Mission Trip Post #4- Wednesday Night

Wow! Today was our best day. Everyone felt fulfilled in the work that we did. My group served lunch at the Salvation Army to an extremely diverse clientele. Others switched to work with the elderly and others did Kids Club for the first time. We were all blessed by and through the work that we did today. I must confess that my group's day started a bit rough. We were an hour late for our worksite because we set out for the wrong Salvation Army. To make matters worse, we got lost looking for the place that we weren't supposed to go to. Sometimes I am not so bright! When we called to get corrected, we were told that our site was about 5 minutes away from the church. Oh well, at least we got to see new parts of Brooklyn.
The real power of the day came in the evening. We got to go have fun at the world famous boardwalk area known as Coney Island! We rode the "Wonder Wheel," played games, ate coney dogs, and had some much needed fun. When we returned for the evening worship time, the spirit really moved us. "Club" time is what they call it when all 65 of us gather together to sing, listen to a helpful talk about the day's theme, and pray together. The other part of the night is spent in our own church groups. That is when our kids had a time of spiritual purging. The mood had already been set in the large group, and we continued it in a powerful, Holy Spirit filled way. We affirmed one another, forgave one another (for those who needed to do that), sang togeher, cried together, prayed together, and knocked down some major walls spiritually. Our youth became more real to one another and to God tonight, because He became more real to them.We were weak, but Christ was definitely strong in our weakness. I am very excited for tomorrow's day of service and tomorrow night's grand finale. The Holy Spirit is moving, and I am just trying to hang on to it for our kids' sake. I'll see you tomorrow. Keep praying! Amen!!!

Mission Trip Post #3-Wednesday Morning

Sorry gang, that I didn't write last night, but immediate sleep sounded better. Yesterday was a good day, too. We repeated our work sites and will be switching sites today. My group will be going to the Salvation Army, while others will be switching to elderly care homes or kids club (VBS) sites. Our youth who have been working with the elderly have been pleased. They are meeting many people of great diversity, and with wisdom in their stories. I told you earlier that we are in a neighborhood with pockets of diversity. One section is Chinese, another Hispanic, Middle Eastern, Hassidic Jews, etc. They asked us last night if we live in cities with "pockets" of diversity. I told them that we live in the Swedish ghetto with a few Germans and Danes mixed in. I said it has explosive potential, but we maintain the peace pretty well. It's interesting that the peace in Brooklyn is kept pretty well. We are free to walk in these neighborhoods in our free time (not night time), with an adult. We have not felt threatened or unwelcomed at all. To me, that is a taste of the Kingdom of God. We are not where we should be in our integration, especially of the Gospel, but getting a taste makes me want to strive for more.
OK, I'll give details of our new work sites tonight after we visit Coney Isand. Amen.

Mission Trip Post #2- Monday Night

We survived our first day at our worksites in Brooklyn with a mixed bag of responses. Most of our group were working with elementary aged children, while some worked with the elderly. Not everyone had a moving experience. Some of us were left feeling useless and wondering what good we were doing. Others were very inspired and even one was moved to tears. Kyrstin met a boy at VBS who told her that he had recently witnessed a shooting. A handful of other children were talking about other, similar, experiences that saddened our hearts. We all agreed that 6 & 7 year olds should not have these experiences. Despite the variance of emotions and expriences, just on day one, we all believed that God was at work and that we would all be challenged in many different ways. We have been talking about stepping out of our comfort zones and trying to see the world around us with God's eyes. This is not easily done, but it is definitely worthwhile. We will keep striving toward those goals as we journey into day 2.
Personally, my highlight of the day was singing, loudly, in the subway station! There is nothing like praising God in unique places. I'll talk to you all tomorrow. Please keep the prayers rolling. Amen.

p.s. The Brooklyn Bridge is very cool! We got our picture taken with some aspiring models. How fun!

Mission Trip Post #1- Sunday Night

We made it to Brooklyn! We weren't the last ones and we made it without incident. We did get a little turned around in Newark, NJ, but that was just a hiccup. Kathy and Dawn split the driving in one van and I, miraculously, (with the help of a bottle of "5 hour energy" and some great worship songs) drove the entire trip on only 3 hours of sleep. God is good! I never felt tired, or that I was putting any of our kids in jeopardy. Overall, the trip took appoximately 14 hours, including the stops. The kids were great. They mostly slept, but we did have some fun interactions as well. We arrived in Brooklyn driving through Staten Island. We could see the Statue of Liberty off in the distance as we crossed from the island to Brooklyn. We arrived at our church by traveling through a smaller, but highly populated version of Chinatown. The  community we are in is highly diverse with "neighborhoods" sectioned off in different ethnicities. I mentioned the large Chinese section. In addition, we are close to a Puerto Rican community, Hassidic Jewish community, Indian, and Middle Eastern communities as well. We begin our work tomorrow, and I am very excited for our youth to be working amongst and with this broad range of diverse people. Now, I am off to pass out! Good night and Amen!

