France/Spain Mission Update (#2)

Today has been full of snow and full of getting excited about heading out on Tuesday for our mission's trip. As we've been gearing up for our trip, the team has been praying for the kids we will be ministering to while over there. Here are a few thoughts I have been pondering throughout the day that will hopefully help you pray for us and the kids we will soon be serving...

As a pastor, I understand some of the pressures kids face when their parents are in ministry. It's not always easy for them as there are many different pressures they sometimes face. As we've prepared for this trip and discussed this very concept, it has become apparent that the kids we will be serving face unique experiences and pressures as their parents serve the Lord across Europe.

One of the incredible pressures these kids face is related directly to the fact that they are many times the only Christ followers in their schools and neighborhoods. Europe is a very secular, humanistic culture that at best tolerates various world religions. With this in mind, many of the children we will have contact with spend the majority of their year interacting with other children who have very little to do with Christ or any god for that matter. Thus the opportunity to be with other children who know Christ as their Savior is a true highlight for them.

So please pray for the 30 kids we will be serving on this trip.

Pray that they will be encouraged to keep living for Jesus in a culture where they are often alone in their schools as Christ followers.

Pray that they will have fun just being kids instead of the kids of parents who are in full time ministry with all sorts of expectations in their places of service.

Pray that the four children from our church (Josh, Emma, Montana and Maggie) will develop some life long friendships with some of these kids.

Pray that we will grow in our understanding of how to best encourage these children and their parents as they take the good news of Jesus to very secular countries that have very little time or room for Christ.

Thanks for praying!!!