Block Party gets week off to great start

The LINKED 78 youth group from Faith Church in Allentown, PA, is so excited to be taking part in BUMP Baltimore 2014! And the week could not have gotten off to a better start with the kickoff Block Party on Monday evening. We expected maybe 20-30 kids from the surrounding community to show up for this launch activity, but by the time the night was over, more than 60 kids ages 5-18 came to have fun in the parking lot of Stillmeadow Evangelical Free Church!!! Praise God!

The Block Party featured popcorn, sno-cones, cotton candy, hot dogs and activities such as face painting, a Tootsie Pop Toss, Ultimate Frisbee, a water balloon toss, football, chalk painting and much more! And while that all sounds great, how it all happened is a much better tale. Each of the 14 teens from Faith Church pretty much made it happen all by themselves. The 4 leaders from Faith Church, 2 BUMP interns and Stillmeadow staff couldn't have been more proud! We know there was a party in heaven as Our Lord watched this display of love!

Whether it was manning the food stations, helping set up, painting kids' faces (or in Rebecca's case, letting the kids paint her!), playing football until the point of exhaustion or just hanging out with kids and loving on them, our kids embraced this opportunity with every fiber of their being. I know it filled my heart with so much joy and hope to see them serving and loving so fully and without complaint.

I have no doubt it was the Holy Spirit who filled them and sustained them during this wonderful activity, and the lessons they learned earlier in the day certainly played a role, too. God can and does do powerful things in our midst, and the message of "Focusing on the Gospel" for EVERYONE from our devotional time was pivotal in understanding that. Our central verses for the day were from Acts 10:34-35:

"Then Peter began to speak: 'I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism, but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right.' "

Amen! As the week goes on, we will have many more opportunities to demonstrate that -- including later Tuesday afternoon, when the group goes to serve at The Samaritan Women, a local ministry that houses and loves on women who are victims of the heinous sex trafficking industry. Our group learned a lot about The Samaritan Women on Monday, a
nd I can't wait to see them put into action what they learned.

We also will be beginning our four-day VBS for the neighborhood kids on Tuesday night! Let's hope and pray that all 60 of those kids -- and then some! -- come out to hear the Word of God, watch a fun pirate skit, do some cool crafts and play some awesome games.

Thank you for your prayers for our group, and keep us in your prayers for the rest of the week. God has much more in store, and we are so grateful to have this opportunity! You will hear from some of our students and other leaders as the week goes on, too. God bless!

-- Jeff Weber, Student Ministries Assistant at Faith Church and BUMP Baltimore Leader