Today was our free day so after devotions at 7:30am and breakfast at 8am, we loaded the bus at 9am and drove about 45 minutes to go zip-lining. Everyone did it and we had a great time. Afterward we went for lunch overlooking a lake. Just after we finished eating and as we were about to take a group picture we saw a storm approaching over the lake. We took our picture then ran for the bus as the downpour began. We then drove to the market where we did our souvenir shopping. We got back to the Villa at 4:30pm. We have dinner at 6pm then at 7pm we will be having an evening of fun interactions with the girls. 
Nicaragua Mission Day 4
This morning we had team devotions at 7am followed by breakfast and worship and devotions with the Villa staff and some of the girls. We then got into a couple of groups and did work around the Villa. One group did yard work and another group worked on the road into the Villa, shoveling dirt out of the drainage ditch and using it to patch up another area of the road which had been washed out. We also enjoyed some time hanging out and playing with the girls. After dinner we had a service with the girls. Ady and Mike led worship, we did the “Everything” drama, and I preached. Following the message I gave an altar call and probably 30 people came up including both people from Nicaragua as well as our team. We had a powerful encounter with the Holy Spirit and the ministry time lasted over an hour as people were praying for one another. It was an in incredible time as the Spirit of God moved. Following the service we had our debriefing meeting as a team and it was marked by expressed feelings of being overwhelmed by the grace if God. We also heard reports of two girls giving their lives to Christ tonight! God is good! Thank you for continuing to pray for us. 
Nicaragua Mission Day 3
This morning we had devotions at 6:30am followed by breakfast at 7am. At 8am we loaded one bus with supplies and we boarded another, then we drove about an hour-and-a-half to Leon where we spent the day serving at a church pastored by Villa Esperanza director Wilbur’s mother. We painted classrooms, raked the yard, dug holes and installed fence posts. After lunch we had a ministry time with the children and youth. We played soccer, parachute, and other games while DJ Ren Raps was droppin’ beats. Then Ady, Mike and Donna led a time of singing; Donna told a Bible story featuring Timmy as Goliath, and a little boy as David; our team performed a drama; and I shared a simple message followed by prayer. We then did face painting, made balloon animals, and played more games with the kids until about 4pm. We said farewell and drove back to Villa where we had dinner, met and were given an inspirational and challenging talk by Wilbur, showered up, and had our team debriefing. The team is now practicing their dramas which we will be using during a time of ministry tomorrow evening. Everyone is serving honorably and in good spirits. 
Nicaragua Mission Day 2
This morning we had devotions at 7:30am followed by breakfast at 8:30am. At 10:15am we met the girls from Villa Esperanza for the first time, and we were all partnered up with one of them whom we sat next to during the ride to church, conversing with them so they could work on their English and for us to work on our Spanish. At church we enjoyed some great worship followed by a message by an American interpreted into Spanish.
Insert Crazy Story Here: As the preacher was delivering his message I kept thinking he had a similar accent to where I grew up. After church I went over and introduced myself. He said he was from upstate New York, not far from where I grew up. I asked him if he knew of Elim, the Bible college Ady and I attended. He did and said he knew some people from there from way back. He asked if I knew the Larkins. I assured him that I did. (Keep reading!) He said he was friends with David Larkin and also knew his brother Dan, and that many years ago he and his wife had adopted Dan Larkin’s daughter Carmen’s daughter. “You are not going to believe this,” I told him, “But I am Dan Larkin’s eldest grandson. Your daughter Jena is my cousin!” It was just a few years ago when Jena and our family were reunited. I am friends with her on Facebook but have not met her in person yet. In fact, right now she is just across town here in Nicaragua on a separate mission trip. How crazy is that!
After a picture of our family with Ted Sandquist (Jena’s dad), our team headed back to Villa Esperanza and had lunch with the girls and the staff. We then had a tour of the facilities and heard the history and vision of the ministry. We then spent a few hours playing basketball and soccer with the girls. A lot of fun!
After dinner this evening we practiced some songs for our outreach tomorrow then watched A movie with the girls. We have an early start tomorrow. Thanks for keeping up with us and keeping us in your prayers. 
Nicaragua Mission Day 1
This morning everyone got to the airport on time. After getting checked in, we prayed together and gave lots of hugs to parents, then we had lunch and went through security. Everything went well. We only two security check incidents. One leader (who shall remain nameless) had a can of mosquito repellent in their carryon. After Mike Fenimore had his bug spray thrown away we only one student who brought a full water bottle through and had to go back again. He said his mom packed it for him. (He is laughing as I write this. Parents, you can guess if the culprit was your son. lol!) We had a nice flight to Miami, grabbed dinner, and boarded our next flight to Managua. Another uneventful flight. We landed, went through Immigration, got all of our luggage, and met our Forward Edge trip coordinators, loaded the bus, and drove to Villa Esperanza. We got settled in and had a beief orientation, then we did group devos. We are about to turn in for the night. Unfortunately my computer decided to crash, so I am typing this on my phone. I have FFS (Fat Finger Syndrom), so please excuse any tuyops (typos).
