After five days of training with Kim, James, Tyler, and Max, we played Bounce (a basketball game) like old friends, cheering one another on and laughing at the tiniest jokes. Now the Harvest Summer 2011 team has been leading music officially for just over a week, and the basketball games are fewer and far between. The ministry, on the other hand, is really taking shape.
Generations Camp at Epworth Camp in Louisville, IL was our first stop and the location of my first God-appointment. On the third day of camp, I complimented a teen girl on her necklace and in return was offered the story of the boyfriend who had bestowed the necklace. He was struggling with health issues, and she was struggling with the relationship. Seeing her hurt and knowing I could do nothing in my own strength, I asked her if she would like me to pray with her. She gladly obliged, and at the end of the prayer, her smile showed relief. God’s hand was at work.
The events of the week to follow were amazing, exciting, and full of laughter and memories, but our stop at the Mt. Vernon United Methodist Children’s Home especially touched me. The kids/ young adults at this home had at some point in their lives been foster children, but the hardships of their lives kept them from bonding well with foster families. Toward our band, however, they were receptive and smiley. My heart went out to the thirty residents who joined us for the evening, and I wished I could stay with them to encourage them in their passions and teach them of God’s love for them. Many of them played instruments and sang, so I insisted they start a band. I wished I could stay and see that to existence, but that is not my ministry – yet.
As the rest of the team and I seek out the next step on our ministry paths, thank you for keeping us in your prayers. They do make a difference. Also take a minute to read Colossians 1:3, 9-14, an excerpt from a letter from Paul and Timothy directed to a group of Christians. This passage provides an excellent example of how to lift fellow Christians in prayer. God bless you, your ministry, your reading and your prayers. May His fire blaze in your life.
-Bonnie Pocklington