July 15, 2009

     3 trips in 4 weeks.  2106 total miles to and from our 3 different destinations.  54 total participants.  More soft drinks, bottled water & Gatorade consumed than you probably want to know about.  And in the midst of it all, encounters with the God who meets us in both expected and unexpected ways.

     We began with a journey to Campbellsville, KY for Crosspoint June 15-19.  While there, we encountered God through sport times, Bible study, worship, conversations, and one another.  We played, laughed, sang, sweat, got wet in the rain, enjoyed the campus of Campbellsville University, and met new friends.  We learned about how Jesus was both God and human and the difference this makes in our world and in our own lives. 

     Our summer journey continued June 21-26 as we headed south to Macon, GA for a week at PASSPORT missions camp.  Our week there included new friends & some familiar faces, Bible studies, reflective worship, and much more.  We worked clearing lots of Macon’s Habitat for Humanity chapter, painted houses for elderly Macon residents, and worked with children in the Booker T. Washington Center.  We learned how our lives can be “remixed” through Christ- how we are made into new creations. 

     After a week back home, the summer journey resumed with a trip north this time.  Chicago was the site of our 2009 high school mission trip.  We were hosted by the Center for Student Missions while staying in housing at North Park University.  Each morning we led a Vacation Bible School program for 25-30 children ages 4-11 at the Cornerstone Community Outreach homeless shelter.  The experience stretched us to love & care in new and creative ways as we sang songs, taught a lesson about Jesus, played games, did crafts, and assisted with serving the lunch to the children each day.  Our afternoon and evening projects found us playing bingo & interacting with residents at an elderly care facility, serving a meal at the homeless at the Good News Community Kitchen, and making a late evening visit to another homeless shelter to play cards and share life stories with the residents there.  Our first evening there included a prayer tour of Chicago in the van as we saw the different sides of the city and learned about some of the complex issues of need & justice there.  We also participated in an immersion experience to help us catch a glimpse of life in the inner city for those in need and ate different at different locally-owned & operated ethnic restaurants each evening to help us better appreciate some of the different cultures that make up life in the city.  We served, loved & taught, yet we also were served, loved, and learned much.  We had some of our preconceived ideas and notions challenged and now have human faces, names, and stories to what were previously perhaps just abstract issues.  God is at work in the midst of the city through the hands, feet and voices of faithful servants and it was our privilege to work alongside some of them during our week there. 

     For many of our youth, summer trips are significant parts of their lives of faith.  Getting away from some distractions and spending a week of intentional focus & community opens us up to being receptive to God’s voice and work in different ways.  We learn more about one another and draw closer together through sharing experiences and life together throughout the week.  For some, the weeks are times when seeds that have been planted throughout the weeks of the past year come to bloom.  Others return from these trips wrestling with meaningful questions about what it means to follow Christ and how their lives will be different as a result of what they’ve experienced and how they’ve encountered God. 

     Please continue to pray for those youth and older children who participated in one or more of these summer trips.  Pray that the lessons they learned will not be forgotten, that their lives will be forever changed and that they will be encouraged & challenged to be the presence of Christ in their worlds right here in Paducah or wherever their journeys will take them in the coming months.

     I would also like to invite you for an opportunity to learn more about these trips from the participants themselves as we gather on Sunday, July 26 at 6:00 p.m. for a Youth Summer Report.  Youth will be sharing about their experiences and you’ll also get to see pictures and video clips from the trips.  Thank you for our continued support of our youth, both during these formative weeks of the summer and throughout the year.