What do I do 
and 
Who is YWAM?

Back home in Perth, Australia!

I had an amazing time being in the States for 7 weeks visiting family and friends.  Spending Christmas and New Years with family, then all over the place to see friends.  Thank you everyone for making my short visit so amazing!!!

While home, I was able to speak to both groups and individuals about what I'm up to.  It was during this time that I made a discovery:  most people have no idea what I did and who I work with.  Sooo, I've decided to dedicate this blog to clear up such questions such as: "who is YWAM?", "what do you do?" and "are you really suffering for God as a missionary in Australia????"

1st: WHO IS YWAM???

 www.ywam.org

YWAM is the mission organization I work for.  "YWAM" stands for "Youth With A Mission".    Yes, Yes, I know it says "youth" but I'm 34.  YWAM started out as a way for young people to go to the mission field without having to do 4 years of seminary.  But now, the organization is 20,000 volunteers all over the world of all ages.

YWAM is international and de-centralized.  That means there is no one place YWAM works out of.  There are bases of operation all over the world that run things according to a set of common values YWAM (the YWAM values are at the end of this blog is you're interested).  Our motto is "to know God and make Him Known".  We have a 6-month entry level training program people have to go through before joining us.  This training program (Discipleship Training School: "DTS") is geared to help the individual to understand God's character and learn how to show His Character to the World.  I like to call it "spiritual bootcamp".  So many people come out of DTS with a deeper revelation of God and a lot of times, their faith becomes more real and personal instead of a religion.  That's exactly what happened to me.  After my DTS, my relationship with God became real and I came to truley understand God as a Father who is proud of me instead of someone who just sees my weaknesses.  The program is divided into 3 months of lectures (in which you live on base and go to class) and then 3 months of field work (usually in another country).

After the basic training program, one can take hundreds of second level programs that train in specific skills like business, healthcare, or church planting.

2nd: WHAT DO I DO???

 That is what I do: I lead one of the church planting programs at the Perth base.  Students come in from all over the world to spend 3 months on base learning how to do church planting among an unreached people group.  They learn a different topic every week.  Some of the topics they learn are Cultural Adjustment, Team Unity, and Discipling New Believers.  As leader, my job is to make sure the training runs smoothly.  This does not mean I teach (thank you God!).  We bring in teachers who are more experienced in the topic.  I decide how the classes will be ran, the practical applications the students will do, and the curriculum.  I also meet with each student regularly to make sure they are understanding the topics and to talk about any issues they are facing.  My job requires tons of prayer, fasting, and listening for God's direction.  Since each student is called to a different people group, I must do my best to cater the training to what they will need to know on the field.

When God told me to lead, I laughed.  I didn't think I was the right person to do the job.  But, God knew that.  This way, I HAVE to depend on Him and make sure every part of my life is connected to Him if I am to lead the students properly.  Please pray for me as I am always seeking God for wisdom, love, and humility.

 Ok! well, I hope you enjoyed this massivly long blog :)  AND.....I hope you have a little bit more understanding of what I'm up to.  I did want to end with this:  I am a full-time volunteer so my paychecks come from whoever feels they should support me on the field here.  If you are interested, see below for ways to send support:  

1: mail a check 

         make the check out to "Kellie Williams" and mail it to 

          610 Cypress Cr, Cary, NC 27511

2: online donation: go to https://www.ywamperth.org.au/007/payonline.asp

              fill out the info and submit (note: there is a small fee involved)

3: tax-deductible:  

       make the check to "YWAM" and mail it to 

        YWAM Tyler, PO Box 3000, Garden Valley, TX 75771
      NOTE!!!!!  DO NOT PUT MY NAME ON THE CHECK....ANYWHERE.   (they will return it)
         As you place the check into the enevlope, put a slip of paper in with it that has my full name on it (Kellie Williams)


Thanks for reading.  I look forward to seeing what exciting things I have to write for my next blog :)

My first training program to help with
we were trying to make a "serious" pic, but the more I tried not to smile, the more i laughed

My first training program I led