Thursday, July 15, 2010

On the downhill slope...

As I write this note, I have just over three weeks left in Yakima. I can't believe I'm on "the downhill slope" of the summer. It's really flown by.
Our main focus right now is gearing up for Summer camp. We leave on Monday for five days at Camp Touchet in Dayton, WA. We'll be focusing on the theme, "Jesus...and that's enough." Pray that our students will really see that Jesus is all they need. We're taking fifteen awesome students to camp. Our group is very unusual (by normal "youth group standards")...8 girls, 7 guys, about half are graduated Seniors, two sixth graders, church kids, kids we don't know very well. Pray for wisdom as we relate to such a wide range of students. Also, pray God changes lives. We are praying God saves some of our students next week. Please, pray with us!!!
I miss you all! Counting the days till I can give each of you a big hug! But also dreading having to say goodbye to my Washington church family. I'm so thankful for pockets of "family" all of the country. Also thankful that God is still the same God in Memphis, Arkadelphia, Yakima, and all around the world.

Friday, June 25, 2010

Saddle Ridge Ranch



Woah, I am exhausted. Just finished up a great week of Vacation Bible School. We had a great time learning about tumbleweeds and lassos and the ABC's at Saddle Ridge Ranch this week. :) But seriously, it was a wonderful time. This VBS was completely different than any one I'd ever done. First of all, it was at night. Secondly, it was for all ages--birth-senior adults. It definitely gave the week a different feel. Every night began with a family meal prepared by church members, and they were delicious! Then we headed into the worship rally where Meagan and I had the awesome privilege of leading the music. During the worship rally, we also took up a missions offering. These kids raised about $700 this week!! Wow! (Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young...) For the rest of the time, we went in with the youth and had a fun time of games and Bible Study. The week ended tonight with Pastors Luke and David getting "cow pied" in the face to reward various kids for special accomplishments. All in all, it was an incredible week.
Through leading the music this week, God really continued to confirm that music education is where I'm meant to be. I have loved every minute of preparing, teaching, and performing this music. I love the smiles on the kids' faces. And I love that little kids love to sing. No one has told them that it's not cool to sing. The just sing and dance and play because that's the kind of being God made them to be. I love to watch all that. Seeing these little ones sing and smile and laugh this week made me excited about what God has for me in the future.
In general, things are still going really well. Getting to know Meagan, David & Amy, and the people of THBC better every day. I'm still loving the people here. And I'm still getting fed very well. :) Meagan and I started a Bible Study with a few girls this week. We're gonna be studying 2 Peter 1 for the rest of the summer, and I'm SUPER excited about it! These girls are awesome and are really willing and eager to learn. I'm excited to see what God teaches me through His Word and through these young ladies as we grow together this summer.
Thank-you for all the prayers, letters, texts, and facebook messages. You all are the best support system I could ask for. Love y'all!

Kinsey Ann

Monday, June 21, 2010

Mountains and Summer Kick-off


So, I'm not very good at keeping this updated. So sorry. They're just keeping me busy up here! :)

The past week was absolutely incredible! It began on Monday with a trip to beautiful Mt. Rainier National Park. We can see Mt. Rainier from Yakima, but I never could've guessed that it was so huge! It was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen! Also, Meagan and I saw more snow than we had ever seen in our lives that day. I (being a dummy) thought that Chaco's would be a great thing to wear for the day. Bad idea. We ended up playing in the snow for a while, and I think I might have frostbite. Haha. Oh well, it was such a fun day! You definitely don't see something like that every day.

Wednesday was our Summer Kick-off party, and it was a great success! Many of our kids brought friends, and we had a great group of teenagers there. We spent the evening eating and playing games. Some of the games for the evening were...Blind Georgie Toss, Barf Ball, and (a subtle tribute to the Bellevue Student Ministry) the Mega Relay. As you can imagine, it was a fun-filled evening. :) We also had a great concert by a somewhat local musician, Bryson Foster. He's a very talented singer with a powerful story of redemption. The teenagers responded incredibly well to him and to the gospel he presented. We wrapped up the evening with a bonfire and s'mores. Pray that we will continue to see fruit from that night and that we will keep in contact with the kids who came for the first time.

God's doing some great things here! He's working in this youth ministry, and He's teaching me a lot. Continue to pray for God's guidance as we make decisions for the summer. Thanks so much for the prayers and encouragement. Love and miss you all!

Thursday, June 10, 2010

I am who the Great I AM says I am

So, if any of you are doing Lifeway's VBS for this year, you know that this title is referencing one of the songs. As Meagan and I have been preparing to lead the music for Terrace Heights' VBS, I feel like this song title explains alot about what God has been teaching me since I've been here. Here are some of the lyrics (Oh, how I love VBS songs! Haha!)...
I am who the Great I AM says I am!
I am one of His greatest creations.
He says that I am remarkably, wonderfully made,
And I am who He says I am!

I think I've always had a pretty good self-esteem, and most days I'm really comfortable with who God made me to be. Since I've been here, though, Satan has really been attacking me with feelings of inadequacy, worthlessness, and ugliness. First of all, my hair straightener broke on day 2. We've spent alot of time around little kids, and as much as I love them, I don't know the first thing about them! (Though I am learning!) And I've been doing a bit of "technological stuff," which y'all know is not my strong point! I know feelings of comparison and inadequacy is something we girls struggle with alot, but it has been intense since I've been here!

Last night, I was thinking alot about all these feelings I've been having, and Meagan and I started talking about it. Our talk turned into a hilarious conversation about how we've both been comparing ourselves to each other quite a bit since we got here. Funny how two girls will do that...even when they don't want to! Anyway, the conversation gave us a good laugh and made me thankful for a partner with DIFFERENT gifts than I have. We need each other in the Body of Christ, and we have DIFFERENT gifts for a reason. It is so true...each of us is remarkably, wonderfully made, and we shouldn't compare ourselves to anyone else. You would have thought I would have learned that simple lesson by now, huh? :)

Anyway, that's one of the main things I've been learning since I got here. I'm who God made ME to be. Pray that I continue to remember that this summer. I am who the Great I AM says I am! I am one of His greatest creations! And remember that you are too!

Kinsey Ann

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

First Week

I'm not much of a writer, but I know blogging is a great way to keep up with "all the friends" at home. So, I'm going to try my hand at it this summer!
I've been in Yakima, Washington State for about a week now. It's been wonderful so far! I'm getting along very well with my partner, Meagan. We have alot in common and we're having alot of fun together. The people here are really friendly and inviting. It has been really cool to watch a local church work together to take care of two college girls for a summer. We're living with one family, sleeping on other families' beds. Still other families have cleaned out their families for us to have some snack food. And others invite us into their homes for meals. It's really neat to see. And, yes Mama, we are getting fed VERY well! :)
I've really enjoyed getting to know the girls in the youth ministry. Teenagers here are alot like teenagers at home. The main difference is most of these girls have not grown up in a church setting. Please pray for me as I minister to these awesome girls! Pray that the relationships between us will continue to strengthen. And pray God will give me wisdom in ministering to girls whose upbringing is different from my own.
I love and miss you all, but I'm having a wonderful time up here. I can already tell God is going to "grow me up" alot this summer. :) I'm going to try to post on this blog pretty regularly, so be checking up. :)

Kinsey Ann

And, if any of you would care to write me (I would love it if you did), my address is...
Terrace Heights Baptist Church
619 South 41st Street
Yakima, WA 98901