Hi, I’m 17, I want to be religious, but I just can’t really feel god all the time… anyways, last year I went with my youth group on a DCI Ministrys mission trip, which was really great and some of the activities were very spiritual and impacting, and the work we did was rewarding.
Anyways, my youthgroup at my Methodist church doesn’t have a real leader, but I think the parents would organize a mission trip if we got it started for them.
i’ve been doing a ton of google searches but would like to ask some real people.
if you know of any organizations or missions around the Pacific Northwest that are fun, rewarding, and spiritually rejuvenating, please let me know!!!!!
Jennifer’s correct in that mission trips can be a "mountain top" experience. I went on my first missions trip when I was a freshman in high school and immediately I was hooked. I found myself out there in situations where the gospel of Christ became real to me. I was no longer just studying Him in a sunday school class. I was active and the cool thing was God was actively using myself and my team mates as we shared the gospel with people we normally would have never seen before. And we saw God move as He brought people to Himself through us. Lives were changed, including ours! It was wonderful! Hard, but life changing! I knew then that this was what I wanted to do with my life.
I later attended DCI Ministries after high school and it was one of the highlights of my life. I’d highly recommend checking them out. On my trips we saw God move as He brought people to Himself through us. Lives were changed, including ours! It was wonderful! Hard, but life changing! It’s great for all ages and all denominations!
#1 by Periscope on May 13, 2010 - 4:01 am
Quote
1) What are you doing at a Methodist church? Are you looking for religion and *in the kind of voice you would use if saying the word "ghost" at Halloween-time* spirituality? A place to feel good about yourself as a person based on your actions? Or are you looking for Jesus and to be more like Him as you walk closer and closer to God? Put your motives and character and relationship with God in perspective before you go serving people in the Lord’s name. You shouldn’t be looking for events to spike your "spirituality." I’m doing a Bible study right now where I’m just in the Word everyday. It’s been more rewarding than ANY missions trip I’ve been on.
2) Check out Royal Servants through Reign Ministries. They’re AMAZING! It’s totally worth your summer. I went on the Ukraine Team last summer.
It. Was. Awesome.
Here’s their link: http://www.reignministries.org/content/site/royal-servants-participants/trip-overview
References :
#2 by Jennifer on May 13, 2010 - 4:49 am
Quote
The intensity and feelings that you experience on a mission trip is because the experiences are so new and so foreign to your everyday life. It’s a "mountaintop experience" because you get there and think, "Wow, this is what God is about! This is awesome." But you not supposed to live on a mountaintop. Those experiences are great, and an integral part of your relationship with God, but it’s a journey. Sometimes, there are low points, sometimes there are high points.
What often happens is that we come down off the mountain (back from the trip) and feel the low point and think that because we FEEL low that the mountaintop wasn’t real, or that we did something wrong. And so we STAY in the low point. The up and down feelings are normal…but God is about much more than just feelings. Take some time to really listen for God. It’s very hard outside the context of a mission trip because there are so many distractions, but turn off the phone and the TV and create some space for God to be able to come into your day.
You’ve touched the tip of the faith iceberg…it’s time to go deeper and do some work to get to know God further.
References :
#3 by Lover of Blue on May 13, 2010 - 5:06 am
Quote
Jennifer’s correct in that mission trips can be a "mountain top" experience. I went on my first missions trip when I was a freshman in high school and immediately I was hooked. I found myself out there in situations where the gospel of Christ became real to me. I was no longer just studying Him in a sunday school class. I was active and the cool thing was God was actively using myself and my team mates as we shared the gospel with people we normally would have never seen before. And we saw God move as He brought people to Himself through us. Lives were changed, including ours! It was wonderful! Hard, but life changing! I knew then that this was what I wanted to do with my life.
I later attended Youth With A Mission after high school and it was one of the highlights of my life. I’d highly recommend checking them out. There are bases all over the U.S. and world. Even one in Idaho and Canada. Each has it’s own focus but there is training offered in each that helps people grow closer to God and also get grounded in the Bible. But then take that experience with God and learning from the Bible out into the world both locally and internationally. And on my trips we saw God move as He brought people to Himself through us. Lives were changed, including ours! It was wonderful! Hard, but life changing! It’s great for all ages and all denominations!
http://www.ywam.com/
Washington Base -
http://www.ywamdb.org/about
Idaho Base -
http://www.ywamidaho.org/cascade/Home.html
Oregon Base -
http://www.ywamsalem.org/
British Columbia Canada Bases -
http://www.ywamcanada.org/locations/bc.html
Another top notch base is located in Colorado -
http://www.ywamcolorado.org/whoweare.html
References :
LOB