Archive for November, 2009

First Creek Campus Life this fall has been awesome! Club meetings have been well attended and full of fun and excitement. We have a strong ministry team of young high school and college age leaders ready to engage with the students of First Creek. Many new faces show up each week to club excited to see what Campus Life is about.

One young lady this past week was in tears before club started.  I walked up to her and asked her what was wrong.  At first she didn’t want to talk about it but I got her to “spill the beans.” She was sad about not having a good grade in one of her classes and her parents said that if she didn’t raise her grade soon, she wouldn’t be able to attend any after school activities… including Campus Life!  I was saddened by Chea’s distress because I knew how much Campus life means to her. Chea loves Campus Life because of the great friendships with her peers and leaders; and she always has fun playing the crowd-breakers. Fortunately she was able to stay yesterday! I encouraged her to study hard and made myself available to help.

Because of Chea’s distress, I can tell that Campus Life is making a great impact on her and her peers. Campus Life ministry is deepening the relationship with students and having a stronger impacted on the school. I am excited for this ministry as we continue this year. Thank you for your prayers and support on behalf of this ministry site!

It will cost you something!  He did it for you, will you do it for them? 

This phrase was the last sentence written in a letter created by Jennifer Appleby that she gave to me and her pastor.  It was a 5 page typed letter pouring out her heart for her passion…foster children.

Jennifer first felt called to fostercare while in high school after working at a Boy’s Ranch on a mission trip.  Through the years this calling continued.  After marrying her husband Steve, their long trips to Eastern Washington were filled with conversations about this calling.  Finally, after talking with their pastor the advice came, “Why don’t you start with one and see how it goes”.   If only everyone received that advice!

Since that time Steve and Jennifer have taken 29 foster children into their home.  Not every child has been the most pleasant experience…and even Jennifer would say that it hasn’t been easy.  In fact, she would say that it’s been very challenging.  She would also say that taking in foster children has been the most rewarding ministry she’s ever been a part of!

We are so proud to have families like Steve and Jennifer Appleby.  They have exemplified our vision here at YFC.  They have reached out and supported the birth families of the children they’ve cared for….even, at times, at a monetary expense. 

They also have a message!  Even if you can’t have a foster child in your home….there’s plenty of other ways to get involved.  As if Steve and Jennifer don’t have enough to do already….they just helped build a clothing bank at their church to support foster children and foster families licensed through YFC.  Foster Exchange is located at Puget Sound Christian Center and is designed to help provide clothing and other resources to foster children.  If you have items to share please contact Jennifer at fosterexchange@gmail.com. 

You will be blessed to give……it will cost you something…..He did it for you…will you do it for them?

Why does YFC exist?  What purpose do we play in the overall picture?  What is the “heart” of our mission?

YFC/USA President Dan Wolgemuth presents the Heart of YFC well in this video (click here to watch the video) that shares our national vision statement along with real life examples of why/how we collaborate with others, why/how we empower adults, share biblical truth, enlist others to pray and build relationships with young people.

After 18 years, I’m as excited and humbled as ever to be a part of this mission to reach young people with the life-changing message of Jesus Christ.  Press on!

15 year old JD came into Remman hall this summer with a life experience of tragic loss.  A few years ago JD experienced a horrible loss when he was living with his Mom, brothers, and sisters in California.  A house fire destroyed everything they owned and JD lost two of his younger siblings in the fire.  His mom had to send him to live with his grandparents for a couple of years in a rural area of the state.  While JD was with his grandparents, he did well in school and excelled on the football field as a running back.  This was a good environment for him to grow up in as he was loved and encouraged and even went to church with his grandparents.  Eventually, JD’s mom was able to buy a house in Lakewood, Washington and JD moved to the Tacoma area.

Coming to Tacoma was difficult for JD, he soon found himself running with some shady characters that encouraged him to do drugs and commit crime.  One night, JD and some of his friends decided to rob a house of people they knew.  The attempted robbery went bad quickly and JD ran out of the house before he had a chance to grab anything.  The police were already on the scene and JD was caught after he jumped a fence.  As a result of the circumstances of the crime, JD found himself with serious charges and was promptly booked into Remann hall for an undetermined amount of time.  

