Day 3 of ministry was awesome! The students are really getting comfortable and confident in boldly reaching out, serving others, and sharing their faith. We got up at 6:30 as usual and it’s been non-stop since then. Our ministries included helping a local church with some practical hands on things, doing some more painting, and serving food and pitching in again at the soup kitchen (A.C.T.S.). We also went to a popular Skate Park to do some relational ministry; getting to know people and talking about our faith with them. Although it was slightly intimidating, students stepped up to the challenge…it was a great experience for them! After another great evening of VBS, we closed the night a little differently by going to a park to do our worship and debrief time. Here’s a story about our day:
“Today we went to this HUGE skate park that had tons of kids there. What we were supposed to do was talk to them and hopefully tell them about God. So what happened was we split up into groups and prayed for God to lead us. I was concentrating on what God was trying to tell me. Well these things popped into my mind: a tree, a cookie, apples, a pumpkin, a fishing bobber, and a Colorado t-shirt with a little symbol underneath. Sad to say, none of that turned out to be part of our ministry, but that’s ok. So we were walking through and we found this group of teenagers that were just sitting and cooling off. Jack walked up and asked them if this was the biggest skate park in America (it was like 3rd). So after a while we started talking about evolution. This one kid, whose name was also Jack, said that evolution is the only explanation to who we became. He was VERY smart! He was talking about all this science stuff that really confused me. He had to leave so then we talked to this other kid, whose name I can’t remember. He was saying how he smoked pot and how he doesn’t understand what makes it so bad. He said he wants to know what makes it bad to smoke pot. Jack talked to him for a little while about it. All of a sudden, out of nowhere I thought of the verses in Romans 12:1-2, ‘Therefore, I urge you brothers in view of God’s mercy to offer your bodies as living sacrifices—holy and pleasing to him. This is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the patterns of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, then you will be able to test and approve what his will his—his good, perfect and pleasing will.’ So when I was able to talk I said that God wants your body to be a living sacrifice for him. Therefore, smoking pot isn’t honoring Him. I’m not sure if he really got it, but I was so happy that God reminded me of that verse! I want to do this again.”
-Cady Jones
