Muskegon 2010
Middle School Mission Trip
“Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served,
but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
– Matthew 20:28
Back row: Morgan, Kendra, Cassidy, Brianna, Jackie, Sean, Hannah, Justin,
Antonio, Eric, Bethany, Jonathan, Corey, Bethani, Joel, Sam
Front row: Cierra, Kaelynn, Olivia, Faith, Alex, Nellie, some random girl off the street ;), Tierzah, Cheyenne, Annie
Here it is… the final “update” on Muskegon 2010, the middle school mission trip… at this point, it’s actually more of a “wrap up”, but you know. 😉
It’s been twelve days since the last day of Muskegon 2010… we’ve heard a couple of great testimonies from parents, employees and owners of places we visited, and from the students. Rev’s very first middle school mission trip involved 21 students and five leaders, we served at twelve locations in our community over the course of four days, and we truly reached out, touched lives, and gave back! It was amazing!
For me personally, there were three areas I feel that I’ve grown in since the trip…
1. Servitude: Though the goal was to teach our middle schoolers to serve and have a great attitude in serving, the serving opportunities we had on this trip were mostly things that I had never done either! I tell ya, visiting a place for kids with no other home, hanging clothes in thrift stores and donation centers, visiting nursing homes, and cleaning up local areas are all things that I don’t think to do everyday. Sense the trip, I’ve had to purpose myself to be more aware of and assist with physical needs around me (like picking up the trash at my house that someone else didn’t) or when I am out and about (making myself pick up a few things at the beach the other night), mental needs around me (giving one of my sisters some tips for back to school or loaning a friend a book), emotional needs around me (giving my sister some advice when I normally wouldn’t take the time to listen or hugging a young lady at church the other night), and most importantly, spiritual needs (letting a friend borrow a Bible until she got her own or praying for people on the spot rather than just saying “I’ll keep you in my prayers”.)
2. Love for people: Jesus loves and desires a relationship with every single person we came into contact with, which is why Jesus served us and gave his life as a ransom for us. On the trip and during the past twelve days I have brought that to my mind again and again… it’s funny how, once you are consciously aware of things like that, you treat people better and aren’t as afraid to love others. For me, I have seen this in relationships I already have, but more importantly, it has given me more of an urgency for those outside of church… this week alone, I have invited two friends to church and have gotten in contact with two other friends that I’d practically lost contact with. And you know why? Not because I am trying to gather people into some cult or get them to like what I like… I am inviting them to church because as a friend I am going to share with them the deepest and dearest thing to my heart. I am inviting them to church because I have found more joy and adventure in life than I thought was possible, and I want them to experience it or come back to it. I am inviting them to church because I love them.
3. Love for middle schoolers: all I have to say here is this: middle schoolers just might be the coolest group of kids around. 😉 Between seeing 21 students in my car at once, playing foot tag, “Bob”, forcing Morgan to smile, Justin’s “wife”, seeing Antonio and Eric with all those price tag stickers, eating more peanut butter and jelly than I’ve ever eaten in my life, seeing Corey’s “serious” injury, falling off the tube with Sam and Cheyenne, riding in the PARTY VAN!, finding some of the most hilarious clothes ever, watching the boys freak out when we came across some bras at the donation center, listening to Hannah’s jokes, and the fact that everyone on the team is now related, well… I had so much fun! It was nice to be with kids who can be so serious when you need them to be, but also the most hilarious people you’ll ever meet!
If you’d like to see more pictures from the trip, there are a few more on this site (click “Photos” on the lett), or you can click here and visit Rev’s facebook page at facebook.com/revolutionstudentcommunity.
I am excited to hear more about what happened on this trip! If anyone has anything to share, please go ahead and leave a comment!
Love, Alicia