The first time I saw him was in a Wednesday night chapel service, I was immediately drawn to his genuine smile when I greeted him at the door to the room.  Throughout the entire teaching time he was engaged and attentive.  At the end he boldly made a decision to give up his old life and live for Jesus!  Without hesitation JD took the truth of the gospel and ran with it.  He immediately started reading the bible and began to grasp spiritual truths very quickly.  

One day I walked into JD’s pod and saw him writing to his parole officer looking quite discouraged.   He shared with me his struggle to be heard and his frustration with how his case was going.  He told me had been pouring all through his bible looking for something that would bring him encouragement!  I was struck by his hunger for the word of God to comfort him and I talked to him about the importance of faith in the face of trails and suffering.  After I left, I had no idea if anything I said stuck, but since that time, I have seen the Spirit of God do nothing short of a miracle in this young man’s life! 

JD takes advantage of every opportunity to go to church and is even memorizing scripture.  Every week that we see JD he declares that he wants to encounter Jesus more and more!  I recently felt prompted to give him one of my favorite books “The pursuit of God” by A.W. Tozer.  Although he struggled to understand some of the words used in the book, he read it twice, and has even been memorizing the prayers at the end of the chapters.  I would have never understood this book at 15 years of age!  God has gifted JD with an incredible mind and a dynamic hunger for Jesus.  JD radiates the joy of God whenever I see him and he continues to grow in wisdom and in the knowledge of the Word.  He even desires to worship the Lord and has begun to write lyrics of praise!  I am so excited to see what God has next for JD as He raises him up as a leader in this next generation.

John Dorsey – JJM Volunteer

During our chapel time, our Juvenile Justice Ministry Director preached an amazing message on the love Christ. She painted a picture of how the Lord loves us right where we’re at, right now.

Four of the girls wanted to pray with someone, to acknowledge before the Lord their need of him, their desire to live for him in a new way. I got to pray with Alisha, an amazing young women who will lead many more to the cross in her lifetime. She wanted to be right with God but, in her words, she’s just a piece of S**T. She didn’t feel good enough, she knew she didn’t have enough strength to live freely and stand firm in the face of temptation, so she didn’t want to start something she knew she couldn’t finish. I got to share with her the Good News! No one deserves to be made right with God, none deserve anything from our Father, but it’s the desire of his heart to bless us anyway. He doesn’t expect us live perfectly, but rejoices when we take a step forward rather than become angry when we take a step back, and he loves to strengthen us. He only requires that we ask! Alicia decided to accept these truths about God and pray her first prayer! In the days following, she was in the scripture, full of hope and a growing understanding of her new Dad and who she is as His very own daughter. The power of the Lord to transform a person was on display that evening, and it was a glorious spectacle! Praise the Lord!

Robyn Buchanan, JJM Intern

Jared is only 16 years old, and from Tacoma. I’ve been seeing him for a few months, since he’s been in jail. His father was an infamous gangster who raised Jared up in a lifestyle of drugs, violence, and anger. During Bible study one day, God spoke very clearly to Jared about how Jesus came to give him life and loves him! I taught on how the enemy used gangs in my life, testified to how Christ rescued me, and told him with authority that the enemy is pimpin’ and punkin’ him out of his life and away from his soul. Jared asked how he could get Christ in his life, and received Jesus as Lord and Savior. There was an instant change, a shift towards freedom and life. Jared was placed on honors status, coming to bible study every week, and started influencing the other young men in his pod.  They are all on honors status, which is not usual. I was able to meet his mom and tell her how proud I am, and testify to the change I’ve seen. She noticed the same changes in his life. Jared’s mom called recently to say that a rival gang member who is suspected for murdering one of Jared’s best friends, had come into Remann Hall. Jared was very angry and nervous about what would go down in jail with the rival. I challenged him to forgiveness, and brought the truth. The enemy was tempting him, he’s after him to destroy him, and I warned him about the way he would lose if he agreed with the lies and the enemy. I prayed for him, asked for the Spirit of Peace to flood him and rebuked a spirit of anger. I’m still walking with Jared, celebrating the marked change in his life since he met Jesus.