10 Ways Youth Leaders Can Have Impact During Summer
Yesterday I wrote about why we change things up in the summer, pausing our regular weekly programs and offering fun events and a different discipleship venue. One of the reasons we stop our regular weekly programs is to give our adult leaders a break from the grind of prepping and leading lessons and so forth. BUT, that doesn’t mean they should totally disengage from students. Here are 10 ways adult youth workers can have an impact on students during the summer.
- Go to camp or on a missions trip with students. One week at camp or on the mission field can offer as much (if not more!) relational time with students than a full year of seeing kids once a week for Bible study, or before and after service.
- Attend summer events. For us, most of our summer events are designed to be fairly low-prep and to simply have fun together. As far as discipleship, I personally lead our summer Bible study. As such, adult leaders can simply come and be with students without the burden of prepping and facilitating.
- Lead summer events. If you happen to be an adult with the extra time on your hands during the summer, why not volunteer to help lead one or two or ten of the events.
- Champion summer events. Probably 75 percent of our summer events are planned for the evenings, but a couple of them do happen during the day. That inherently means many of our adult leaders can’t attend because of work. When that is the case, adults can still serve and have impact by championing what is happening with students. Shoot the kids a text and encourage them to attend, share the event on social media, etc.
- Take a student out for ice cream. Who doesn’t like ice cream during the summer? Whether ice cream, frozen yogurt, Italian ice, or (we’ll even expand it to …) coffee, breakfast, lunch, dinner, or dessert … take a few students out one-on-one. They will never forget it! I even offer to reimburse our leaders. (If you’re one of my leaders, I am reminding you of this.)
- Take some students to the beach. If you’re inland, take them to the lake or river or pool or water park. While you’re driving and hanging out, engage them in conversation about God.
- Have students over for a BBQ. Why not invite a handful of students to your home and grill out? Perhaps they’ve never been to your home. This is a great way for students to see you in another context. Plus, who doesn’t love grilling out in the summer?
- Do one-on-one mentoring with a core student. If your schedule permits, and you have the passion to do it, invite one or two of your core students to meet you for a Bible study or for mentoring in an area of their life over the summer. One thing I like about summer is that kids have more availability to meet during the day. Perhaps they can meet for breakfast once a week.
- Send notes. I am a big fan of snail mail. Everybody loves to get something in the mail. Whether it’s a card in the mail, a message on Facebook, a pic on Instagram, an e-mail, a text … pray for your students, then send them a little something to let them know you are praying for and thinking about them during the summer. Encourage them to be connecting and growing, and let them know you are cheering for them.
- Grow Yourself. Invest in your own spiritual growth and development so that you have more to offer students. Pick a book to read at the beach or on vacation that will help you grow in God and as a leader. Listen to a leadership podcast while you’re driving to Florida.
Changing Things Up: Youth Ministry in Summer
During the summer we take a break from our weekly programs on the weekends and midweek. We do this on the biblical concept of Sabbath. We do it to give our regular adult volunteers a breather from the weekly preparations and leading, so they don’t get burned out. We also do it to affirm the primary importance of families, giving them the chance to sit together in church, and to encourage more quality time together while the kids are out of school.
In place of our regular programs we simply have weekly events designed around the value of fun and the purpose of fellowship. We want our students to enjoy themselves and have fun events to do and to which they can invite their friends. It’s also a great way to help lower the “threat” or “intimidation” level for students who are making transitions, whether from Kid’s Ministry to Student Ministry, or from Jr. High Ministry to Sr. High Ministry.
I also offer a Bible study in a casual environment for student who would like to intentionally deepen their faith during the summer. I do it late enough in the morning so that students don’t feel like they can’t sleep in (not to mention, because I am not a morning person) – usually at 10am. Last summer I had students join me at a diner and we did a study on the Holy Spirit. This summer I am inviting students to join me at my house for Philippians and Pancakes.
Tomorrow I will write about how volunteer Adult Youth Leaders can maximize their impact over the summer months.
Every summer we experiment and have fun. If you’re in youth ministry, I would love to hear some of the things that you do to change things up in the summer. Share some of your success stories, funny stories, as well as stories about things that were not so successful.
We Now Have 2 High Schoolers!
On Tuesday last week Natalia officially graduated from 8th grade and we now have a high school freshman and a senior in our home. Where does that time go? Proud of our girl!
See Kings X in Concert (Bucket List: Check!)
Last night, after almost 30 years of rocking out to their music, I finally got to see Kings X live in concert. It was awesome introducing my very good friend Don to their legendary music. They were absolutely incredible! They are musicians’ musicians, and it was an honor to experience their music in person. If you love rock and roll, you need to check these guys out!
REVKEVJR.COM 
