Riverside, WA 2010

This mission trip to Riverside has been one of the more meaningful ones I have been on yet, part of that being because I was leading it (through God's guidance) and responsible for 16 students plus 2 summer missionaries.We worked with Rick McLaughlin who is the pastor at New Fellowship Baptist Church in Riverside and who used to be my youth pastor here at KBC.We also worked with Vicki James who is a North American Missionary on the Colville Indian Reservation.

Each day went pretty much as follows: I met with 4 students I chose to be team leaders because of their commitment to God every morning at 7am to pray, share Scripture with them and voice concerns & prayer requests for each team.We had breakfast and split off into different work projects from 7:30-8:30 to spruce up the small town of Riverside (300+/- people).Each team worked from 8:30-11:30 weed eating, mowing, painting curbs, sweeping, raking gravel, dismantling a barn and various other projects.

We had our lunch break and chillaxed from 11:45-1:30 when we headed to the small park in town to have a youth time after knocking on about 10 doors in town that had kids or teens.The youth shared testimonies, and we sang a few songs and played games until around 3:30.Then we usually walked back to the church to have about an hr of down time before we all (RBC & KBC + some local kids) ate dinner together.Tues & Thur evening we headed onto the Colville Indian reservation about a 10 minute drive from Riverside to hang out & play games, sing songs and share testimonies with the kids on the rez.

Wed evening we all headed into Omak (the nearest city) for Teen Volume.This is a time in the summer where all the churches in Omak put on a youth/community time on Wed to worship with God and get to know the community.I asked a couple of the KBC youth to share testimonies during this time.The RBC youth lead the worship time and we lead a game time for anyone who wanted to get involved.So, cool story ... during one of the songs (One Way Jesus) it started raining, but by the time we finished singing the next song (Ain’t Nobody – which talks about how there’s no one else in the world who loves us more than Jesus) the rain had stopped.

Fri was the block party on the rez to close out the VBS time the RBCers had lead all week there with the kids.I was in charge of the balloon animal table (because I love making balloon animals and seeing kid’s faces when they receive them!).So, amazing story of how the Holy Spirit swept through our midst ... we were coming to the closing time and last testimony/song/raffle ticket drawing when after one of the RBC youth shared her testimony, youth after youth & a kid that was saved last summer during our VBS time on the rez just came up and shared their testimonies.
At this time we were all in tears at how the Holy Spirit had worked in their lives to get them to the point they are today and what God had saved them from.Some of the youth from both youth groups have been through a lot that I can’t even imagine someone their age going through, but God is amazing and He has them here for a reason.Later that night (the block party was supposed to get over at 8:30 & it lasted until almost 10pm) after we returned to the church (New Fellowship Baptist Church) the youth spent the next couple hours just sharing with each other what God had done in their lives and what their burdens & prayer requests were.Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

I have been praying for a few months now that God would break down strongholds and walls that the teens have built up around themselves.I also prayed that prayer all week and Fri morning in my quiet time, so I can check that off as an answer to prayer because that is truly what began to happen Fri evening when they began to share with each other.The youth that before this week couldn’t be around each other for very long because they couldn’t get along were talking like civilized human beings.Only God can make this happen!I saw my leaderships students flourish this week despite many attacks the enemy tried to bring against us and I know God is going to continue to draw them to His side.

There is still a long way to go, as always, because it is a process to grow in Christ, but I truly believe some hearts were turned & eyes that had been spiritually shut for awhile have been opened to the things of God.I look forward to seeing the youth grow and blossom spiritually as they continue to hold each other accountable.I also know that in coming back home, they had to come back to stressful and sometimes harmful home situations & they have to learn how to deal with all the “noise” the world has to offer them.It is my heart that the youth learn to deal with these situations in their lives and that they continue thirsting after God’s Word.

"Sing Over Your Children" by Matt Maher

"Undone" by FFH