1 down. 1 to go!

One week that is! Yes, this is my busiest time of the year, but also the most rewarding. We just finished our week of Vacation Bible School for our "youngins." It is a fantastic week, with high energy and passion for Jesus. We learn Bible verses, do crafts, play games, swim, and rock out with the band "Captive Free." They are a part of an organization called "Youth Encounter" and are always a featured addition to our VBS exprience. Check them out at youthencounter.org. They always do a great job of creating the enthusiasm in our kids. We now have many kids coming back to help when they get older. It's great to see that their experience leads them to want to give back. Even through college, they come because they love to be at VBS. I love that, and I hope that always will be the case.
The next week is our Sr. High mission trip to Brooklyn, NY. 18 of us will be traveling in 2 vans and driving in the middle of the night to get there. This will be a powerful week for our youth and I am excited for them. Please pray for our safety as we travel (that 3 drivers will stay awake!), and that the Holy Spirit would be so powerful that our kids would come back energized to always be Christ's hands and feet.
I'll try to blog every day while on the trip. Talk to you soon. Amen.

Real Life?

It has been almost two weeks since we've been home from LiFest, and almost two weeks since my last blog. Life has returned to what might be labeled "normal." Or at least as normal as my life can be. My speaking duties are behind me for the time being and my youth ministry duties are back in full force. The next two weeks will be spent running VBS and then traveling to Brooklyn, NY to participate in a Youthworks! mission trip. It should be amazing.
Speaking of "real life," my last two weeks have been spent in preparation for these next two big events. In between, I did make time for some "fun." Jen, Allie, and I did spend some vacation time to visit my Dad in northern Michigan (Alpena, where I grew up). After returning to the great town of Sparta, MI, I had the pleasure of playing in a local softball tournament. I love to compete, have fun, and win. Little did I know that I would be doing none of these. I scratched together a team of church league players thinking that the level of competition would be similar to our talent level. Upon arriving at the tourney, we found this not to be true. We were in way over our heads, and about four good players short of being where we should haved been. What was troubling, however, was not how much better the other players were (they were impressive), but rather their attitudes. I got the sense that playing softball and winning trophies was essential to their existance and necessary for their esteem. They walked around like they were extremely important (arrogant, to be exact), and used language that should not be spoken in public. Sadly, their attitudes incited one of my players to respond in kind, setting off a couple of "less than stellar" moments of excessive testosterone emmission. Cooler heads prevailed without major incident, but the atmosphere was set and a pall was cast for the rest of the day. We lost both of our games that day and exited ingloriously. If it sounds like I am sour grapes about losing, I am not. It was more the bad attitudes that ruined my day. It's true, I don't like to lose, but at the end of the day, I had a moment of perspective. I realized that, although I lost badly in a softball tournament, my life is about the victory that I always have in Jesus. I felt badly for the men who place their value in the trophies of this world. When the games are over and their bodies don't allow them to compete any longer, what will their lives be about? I pray that they come to know the Jesus that I know. That they would come to know the Jesus that fills my soul and allows me to feel like a winner even after a loss. I pray that they find a purpose in their life that is bigger than themselves, and realize that true value in life comes from knowing, loving, and serving Jesus. As I went to bed that night, I thanked Jen for the life that we have. I thanked her that we can love Jesus, love each other, and serve Him with our lives. Now that is what I call living a "Real Life." Amen.

Oh, the People You Meet!

Our time at LiFest has been awesome! (I know, that is such a youth ministry word. Oh well.) Jen, Allie, and I have met some truly amazing people. We've bonded with Noell and Dan from the band "Reilly," I've prayed with Caleb from the band "Sevenglory," talked with Michael Tait from the "Newsboys," Chris the bass player and Mark, the lead singer from "Casting Crowns," and even spoke briefly with Rev. Jim Wallis. All of those people have amazing gifts, and they are using them for the glory of God. What makes our experience at LiFest complete, though, is the meetings I've had with all the wonderful people that are here camping, working, and volunteering. They may not be on stage like the people I've mentioned, but they do have something in common with the "on-stage" folks. They all have a heart for Jesus. It shines through in their conversations, their smiles, and their enthusiasm. No they are not "on-stage," but they are using their gifts to serve God in their churches and communities. This has been a great picture of God's Kingdom...God's people joining together for worship, for fellowship, for inspiration, all in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Rockin' & Rollin' at LiFest!

