Mission Trip

I just got back from an amazing trip. I went with my youth group on a mission trip to West Virginia and it was awesome. God really opened my eyes to new things and ways of thinking. Randy, the speaker who works for Mustard Seeds & Mountains, was really great. He is an x-hippie-drug-dealer who came to Jesus in his early 20's. He talked about other kids who were not even double digits that were making a difference in their communities by reaching out to people and kids their age. Most of Randy's messages were depressing because he made me feel like, as a Christian, I was not doing enough for Jesus or using my life to further His kingdom. He talked about all of the problems in the world from slavery to drugs to war and how the next generation should ask God to help us change the world and show the love of God to others. You also do not need to go to a different country to be a missionary. There are plenty of things a person can do in their own country, and i also think that you should try to help your own country before helping another. It would be a little hypocritical. God also taught me to do whatever I can to further His kingdom. I CAN make a difference in the world. It IS possible to do.
When a fellow youth did the devotional during lunch at the work site, he did a really good job because I learned something new. We did James chapter - the taming of the tongue.
7All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, 8but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison
In these verses i realized that man can tame every other animal, but he cannot tame himself. That it why man needs God. I did feel the presence of God on this trip, through my work and fellowship.
In West Virginia the youth group split up into 2 groups and each was assigned a house to work on. You would get to know the family who lived there and talk to them. My group worked on the youth center that previous groups had started. Since a family did not live there we got to know some of the kids who came to hang out there. The manual labor that we did all weeks was mostly painting the house, scraping the paint, and a little landscaping. It was fun and i got to know the people in my group better- bonding. I am definately going back next year. =)