Tag Archives: outreach

Mission Trip Devotional Resources

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Team Devotionals in Action

I recently hosted a mission team from Michigan and they had some great team devotional and individual resources that they brought with them to encourage the youth to build in quiet times and deeper devotional times into their team’s down times.

I’m going to start referring new teams to this resource for those who don’t want to or have time to re-invent the wheel with their own custom devotional resources for the team.

LeaderTreks also has pre-trip and debriefing tools available.

Mission trips should be more than just mountain top experiences. They should be life changing.

via LeaderTreks Student Mission Trip Resources

Reaching out to the heart of his city

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For most of his life, Kevin Curtiss did not believe in God.

Even when his wife, Donna, started attending Resurrection Life Church, Kevin made it clear he wasn’t interested.

“You could consider me an atheist at that time,” he said. “I didn’t want to have anything to do with [church].”

For several months Donna prayed that Kevin would open up to a relationship with God, but it didn’t seem to make much difference. It took some time, but gradually Kevin realized that the church experience would be a valuable for their teenage son. Still, Kevin realized that he would have to set the example by going himself.

“It was time to get Tony involved with [church].” Kevin said. “And he wasn’t going to go unless I did.”

Putting aside his own apprehensions, Kevin announced his decision:

“One day I said, ‘That’s it! We’re going honey.’,” he said.

And they did.

One week after his first visit to ResLife, Kevin raised his hand in response to pastor Duane Vander Klok’s invitation to accept Christ. That decision has changed his life. Kevin soon began reading the Bible regularly. He completed the entire Bible in just over a year and supplemented his reading with other Christian books to learn all he could about his new faith. The changes in Kevin affected not only his reading habits but also the way he lives and leads the whole Curtiss family.

“I’m a lot more family oriented,” Kevin said. “God is first in my life, my family is second and my work falls somewhere after that.”

Now, not only is church a regular part of their lives, but Kevin has sought out other ways to be involved beyond Sundays. While reading through the ResLife Web site to see what opportunities there are for getting involved, Kevin discovered the inner city outreach called Power House and something clicked.

“I knew I wanted to do something outside the church,” he said. “I wasn’t sure what, but I clicked on the Power House site, saw the kids and thought, ‘I want to try that.’ I got involved in Power House, and I’ve been hooked ever since.”

Now, Kevin, along with much of his family, spends Tuesday evenings teaching children about the God he didn’t believe in.

“I never really in my wildest dreams three years ago, thought I’d be out teaching kids about God,” he said.

Street Light ministry to youth in downtown Grand Rapids

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Grand Rapids, Mich. — On Friday nights, 15-year-old Olivia Cooper-Jones likes to hang out at an old storefront on South Division Avenue next door to a biker’s club.
While it’s not the neighborhood of choice and sits squarely in an area stigmatized by the more unsavory characteristics of this city, Cooper-Jones and scores of other teens have found something that breaks from the typical fare of the inner city at the Division Avenue Outreach Center.
“It’s a place to go to chill out and not have all the drama,” Cooper-Jones said. “They’ve got a lot of positive stuff to do. All my friends are down here.”
Part of the downtown outreach of Street Light Ministries, DAOC (pronounced “dah OC” in the adopted hip hop lingo of outreach leaders) is changing the outlook of teens across the downtown area by providing a fun hangout in a positive environment. Continue reading →

The athiest who changed his mind.

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For most of his life, Kevin Curtiss did not believe in God.
Even when his wife, Donna, started attending Resurrection Life Church, Kevin made it clear he wasn’t interested.
“You could consider me an atheist at that time,” he said. “I didn’t want to have anything to do with [church].”
For several months Donna prayed that Kevin would open up to a relationship with God, but it didn’t seem to make much difference. It took some time, but gradually Kevin realized that the church experience would be a valuable for their teenage son. Still, Kevin realized that he would have to set the example by going himself.
“It was time to get Tony involved with [church].” Kevin said. “And he wasn’t going to go unless I did.”
Putting aside his own apprehensions, Kevin announced his decision:
“One day I said, ‘That’s it! We’re going honey.’,” he said.
And they did.
One week after his first visit to ResLife, Kevin raised his hand in response to pastor Duane Vander Klok’s invitation to accept Christ. That decision has changed his life. Kevin soon began reading the Bible regularly. He completed the entire Bible in just over a year and supplemented his reading with other Christian books to learn all he could about his new faith. The changes in Kevin affected not only his reading habits but also the way he lives and leads the whole Curtiss family.
“I’m a lot more family oriented,” Kevin said. “God is first in my life, my family is second and my work falls somewhere after that.”
Now, not only is church a regular part of their lives, but Kevin has sought out other ways to be involved beyond Sundays. While reading through the ResLife Web site to see what opportunities there are for volunteering, Kevin discovered the inner city outreach called Power House and something clicked.
“I knew I wanted to do something outside the church,” he said. “I wasn’t sure what, but I clicked on the Power House site, saw the kids and thought, ‘I want to try that.’ I got involved in Power House, and I’ve been hooked ever since.”
Now, Kevin, along with much of his family, spends Tuesday evenings teaching children about the God he didn’t believe in.
“I never really in my wildest dreams three years ago, thought I’d be out teaching kids about God,” he said.