Written Daniel Garcia, Ministry Apprentice
Everyone always asks me, “Where do you see God working in your ministry?” To be truthful, I never know how to answer. I don’t want to lie, but I don’t know what it means to see God working. I’m still a rookie in the ministry life, and everything seems new. This summer I planned to do a Teens retreat. It was my first time having to lead and plan an event like this. It was nerve-wracking, and I kept reminiscing on the retreats I attended as a teenager. I was a difficult teen and made it challenging for leaders during retreats. I was scared God was going to show me what it was like to be on the other side.
God did the exact opposite of that. I was blessed with volunteers that encouraged me greatly. We met a few times to begin planning the retreat, but I still did not feel prepared. I have seen from afar the way Jarrett, our executive director, prepares similar events with great detail. I believed there would be no way I could pull this off. By the time we arrived at Shalom Retreat Center, I felt a deep sense of peace and serenity. I enjoyed every moment of it, and at times found myself wishing that the day wouldn’t come to an end. I decided to let God take control of where our conversations and time would go and slowly began to throw away the detailed schedule that we spent hours making. It was the best decision I could have made!
During our workshop, we talked about adversity. In John 16:33, Jesus tells us that we will face adversity in this world. I paired the teens up with people they don’t normally share with. They went deep. Some of them opened up about parents having money problems, moving from school to school, parents going through a divorce, and one of them even shared about a traumatizing car accident. After sharing I demonstrated the importance of relying on one another when adversity strikes. I had three teens link arms together to demonstrate a cord of three strands. When the teens saw a visual representation it all made sense to them.
By the end of the night, we had our bonfire. It was perfect. There’s nothing like having a fire and smores in July. There were countless stars in the sky! We sat in silence for a while admiring what God had created. Then I realized that God was working and He was working overtime. Every single second was enjoyable. The teens, volunteers, and I had a blast! We took time to do everything we had planned for and still somehow ended up having extra time to play a competitive match of basketball (that the girls ended up winning). Now, I know what it means to feel and see God working!
Serving God in a multicultural setting can be challenging. Mission Adelante will be hosting a seminar on August 17 to address mutuality and the importance of interdependent relationships in ministry. Speaker and author, Karen Gonzalez, will be leading the discussion and deconstructing the "us serving them" mentality. We would love for you to join us! Register here: http://www.missionadelante.org/mutuality
Love running? Want to support local non-profits? Join us on September 7, 2019 for Dream KCK 5K Race! Your registration fee and any additional donations support Mission Adelante and/or Second Wind. Register here: https://runsignup.com/Race/KS/KansasCity/DreamKCK
CURRENT NEEDS:
Do you have a heart for kids? Mission Adelante is looking for volunteers for its Refugee Kids Club, a dynamic and fun club program for kids ages 5-12. For more information and how to get involved visit www.missionadelante.org/kids.
Looking for a way to participate in Dream KCK 5K Race without actually running? How about volunteering to help runners during the race? Check out our volunteer opportunities and see which one best fits you! https://runsignup.com/Race/Volunteer/KS/KansasCity/DreamKCK