Bekah Hamrick Martin
Abbie Miller
How about an online mission trip? I just found the most amazing missions idea and I want to be a part. My guess is that you will, too.
Jesus: “Go and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:19)
The Internet simply could not make that any easier.
The Online Missions Trip is a International two week outreach campaign for teenagers and youth leaders to capitalize on the social opportunities that exist on the Internet and use it to share Christ with unsaved friends all over the world!
If you are on Facebook, join the group to connect with other teens and youth leaders who are taking the trip.
Jan 11-31, 2009: Pre-trip training.
Feb 1-14, 2009: Online Missions Trip!
Feb 15, 2009: Outreach event/series and new-believer follow-up starts.
(If you are on Facebook, friend RTF, Suzie Eller, while you are at it.)
Underground Reality: VOM – Teens in Vietnam
From Raleigh to Russia: With Love
by Lynn Cowell, RTF Guest Writer
Sunday morning church can be predictable in many churches in American.
Music. Announcements. Sermon.
But on one Sunday, the announcements caught the ear and heart of Jordan Water’s mom. Their church was hosting children from countries with extreme poverty and they were looking for one more family to step up. Jordan’s mom, Pam, knew they were that family.
That summer with Artem was just the beginning of a new passion for Jordan and her family. After weeks of loving on this little boy and experiencing the heart break of sending him back home, Jordan and her father, Keith, decided to visit Russia on Jordan’s Christmas break.
She spent two weeks in Belarus visiting four orphanages that were so cold inside she never took her coat off!
“The children were dressed in rags; the boys often in girl’s clothes and vice versa. The smells of the orphanage were overpowering; the children smelled so untaken care of,” says Jordan, “but they were desperate to be touched, to be hugged, to be kissed, to be loved that it brought me to my knees in tears as I hugged them 10 at a time.” (more…)
Moving to Uganda: Change*the*World!
an interview by Catey Yuen, RTF Staff Writer
Kate Weber is a normal American teenager. She’s a homeschooled high school student who likes to write but doesn’t like speech, who loves her dog and watches TV on the weekends. She lives with her mom, dad and three siblings and goes to church every weekend. But despite her average lifestyle, she’s an absolutely extraordinary young woman. In fact, all that ordinary stuff she’s used to is about to change in the blink of an eye.
Kate is moving with her family to Uganda. (more…)
I Felt Useless
On my youth group service trip, I wanted to be used by God. But I couldn’t help but feel a little left out. by Becky Visser as told to Amy Adair
EXCERPT FROM ARTICLE: I dropped the heavy concrete block and brushed the sweat from my forehead. I glanced around the corner of the house and saw my youth group friends, Erin* and Sarah, talking to the house’s owner. I could tell they were talking about something important.
I was on my youth group’s service trip to help build and repair houses. I was looking for an opportunity to share my faith and impact someone’s life. But so far, all I’d done was move a bunch of junk from a rundown house.
At the end of the day, I listened as Erin and Sarah talked about John, the homeowner. He’d told them he was a Christian, but his wife, Susan, hadn’t been to church
in a long time. We prayed together that night for God to give us a chance to share our faith with Susan.
I hoped I’d get the perfect opportunity to talk with her.
But it never happened. (more…)
What can one teen do?
Or even better? What can a group of teens do? Jerrod Murr, pastor of Capitol Hill Limitless Youth in Oklahoma City, believes that they can change the world — one T-shirt at a time.
$12
How can that change the world? Murr’s teens wanted to do a mission project and they chose to raise money for a Haitian orphanage. The problem? It would cost $500,000 American dollars to build the orphanage, fund the staff, and buy the needed supplies. (more…)
Making the Difference: An Interview with Jake
by Jamin Goecker, RTF Staff Writer
Try living a day without hearing bad news. If a politician hasn’t lied, then the economy has shrunk. If the economy’s intact, then someone died. If someone hasn’t died, you spilled milk over the newspaper.
What can one teen do in this world? Jake, a homeschooler from Texas, could tell you.
Jake volunteers at a nondenominational street ministry called House of Faith. A group of teens go to schoolyards in rough parts of town every week and engage the children with games, Bible lessons, and snacks.
The games feel like gang fights sometimes. Most of the kids come from rough backgrounds. What does Jake do? “I am mainly there to interact with the kids. That means playing with them, keeping them under control, and to encourage them,” he says.
But ministry is draining. Jake discovered that one of the hardest things is putting up with a kids rejection. “I hate you,” isn’t an unfamiliar phrase. (more…)
What Can One Teen Do?
Erica Savage and her mom just returned home from a trip to El Salvador where she got to meet a very special little girl, 3-year-old Yessennia. This is the child that Erica sponsored through Compassion International, a ministry that feeds and educates children all over the world through small monthly donations from sponsors. She and 35 others traveled on a Compassion Intl. trip.
Erica is 17 and works at a part-time job and several weeks ago she decided that she would sacrifice some things to sponsor a child for $32 a month.
Check out the pics of Erica meeting Yessennia, and of her reading a children’s book in Spanish.
Erica arrived home yesterday. According to a blog about the trip, it was amazing how different the care was for a Compassion International sponsored child versus many of the other children in the community.
From Suzie: I’ve been to San Salvador, El Salvador. I love traveling on missions trips, but this was one of the hardest because I saw many children in the streets begging, or worse. . .
I’ve been a guest in the homes and seen the poverty and hunger. Thank you, Erica, for making a difference in the life of one little girl. You are awesome. What can one teen do? Change the life of a little girl.
Your Opportunity: If you are interested in sponsoring a child, click here to find out more about Compassion International.
Every other week RTF will highlight a teen who is changing the world. Do you know of someone? Do you have a great idea on what teens can do in their community, school, world? E-mail us!