Dwayne Parker – Bishop Freeze

Corasia came to stay with me last year for six months. Her mom had lost her job and they had lost their place and were homeless.  I had know Corasia for the past year from SOZO and Late Night. She was in the second semester of her freshmen year at a local high school.  A guy at school who had a few girls prostituting for him started to recruit her, and in her words, she was so close to going that track before she moved into House of Dreams. She lived there with two other girls who were also seeking to pursue their dreams of graduating high school, getting jobs, and growing more into a mighty woman of God.  It was an amazing time with Corasia while she stayed with us. She got her first job, she enrolled in honors classes, and was an active member of our SOZO leadership team. Corasia moved back home with her mom six months later.  We saw her initially and then we would only talk to her from time to time. She kept herself very much at a distance.  During this time she helped with a Drama at her school, but shortly after that hearing from Corasia was rare. She explains this time as trying to do it all on her own and running after things that would never fill her. She got linked up with the college bound program at her High School and was in class everyday with the Pastor of SOZO. Some of the girls in her group started asking her about the drama she had been in. They shared with her how their lives had been changed and touched by what she had been a part of.  God started to speak to Corasia that what she at been a part of in the Drama was to be more frequent in her life and that she needed to get more involved again with the SOZO team.  Corasia started coming back to SOZO leadership meetings!! She shared that she was ready to come back and be involved with what God was doing and that she had realized that He had indented her life to be used for God! She came to our weekly meeting and received pray and ministry in front of everyone, boldly prayed and gave some of the weight she’d been carrying to God.  Then she prayed for others that night and spoke truth into their lives of how they cannot do it on their own, and shared from her own testimony of how she has stuffed everything inside and she can’t do it anymore. That during the time in her life that she was “running away” to things that she thought would make her feel better, the time in her life when her mom was loosing their house, that all she wanted was someone to hold her and let her cry in their arms and comfort her. She wanted someone to tell her that they loved her and help show her which way to go.  But she shared you would never know that was going on inside because outside she kept it together, she came off as stuck up or confident. She never expressed her need and kept her hurt deep inside.  That night at leadership she led 2 other girls to bring what they were carrying on their own to God and encouraged them to allow God to show them who they are and that she was finding out more everyday but she was taking steps to have people in her life that could help her, like the pastors and leaders at SOZO. It was so amazing to see her in tears sharing what God has been doing in her and speaking such truth and hope to encourage the other girls!!! She is an anointed leader for God and we are so honored and blessed to have her be a part of our SOZO family!! She is a courageous woman and has chosen to face her fears of being rejected by sharing what’s really going on in her life, by really diving in to be known by God and by others!!! And she is SO LOVED and has a group of people who will let her know how loved and special she is!!! She is not alone!! She is a leader in an army of youth that will lead many others to know Christ and come into God’s Family!!!!

When we started Sozo three years ago, we always had the vision that these kids in the Hilltop and from Remann Hall would gives their lives to Christ, and would one day be the leaders that replaced us. I’m not going to lie…it seemed like a very lofty goal at best. The minority of the youth who had already given their lives to Christ were still struggling with gangs, drugs and sex and were nowhere near leading their peers in positive lifestyles.

Fast-forward to three years later…

We are seeing the beginning stages of the things that God had promised! Not only has he saved and redeemed kids from Satan’s grasp, but he is developing these youth into leaders that are impacting kids in their community. He’s raising up indigenous leaders—leaders that come from the community to whom they are ministering. I could talk about a lot of our “indigenous leaders”—Justin, Airfeaira, Mister, Patrick, Devan, Miranda, Lecario—but I’m just going to focus on someone who is near and dear to my heart: De’Marko.

De’Marko’s Story:

Three years ago, De’Marko didn’t know Christ. He hated church, and didn’t want to have anything to do with God. He only came to Sozo because of the food and basketball, but the Holy Spirit got hold of him right away and He gave his life to Christ the second month of Sozo. One of our leaders started discipling him right away, and laid a solid foundation of Biblical truth and practical disciplines.

De’Marko’s dad never wanted anything to do with him, and he has no relationship with him. He was raised by his grandparents, but never learned a lot of the practical disciplines like getting up for school and finishing homework. As a result, by the time he was 19 years old, he barely had sophomore credits for high school, and it was looking like he would never be able to finish school.

God gave him hope and support system through Sozo, and he started attending night classes at Bates Technical College. After one year of night classes, De’Marko not only attained his high school diploma from Bates, but he also received a certificate in carpentry and found work doing construction.

