Door Creek Church

Sixteen youth who traveled overseas in the month of June are back in the states, greatly impacted by what they saw and experienced while on their respective mission trips to Peru and Guatemala.

PERU & KIDS ALIVE PARTNERSHIP

The Peru trip was June 11-21.The group of twelve teamed up with Kids Alive International, an organization that works with children at risk. Each day they would travel to Manchay, a district within Lima where Kids Alive has a home for 30 children. The task-at-hand was a workshop to be built for the young boys who grow up in the home.  Though there weren’t any construction “experts” on the team, the students were willing and able to give what they could. Unfortunately, the team wasn’t able to finish the building in its entirety, but by building this workshop, each individual has played an integral part in the lives of the boys living at this home, as well as future generations to come. Among all the cement mixing, re-bar tying, shoveling, and raking, the students were able to serve others – and that’s what was most important, as many of them learned.

Some of the reflections of the team members …

• I learned to appreciate the different dynamics other cultures have.
• Being able to serve others is rewarding. It feels good to make a difference for something that can be long term.
• It’s so easy to forget how much we have here in the United States. We can get so caught up in what we don't have and the things that we worry about are often so unimportant
• I just have to rely on Him.
• The children are so filled with joy though they come from broken homes and situations. It was really humbling [to see their joy]…
• God taught me to be patient and have a good attitude in working for others.
• My time is not actually my time. It's God's time and I need to let Him spend it how He wants instead of me trying to control my future...

One of the nights, the group was able to join the children for a large group devotional. The students did a short skit about Daniel in the lions’ den. The children of the home likewise blessed the students with some dramas and music performances. They are planning to do a mission trip in August, to a place that is four hours south of where they are in Peru. It was touching to experience this, knowing that these children are coming from really rough backgrounds;and thanks to God, they are being brought up in Christian homes and are even being sent out as missionaries to share Jesus’ love.

GOD’S IN GUATEMALA
June 19-29

God showed up in Guatemala in many different ways, as the Guatemala team experienced this summer. After arriving to their destination of Sumpango (a city in which DoorCreekChurch has a church partnership with), the team was divided into 4 different host homes. This was a great way to become familiar with the culture firsthand.

The team did a lot of things to serve the brothers and sisters in Guatemala. Some of these tasks included:

• Painted approximately 300 desks for three different schools.
• Shared testimonies (to as many as 200 kids!)
• Performed the Lifehouse Everything skit. (This night, the Holy Spirit showed up in a powerful, incredible way. If you get a chance, talk to one of the team members about it!)
• Helped feed about 300 malnourished women and children.
• Installed 2 of 3 trial cooking stoves for families who desperately need them.
• Cleaned up the garbage and cut bushes, weeds, and plants off of the land.

Overall, the team had an amazing, life-changing experience. The students worked hard and endured under challenging conditions. They were stretched, and as an effect, they grew.

Please pray for the students as they continue to process all God showed them while overseas.

Whether mixing concrete or making stoves…We remember to use our bodies for the purpose of furthering Christ’s kingdom. Whether spending time with kids in mere conversation, or playing soccer games with them, or participating in devotionals together, we appreciate the sense of God’s family as we worship with other nations and tongues. Their cultures differ from ours; but we can all share in the unity of the body of Christ. And that’s what missions is all about, taking Christ’s love and message of forgiveness to expand His family, His kingdom – all for His sake and glory.