This week has been been the calm before the storm!! We got to rest a lot which has been very nice because next week is going to be crazy with Christmas in July and Mission Teams.
On Sunday one of our friends from the college ministry we go to on Thursday nights came to church! He is a new believer who used to be Mormon, and then a Buddhist. As far as I know he does not have a male to look up to in his life. I hope he will be able to get connected at Living Hope. Another one of our friends was able to come to church as well! She is from the UK and now lives here! We were able to eat with the guy and some of the college students at Living Hope. The college ministry, Engage, does a summer discipleship program called Summer Project. The students go through books, get discipled, serve the community, and it is a way for them to grow in their faith. It is so cool to hear about how the Lord is using them on their campus! Engage is actually the first successful college ministry in the state of Oregon. There are many college ministries that have tried to start on campuses, but they have not been successful.
On Monday us interns and Taylor went to the church in Yreka, California. We got to meet two really sweet attenders of the church. We worked on washing all the dirt off of the walls and making relationships with the attenders of the church. We also brainstormed more ideas of how to get the community involved with the church. The Karuk tribe is a big Native American Tribe and there are a lot of people within the tribe who need to be reached with the gospel. On Tuesday we contacted some youth about our Wednesday night service the next day and reminders about Christmas in July camps!
On Wednesday we got some supplies ready for the upcoming camps. Then we had youth band practice. I have loved being able to help with the youth band. Worshiping the Lord through music is something I love to do, and I am so glad that these students have the opportunity to worship God through song. On Thursday Miah and I had discipleship and a piano lesson with the girl we disciple. It is so awesome seeing her reading her Bible, wanting to learn more about God, and serve Him. That afternoon the GenSend team had their prospectus. Their purpose of being here was to survey South Medford for future church planters. GenSend is through the North American Mission Board so all of the information goes to them. The prospectus was a chance for the team to tell all of the information they have gathered here in the past two months. They did an awesome job and I'm so glad that I've had the opportunity to serve alongside of them in some of their mission projects! Then we went to the college ministry we go to on Thursday nights. It was such a sweet time of worshipping the Lord! We had bible study and worship outside and it felt amazing! The students asked some awesome and deep questions. A lot of students who come to this ministry do not have the best home lives, so seeing these students desire to know more about God is so awesome!
On Friday we did park ministry at a local park. We handed out snow cones and cotton candy for free and told more families about our outreach Christmas in July. There are so many families who have been interested and are wanting their kids to come to the camps! We had a meeting about spiritual disciplines and leadership qualities. This week I had the chance to speak about a spiritual discipline. I spoke about solitude. Solitude is not something that I am good at. I am a big extrovert, but if Jesus the son of God went alone to be with God then how much more should I be alone with God. There are so many examples in the Bible of people going to be alone with God (Luke 6: 12-13 and 1 Kings 19: 11-13 are just two of them). Solitude is a posture of being still and listening to God. Solitude is a time where we can lean into God and listen to what He has to tell us. It is a time to remove all distractions and everything in our world that tries to take our attention off of God because lets be honest there are so many distractions in this world (phones/electronic devices, relationships, constant noise (music, cars, voices), and I'm sure you thought of a few more). Take time to be alone with God. Sit in His presence. Let Him speak into your life. We aren't meant to do this life alone! If you want to talk more about solitude then just reach out to me and I would love to talk with you about it!! Miah, Collin, Taylor, and I headed to Yreka for a concert they were having in the park. It was a good time to get to see more of the town and meet more of the people of the town. It was so funny because the singers mainly sung country music, so they would sing in a country accent but talk really proper. Them singing in a country accent sounded very fake haha, but all of the songs they sang were really good!
On Saturday we hosted a brunch for several girls we have met through playing volleyball and we invited some ladies from the church. We really want the girls we have met to get connected with people from the church. The girls are not Christian, but I can sense that the Lord is working in their hearts, even if it is only a little bit at a time. Then we went two different times to the airport to pick up three mission teams from the south. The teams are all here to help us with Christmas in July. All of the camps and projects we have going on this upcoming week would not be possible without their help! We are so grateful for their willing hearts to serve others and serve the Lord!
What you can specifically pray for:
There is a wildfire that is close to the town of Yreka. This area I am in has been in a drought for about ten years now, so wildfires are very common. There are thousands of fire fighters trying to fight this fire in Yreka. Pray for the firefighters and the people that this fire will come in contact with.
The church plant in Yreka, California. This upcoming week there will be a lot of work done on this church. Pray that the church will minister to people outside of the walls that will be getting renovated.
Pray for our friend from college ministry on Thursday nights who came to church on Sunday. He needs guidance and discipleship in many areas of his life. Pray that God will continue to give him a desire to learn more about the gospel and what it means, and pray that the Lord will take him out of the bondage of sin that he is in.
Pray for all of the students who are doing the Summer Project with Engage. Pray that they will continue to be discipled and they will grow so much in their walk with the Lord. Pray that they will be lights for Jesus on their campus, in their homes, and in their towns.
The students coming to youth on Wednesday nights. A lot of these students have never been in church before. Pray that their hearts will be open to accept the gospel and that their families will also accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior!
The college ministry on Thursday nights will continue to reach people who do not go to church and who need to know the Lord. Pray that this ministry will be a light in their dark community.
Christmas in July. There will be two camps going on and multiple projects happening. Pray for energy and wisdom for the workers/mission teams. Pray that the students will hear about Jesus and that there will be salvations!
Pray for the three different mission teams coming to Living Hope for Christmas in July. Each team will be doing multiple different projects, and each project is very important. Pray that each person who comes to help this week will grow in their walk with the Lord!
Pray for the girls who we met through volleyball who do not know the Lord. We have had multiple gospel conversations with these girls but they don't want to accept the gospel for themselves. Pray that the Lord will open their eyes and ears and hearts to salvation!
I am so excited for all that's to come in this next week! As always thank yall for encouraging, supporting, and praying for me!
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