God is good all the time, and all the time, God is good (Thank you Peder Eide)! I spoke this morning at LiFest, and I believe God spoke through me and despite of me. Besides, it's His message, not mine. So, of course, it went well. When we carry Christ's Gospel of love, He can do amazing things. I feel very affirmed in what happened today, and I know that I am blessed to be one of many carriers of that carrier of the Gospel. Today's talk was about the power of forgiveness. When we forgive those who have hurt us, I believe powerful things happen in our lives.
1. We show that we have accepted God's gift of grace in our own lives. He always and endlessly forgives and loves us through the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2. We stand in obedience to Jesus, maintaining our fellowship with Him and with those around us. He is all about forgiveness, and He commands us to do the same. When we follow his lead, and obey His commands, we are all better for it!
3. We heal! When we have been hurt, we become broken. And the deeper the hurt, the greater the brokenness. Sometimes justice is needed and warranted, but know this...justice will not heal our brokennesss. Justice will not end our bitterness and anger. Only forgiveness will. I truly believe that complete healing will only happen through forgiveness.
4. We show Christ to the world. We are all called, as Christians, to be witnesses and lights to this hurting and dark world. There may be no more powerful witness to Christ's love than when we forgive those who have hurt us most. The world wants us to seek revenge, but Jesus calls us to forgive. When we do forgive, others will see Jesus. Amen.

Today has been a true blessing as I have met many great people. I have also learned that White Sox fans (Chicago fans) Twins, Vikings (Minnesota), and even Packer fans can be really great people (right Lydia from Fon Du Lac!). I didn't think it was possible, but, once again, I've been proven wrong! Ha Ha! I love you all, and I'll talk to you later. Peace!

One day until LiFest

Wow! I can't believe that LiFest starts tomorrow. I hope everyone is praying to be in tune with the Holy Spirit while we're there. I don't feel that we have to pray for the Spirit to be there. I know it will be there. It is just a matter of all of us letting the Spirit carry us while we're there.
And speaking of letting the Spirit lead....I had the opportunity to do the preaching at my church on Sunday, July 4th. It was a great day to reflect of freedom. I am thankful for the freedoms we have in this country...freedom to worship regularly, freedom to attend awesome music festivals like LiFest, freedom to live peacefully, etc. The freedom I am most thankful for, however, is the freedom that I have in Christ. I am free from the bondage of sin and fear. I am free to love Him and my neighbor. I am free from even thinking that I have to be perfect or measure up to a certain standard. Now certainly I want to live to please God, but I am free to make mistakes, knowing that we have a gracious, loving God, who always redeems us through His son, and our Lord, Jesus Christ. And, I am free to realize the more I rely on His strength and less on mine, the less mistakes I make. Freedom in Jesus is the best freedom one could ever have. The more I realize that, the better my life is. Amen.

Gearin Up for LiFest!!

I can't believe LiFest is only 6 days away. I am thrilled that the good people at Life Promotions have given me an opportunity to be a part of this amazing festival (Thanks Bob! And Jen L. for all your hard work.). I have been to LiFest many times, and I know that the Holy Spirit will be working overtime during our time there. One can't help but be swept up by the excitement of hearing God's word expressed through awesome musicians & speakers. As I think about speaking on Thursday morning (The Power of Forgiveness: 10:30 a.m.-shameless plug), I pray that I would be prepared, but that I would also get out of the Spirit's way so that I might be used the way Christ wants to use me. There are many opportunities to hear God speak to us at LiFest, and I am only one of those, but what a great responsibility! To God be the glory, and may His Holy Spirit be working right now, preparing the hearts of all of us who will be there to speak, to play, to listen, and to worship. Amen!

Church Camp Time!

Hey Cyberworld. I'm back and ready to start blogging again. As I'm writing this, I am sitting at Stony Lake Lutheran Camp near Michigan's beautiful Lake Michigan coast. I am here with Jr. High students for a week of church camp. For those of you who have "done" church camp, you know what kind of an adventure I'm on! We just got back from the beach on Lake Michigan where the water was warmer than the air! BRRRRRR! But it felt good. (We here in Michigan love swimming in our Great Lakes whenever it's remotely close to being warm.) I still stand in awe of how massive those lakes are and how much bigger is our God who created them. We are focused on creation this week at camp, and the lakes are just another beaming example of what a wonderful creator we have. Even as I stand in awe of the creation, I am still more humbled by the fact that God is always thinking of His children first. Who am I, God, that you are mindful of me? It's good to know that God is mighty and gracious enough to love us more than anything else in all of creation. If you need a reminder of this, just read the passion story in the Gospels to see the depth of God's love through Jesus our Lord. Amen.
Talk to you soon!

Love,
Spanky