Thursday, July 5, 2012

Johnstown Trip - Day 5 (Wednesday)

On Wednesday, our groups had the awesome privilege of participating in an activity called "ATL" or "Ask the Lord." The group of thirty kids was split up into two, "Roc Salvation" and "30 feet deep." (These groups are the same that we have been preparing with throughout the year) "ATL" was simply asking the Lord for guidance on the day. We gathered together in prayer for about fifteen minutes and just let the Lord speak to us. The groups had no final destination and no goal to accomplish, we just gave it up to God to direct us and tell us exactly what we should do that day. My group (Roc Salvation) felt that the Lord was telling us to go to a park and to worship and just hand out water bottles. The way in which we came to that conclusion was truly miraculous. God used each one of our team members in different ways to piece together what and where we should be going. In the end, every team member was truly confident that we had the holy spirit living and working through us. So we went to a park and just started off worshiping. The mood at first was awkward and nobody really knew what to do. But eventually, kids started coming outside... and then another and then more after that. My group probably ministered to about twenty kids that day. Our goal wasn't to 'save' people, but rather to show them the love of Christ. If you saw the way the kids reacted to us and just loved spending time with us, you would know that this truly was from God. Caroline became close with a two year old, Meghan played Collin's guitar and sang with children, myself and various other team members played basketball with some kids, and overall we just loved on them. Praise Jesus for the experience my team was blessed with. On "30 feet deep" something truly amazing happened as well. Members of that team felt that they were called to go on a prayer walk. While on the prayer walk, the group went to go talk to/pray for and older gentlemen. In light of Independence Day, the man was hanging up a enormous flag to celebrate our freedom. Well actually, he was attempting to hang the flag but while doing so he discovered the flag was ripped into two. (the blue and stars was totally disconnected from the stripes) Luckily, Jen Wehrle is so awesome and she has amazing sewing abilities. When the group noticed this tear, immediately Jenn volunteered to sew it back up for him. Using only dental floss and extreme amounts of hard work, the flag was restored back to one final piece. God truly is blessing our teams with opportunities and boldness for the Lord. At night, our leaders and AIM staff brought us to see fireworks in the heart of Johnstown. We grew even closer to each other while playing ultimate frisbee, sharing laughs, and most importantly recognizing and honoring our freedoms we share in the United States. It was a July fourth that I and all the other team members will never forget. Praise God!

Alanna

I think you will like this!!!
http://www.wjactv.com/videos/news/wwii-flag-restored-on-july-4th/vcdqt/

3 comments:

  1. You all are such an inspiration to us all!! I get goosebumps reading and am continually praying that the rest of the trip is as full of surprises, wonders, and amazement!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I cant tell you how excited I am to read all that God is doing through this team! What an awesome reminder and example of how God leads us when we surrender to Him. As you finish up serving for the week, I hope and pray you all realize just how much God has worked through you. Nothing that happened on july 4th or the entire trip for that matter was merely coincidence or by chance. It was all due to the Holy Spirit leading you! You all have showed the love of Christ to many people this week, and I can't wait to hear what God did through you on thursday! Love you all!!

    -tim

    ReplyDelete
  3. So cool to see that there was news coverage about the flag-sewing! Who knows how many people that one seemingly-little thing ended up affecting? God is amazing and I am so proud of you guys for serving Him! Lisa D.

    ReplyDelete