After having a week to get normal amounts of sleep and get back into the swing of the typical work week I am still reflecting on all that God did during out version of youth camp - Summer Of Service (a.k.a. S.O.S. 2009).
This is our third year for the event and each year it has become a better event in so many way. 2009 brought 7 church youth ministries together with a total of 72 students and about 15 youth leaders/youth pastors working to lead them through the week. Students arrived at our Harvest Fields property with sleeping bags and a week's worth of clothes on Sunday, July 19. We worshipped together, played together, prayed together, ate together and served together all week long. Students bunked at host homes or churches in age/gender specific groups to give it that "away at camp" feeling but we didn't go away - we served all over the Centre Region here at home.
Our hope and prayer is that SOS will be more than one week in the lives of students that shows them serving can be enjoyable - but that it will help to spur a change in how they live the rest of their lives. Serving and loving others as Jesus did/does!
They served their hearts out all week visiting at nursing homes, doing cleaning and grounds keeping at 3 school buildings, helping at St. Vincent de Paul's, S.P.C.A., Centre Peace, Faith Center in Bellefonte, Penns Valley Comm. Center, spending time with autistic students in an autistic support classroom, one group even did 3 hours worth of laundry for the new thrift shop at the Community Helps Center and lots of other projects. Many students also had the opportunity to do random act of kindness giveaways. We stood downtown in State College and at the Tally Rand in Bellefonte and handed out gift cards from Rita's Ice, Starbucks, Saints Cafe, Minit Mart gas cards, bottled water, etc. We sent students to the local pools each day to hand out freeze pops. We even held a 1$ car wash where we washed the car and then handed the driver a dollar (most folks could not be convinced to take the dollar bill :-)
In addition to all of the service that took place God was also spotted clearly working in hearts during our evening worship times. I know this entry is getting lengthy but I have to share our story from Wednesday night. The back story is that our worship band had felt that something was hindering worship the first 2 nights so there were several folks praying specifically about this. On Wednesday night worship seemed to have some breakthrough. Our speaker that night lead students to a time of repentance, talking about how the junk in our own hearts that we choose to live with and tell God "not now... I'll let you fix it later... not now, God" is the same stuff that keeps us from being who God wants us to be. It will be that same junk that keeps us from loving others the way Jesus wants us to love on his behalf. He invited students who felt there was something specific that they needed to offer to God and stop saying "not now" to kneel - telling them a leader would come and pray with them. In the midst of this very focused time we had one of the worst sound feed back issues I've ever heard! Students began to chuckle - our speaker immediately called students to stay focused - he shared that Satan knew God was working under that tent that night and that he (Satan) would love nothing more than to use that sound feedback to distract everyone away from what God was doing. It was evident on the faces of students that recognizing the truth in that statement brought a new sense of seriousness to their focus. God MOVED and it was good. We learned later that one student made a first time decision to become a Jesus follower that night - her's is a sweet, sweet story!!
To see a photo recap of SOS 2009 - click the video below!!!
