WEEK 3 REPORT

Ministry Activities

5:00-5:30--> Talk to other staff members and learn to do sound board
5:30-5:40--> Introduce my girlfriend to the Bodyshop; she wants to help sponsor
5:40-6:00--> Sponsor meeting before opening; assigning tasks
6:00-7:00--> Meet with the kids; build relationships through games
7:00-7:45--> Main program; sit with kids in their groups; keep order during worship and message
7:45-8:30--> Play soccer with kids; meet with pastor Mike and other sponsers to arrange weekly Monday night meeting
8:30-9:00--> Help close up shop; keep order with kids that are leaving

Personal Reflection

It was interesting having Jess (my girlfriend) there tonight. I actually thought that I would be more distracted than I was. Thankfully we were able to do our own thing in order to best minister to the kids.
I noticed, to my dismay, that this week I spent more time doing what I wanted to than catering to the kids. I was playing soccer and then I noticed that there were eight sponsors and two kids playing. We all did not realize that the kids did not really want to play soccer. I talked with one girl in particular who pointed out to me that they usually had dodgeball in the place we had played soccer in and that it was something that she usually enjoyed doing. I intend to make it a point next week that we get as many kids involved doing dodgeball instead of us selfishly taking up the court to do what we as sponsors want to do.
Pastor Mike showed up tonight. Finally. We had a meeting with him and all the sponsors that let us know that the kids are not usually as crazy as they have been the past few weeks and that hopefully Pastor Mike's presence will calm them down over the coming weeks. That is encouraging because they have been pretty crazy so far.
I do not know if youth ministry is for me. If the kids keep up the way they have been then I am going to get drained. Maybe I am supposed to go into an older group. I do not know. I will try not to let the difficulty get to me, but it is not easy.

Spiritual Life

This week has been filled with temptation. The devil wants to make me fall and has been attacking every time my guard falls. Whenever my mind can wander or I am not fully awake he barrages my mind. I pray for the strength to fight him off and the wisdom to avoid tempting situations. Hopefully this will build into perseverence and I will be stronger for it in the future. Devotions are going well. I was challenged recently during devotion time about my prayer life. I am afraid that I have been treating God like an ATM instead of a personal, omnipotent, caring, loving God that wants to talk to me. My typical prayers have been "dear God, would you do this, thanks, by". I need to speak my frustrations and my cares to Him as well as my wonder at who He is. As well, I intend to build time in to listen. It is really more important for me to hear what He has to say than for Him to hear what I have to say. He already knows it anyway.