Students Perspectives

Here some thoughts from students about the week:

"San Fran has toataly changed my perspective of life, and it has really pushed me to reach out to the homeless." - Adam Cruise

"San Fran is a community of hurting people; we are just out showing them God's love and their response is amazing." Brandon Horner

"The Lord is doing some amazing works and we are all growing in ways never imaginable. Please keep praying for us!" Abby Kauffman

"This trip has opened up my mind to what God can do through us. God is working in amazing ways! Thanks for all the prayers. :)" Juli Ressler

"San fran is different than wooster but it is not; the people are hurting the same way as they are in wooster...it's just that u can see their problems there out in the open more but othere people have problems too that we should be conserned with." Dan

"So far this week, God has helped revived my passion immensely and has put several challenging opportunities in front of me. It was amazing to see how one night after an eye-opening run in with a woman, we were able to finish praying with her -- it was a God thing."

"From tears on the plane to tears experiencing being broken by God!" Lindsay Doerr

"God is definately opeining my eyes and great to many many different things!!!" Danae Mulligan

"This trip is definately a life changing experience for me...just pray that God keeps working in our group and around the city!!!!" Jake

"Wow what an experience talking to the homeless is a blast, and the responses are really unexpected. great trip all around." Jeremiah

"It's so great to see what God is doing here in the Tenderloin of SF! I have talked to multiple people on the streets who have found Jesus and been off crack for years now. But there is still so much prayer needed for the thousands of others. Keep praying!" Cassie Carr

"~God Is SoOoOo GooD!~ =P" -Carlin Tiano

"WOW God has done some amazing things and lots more to come" -Joel Skaggs

"This week God has been teaching me a ton! I learned that when I'm going up to hand some one a cup of hot chocolate and try to share the gospel I need to surprisingly stop trying to think of strategies to get on the subject of God and focus on them and the opportunity will open. I need to just pray that He will do it all and it doesn't come from me. So I tried this out and was able to share the love of God and even a few verses and it didn't come from me at all. God is good!" - Kendra

"This trip has been monumental in helping me to understand what living a life of service is...and we're only three days in. God is good" -Billy

We will open the computer up again later and let student share some more thoughts. Yesterday after working at the San Francisco foodbank we returned to YWAM and hit the streets again prayer walking. This also gave students many opportunities to talk with people. Our leaders have challenged students that it's not about 'talking' with people...it's about getting to Jesus because it's what it all comes down to. To do that in a way that's not forceful and still relational has been a big stretch for many. Your students have ALL been individually challenged to turn a conversation to spiritual matters by themselves and so many have grown tremendously by this challenge and it provides many teaching moments.

After the prayer walk most of our team participated in the Bucket Brigade where we simply wash windows and clean toilets of the businesses of the Tenderloin. However a few of us including myself (Pastor Nick) were afforded the opportunity to visit an art studio of YWAM's a few neighborhoods away. This studio is making art to sell at a Galla in August. All of the money will be used to fight heroine production and help addicts. Much of the art being made and sold is made by 30 year old male heroine addicts or those recovering from it. It was a powerful experience to participate in these things. It also revealed some pain students on our team are dealing with...

which leads to our team time last night at Grace Cathedral overlooking the entire city. During our time at the altar of this great house of worship we praised God and then I challenged our students to allow God to use their pain for His fame. Juli Ressler shared her testimony and I couldn't fight back the tears. Jeremiah Falla opened up and shared some of the pain in his life and it was a great example of God's grace. From the scripture we read James 1 to consider the pain joy...from Psalm 51 to be broken of our sin before God...and from 2 Corinthians about being an aroma of Christ. We spent some intense moments with God asking him to use our crushing moments and hurts to become the smell of life! There were many students impacted deeply and became transparent about their hurts and pains. Please pray for healing, grace, and life change after this week to use our pain for God's fame!

Today's Agenda:

- Team time (Guys & Girls split)
- Love Feast (we will be feeding 100+ students in YWAM this afternoon)
- Dinner Out to Eat
- Commitment Service (where students will have the chance to react to what God's doing and consider how to develop a plan to be different when they return).

Thanks for the prayers!