It’s so amazing to see how God created each of these kids to be so different from one another yet come together in these spaces. They may not always get along mind you, but there is something beautiful in getting to even see the “baby steps” so to speak, and watch them be able to still be able to manage to share the same space. It’s steps like these that reveal hope for peace in the future among this younger generation, as well as reveal the power of Christ in the face of the darkness of sin. 

Some things that I am keeping in prayer for this coming school year are for strength to be humble and patient during harder days, endurance to keep my relationship with God my first and foremost priority even above completing tasks for this internship, and for grace towards myself when I make mistakes as well as grace towards challenging situations both with the kids and with individuals within my community. This past school year I was inspired to learn how to pray directly from the bible. This was a somewhat new experience for me as I have tried to do it but wasn’t well directed in it, but after researching more about what it means to pray from the Bible, I have been finding that my prayer life has grown! A particular verse from the Psalms that I have studied and prayed from recently is Psalm 86:11 which reads,

“Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name.”

This verse was encouraging in the way of reminding me to pursue God’s guidance. This summer in particular, I spent some time one morning during the devotion period to reflect on seeking God in this way and praying this verse. This was important to me as this job, like the rest of our lives, is not meant to be done by one’s own strength. I was humbled by this reminder and grateful for the time of reflection!

As I head into this new mission opportunity, I am also reminded to “abide in Christ” as John chapter fifteen says. To my understanding of this verse, this means to acknowledge that I cannot do anything apart from Christ and so my life in Christ is to ultimately reflect this absolute dependence on Him. Christ is the Vine, our Heavenly Father is the vinedresser, and I am the branch which is only able to produce fruit by allowing the Father to grow me. He is the Vinedresser and knows what needs to remain and what needs to be “pruned” or taken away in order for me to grow fruit in my life.

“Abide in me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”

- John 15:4-5

This verse is my inspiration as I strive to continue to learn how to faithfully abide in Christ this year, and I am excited to see all the ways in which the Father so chooses to prune and refine me.