Originally Posted on by Jordan Stafford
SUMMER FUN!
Greetings from Greencastle! We hope you and your family had a fun Fourth of July and are enjoying your summer! We started the summer off with a great time of bonding with kids and college leaders at Holiday World (an amusement park in southern IN). We had a great turnout as we partnered with a local FCA group. One of the highlights for me was riding the Raging Rapids with a group of kids. No, this is not a rollercoaster, those days are long gone for me! The ride is not in the waterpark and we were not in swimsuits so we assumed we would not get soaking wet. Wrong! BUT the kids had a great time and thought it was pretty funny! It was very hot so the water did feel good and we did dry, eventually! These are some of the moments and memories that help kids feel connected to their leaders, and help us build trust so that they can share deeper things as we continue to build relationships.
COLLEGE LEADERS
HOLIDAY WORLD
OUTSIDE OUTREACH
CHRIST IN YOUTH (SUMMER CAMP )
Thank you so much for your prayers for our kids and leaders who went to camp! We sent 11 high school guys, 2 college leaders, and 1 adult leader to Christ in Youth in Knoxville, TN. We saw God answer so many prayers on this trip!! From providing for our needs to kids praying to receive Christ! It was pretty amazing!This is what Carson, our college intern said about the CIY trip, “I saw God work on the very first night when the students were challenged to acknowledge where their hearts were in relation to God. Were they closed off? Open? Confused? This was incredible to see the students honestly evaluate who God was to them. As the week went on, I saw the students grow closer to each other, and they helped each other learn how to listen to the Lord. The fun events planned by CIY allowed them to relax and enjoy their time, while still connecting to the Lord and forming a relationship with Him. I saw hearts changed, whether accepting God for the first time or recommitting to a life of Kingdom work.”
Please pray that God will protect the seeds that were planted and that each of these young men will continue to grow in their walk with the Lord. Pray that God will give us wisdom & insight on our part in helping them grow and that each of them will get plugged into a local church.
LEAVING FOR CIY
CIY
REC TIME AT CIY
OUTREACH
We also attempted to have an outreach during the 4th of July weekend. We reserved a shelter at our local park and had some students ready to play worship music and give a message, but we did not have a great turnout! In fact, only the students helping with the event showed up! BUT, God did give us an opportunity to witness to two men who had slept at the park the night before and were still hanging out there. We shared our food with them and shared the gospel as well. This was a great chance to show the students that God loves and cares for everyone, and our part is to show people God’s love by caring for them.Thank you again for partnering with us and allowing us to continue building disciples. Our goal in WDA is to equip disciple-building leaders who think, feel, and act like Jesus. We have been so blessed to get to build into these college students and watch them pour into high school students! It’s a lot like Paul in 2 Tim 2 : 2, “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.”
With His love,
Shannon for the Hammonds