Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Mission Possible One is now officially over for this year and I have to say it was an incredible experience to lead the group of teens this summer for six weeks. There were 3 girls and 6 boys and Christine Barrington was my co-leader for the girls. It seems like the six weeks went by really quickly as I look back at it now but, the memories of how God moved throughout this mission trip will last a lifetime. Now I have the task of seeking God's will for me in the future of Mission Possible. I know how ever or in whatever capacity I am used in Mission Possible in the upcoming year it will be a blessing and it will be worth while because I will have the privilege of sharing and sowing into the lives of our future Christian leaders. To update all of you on some of the events and things MP1 did this over the last six weeks I would like to begin with a brief overview of our schedule.

The first week we helped with VBS at Forcey Bible church.
The second week we helped out by volunteering at Camp Bennett.
The third week we preached to children at "Christ on the Mall" in DC.
The fourth week we conducted a childrens program in Langely Park.
The fifth week we went to Boston, MA and worked with the OAC branch.
The sixth week we went to Ocean City and preached on the boardwalk every night.

Now, I will get into some more details of each week. One of the highlights of the first week at VBS happened on Thursday because we were able to preach the gospel to over 240 children and many of the children made professions of faith in Jesus as their Savior that day! What a way to start the mission trip. In the second week at Camp Bennett it started out slow because they were not aware we were going to be there the week we were so not much was prepared for us to do. Although because of having more free time than expected we were able to spend a lot of time getting to know each other and coming closer as a team. Then again on Thursday we were asked to present the gospel and Chris, one of the teens, gave the message to over 60 children. Chris did a great job and the children were very attentive throughout the entire message. It appears that Thursday may have been significant during these first two weeks. Let's see if this pattern continues. The third week on July 4th, which happened to be a Monday (sorry no Thursday pattern here) God showed us how He works all things together for His good purpose. After a long day of preaching on the mall we went to a restaurant to get dinner prior to watching the fireworks and Jianna, one of the girls on the team, got sick from the food. She had a headache and stomach ache and some of the boys decided to ask some people if they had Tylenol. They asked this one young guy and he said " I may have some under the six pack of beer in my backpack." We this encounter turned into a really long and meaningful conversation and it turns out that this guy had previously went to church at the same church as one of the girls on the team. She was able to talk to him and encourage him to stop leading a life of sin and turn back to the Lord. He said he would go back to church and try to change how he had been living his life since he had compromised his faith. Praise the Lord for headaches. The fourth week was an incredible week throughout. We had great days of preaching the gospel to the children of Langley Park and I feel it had a lasting impact on many of the children's lives. Week five in Boston was incredible and words can't describe some of the powerful things God did in the lives of some of the team. Friday night we all went to Dunkin Donuts for our devotionals and by the end of the night two of the teens had re-dedicated there lives to Christ. It was such an awesome experience to see how God broke down walls in some of the teens hearts. Like I said I can not ever begin to describe the night except to say "God your are amazing." The final week in Ocean City was the pinnacle of the trip because we were able to share the gospel on the boardwalk every night and over 1000 people heard the message of Jesus Christ and Him crucified throughout the week. Also, one of the teens that re-dedicated her life to Christ got baptized in the ocean and Christine and I had the privilege of baptizing her while the rest of the team stood around us in a circle holding hands. So now I am home from Mission Possible One and looking towards the ministry God has for me here in Maryland but, I will be praying and seeking God's will for me as to how He will use me next year in Mission Possible. Until you read again....

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