That was last January. But God has done so much more in De’Marko’s life since then. I hired De’Marko to work (through Metro Parks, one of our community partners) as a leader at Sozo Kids, our elementary-aged late night. The first week, De’Marko was terrified to work with young kids. By the third week, De’Marko was literally a kid magnet. Everywhere he goes, there are about 15 kids completely drawn to him. He has become an unbelievable leader who loves kids, is easily the kids’ favorite leader, and is often responsible for cleaning and locking up. I also hired him to help me run Sozo and Teen Late Night. De’Marko’s attended Warm Beach Camp with us the last two summers as a camper. But this year, De’Marko was an Assistant Counselor in my cabin.

DeMarko and Sozo

A month ago, we found an internship opportunity with one of our community partners for out-of-school youth. To make a long story short: De’Marko is now paid to mentor middle school students through Tacoma Youth for Christ at Jason Lee Middle School. He is such a role model for the middle school students who are growing up in his community, and at 6’5” he walks with a lot of authority. The Vice Principal is thrilled with De’Marko, the students are being impacted by him, and De’Marko is so thankful for the opportunity to not only be paid, but be used by God. He said he’s learned so much already, and since he’s started leading and giving his life away, he views everything differently.

It’s amazing to see how much life transformation has already occurred among so many of our youth in the last 3 years, and it’s incredible to see how much they’re already beginning to serve and give their lives away. This is only the beginning….I don’t think anything brings me more joy than knowing that in 30 years our youth will be pastors, missionaries, community leaders, and amazing parents who will be breaking generational patterns of poverty.

05 Managua Nicaragua

Plans are well under way for a summer mission trip to Managua, Nicaragua the summer of 2010.  A dozen leaders from Campus Life have signed up for the mission trip with Forward Edge out of Vancouver, Washington.  What will we be doing? 

We will be visiting babies and children at the local orphanages and assisting the laborers at the Village of Hope, a group of homes built for children taken out of the Managua dump.  We will have opportunity to help and to demonstrate God’s love to the people of  Managua, Nicaragua.  It will be an amazing experience in which we are all looking forward.

The organization in which we are partnering, Forward Edge, is developing property and building Esperanza in Managua.  The safe haven for abused or otherwise at-risk children.  We will have the opportunity to work along side the laborers in the development.  We will also attend the church services at Verbo’s El Faro Church, “Lighthouse” church.  El Faro is located near Managua’s city dump, called La Chureca.  families from La Chureca attend El Faro for church.  Each day our team will experience daily devotionals and nightly debriefs as a team, with the hope and prayer that God reveals Himself to each team member in a new way.

Being that this is next summer, there is still a huge amount of work to be done.  We are all excited about what God will do in and through us.  We have room for a few more participants.  If you would like to know more, give me a call!

Mason, Baker and Gray Campus Life clubs have begun!  Fliers have been passed out.  Staff have been on the school grounds talking with students. Volunteers have been prepared, the food has been acquired.  It has been a long process to get all the pieces together.  The day that we have all been waiting for has come… Campus Life start ups at three new middle school in Tacoma! 

Gray is a new school facility at the site of  the old Mt. Tahoma High School.  Because of the desire of several students and faculty members, we were asked to help establish an outreach on their campus.  Since the beginning of the school year we have been in process to get the Campus Life club up and running.  The desire was strong but some of the pieces were not in place.  I was present when students gathered around the flag pole to pray for their school.  It was clear by the prayers of the students that they want to see change at Gray.  They asked God to change the reputation of the school to be more positive and that Christ would be made known on their Campus!  It is exciting to now see this Campus Life outreach established where students, staff, local pastors and parents are all collaborating together to make Christ known!

Baker Middle School also began with a new team of leaders.  Matt Roberson has taken the charge to reach this campus!  Being a “graduate” of Baker himself, he brings an understanding of the community and school.  He is developing a team and connecting to the local church community to create partnerships to have greater effectiveness in this ministry! 

Mason Campus Life has now been meeting for the past few Wednesdays.  Joe Moore, the club director, and the volunteer team have been developing the club ministry.  Even with the obstacle of not being able to be on the campus during lunches, they have moved forward.  Being that all the leaders are themselves residents of the area they are meeting students through friends that they already know and finding creative ways to make inroads into the Mason student population.

At each site the goal is the same… to reach the “every” on their campus and to make Christ known!  

Baker, Mason and Gray Campus Life clubs all meet on Wedneday after school.