In this weeks 50th blog, Jeanette Biesecker who served at Joy El for many years, shares what it was like working behind the scene.
“I started serving at Joy El in 2004 well before the construction of the Worship Center. The summer camp weeks were especially exciting to me as I could see the ministry taking place among the campers. As a “behind the scenes” staff member it meant a lot to see the faces of some of the children I was helping to impact. I clearly remember the chapel times during those early summers. In order to have chapel, our summer staff would have to tear down dining room tables and chairs to set up rows of chairs for worship and lesson time. The children were packed into one side of the dining hall with all of the windows open to let in the breeze. From the office hallway, we could hear the voices singing praise songs and the walls would vibrate from the instruments. Then after chapel ended, the process would begin of resetting the dining hall tables and chairs for supper.
The time came when we knew we couldn’t squeeze any more campers into that dining hall worship space and we knew we needed a building dedicated solely to chapel time. Our planning committee began meeting and committed that we would not build in debt. We prayed for God’s timing. The economy didn’t cooperate as we prayed, yet God clearly led the planning committee to begin the venture of building the new Worship Center in 2010. We watched in amazement as He provided the funds for us in a season when others were halting construction projects. In 2011, the Worship Center was completed and for the first time we were able to hold chapel in a dedicated space to worship God built by the funds He provided through His people and at time when all of us could only say that God alone made it possible.
As the Public Relations coordinator, I was privileged for many years to lead a team in the planning and execution of the ministry’s largest PR event – the Joy El Jubilee. I loved this event and always called it the most exciting day of the year after Christmas. Jubilee was a lot of work but so much fun in watching staff, students and volunteers all come together to provide families an opportunity to see what the ministry had to offer.
One thing we could never predict was the weather. The Jubilee has always been held rain or shine and some years, it rained. I clearly remember one year that it rained very hard during the event. Many of our activities had to be shut down for the safety of guests. People were driven indoors to some of our drier options such as eating chicken BBQ, shopping with vendors in the gym or attending a chapel time in one of our meeting rooms off the gym. That year we had invited one of our regular camp speakers to lead the chapel time, and due to the rain there was a good sized crowd for that event. We witnessed God do an amazing thing that day during that event when the speaker offered an invitation to begin a relationship with Jesus and 14 people responded. None of us expected it or could have predicted it but God made that Jubilee one of our most successful because He gained 14 new followers that day.
My years at Joy El were some of the most significant of my life and I could easily share many other stories. I’m so very thankful for the time I was able to be a part of such a vibrant and impactful ministry. “
Jeanette Biesecker
