Looking back on what God has done

Last week was our last week of programming for the school year. Wow...I still find it hard to believe. I hear time flies faster as you get older. I'm not that old, which is a little scary to think of!
It was a great year. As I look back over it I am reminded of God's continual faithfulness. He provided much needed volunteers, work groups who helped maintain the facility, finances so that I could go full time and also new faces among our children and youth.
To end the year, Melissa and I took our Jr and Sr High girls to Belle Isle for a "pizza picnic" and to just hang out. The girls loved playing on the playground and acting like kids!
For Kids Club, we held a carnival complete with a cotton candy machine, games and lots of candy. I even did some grilling (first time ever!)... It was a great week of fun and time to celebrate all that God has done
One of the biggest encouragements came in the last couple of months. I invited our two neighbor girls to come to Bible study. They both started coming. One of them, Crystal jumped right in. She memorized all the verses as well as the books of the Bible. She invited her friend Ashley to come. Both Ashley and Crystal have gone to several conferences with me and as well as to church. It is so exciting to see their enthusiasm to learn. They seem excited at any and every opportunity to be involved. I've also had fun just hanging out with these girls. Sometimes, they'll come over and we'll hang out in my backyard doing things like playing cards, drawing or taking fun pictures! As our relationships grow, I can see them opening up more and more and am praying that God will use it all to grow them in Him.

So now, the next step is Day Camp! We have 3 interns coming so far. Please pray that God would provide at least one more and that as we plan He would bring in the needed finances. Pray that it will be an amazing summer in which He is glorified!!!

Soccer camp

This past Saturday, the weather couldn't have been more perfect for our spring soccer program. Approximately 20 kids between the ages of 6-14 came out to learn some soccer skills and play the game. The combination of volunteers who knew how to play the sport and those of us who just helped assist (meaning, we didn't know exactly "how" to play!) worked out well.
I worked with the younger kids and found it to be a lot of fun. They definately get points for trying, but the endurance level was a little low :o) The challenge became keeping them on track. They did play a pretty good game though, and burned off a lot of energy! And at the end of the day, everybody had a great time!
At "half-time", Carlo's, a former youth group kid, came and shared with the kids about what it means to be new creatures in Christ. It's so encouraging to see how God has worked in Carlo's life and to have him come and be a positive roll model for the kids.

Hard times...

Living in the inner-city is truly a different life. I feel that over the last 9 months, I have been in the "honeymoon" stage. It's exciting, somewhat adventerous...and the best part by far is living near the kids and youth that I work with. I still am excited about it all, and know this is where I am suppose to be. But a few days ago, I was awakened to some of the challenges it faces.

On Sunday night, while driving with a friend, I saw that the street HPCO is located on and also where the Weidman's (our director/HPCO founder family) was completely blocked off and filled with police cars. I later learned that there had been a shooting and a man was killed. This is a street I spend a lot of time on, know people...it's pretty much my second home. It's so sad to see stuff like this happen. Fortunatley, no innocent bystanders were killed in the shoot out between this man and the police. And while to anyone looking in this was just a man who got what he deserved, he was still a man with a family, he was a father...who's to say one of our boys won't grow up and be in this kind of situation. Breaks my heart. There is so much anger, bitterness, and just plan feeling lost that growing up in this life brings. Only the hope of Jesus Christ can change that. I was remembering a sermon I heard about reaching the lost and how the pastor said we need to remember, the person is not the enemy, but the sin. There is a lot of sin in the city, but not any more than there is in the suburbs. They just don't hide it as well here. They also can't hide it under money and perfect lawns. To many people, it's about daily survival and being caught in the only lifestyle they have ever known.

Statistically, our kids don't have much of a chance of being successful. Chances are they will end up on the streets, selling drugs, getting pregnant by multiple men at young ages and living in poverty with no way out. But their not just statistics to me. They are lives, faces, children I love and that our Heavenly Father gave His life to be with. My prayer is that through the ministry here and the lives of believers who care, God will change the statistics with these kids and young people.